The Church: Scaffolding for our lives by Elder Tom Perry
Here is a segment:
"Today, the Church of Jesus of Latter-day Saints is truly a world-wide church. Nevertheless, it is important for all of us to realize that the Church could never have become what it is today without the birth of a great nation, the United States of America. The Lord prepared a new land to attract the peoples of the world who sought liberty and religious freedoms. The new land was blessed with strong leaders who felt duty-bound to establish a government that allowed individuals to worship according to their own conscience. The Founding Fathers believed religious faith was fundamental to the establishment of strong government.
Many Americans have forgotten the central importance of religious beliefs in the formation of the policies, laws, and rules of government. Many of our fellow citizens do not understand that the Founders believed the role of religion would be as important in our day as it was in their day. The Founders did not consider “religion and morality” an intellectual exercise—they forcefully declared it an essential ingredient of "good government and the happiness of mankind.”
This position was set forth by President George Washington in his Farewell Address. He said:
"Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports. . . . And let us with caution indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained without religion. . .reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail to the exclusion of religious principle. It is substantially true that virtue or morality is a necessary spring of popular government."1"
The talk touches on the need for religion in government, the need of a moral foundation to create a nation that is truly "under God," and the need for personal conversion and determination to do what is right to provide "scaffolding" in our lives.
There are definitely different elements of this talk that can be used for other months, but it is a great resource to refer to to capture the meaning of this month/principle
