Come, Follow Me Insights

If there is an Emperor, a King, a President, a ruler of any nation or people, whether a monarchy, kingdom or republic, that takes away from any of his subjects or fellow-citizens the right to worship God according to the dictates of their own consciences, he deprives them of a right which the God of heaven has guaranteed unto them. These are the sentiments of the Latter-day Saints. We believe in giving to all men freedom, freedom in spirit and action; we believe in religionists of every creed and faith enjoying the liberty to worship God according to the dictates of their own consciences, which right is guaranteed unto them by God Himself; and the man or set of men that would deprive their fellows of this God-given right assumes a responsibility that they must answer for before the bar of God. If I had the power and control of the whole world I would never think of depriving any man, woman or child of this natural; this inherent right, whether their religious views were true or false. Can you find from history that God at any time forced any man to heaven or Hell? No, you can not. And we as Latter-day Saints claim this right and privilege for ourselves to worship God, to believe in God, and to believe in the records of divine truth—the Bible, the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants and the revelations of God.