I have enjoyed reading the BYU institute manual that corresponds to the Doctrine and Covenants. I was particularly struck by a passage elaborating upon DC 68:30, which reads:
DC 68:30 And the inhabitants of Zion also shall remember their labors, inasmuch as they are appointed to labor, in all faithfulness; for the idler shall be had in remembrance before the Lord.
This scripture, and the section from the manual that I will conclude with, are very meaningful to me. I served my mission in the Dakotas and worked with a large number of Native Americans. It quickly became clear that the governments treatment of them, while well intentioned, was crippling. The Native Americans each receive monthly checks, every month for all their lives. This is dispensed to them with no apparent conditions. As a result, many of these souls who have so much potential dwindle in idleness and place no value on what they do receive. Such free giving breeds dependence and undermines self-confidence, faith, and a worthy perception of the world and our place in it. Truly, it is destroying them. And now for the selection from the manual, which includes some excellent words from Elder Haight:
A human weakness that draws sharp rebuke from the Lord is that of an idler who lives upon the labor of others (see D&C 42:42; 56:17; 60:13; 75:29). Government welfare programs that dole out money or goods without requiring labor in return can help spread this problem. Elder David B. Haight taught: “What has this monstrous thing called government welfare done to the people? Today we have second- and third-generation welfare recipients. Millions have learned how to live off the government. Children are growing up without knowing the value and the dignity of work. The government has succeeded in doing what the Church welfare program seeks to prevent. . . . “But Church members are not immune to the perils of the government dole. There is evidence that some of our people are receiving something for nothing from the government. The fact that this condition exists in the Church highlights the need of our members to be knowledgeable about Church welfare principles. President Kimball has stated: ‘No true Latter-day Saint, while physically or emotionally able, will voluntarily shift the burden of his own or his family’s well-being to someone else’ (Ensign, May 1978, p. 79.” (In Conference Report, Oct. 1978, p. 86; or Ensign, Nov. 1978, p. 86.) The Lord’s welfare program emphasizes the principles of work and self-respect, requiring labor according to ability.
Everyone needs to have an understanding of their own agency and independence as they strive to develop their faith. Then a certain question plagues me: what about the Medicare, Pell Grants, and other assistance that I have happily accepted? Where do I fall in this scale?