Mormon Quotes

Atheism

David O. McKay
Whole nations are declaring atheism to be the law of the land. Atheism has become the greatest weapon Satan has to use, and its evil influence is bringing degradation to millions throughout the world. Even at this moment as the sun throws warm, genial rays on snowcapped summits and frost‑covered valleys of this western land, the public press tells of increasing activity on the part of the evil one. Warlike activities and international misunderstandings prevent the establishing of peace and divert man's inventive genius from the paths of science, art, and literature, and apply it to human retardation and the holocaust of war.
David O. McKay, Peace Built Upon the Solid Foundation of Eternal Principles (David O. McKay, 1964 Semi‑Annual General Conference, Improvement Era)
David O. McKay
Who is this man who presumes to tell the United Nations what to do? He is a man who rejects the divinity of Jesus Christ and denies the existence of God, who is imbued with the false philosophy of Karl Marx, whose aim in life was "to dethrone God and destroy capitalism."
David O. McKay, "What About Jesus Christ" (David O. McKay, 1960 Semi‑Annual General Conference, Improvement Era)
Ezra Taft Benson
Organized atheism, representing just two percent of our population, has contaminated ‑‑ is still contaminating ‑‑ the whole course of American life, of Christian life everywhere. In this country today a two percent tail is wagging the big 98 percent dog. Never in all history have so many been hornswoggled by so few.
Ezra Taft Benson, Godless Forces Threaten Us (Ezra Taft Benson, 1969 Semi‑Annual General Conference, Improvement Era)
Ezra Taft Benson
Judging by its demoralized works, atheism has now quit advancing in this country simply because it has arrived. Not just rhetorically but actually—our country is in an ungodly mess. City streets are terrorized by crime; our biggest and most expensive campuses are paralyzed by nihilism and anarchy; with special license from the Supreme Court, theaters are boldly featuring sex perversion and the newsstands are loaded with hard‑core pornography. Big‑name investigating commissions have told us all about riots, crime, progress, and poverty, but always in materialistic terms of money, housing, social service jobs, and birth control—without a word about the possibilities for personal moral self‑restraint.
Ezra Taft Benson, Godless Forces Threaten Us (Ezra Taft Benson, 1969 Semi‑Annual General Conference, Improvement Era)
Ezra Taft Benson
The tenth plank in Karl Marx's Manifesto for destroying our kind of civilization advocated the establishment of "free education for all children in public schools." There were several reasons why Marx wanted government to run the schools. Dr. A. A. Hodge pointed out one of them when he said, "It is capable of exact demonstration that if every party in the State has the right of excluding from public schools whatever he does not believe to be true, then he that believes most must give way to him that believes least, and then he that believes least must give way to him that believes absolutely nothing, no matter in how small a minority the atheists or agnostics may be. It is self‑evident that on this scheme, if it is consistently and persistently carried out in all parts of the country, the United States system of national popular education will be the most efficient and widespread instrument for the propagation of atheism which the world has ever seen."
Ezra Taft Benson, Strengthening the Family (Ezra Taft Benson, 1970 Semi‑Annual General Conference, Improvement Era)
Ezra Taft Benson
It was boldly begun here in 1933 (November 16), when the United States announced our diplomatic recognition of atheistic Soviet Russia. For 15 years the United States had refused to recognize the godless Moscow Communists, for the reasons published at length in 1920 by Bainbridge Colby, Secretary of State in the administration of President Woodrow Wilson. In concluding his long letter of documentation and explanation, Colby had said this: "There cannot be any common ground upon which the Government of the United States can stand with a power whose conceptions are so entirely alien to our own, so utterly repugnant to our moral sense."
Ezra Taft Benson, Godless Forces Threaten Us (Ezra Taft Benson, 1969 Semi‑Annual General Conference, Improvement Era)
Ezra Taft Benson
As Americans ‑‑ as members of the worldwide Christian community ‑‑ we can defeat the godless, atheistic forces that threaten us. Yes, with the help of Almighty God we can ‑‑ we must ‑‑ win the war against the evil forces which seem almost to overwhelm us. The eternal verities revealed from God, through his inspired prophets, have not and will not change.
Ezra Taft Benson, Godless Forces Threaten Us (Ezra Taft Benson, 1969 Semi‑Annual General Conference, Improvement Era)
Ezra Taft Benson
Our families may be corrupted by worldly trends and teachings unless we know how to use the book [of Mormon] to expose and combat the falsehoods in socialism, organic evolution, rationalism, humanism, and so forth.
Ezra Taft Benson, A Witness and a Warning, p. 6
Ezra Taft Benson
But if atheism has taken over, then who and where are the atheists? It was sheer coincidence, of course, that the day after the 1968 astronauts gave us their inspiring prayer from the moon, the Gallup Poll reported that 98 percent of the American people believe in God. Fantastic? Not at all. How many avowed atheists do you know personally? Gallup also found that 65 percent of us believe in hell and 60 percent of all Americans believe in the devil. Now just a word to this big majority who believe in the devil. Who, in your opinion, has masterminded this tragic transformation of the official, controlling American mind? The devil? Through Satan's communistic counterfeit to the gospel? Then, why don't we all say so?
Ezra Taft Benson, Godless Forces Threaten Us (Ezra Taft Benson, 1969 Semi‑Annual General Conference, Improvement Era)
Ezra Taft Benson
Now what of the entertainment that is available to our young people today? Are you being undermined right in your home through your TV, radio, slick magazines, rock records? Much of the rock music is purposely designed to push immorality, narcotics, revolution, atheism, and nihilism, through language that often has a double meaning and with which many parents are not familiar.
Ezra Taft Benson, Strengthening the Family (Ezra Taft Benson, 1970 Semi‑Annual General Conference, Improvement Era)
Ezra Taft Benson
This recognition, together with the abandonment of the inspired Monroe Doctrine, gave the Red atheists a big diplomatic sanctuary for the coordination and direction of their propagandist spies and saboteurs. These promptly infiltrated every branch of our federal government and later every segment of our economy, and more recently have established a godless base 90 miles from our shores. Our recognition broke the ice of American resistance to the acceptance of the Kremlin gangsters into the international community as a legitimate government and so strengthened their iron grip upon the tortured people of Russia and her satellites.
Ezra Taft Benson, Godless Forces Threaten Us (Ezra Taft Benson, 1969 Semi‑Annual General Conference, Improvement Era)
Ezra Taft Benson
Those professed atheists, who have confidently relied upon science to dethrone and eclipse Almighty God, are already doing their manful best, of course, to rub out all reference to the prayer in their recapitulation and evaluation of Apollo 8.
Ezra Taft Benson, Godless Forces Threaten Us (Ezra Taft Benson, 1969 Semi‑Annual General Conference, Improvement Era)
Mark E. Petersen
I believe that the more thoroughly science is studied, the further does it take us away from anything comparable to atheism. If you think strongly enough, you will be forced by science to a belief in God, which is the foundation of all religion.
Mark E. Petersen, Know for Yourself (Mark E. Petersen, 1952 Annual General Conference, Improvement Era)
Mark E. Petersen
We need protection from atheism, for it can destroy our way of life.
Mark E. Petersen, America and God (Mark E. Petersen, 1968 Annual General Conference, Improvement Era)
Mark E. Petersen
Few scientific men today defend the atheistic attitude. Never yet has there been adequate refutation of the argument that design in the universe presumes an intelligence.
Mark E. Petersen, Know for Yourself (Mark E. Petersen, 1952 Annual General Conference, Improvement Era)
Mark E. Petersen
Atheism is the cause of most of our ills. If we were realistic about our present plight, we would admit that atheism in its many forms is our greatest enemy, whether it be in abandoning God for pleasure and money, or in yielding to philosophical meanderings, or in surrendering to those forces which break down family life, destroy free government, seduce the masses, and spawn hate and war.
Mark E. Petersen, America and God (Mark E. Petersen, 1968 Annual General Conference, Improvement Era)
Mark E. Petersen
I would like you to know that some of the great scientists, many of them, in fact, are devoted believers in God, and some of them have declared that atheism has no place among the true scientists.
Mark E. Petersen, Know for Yourself (Mark E. Petersen, 1952 Annual General Conference, Improvement Era)
Mark E. Petersen
We reject the inherent pessimism of humanism and fundamentalism alike; we reject the negativism of existentialism as the logical extension of a thorough‑going atheism. We proclaim that "man is that he might have joy" (2 Ne. 2:25); we therefore look upon the despair and melancholia of our day as abnormal and unnatural.
Mark E. Petersen, Know for Yourself (Mark E. Petersen, 1952 Annual General Conference, Improvement Era)
Mark E. Petersen
J. Edgar Hoover, head of the FBI, stated it this way: "What we need in America is a return to the God of our Fathers and a most vigorous defense against the minions of Godlessness and atheism."
Mark E. Petersen, America and God (Mark E. Petersen, 1968 Annual General Conference, Improvement Era)
Boyd K. Packer
The dangers I speak of come from the gay‑lesbian movement, the feminist movement (both of which are relatively new), and the ever‑present challenge from the so‑called scholars or intellectuals.
Boyd K. Packer, All‑Church Coordinating Council
Gerald N. Lund
Today, the world is permeated with philosophies similar to those taught by Korihor. We read them in books, see them championed in the movies and on television, and hear them taught in classrooms and sometimes in the churches of our time. Note just a few examples drawn from modern writings: "We believe that traditional dogmatic or authoritarian religions that place revelation, God, ritual, or creed above human needs and experience do a disservice to the human species. ... Traditional religions often offer solace to humans, but, as often, they inhibit humans from helping themselves or experiencing their full potentialities. ... Too often traditional faiths encourage dependence rather than independence." ("Humanist Manifesto II," The Humanist, Sept./Oct. 1973, pp. 5—6; compare Alma 30:14, 16, 27—28.) "Science affirms that the human species is an emergence from natural evolutionary forces. As far as we know, the total personality is a function of the biological organism transacting in a social and cultural context." (Ibid; compare Alma 30:17.) Here we see clear evidence of Mormon's inspiration to give us a full account of Korihor and his teachings. Korihor's teachings are old doctrine, and yet they are ideas as modern as today's high‑speed printing presses and satellite dishes.
Gerald N. Lund, Ensign, Countering Korihor's Philosophy, July 1992
Gerald N. Lund
The philosophy Satan taught Korihor is a rational system. It is not true, but it is rational!
Gerald N. Lund, Ensign, Countering Korihor's Philosophy, July 1992
Gerald N. Lund
Korihor's answer goes something like this (see Alma 30:23—28): There are two explanations for why people believe in religion. First, they have been indoctrinated by their parents (the "foolish traditions" of the fathers), and second, they have been deceived by religious leaders whose motives are personal gain—money and/or power. Further, Korihor's philosophy—expressed in his teaching to the people—is that this indoctrination of the people brings psychological abnormalities—"derangement" or a "frenzied mind." (Alma 30:16.) Since there is no God and since religion is a farce, Korihor concludes, we can live as we please without fear of eternal consequences.
Gerald N. Lund, Ensign, Countering Korihor's Philosophy, July 1992
Gerald N. Lund
Korihor had tried to teach people that happiness is to be found independent of God and the gospel. The Book of Mormon shows that this is not possible.
Gerald N. Lund, Ensign, Countering Korihor's Philosophy, July 1992
Gerald N. Lund
Like any philosophical system, Korihor's doctrine had metaphysical, epistemological, and axiological aspects. Together, they enabled him to convince many to reject the traditional values taught by the Church. For example, Korihor's argument that "ye cannot know of things which ye do not see" (Alma 30:15) reveals his epistemology—his system of determining truth—to be primarily empirical, or based on observation and use of the senses. (See chart 1.) However, the Apostle Paul says, "Faith is ... the evidence of things not seen." (Heb. 11:1; italics added.) Korihor's stance, however, is, "If you can't see it, you can't know it." He therefore rejects prophecy because prophecy deals with the future, and you cannot "see," or experience, the future with the physical senses. Consequently, all talk of a future Savior and redemption is to be rejected on principle.
Gerald N. Lund, Ensign, Countering Korihor's Philosophy, July 1992
Gerald N. Lund
This [rationalism] is the heart of Korihor's doctrine. By preaching his false philosophies, Korihor accomplishes Satan's designs in grand fashion.
Gerald N. Lund, Ensign, Countering Korihor's Philosophy, July 1992
Gerald N. Lund
Giddonah decides that Korihor's case warrants the full attention of Alma, so Korihor is taken to Alma in Zarahemla. It doesn't take Alma long to determine the ultimate source of Korihor's teachings. "The devil has power over you," he says to Korihor, "and he doth carry you about, working devices that he may destroy the children of God." (Alma 30:42.) Later, after Korihor is struck dumb, he confirms Alma's words. "The devil hath deceived me," he admits, "for he appeared unto me in the form of an angel, ... and he taught me that which I should say." (Alma 30:53.)
Gerald N. Lund, Ensign, Countering Korihor's Philosophy, July 1992
Gerald N. Lund
There are a number of corollaries, or inferences, that flow out of Korihor's fundamental philosophy. The first of these is revealed when Korihor is arrested and taken before Giddonah, the high priest. Giddonah demands to know why, if Korihor is correct in what he said, the people find so much joy in their religious experience. (See Alma 30:22.)
Gerald N. Lund, Ensign, Countering Korihor's Philosophy, July 1992
Albert E. Bowen
When you put God out, then atheism, skepticism, cynicism, all flock in; and when they flock in, their natural incidentals, the breaking down of standards by which men have lived enter in, and we have the turmoil and confusion and degradation that characterize this world today.
Albert E. Bowen, Faith in Christ (Albert E. Bowen, 1947 Semi‑Annual General Conference, Improvement Era)
Albert E. Bowen
Skepticism, self‑sufficiency, atheism, a denial of the divinity of Jesus the Christ, have supplanted belief, and lapses from the moral standards are but the natural result of the breaking down of that faith.
Albert E. Bowen, Faith in Christ (Albert E. Bowen, 1947 Semi‑Annual General Conference, Improvement Era)
Marion G. Romney
Socialism, wholly materialistic, is founded in the wisdom of men and not of God. Although all socialists may not be atheists, none of them in theory or practice seek the Lord to establish his righteousness (D&C 1:16).
Marion G. Romney, Socialism and the United Order Compared (Marion G. Romney, 1966 Annual General Conference, Improvement Era)
Thorpe B. Isaacson
Many of our large universities have now experienced a great growth in undergraduate study for religious courses, and many churches are now attracting crowds that overflow their meetinghouses. Attendance at religious courses has doubled. Many colleges and universities now hold what they call a "Religious Emphasis Week," and specialists have found that eighty percent recognize the need for religious faith, and now there are very few who will admit atheism. "Lean not on thine own understanding."
Thorpe B. Isaacson, Trust in the Lord (Thorpe B. Isaacson, 1956 Semi‑Annual General Conference, Improvement Era)
Daniel C. Peterson
There aren't many [reasons for excommunication], really. Flat out saying Joseph Smith was a liar, I think, yeah, there's no reason for you to be a Latter‑day Saint. ... It gets a little fuzzier after that. Advocating a nonhistorical Book of Mormon, for example, advocating it in the church, I'd probably say you can't do that. If you believe it privately, that's your business. ... If they're not talking about it, if they're not advocating it, then I would say leave them alone. Work with them, if nothing else, but leave them alone. So I don't see a really clear line there. Obviously there's no room in the church for, say, a vibrant Mormon atheist movement or something like that. ...
Daniel C. Peterson, PBS, The Mormons
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