Quotes from the Brethren
Gordon B. Hinckley–
In 1933 there was a movement in the United States to overturn the law which prohibited commerce in alcoholic beverages. When it came to a vote, Utah was the deciding state.
I was on a mission, working in London, England, when I read the newspaper headlines that screamed, “Utah Kills Prohibition.”
President Heber J. Grant, then President of this Church, had pleaded with our people against voting to nullify Prohibition. It broke his heart when so many members of the Church in this state disregarded his counsel. On this occasion I am not going to talk about the good or bad of Prohibition but rather of uncompromising loyalty to the Church. (Gordon B. Hinckley, “Loyalty,” Ensign, May 2003, 58 )
William G. Hartley–
By the time Elder Heber J. Grant became Church President in 1918, America was in a reform crusade called Prohibition. One year earlier, in December 1917, the U.S. Congress had approved an amendment to the Constitution making the production and sale of alcohol illegal; the states ratified the amendment in January 1919. President Grant, a Word of Wisdom advocate, called Prohibition “the greatest financial and moral blessing that has ever come to humanity.” 10 But Prohibition failed to end the alcohol trade, driving it underground instead. (William G. Hartley, “The Church Grows in Strength,” Ensign, Sept. 1999, 32)
Russell M. Nelson–We reach out in love to family, friends, and neighbors, regardless of nationality or creed, who suffer addiction [of tobacco, alcohol, and drugs]. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints continues to help relieve this international plague.
The solution to this problem ultimately is neither governmental nor institutional. Nor is it a question of legality. It is a matter of individual choice and commitment. Agency must be understood. The importance of the will in making crucial choices must be known. Then steps toward relief can follow. (Russell M. Nelson, “Addiction or Freedom,” Ensign, Nov. 1988, 6)
Quotes from the Founders
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