Item Detail
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17822
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1
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0
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English
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Elder Dallin H. Oaks : the Mormons, politics, and family values
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Religious Leaders and Faith-based Politics
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New York
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Rowman & Littlefield
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71-87
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This essay presents the Church's stance on politics in asserting that the Church does not enter into political debates unless those debates deal primarily with critical moral issues. Even when the Church decides to make a statement on a particular issue or to take an activist role in promoting a certain position, it usually does so only after substantial social pressure--rarely will the Church take the initiative to change public policy. Elder Dallin H. Oaks has had extensive experience in the legal world and in the sphere of public policy debate and is quoted several times in this essay as an authority on LDS political position. The primary conclusion of the essay is that, historically, the LDS Church has entered into the political arena only when attemping to prevent legislation resulting in moral degradation.