The Church has appointed official delegates to represent it at the World Congress of Families, which convenes in Prague, the Czech Republic, March 19-22, Elder Dallin H. Oaks of the Quorum of the Twelve told the Church News.
Elder Charles Didier of the Seventy and president of the Europe East Area will serve as the presiding Church leader of the delegation. Others participating are Elder Bruce C. Hafen of the Seventy and first counselor in the Pacific Area presidency, Relief Society General Pres. Elaine L. Jack, Lucie L. Didier and Marie K. Hafen.Elder Hafen, former president of Ricks College and BYU provost, and a former professor at BYU's J. Reuben Clark School of Law, is scheduled to address the congress. Also scheduled to speak at a session is Lynn Wardle, a law professor at BYU.
"There are many forces in the world today which promote family definitions and practices that are contrary to gospel values, things like cohabitation outside marriage, single-sex relationships and abortions," Elder Oaks said as he explained the importance of having a Church presence at the international convention. "Also, there are some nations of the world that sponsor the idea that key decisions about the raising of children should be made by the state instead of by parents. These are quite extreme ideas, but they are out there."
Elder Oaks read a statement issued by the convening committee of the World Congress of Families: " ` . . . As the year 2000 approaches, defenders of the family from about the globe must come together to restore the family as the first social institution and as the center of civilization in all places.' "
He said that the committee listed three major purposes for the World Congress of Families:
Explore common sources of family decay.
Define social and economic settings which most encourage the flourishing of family life.
Develop and issue "A Declaration from the Families of the Nations to the Governments of the Globe," laying out the proper relationship between the family and the state.
Elder Oaks said, "The Church is anxious to have official representation to show support for an effort that is itself supportive of wholesome values. It shows our interest as a worldwide Church in having a voice in a conference with these kinds of objectives. In view of their stated aims, it is appropriate for us to participate in the World Congress of Families to reinforce what that congress is seeking to accomplish."
Elder Didier said that the next century will be a decisive time in the history of civilization. "We cannot preserve our high level of culture and our technological stature without preserving the basic fundamentals or values necessary to support a modern society: family, moral and spiritual laws," he said.
"The trends presented daily in the media represent an intellectual and political ideology hostile to the family structure and to family values. Those trends, if not changed, will destroy our civilization.
"The World Congress of Families is an attempt to defend, restore and reaffirm the traditional Godly concept of family as the center of civilization."
Elder Didier said that the preservation of the family structures and values is of utmost importance for the Church and the future, and was re-emphasized by the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve in "A Proclamation to the World" on the family. Copies of this proclamation, which was issued in 1995, will be distributed in Prague in the official languages of the World Congress of Families: Czech, English, French, Spanish, German and Russian.
"This solemn declaration and message permit local Church leaders and missionaries to build a firm relationship of trust with religious, community or government officials in a spirit of truth and love in all the nations," Elder Didier said.
"The presence of official Church representatives in that congress emphasizes the importance of the true concept of the family in our modern society."
Pres. Jack said she is pleased to have the opportunity to participate in the World Congress of Families. "I feel so good about the promotion of the family as a strong unit that the Church espouses," she said. "The statement issued regarding `the family as the first social institution and as the center of civilization' really impresses me.
"This is an important issue. I know what an influence women have in the home, and I speak often on the value of homes. In A Proclamation to the World' on the Family, the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve stated,Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children.' The proclamation states that fathers, too, have responsibilities. Children need to be taught that they're part of the family unit, that they're not here as `an also-ran' but that they are a vital part of the family."
Pres. Jack spoke of the broad range of nationalities that will be represented at the World Congress of Families. "I think of the implications of groups who are interested in promoting family values from these diverse areas of the world; this can't help but make a difference. We are not alone in our interest in and concern for the family. Sometimes, we might think we're alone but we are not. We have something to offer and we can support other groups, and we can learn from others. We can extend our influence."
Before he was called to the Seventy in 1996, Elder Hafen served as a member of the convening committee that originally planned the World Congress of Families in Prague. The committee was chaired by Allan Carlson of the Illinois-based Rockford Institute, which is a sponsoring organization of the congress. Elder Hafen told the Church News that he had been invited to serve on the committee because of his research and publication activities on family law policy.
"My critique of the recent United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, `Abandoning Children to Their Autonomy,' (published in 1996 in the Harvard International Law Journal) had brought me into contact with pro-family groups in Europe and Japan," he said. "This experience helped me see that the pattern of deteriorating family commitments we've recently seen in the U.S. is now a major international problem.
"I saw the World Congress of Families as an opportunity to work with scholars and pro-family groups from many countries who welcome gospel teachings about family life. In its first meeting, the convening committee defined the family as `a man and a woman bound in a lifelong covenant of marriage for the purposes of continuing the human species, rearing children, regulating sexuality, providing mutual support and protection, creating an altruistic domestic economy, and maintaining bonds between the generations."
Elder Hafen said that he gave the convening committee copies in several languages of the Proclamation to the World on the Family. "The committee members were extremely grateful for this statement," Elder Hafen said.
"People across the world are recognizing that the teachings and the people of our Church offer the best available example of stable, productive family life. The congress thus offers the Church an opportunity to influence and support opinion leaders and grass roots organizers from many nations in confronting what the draft declaration calls a profound worldwide crisis' . . . thatacross the globe, the family exhibits an accelerating decline as . . . an institutional presence and as a cultural force.' "
