The true meaning of the fast and the purpose of welfare work were among topics President Thomas S. Monson of the First Presidency spoke of in an address at the April 1986 general conference.
He cited a passage from Isaiah concerning the true fast:" `Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh?' (Isa. 58:7.)
"Appearing as a golden thread woven through the tapestry of the welfare program is the truth taught by the Apostle Paul: `The letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.' (2 Cor. 3:6.)
"What has the Lord said about the spirit of this work? In a revelation given to the Prophet Joseph at Kirtland, Ohio, in June of 1831, He declared: `Remember in all things the poor and the needy, the sick and the afflicted, for he that doeth not these things, the same is not my disciple.' " (D&C 52:40.)
President Monson told of having been, in 1982, a member of President Ronald Reagan's Task Force on Private Sector Initiatives. "Meeting in the White House with prominent leaders assembled from throughout the nation, President Reagan paid tribute to the welfare program of the Church," President Monson said. "He observed: `Elder Monson is here representing The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. If, during the period of the Great Depression, every church had come forth with a welfare program founded on correct principles as his church did, we would not be in the difficulty in which we find ourselves today.' President Reagan praised self-sufficiency; lauded our storehouse, production, and distribution system; and emphasized family members assisting one another. He urged that in our need we turn not to government but rather to ourselves.
"On another occasion in the White House, I was asked to present to a gathering of America's religious leaders an example of our welfare program in action. I could have chosen many illustrations, but selected as typical our response to the Teton Dam disaster in Idaho. The result was dramatic. As the First Presidency stated fifty years ago, `The eyes of the world are upon us.' While this is a most important consideration, let us particularly remember that the eyes of God are similarly focused. What might He observe?
"Are we generous in the payment of our fast offerings? That we should be so was taught by President Spencer W. Kimball, who urged that `instead of the amount saved by our two or more meals of fasting, perhaps much, much more - ten times more [be given] when we are in a position to do it.' " (October 1977 general conference.)
