PROVO, Utah — Preserve and promote moral agency. That was the plea given by Elder D. Todd Christofferson to the more than 6,800 students graduating from Brigham Young University on Thursday, April 27.
“In the years ahead, work hard to preserve and wisely exercise your own moral agency, and work equally hard to preserve and provide that same blessing of moral agency to others,” Elder Christofferson told graduates. “Let us all be agents rather than objects.”
In addition to Elder Christofferson, Thursday’s event included remarks by BYU President Kevin J Worthen, his final commencement ceremony before completing his time as BYU’s 13th president, on May 1. With tears in his eyes, President Worthen stood as those gathered in the packed Marriott Center gave him an enthusiastic standing ovation.
To President Worthen and his wife, Sister Peggy Worthen, Elder Christofferson said, “Kevin and Peggy, you have made us proud, and we wish you Godspeed and the Lord’s continuing blessings in the endeavors of the future.”
Thursday’s ceremony also included the conferral of an honorary doctorate degree on the Rev. Andrew Teal, a chaplain and theologian at Oxford’s Pembroke College and a close friend of Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and Elder Matthew S. Holland, a General Authority Seventy.
Elder Christofferson expressed his personal pleasure in witnessing the bestowal of the honorary degree. “Yours is a life well-lived,” he told the Rev. Teal, “and your association with Brigham Young University adds a certain brightness to the reputation and stature of our school. We have sought to honor you, but you conspicuously honor us by your character and contributions.”
In his remarks, the Rev. Teal thanked the university. “I will know no greater honor than this,” he said, and shared his love and gratitude to BYU and the Church. “We are so blessed today to become part of the life and history of this amazing world-class university.”
Elder Christofferson’s wife, Sister Kathy Christofferson, as well as Elder Clark G. Gilbert, Church commissioner of education, and his wife, Sister Christine Gilbert; Elder Matthew S. Holland; and C. Shane Reese, a current academic vice president and the university’s next president, and his wife, Sister Wendy Wood Reese, were also in attendance.
Moral agency
Scriptures in the Pearl of Great Price, Book of Mormon, and Doctrine and Covenants help individuals understand that agency — “our ability to choose and to act for ourselves, rather than simply being acted upon by forces beyond our control” — has a moral dimension, Elder Christofferson said.
“When we choose in the light of, and in harmony with moral truths, we reap redemption, peace, joy and, eventually, eternal life. To act guided by contrary principles leads us in the opposite direction.”
When used in a manner consistent with moral truths, agency looks like a blessing, while agency used in a manner that rejects moral truths looks like a curse, Elder Christofferson said. “But, in the end, God has no other option for nurturing His children toward becoming as He is.”
Elder Christofferson noted that many of the day’s graduates have come of age at a time when agency and accountability are under-appreciated. “Of particular concern are: One, trends and philosophies that deny the reality of individual moral agency, and, two, societal conditions that disable the effective exercise of individual agency.”
As graduates work to promote and preserve moral agency in the years ahead, they must continue to study the gospel of Jesus Christ, “wherein are found those essential truths that enable the intelligent use of moral agency,” Elder Christofferson said. “The more fully you and I grasp gospel principles and truths, the greater our motivation will be to incorporate them into our character and the better our choices can be.”
Preserving the moral agency of others can flow from the various ways that graduates will contribute to their communities and countries, especially as they lift and empower the disadvantaged.
He cited Doctrine and Covenants 98:9-10, where the Lord says “honest men and wise men should be sought for diligently.”
“Some of you will, I trust, be those honest, good and wise men and women that we can look to in years ahead for the kind of political, professional, and community leadership that preserves moral agency and accountability,” Elder Christofferson said.
What matters most, however, is what graduates do at home, he said, and quoted “The Family: A Proclamation to the World.”
“The family is ordained of God. Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal plan. Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity. ...
“We call upon responsible citizens and officers of government everywhere to promote those measures designed to maintain and strengthen the family as the fundamental unit of society.”
Elder Christofferson testified that “precious agency” originates from God, the Father. “In the gift of His Son, He has redeemed mankind from the Fall, and ‘[we] have become free forever, knowing good from evil; to act for [ourselves] and not to be acted upon’ (2 Nephi 2:26–27). ... Never forget that it is because of Jesus Christ and His Atonement that we can act to choose God and His righteousness. Praise be to Him.”
Day of exclamation
In his last remarks as president of the university, President Worthen noted the history and evolution of the exclamation point, from ancient Greece to its inclusion in the 1970s on a typewriter keyboard. Over time, he noted, it has come to signify an expression of strong sentiment.
“So what does all this have to do with you, the class of 2023?” President Worthen asked. He outlined three things he hopes graduates will think about every time they see an exclamation point.
First, he said, he hopes they will think of the importance of creating space in daily life for things of eternal perspective — daily scripture study, prayer and contemplation. “Just as adding spaces to the end of words allowed the ancient Greeks to turn a cacophony of letters into a comprehensible message, creating sacred spaces in your daily lives will allow you to make sense of the sometimes seemingly chaotic events that swirl around you.”
Second, he hopes the sight of an exclamation point will remind graduates that their “eternal DNA” wants to exultingly celebrate good things. “The desire to enthusiastically express joy and admiration for the accomplishments of others is a divine trait, which we should all cultivate,” President Worthen said. “That will help us build bridges of understanding and avoid contention, as President [Russell M.] Nelson has encouraged all of us to do.”
Third, the exclamation point can serve as a reminder for the need for resilience in life. “Just as the exclamation point has survived and thrived, even in times when it was less popular — even when it was left off the keyboard — we should be optimistic in the future regardless of our present circumstances. We should trust that God will keep His promise that all things will work together for good for those who love Him,” President Worthen said.
To the class of 2023, President Worthen said, “Congratulations — exclamation point. We joyfully celebrate your accomplishments, with the assurance that, because of Jesus Christ, the best is yet to come. May that truth resonate with and elevate your spirit on this day of exclamation.”
