Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was invited to participate in the 3rd International Dialogue of Civilizations and Tolerance Conference in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Elder Bednar, unable to attend in person, recorded a message that was shown to policymakers and distinguished guests attending the conference.
Starting his message, Elder Bednar asked viewers to consider two reflective questions on using technology to support strong families:
- “Does the use of various technologies and media in our lives help to make us better people and strengthen our families?”
- “Does the time we spend using technologies and media enlarge or restrict our capacity to live, love and serve others in meaningful ways?”
The role of the family
A vulnerable place is ideal for growth, Elder Bednar explained.
The Apostle compared families to a mirror in that they “help us become aware of imperfection or flaws we may not be able or want to acknowledge,” he said. “No one knows us better than those closest to us.”
He explained that for this reason, families are the ideal place to learn how to appropriately use modern technological advancements “to become who we and they really need us to become.”
The role of one’s agency
Just as families allow one to develop spiritually and temporally, individual moral agency creates an atmosphere of empowerment where one may grow, Elder Bednar said. “I strongly believe in the principle of individual moral agency.”
He taught that one of the fundamental purposes of one’s agency is “to love one another and to make the world a better place. It is not to do whatever we want whenever we will, but to act in accordance with what is right and just.”
Elder Bednar then warned about negative influences affecting one’s agency, instructing viewers to be cautious.
“We should not be naive and place too much trust in any and all applications of AI technology, despite how tempting they might be,” he said. “Rather, we can and must learn to be wise and to protect our distinctive capacities and abilities as human beings.”
How to achieve success
Elder Bednar shared a key to helping youth have success in their lives is by encouraging them to: “Be true to their identity and focused on remembering who they are,” especially as wavering opinions and voices swarm through new technologies.
“Technology can support these efforts but should not in any way distract from or become a substitute for our individual and collective efforts to support young people as future leaders,” he advised.
Speaking to the policymakers and experts attending the conference, Elder Bednar said his hope that all will share the goal of interacting with technologies to help the youth become a cohesive and resilient generation and community.
In closing, he said: “I pray we unitedly will pursue these noble objectives and not be distracted from the true purpose of our lives and our love for one another.”
