DES MOINES, Iowa — Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds visited the annual interfaith breakfast in the state Capitol Rotunda on April 14 that was sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in conjunction with the Iowa Catholic Conference and the Des Moines Area Religious Council.
Reynolds addressed the crowd of more than 150 people and signed a proclamation naming the day as Iowa Religious Freedom Day.
“Iowans believe that our liberties are more secure when religious belief is both strong and free,” she said in remarks before reading and signing the proclamation.
The audience included leaders from Catholic, Jewish, Muslim, Greek Orthodox and other faiths. Elder Kirt L. Hodges, an Area Seventy, represented The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He later met with Latter-day Saint youth to instruct them on ways to become engaged in civic affairs, and he joined them in a service project at the Des Moines Area Religious Council food bank.
Build foundations of respect, understanding
Imam Nermin Spahic of the Islamic Cultural Center Bosniak in Granger, Iowa, said: “This is something that makes me happy as a believer, as a human being, to be part of this wonderful event. It’s very important that your neighbor can be Jewish, Muslim, Christian, Hindu, Buddhist or other beliefs. Just spend time together. This builds understanding.”
Pastor Micah Fries of the Multi-Faith Neighbors Network and a Southern Baptist pastor was the keynote speaker. His message included a plea to not settle for mere tolerance: “We can disagree strongly, even stridently, on issues of theology, ethics, salvation, truth. But if we begin with the fundamental conviction that every person is created with dignity, worth and value, then we can have a foundation that can withstand even the most intense disagreements. And this changes everything.”
Pastor Fries went on to explain: “If I’m not allowed to bring my whole, full, authentic, convictional self to the table, then I’m not really in a relationship with you and you’re not really in a relationship with me. I’m just playing a role. I’m just an actor. And if we all do that, we end up with a hollow kind of unity, one that cannot endure when authentic disagreement arises.”
Father Basil Hickman of the St. George Greek Orthodox Church in Des Moines, Iowa, agreed: “I really liked what Micah had to say about the fact that we come from numerous backgrounds and that we don’t have to agree on everything, that we can very much be convinced in our particular religious traditions, but that we need to respect one another as human beings.”
The audience witnessed the opening gavel of the Iowa State Senate, where a prayer written by Des Moines Iowa Mount Pisgah Stake President Brian C. Parks was read by state Sen. Sarah Trone Garriott. Rep. Rob Johnson read it in the House of Representatives.
Youth at the Capitol, service event
After breakfast, some 50 Latter-day Saint youth gathered for instructions on how to request a meeting with their elected officials during a legislative session, which many were able to do later in the morning. Trone Garriott and Rep. Eddie Andrews also shared advice on why it’s important to engage in civic affairs. The youth met with Pastor Fries and Elder Hodges to further discuss how to respect the faith of others without hiding their own.
The service project was scheduled to coincide not only with Iowa Religious Freedom Day but also Global Youth Service Day and an April 15 delivery of a semitruck full of food to the Des Moines Area Religious Council food bank as part of the Church’s effort to donate to 250 food banks in celebration of the nation’s 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
Youth helped stock shelves, packaged food boxes for distribution, cleaned inside and outside of the facility, washed windows and even packed dog food for family pets.
Alex Peters, a young man from the Church’s Council Bluffs Iowa Stake, said of the service project: “Jesus served others, and by serving others, I am serving Jesus. It makes me feel amazing.”
— Susan Sims is the Church’s communications director for Iowa and western Illinois.
