As I attended the Abinadi and Hannah Seely Olsen family reunion as part of a work assignment, memories of family gatherings from my youth came flooding back to my mind. And it reinforced ongoing prophetic teachings about the family.
We didn’t call them family reunions when my family got together. But we had yearly traditions. One side of the family attended the same rodeo together for decades. On the other side of the family, we gathered together on the Fourth of July at the home of an aunt.
With one family, we played Wiffle ball, lit fireworks, made orange-pineapple ice cream and drank homemade root beer. With the other, we ate Oahu frappé (a frozen citrus dessert), shucked fresh corn on the cob and threw a football around.
None of those activities is specifically outlined in the scriptures or in a general conference message as being imperative to keeping our family intact for eternity. But being together as a family certainly helped us grow closer to one another each time we met. It helped us develop a love for each other. It helped us learn to care for each other.
In the April 2026 general conference, President Dallin H. Oaks asked those who follow Christ to be peacemakers in their families.
“In our families and other personal relationships, let us avoid what is harsh and hateful. Let us seek to be holy, like our Savior,” he said.
While I recognize that not every family gathering around the world is peaceful and loving, as I look back at my own experiences with both my mother’s side of the family and my late father’s, I feel blessed that our experiences were largely in line with what the Prophet invited. My memories are filled with laughter, grandmotherly cheek pinching, height comparisons among cousins and talk of getting back together soon.
I don’t remember hearing harsh or hateful words.
It wasn’t some utopia. We had our share of sickness and disagreement. But neither of those stands out as having kept us from enjoying each other’s company.
Being together as a family certainly helped us grow closer to one another each time we met. It helped us develop a love for each other. It helped us learn to care for each other.
And watching the large family of Abinadi and Hannah Olsen come together for their biennial reunion felt strangely familiar to me despite them not being my own family.
Teenage cousins asked each other about their recent missions and school and dating. Younger cousins invited each other to play tag and kickball or to go play in the water. Generally, the families got along with each other despite any differences they may have individually. And they did it all without Wi-Fi, cellphone service, bathrooms or running water.
This reminded me of another teaching from the April 2026 general conference. This one from the Church’s Primary General President Susan H. Porter. President Porter has traveled the world helping parents and teachers as they help raise the youngest of God’s children on the earth today. In her conference message, she outlined part of Heavenly Father’s plan for each of us.
“As part of His plan, we would need to come to earth, gain a body and choose to live His loving commandments,” she said. “Then we could return to live with Him and our families in joy and peace.”
I know she has seen families of all types as she has ministered in diverse locations. I know she has heard heartbreaking stories. I know she has also heard about miracles.
To see what she has seen and to still testify of this truth is enough to bring a tear to my eye. She knows, challenges and trials notwithstanding, that every family has a chance to live joyfully and peacefully with God.
As we seek to live with an extra measure of holiness in our homes and with our families, we become “more fit for the kingdom,” as the hymn “More Holiness Give Me” (“Hymns,” No. 131) by Philip Paul Bliss reads.
In his concluding address from April’s general conference, President Oaks again issued an invitation to show more love in our families.
“May we all demonstrate the pure love of Christ in our families, in our communities and in all of our interactions with God’s children,” he said.
Having seen the legacy of President Oaks’ own ancestors, I know that love can endure across generational lines as we serve in and spend quality time with our families.
— Jon Ryan Jensen is editor of the Church News.
