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[1] In 2023, during a Seminaries and Institutes of Religion annual broadcast, Elder Clark G. Gilbert, Commissioner of the Church Educational System, recommended that those who teach the gospel to young adults deliberately accentuate five themes taught by modern prophets. Elder Gilbert said that young adults should 1) know their divine identities as children of God, children of the covenant, and disciples of Jesus Christ; 2) be able to draw on the power of Jesus Christ and his covenants; 3) allow God to prevail in their lives; 4) be able to teach gospel truth to others with love; and 5) take charge of their own testimonies.[2] Eighteen months later at a Religious Education Conference held at BYU–Provo (June 2024), Elder Gilbert reiterated his desire that the prophetic emphases be taught to young adults and explained that all religious educators should become a prophetic echo of the instruction prophets are giving to the young adults of the church.

In response to Elder Gilbert’s instruction, Religious Education at BYU’s Provo campus is making concerted efforts to incorporate the prophetic emphases into all course material and the ways faculty teach and minister to students. Faculty members are encouraged to identify the five prophetic themes as they teach from the scriptures. For example, they may teach students the importance of remembering their divine identity by showing how many scriptural figures, including prophets, struggled with confidence, personal weakness, or other shortcomings, especially when called of God to do hard things. Examples include Moses (Exodus 3), Enoch (Moses 7:26–37), Gideon (Judges 6:11–17), Mary, the mother of Jesus (Luke 1:26–38), Paul (2 Corinthians 12), Moroni (Ether 12:23–29), and Joseph Smith (Doctrine and Covenants 3, 10). These individuals were reminded of their divine identities as they accepted important responsibilities given to them by God, and their stories can help students identify and discuss the first prophetic emphasis about divine identities and the importance of continually remembering them. Similarly, many scriptural figures participated in divine covenants, demonstrating how to draw on the power of those covenants during times of prosperity, uncertainty, turmoil, fear, conflict, or adversity: Noah (Genesis 6–7), Abraham (Genesis 17; Moses 1), Moses (Genesis 19); Ruth (Ruth 1), Zacharias (Luke 1:67–79); Nephi (1 Nephi 17), Lehi (2 Nephi 1), and Alma the elder (Mosiah 24). These accounts provide examples for young adults to follow in drawing power from their own covenants. Because God works in eternal patterns (Doctrine and Covenants 52:14), faculty can readily identify and discuss the prophetic emphases as they teach specific portions of the scriptures and other curriculum materials.

Second, faculty members are being encouraged to thoroughly familiarize themselves with the prophetic emphases so that these principles naturally become part of their thought processes. This integration enables faculty to successfully mentor students—whether deliberately or spontaneously—both individually and in groups. For example, when students are seeking answers to important personal decisions, such as what subject to major in, whom to marry, or where to live or work, faculty can encourage them to begin by cultivating a willingness to let God’s will prevail in their lives. Additionally, when students have questions about how to share their beliefs with others, faculty can expertly model teaching the gospel with confidence and love. Faculty can also encourage students and provide opportunities for them to develop their own abilities to share the gospel with love, whether in person or online. And finally, faculty are being encouraged to design course materials that empower students to actively take charge of their own testimonies by providing specific opportunities to grow and strengthen their testimonies in every religion class.

Finally, faculty members are being given opportunities to share the way they emphasize prophetic teachings in their courses through an electronic database where teaching ideas are uploaded and stored. This database allows faculty to efficiently discover what their colleagues are doing to teach the prophetic emphases in their classes, allowing them to identify new scriptural passages and teaching approaches that reinforce prophetic themes. Collaboration among faculty members has numerous advantages, including enhanced professional development, increased creativity in lesson planning, the exchange of best practices, elevated confidence, and increased student learning.[3]

In June 2023, during the CES Religious Educators Conference, Elder Neil L. Andersen reminded teachers that “the doctrine of Christ is found in the scriptures and in the teachings of the prophets, whose responsibility it is to communicate the will of the Lord. . . . The Lord’s directions for questions and concerns in our modern world come from those who have been ordained with apostolic authority. If confidence in the prophets and apostles is waning, the distractions, the misdirections, and the sophistries of the world can detach [our students] from [their] spiritual moorings.”[4] The main objective for encouraging the Religious Education faculty to consistently incorporate the five prophetic emphases into their teaching and mentoring is to help students remain firmly anchored to Jesus Christ and to his living prophets.

Notes

[1] The Teaching and Mentoring Professorship is a two-year appointment extended to one faculty member by the Deans’ Office in Religious Education. Dr. Martin assumed this role in September 2024.

[2] Clark G. Gilbert, “A Prophet in the Land: Current Prophetic Emphases to Young Adults,” Seminaries & Institutes annual broadcast, January 27, 2023, https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/broadcasts/s-and-i-training/2022/01/13gilbert.

[3] “Seven Benefits of Collaborative Teaching,” Inclusive Schools Network, August 27, 2015, https://inclusiveschools.org/resource/7-benefits-of-collaborative-teaching/.

[4] Neil L. Andersen, “The Power of Jesus Christ and Pure Doctrine,” June 11, 2023, https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/broadcasts/language-recording/2023/06/12andersen?lang=eng.