Mormons place much emphasis on the importance of education. Mormon boys and girls are admonished from an early age to seek out “the best books of wisdom” and to “seek learning even by study and also by faith” (Doctrine & Covenants 109:7). This admonition extends to both spiritual and secular learning.
Along with standard religious teachings such as honesty, chastity, and doing good to others, young Latter-day Saints are also strongly encouraged to get an education. The LDS Church has established several universities and colleges, as well as hundreds of seminaries, institutes, workforce and employment training centers, educational funds and charities, and schools to help achieve this goal.
Members of the LDS Church believe in an omniscient God who knows and understands all the laws and principles of science, mathematics, the arts, and all other disciplines (see Creation). Therefore, to grow in knowledge and wisdom is to become gradually more like him—one of the primary objectives of mortal existence (see Divine Potential; Purpose of Life).
The glory of God is intelligence, or, in other words, light and truth.
—Doctrine & Covenants 93:36
What is true education? It is awakening a love for truth; giving a just sense of duty; opening the eyes of the soul to the great purpose and end of life. It is not so much giving words, as thoughts; or mere maxims, as living principles. It is not teaching to be honest because “honesty is the best policy,” but because it is right. It is teaching the individual to love the good, for the sake of the good; to be virtuous in action because one is so in heart; to love and serve God supremely, not from fear, but from delight in his perfect character.
—David O. McKay (1873–1970)
My culture idolizes the simplified woman, ardent and singular, bent to the collective and determined to serve it. The idea of the radiant mother, which I have been a part of for nearly forty years, is not something I would abandon. But a concomitant life beckoned, the life of those poets. It’s one of the great human dilemmas: How could I live both lives and be fulfilled without sometimes neglecting one or the other? Mostly by being tired in the morning.
—Emma Lou Thayne (1924–2014)
No matter where we begin, if we pursue knowledge diligently and honestly our quest will inevitably lead us from the things of earth to the things of heaven.
—Hugh Nibley (1910–2005)
Knowing is a process, not an arrival.
—Emma Lou Thayne (1924–2014)
When, indeed, is a thing proven? Only when an individual has accumulated in his own consciousness enough observations, impressions, reasonings and feelings to satisfy him personally that it is so. The same evidence which convinces one expert may leave another completely unsatisfied.
—Hugh Nibley (1910–2005)
There will always be those little minds who, out of vanity or intellectual display, will attempt to destroy faith in the very foundations of life.
—Ezra Taft Benson (1899–1994)
A home without books or music—think of it—a house without furniture, a valley without rivers or babbling brooks; a forest without birds or sunshine!
—James A. Langton (1861–1943)
Someone has pointed out that books are among life’s most precious possessions. They are the most remarkable creation of man. Nothing else that man builds ever lasts. Monuments fall, civilizations perish, but books continue. The perusal of a great book is as it were an interview with the noblest men of past ages who have written it.
—Sterling W. Sill (1903–1994)
It is the business of man to become acquainted with matter in all of its forms, so far as may be possible, in order to provide a foundation on which the reasoning mind of man may increasingly build its power.
—John A. Widtsoe (1872–1952)
There are some things you can give another person, and some things you cannot give him, except as he is willing to reach out and take them, and pay the price of making them a part of himself. This principle applies to studying, to developing talents, to absorbing knowledge, to acquiring skills, and to the learning of all the lessons of life.
—Richard L. Evans (1906–1971)
Whatever principle of intelligence we attain unto in this life, it will rise with us in the resurrection. And if a person gains more knowledge and intelligence in this life through his diligence and obedience than another, he will have so much the advantage in the world to come.
—Doctrine & Covenants 130:18–19
We should never assume that because something is unexplainable by us, that it is unexplainable.
—Neal A. Maxwell (1926–2004)
One cannot know God nor understand his works or plans unless he follows the laws which govern. The spiritual realm, which is just as absolute as is the physical, cannot be understood by the laws of the physical. You do not learn to make electric generators in a seminary. Neither do you learn certain truths about spiritual things in a physics laboratory. You must go to the spiritual laboratory, use the facilities available there, and comply with the governing rules. Then you may know of these truths just as surely, or more surely, than the scientist knows the metals, or the acids, or other elements.
—Spencer W. Kimball (1895–1985)
In an infinite universe, one cannot possibly learn all or do all, at once. A beginning must be made somewhere and corner by corner, department by department, space by space, all will be known and conquered. In the end, all must be explored, and whether one begins in the east or the west cannot matter much. The big concern is the extent to which a man offers himself, mind and body, to his worthwhile work. Upon that will growth depend.
—John A. Widtsoe (1872–1952)
Of all treasures of knowledge, the most vital is the knowledge of God, his existence, powers, love, and promises.
—Spencer W. Kimball (1895–1985)
That motherhood brings into a woman’s life a richness, zest, and tone that nothing else ever can I gladly grant you, but that her usefulness ends there, or that she has no other individual interests to serve I cannot so readily concede.
—Emmeline B. Wells (1828–1921)
Education is the power to think clearly, the power to act well in the world’s work, and the power to appreciate life.
—Brigham Young (1801–1877)
All scholarship, like all science, is an ongoing, open-ended discussion in which all conclusions are tentative forever, the principal value and charm of the game being the discovery of the totally unexpected.
—Hugh Nibley (1910–2005)
I do not care how learned a man may be, or how extensively he may have traveled; I do not care what his talent, intellect or genius may be, at what college he may have studied, how comprehensive his views or what his judgment may be on other matters, he cannot understand certain things without the Spirit of God, and that necessarily introduces the principle . . . of revelation.
—John Taylor (1808–1887)
You are sent to this world with a very serious purpose. You are sent to school, for that matter, to begin as a human infant and grow to unbelievable proportions in wisdom, judgment, knowledge, and power.
—Spencer W. Kimball (1895–1985)
It is a paradox that men will gladly devote time every day for many years to learn a science or an art; yet will expect to win a knowledge of the gospel, which comprehends all sciences and arts, through perfunctory glances at books or occasional listening to sermons. The gospel should be studied more intensively than any school or college subject. They who pass opinion on the gospel without having given it intimate and careful study are not lovers of truth, and their opinions are worthless. To secure a testimony, then, study must accompany desire and prayer.
—John A. Widtsoe (1872–1952)
Doctors and trainers often see perfectly developed bodies, but nobody can even begin to imagine what a perfect mind would be like; that is where the whole range of progress and growth must take place.
—Hugh Nibley (1910–2005)
Do not be discouraged because you cannot learn all at once; learn one thing at a time, learn it well, and treasure it up, then learn another truth and treasure that up, and in a few years you will have a great store of useful knowledge.
—Wilford Woodruff (1807–1898)
There are some who do not learn, and who do not improve as fast as they might, because their eyes and their hearts are not upon God; they do not reflect neither do they have that knowledge which they might have; they miss a good deal which they might receive. We have got to obtain knowledge before we obtain permanent happiness; we have got to be wide awake in the things of God.
—Lorenzo Snow (1814–1901)
Pure intelligence comprises not only knowledge, but also the power to properly apply that knowledge.
—Joseph F. Smith (1838–1919)
Knowledge can be heady stuff, but it easily leads to an excess of zeal!—to illusions of grandeur and a desire to impress others and achieve eminence. . . . Our search for knowledge should be ceaseless, which means that it is open-ended, never resting on laurels, degrees, or past achievements.
—Hugh Nibley (1910–2005)
I’ve always had an inquiring mind. I’m not satisfied just to accept things. I like to follow through and study things out. I learned early to put aside those gospel questions that I couldn’t answer. I had a shelf of things I didn’t understand, but as I’ve grown older and studied and prayed and thought about each problem, one by one I’ve been able to better understand them. . . . I still have some questions on that shelf, but I’ve come to understand so many other things in my life that I’m willing to bide my time for the rest of the answers.
—Camilla Eyring Kimball (1894–1987)
True education does not consist merely in the acquiring of a few facts of science, history, literature or art, but in the development of character.
—David O. McKay (1873–1970)
We are in a great school, and we should be diligent to learn, and continue to store up the knowledge of heaven and of earth, and read good books, although I cannot say that I would recommend the reading of all books, for it is not all books which are good. Read good books, and extract from them wisdom and understanding as much as you possibly can, aided by the Spirit of God.
—Brigham Young (1801–1877)
We believe in all truth, no matter to what subject it may refer. No sect or religious denomination—or, I may say, no searcher of truth—in the world possesses a single principle of truth that we do not accept or that we will reject. We are willing to receive all truth, from whatever source it may come; for truth will stand, truth will endure.
—Joseph F. Smith (1838–1919)
Things that appear unlikely, impossible, or paradoxical from one point of view often make perfectly good sense from another.
—Hugh Nibley (1910–2005)
A man may possess a profound knowledge of history and mathematics; he may be an authority in psychology, biology, or astronomy; he may know all the discovered truths pertaining to geology and natural science; but if he has not with this knowledge that nobility of soul which prompts him to deal justly with his fellow men, to practice virtue and holiness in his personal life, he is not truly an educated man.
—David O. McKay (1873–1970)
It is the mark of a truly educated man to know what not to read.
—Ezra Taft Benson (1899–1994)
The mere stuffing of the mind with a knowledge of facts is not education. The mind must not only possess a knowledge of the truth, but the soul must revere it, cherish it, love it as a priceless gem; and this human life must be guided and shaped by it in order to fulfill its destiny.
—Joseph Fielding Smith (1876–1972)
If men are really humble, they will realize that they discover, but do not create, truth.
—Spencer W. Kimball (1895–1985)
The education of the mind and the education of the body should go hand in hand. A skillful brain should be joined with a skillful hand. Manual labor should be dignified among us and always be made honorable. . . . Every one should make it a matter of pride to be a producer, and not a consumer alone. Our children should be taught to sustain themselves by their own industry and skill, and not only do this, but to help sustain others, and that to do this by honest toil is one of the most honorable means which God has furnished to his children here on earth.
—Wilford Woodruff (1807–1898)
It matters little whether one is a plumber, or a banker, or a farmer, for these occupations are secondary; what is most important is what one knows and believes concerning his past and his future and what he does about it.
—Spencer W. Kimball (1895–1985)
The gas-law of learning: . . . any amount of information no matter how small will fill any intellectual void no matter how large.
—Hugh Nibley (1910–2005)
Any intelligent man may learn what he wants to learn. He may acquire knowledge in any field, though it requires much thought and effort. It takes more than a decade to get a high school diploma; it takes an additional four years for most people to get a college degree; it takes nearly a quarter-century to become a great physician. Why, oh why do people think they can fathom the most complex spiritual depths without the necessary experimental and laboratory work accompanied by compliance with the laws that govern it?
—Spencer W. Kimball (1895–1985)
There is no knowledge, no light, no wisdom that you are in possession of, but what you have received it from some source.
—Brigham Young (1801–1877)
We saw our father and mother read, and they read to us. It did something of an indefinable nature. It gave us a familiarity with good books. We felt at home and at ease with them. They were not strangers to us. They were as friends, willing to give to us if we were willing to make a little effort.
—Gordon B. Hinckley (1910–2008)
As knowledge increases, the verdict of yesterday must be reversed today, and in the long run the most positive authority is the least to be trusted.
—Hugh Nibley (1910–2005)
Seek ye diligently and teach one another words of wisdom; yea, seek ye out of the best books words of wisdom, seek learning even by study and also by faith.
—Doctrine & Covenants 109:7