Mosiah 18:21 and Prophetic Help with the Messiness of Unity
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An institute director reviews apostles' conference teachings on achieving unity amid growing diversity in the Church.
Nicholas W. Gentile, an institute director with Seminaries and Institutes of Religion in East Lansing, Michigan, wrote this article for the Religious Educator (vol. 26, no. 1, 2025), published by the BYU Religious Studies Center and free to read on its website. It builds on Alma's call in Mosiah 18:21 for hearts “knit together in unity and in love.”
The problem
Gentile notes that Church classes and congregations include people with different political preferences, different views on social issues, different ways of applying gospel principles and even different favorite sports teams. He suggests that religious educators help students find unity in that diversity by turning to the words of living prophets and apostles.
What the apostles taught
The article reviews what Latter-day Saint apostles said in general conferences from April 2020 through October 2023 about unity in a growing global Church. It groups their teaching into four ideas:
- Focus on Jesus Christ.
- Remember a shared identity as children of God.
- Live the two great commandments, loving God and neighbor.
- Become one in spiritual purpose.
Why it matters
The author argues that diverse disciples can truly experience the joy of unity when they build on these foundations. He quotes Elder D. Todd Christofferson's observation that, in a contentious world, the body of Christ can come together only under the name of Christ. The article is written mainly for teachers, but the four principles apply to any ward, family or friendship.
How we wrote this: we read the source page linked above and summarized it in our own words, quoting at most a short line with attribution. We have not added facts from outside that source. If anything here differs from the original, the original is correct.