President Dallin H. Oaks and his wife Sister Kristen M. Oaks were recently guests on the Church News podcast. President Oaks commented on the focus of temples and covenants in the April 2024 general conference:
“I was very pleased that in the last general conference, there were quite a number of talks about covenants, and specifically about temple covenants and other covenants that we make. None of that was directed by the First Presidency. We don’t assign subjects for conference. And so, we had a preponderance of talks about covenants with mentions of the importance of temple garments and the covenants that we make in the waters of baptism and the relationship of keys to covenants.
“All of that was because the Spirit of the Lord made known to different general authorities what they should speak about in this conference. And being one who felt the impression to speak about covenants, I was very pleased to find that a lot of other people were speaking about covenants.”
President Oaks’ general conference talk is titled “Covenants and Responsibilities.” Early in the talk, he said, “I have felt to speak about the purpose of these temples and the history and role of covenants in our worship.”
In the Church News podcast, Sister Oaks testified that she saw covenant-keeping bless lives in the Philippines, where she and President Oaks served for two years.
“Our covenants bind us to Jesus Christ,” Sister Oaks said. “I saw in the Philippines two things. People love to be connected with their relatives on both sides of the veil, but the temple serves as a great strength to people when things are very hard, and it draws them closer to Christ. And I would say in a nation that needs them so badly, it’s a place to go for solace and help."
Find the full episode at Church News.
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