Who We Are

There is something ennobling, motivating, and reassuring about knowing who we are, where we came from, and what our ultimate potential is. The Declaration announced at the 1999 general Relief Society meeting reaffirms principles taught in the scriptures regarding our purpose and potential and emphasizes the important roles of family and motherhood. To those who are curious about the sisters of the Church, it is a statement of who we are as daughters of God. For Relief Society sisters striving to live as Saints, it is a document of reassurance and remembrance, a guide designed to help us live as we should live (see page 71 of this magazine).

One sister wrote recently: “I read the Declaration often, and it speaks to the tender places in my heart. What a blessing to have such a personal guide for us as women. I have found myself repeating out loud the phrase that I am a ‘beloved spirit [daughter] of God’ whose life has ‘meaning, purpose, and direction.’ Those words alone have given me energy and courage.”

This document has many uses: Individual sisters may want to use it to remind them of the ideals of faithful Latter-day Saint women; Relief Society presidents may want to devote a first Sunday message to the concepts it contains; convert sisters or young women may want to use the Declaration to help make the transition into Relief Society; and parents may want to devote a family home evening lesson to themes contained in the Declaration. Truly, as the words of this statement sink into our hearts and souls, they will provide additional motivation and direction as we strive to become disciples of Jesus Christ.

This document reemphasizes the words of President Gordon B. Hinckley, who said to the sisters of the Church: “Each of you is a daughter of God, endowed with a divine birthright. … I bear testimony before the entire world of your worth, of your grace and goodness, of your remarkable abilities and tremendous contributions” (“Women of the Church,” Ensign, Nov. 1996, 67, 70).