Scriptural and theological basis

Agency is particularly relevant for the study of Mormonism since it is a core concept in the religion itself.

4.1.1. “Opposition in all things”: binary choices and accountability

According to the church’s official definition, agency is “the ability and privilege God gives people to choose and to act for themselves.”¹ Its origin is thus divine. The Book of Mormon states that “God gave unto man that he should act for himself.”² “Man” is here understood as every person, in Dutch “mens.” Concurrent with agency is the doctrinal concept of

“opposition in all things,” so that choices are always possible between binaries. The following verses from the Book of Mormon, in which the prophet Lehi speaks to his son Nephi, are often quoted in Mormon meetings:

1 Guide to the Scriptures, “Agency”, https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/scriptures/gs/agency.

Accessed June 6, 2019.

2 2 Nephi 2:16.

133 For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things. If not so, my firstborn in the wilderness, righteousness could not be brought to pass, neither wickedness, neither holiness nor misery, neither good nor bad. Wherefore, all things must needs be a compound in one; wherefore, if it should be one body it must needs remain as dead, having no life neither death, nor corruption nor incorruption, happiness nor misery, neither sense nor insensibility ... It must needs be that there was an opposition; even the forbidden fruit in opposition to the tree of life; the one being sweet and the other bitter.¹

The passage is frequently used to strengthen members in the face of challenges:

opposition is needed in order to be able to make choices, hence, accept your trials as blessings.

Mormon scriptures refer repeatedly to agency as personal accountability. Through their agency humans obtain a fundamental responsibility by which they determine their ultimate salvation. Different from other Christian approaches, where the concept of

‘grace’ is key to forgiveness and to salvation, Mormons believe they should be actively involved in their redemption. They have to “choose the right,” even engraved as “CTR”

on Mormon rings and pins. They are free to choose whether or not to follow the laws and commandments God has given them. Mormon doctrine even rejects original sin because man can be responsible only for his own choices. So fundamental is this doctrine that Joseph Smith stated it as the second Article of Faith, after the belief in God: “We believe that men will be punished for their own sins, and not for Adam’s transgression.” Their accountability will be measured at the last judgment, as Joseph Smith phrased in a revelation: “That every man may act in doctrine and principle pertaining to futurity, according to the moral agency which I have given unto him, that every man may be accountable for his own sins in the day of judgment.”²

In general conference—held twice a year in April and October and broadcast worldwide—church leaders regularly refer to agency as a central topic. Their sermons very often center around obedience, accountability, progress, and endurance. Examples are numerous.³ The texts are next published in the church magazines and portions are republished in manuals, to be discussed in weekly lessons. The topic of agency is thus deeply established in Mormon settings. Just like church leaders, members will often use the phrase “free agency” (in Dutch: vrije wil) in sermons and testimonies to remind

1 2 Nephi 2:11, 15.

2 D&C 101:78.

3 Examples: D. Todd Christofferson, “Free Forever, to Act for Themselves” (October 2014); Quentin L. Cook,

“Choose Wisely” (October 2014); Robert D. Hales, “Preserving Agency, Protecting Religious Freedom” (April 2015); Robert D. Hales, “To Act for Ourselves: The Gift and Blessings of Agency” (April 2006); Robert D.

Hales, “Agency: Essential to the Plan of Life” (October 2010); Thomas S. Monson, “The Three Rs of Choice”

(October 2010); Thomas S. Monson, “Choices” (April 2016); Dallin H. Oaks, “Opposition in All Things” (April 2016); Boyd K. Packer, “Atonement, Agency, Accountability” (April 1988).

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themselves and their audiences that they bear responsibility for their actions and need to act dutifully in order not to jeopardize their salvation.

4.1.2. Part of an eternal perspective

On their eternal path all individuals are confronted with choices that will make them progress. Mormon cosmology starts in the preexistence where the individual spirits had to make a choice between Christ’s plan and Satan’s plan. The former would respect man’s agency, the latter not: “Satan rebelled against me, and sought to destroy the agency of man, which I, the Lord God, had given him.”¹ Apostle Oaks summarized this teaching with which Mormons are very familiar:

Satan’s proposal would have ensured perfect equality: it would “redeem all mankind,” that not one soul would be lost. There would be no agency or choice by anyone and, therefore, no need for opposition. There would be no test, no failure, and no success. There would be no growth to attain the purpose the Father desired for His children.²

By choosing Christ’s plan two thirds of the spirits expressed their willingness to come to earth to receive a body and pass through a time of probation during which they would be tested. Even if Satan made the others turn away from Christ, Mormon scripture clarifies: “... and also a third part of the ghosts of heaven turned he [Satan] away from me [God] because of their agency.”³

At the time of the creation of man on earth, God reiterated the principle: “... in the Garden of Eden, gave I unto man his agency.”⁴ Man’s earthly situation is a new phase without memory of the preexistence. In the words of apostle Renlund: “To ensure that we would exercise faith and learn to use our agency properly, a veil of forgetfulness was drawn over our minds so we would not remember God’s plan.” ⁵ The events in the Garden of Eden, where Adam and Eve made personal choices as to their intentions, are very familiar to temple-attending Mormons as the scene is re-enacted during each

“endowment” session they participate in.⁶

Next, life on earth is the time of probation during which agency is to determine the path one takes. The acceptance or not of the gospel and of its principles and ordinances is part of the vital choices each individual has to make. Even for those who had no opportunity to hear the gospel on earth, that chance is offered in the “spirit world” where

1 Pearl of Great Price, Moses 4:3.

2 Dallin H. Oaks, “Opposition in All Things,” Conference Address (April 2016), Ensign (May 2016): 115.

3 D&C 29:36, italics added.

4 Pearl of Great Price, Moses 7:32.

5 Dale G. Renlund, “Choose you This Day,” Conference Address (October 2018), Ensign (November 2018): 104.

6 Described in general terms in church literature. See Boyd K. Packer, The Holy Temple (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1980); James E. Talmage, House of the Lord (Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1968).

135 the individuals wait for the time of resurrection. So even after death, each individual person retains the agency to choose.

Relevance for my research

In a discussion about gender roles, a respondent’s understanding of the Mormon concept of free agency and of “opposition in all things” could reveal to what extent she has internalized these concepts and applies them in daily life. One critical aspect is whether so much emphasis on agency and the fear for consequences undermine agency: for some, not choosing the right could become a mentally impossible option—the paradoxical option of non-agency (2.2.2). The issue is foreseen in the discussion with respondents.