The historic summit that brought together a diverse group of global faith leaders concluded on Wednesday.
Downloadable HD quality video for journalists
Pope Francis set the tone in his opening remarks at the three-day conference by underscoring the importance of strengthening marriage and families.
“I pray that your colloquium will be an inspiration to all who seek to support and strengthen the union of man and woman in marriage as a unique, natural, fundamental and beautiful good for persons, communities and whole societies," he said.
President Henry B. Eyring of the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was among the faith leaders who addressed over 300 religious leaders and scholars from around the world who were gathered at the colloquium.
- jSt_Peters_Square_Vatican_City_April_2007
- Eyring_Vatican_7
- Eyring_Vatican_3
- eyring_Vatican_4
- Eyring_Vatican_8
- Eyring_Vatican_6
| Temple Square is always beautiful in the springtime. Gardeners work to prepare the ground for General Conference. © 2012 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. | 1 / 2 |
President Eyring delivered touching remarks about his own marriage and called for a “renaissance of successful marriages and family life.” He listed the pillars of a successful marriage and family and gave reference to the Church’s 1995 document “The Family: A Proclamation to the World.”
“Marriage is ordained of God. And if you love God, then when you even talk about it you feel emotion, just the thought of what it means to be married,” said President Eyring in an interview following his address.
One independent observer at the summit was Maggie Gallagher, a senior fellow at the American Principles Project. She included a lengthy reference to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and President Eyring's remarks at the summit in a report published a few days ago on the "National Review Online" website.
The report, entitled "Rome’s Extraordinary Ecumenical Event", said, "...For me, (the significance of marriage and the family) rang out most clearly in the words of a member of the First Presidency of the LDS church, Henry B. Eyring. The meeting of President Eyring and Pope Francis was in itself historic. The Mormons are the one major American faith tradition (with the possible exception of the modern Orthodox Jews), who are successfully combining living in the “real world” with creating a distinctive, effective family culture. And they have built this extraordinary achievement, President Eyring was trying to remind us, not primarily on the head but on the human heart."
Read more of Ms Gallagher's comments about the Mormons here.
See all coverage of the summit at the Vatican.
Other News Media Resources:
Downloadable SOT #1: Clip from interview with Dr. Jacqueline Rivers
Downloadable SOT #2: Clip from interview with Dr. Jacqueline Rivers