“Contend Against No Church”

As a fourteen-year-old boy, Joseph Smith was troubled by the way religious people in his community treated one another:

Notwithstanding the great love which the converts to these different faiths expressed at the time of their conversion, and the great zeal manifested by the respective clergy, who were active in getting up and promoting this extraordinary scene of religious feeling, in order to have everybody converted, as they were pleased to call it, let them join what sect they pleased; yet when the converts began to file off, some to one party and some to another, it was seen that the seemingly good feelings of both the priests and the converts were more pretended than real; for a scene of great confusion and bad feeling ensued—priest contending against priest, and convert against convert; so that all their good feelings one for another, if they ever had any, were entirely lost in a strife of words and a contest about opinions.

Joseph Smith—History 1:6

Joseph indicated that this “confusion and strife” made it impossible for him to evaluate the doctrines of the churches. I would paraphrase his reaction this way: Your unkindness toward one another rings so loudly in my ears that I can’t hear what you are trying to teach me.

When Jesus visited the Americas after His death and resurrection, one of His first messages was that religious contention needed to end:

According as I have commanded you thus shall ye baptize. And there shall be no disputations among you, as there have hitherto been; neither shall there be disputations among you concerning the points of my doctrine, as there have hitherto been.

For verily, verily I say unto you, he that hath the spirit of contention is not of me, but is of the devil, who is the father of contention, and he stirreth up the hearts of men to contend with anger, one with another.

3 Nephi 11:28-29

So it’s not surprising that in 1829, as He prepared to restore His church, the Savior gave the following instruction to Oliver Cowdery and David Whitmer: “Contend against no church, save it be the church of the devil” (Doctrine and Covenants 18:20).

An angel showed Nephi the “church of the devil” and explained its characteristics:

Behold the gold, and the silver, and the silks, and the scarlets, and the fine-twined linen, and the precious clothing, and the harlots, are the desires of this great and abominable church.

And also for the praise of the world do they destroy the saints of God, and bring them down into captivity.

1 Nephi 13:8-9

We should speak out against people who take advantage of the vulnerable because of their desire for wealth and worldly power. And we should find common cause with fellow believers, who are trying to follow God “according to the dictates of [their] own conscience” (Articles of Faith 1:11). Consider the following statements from church leaders:

• Joseph Smith: “Christians should cease wrangling and contention with each other and cultivate the principles of union and friendship in their midst; and they will do it before the millennium can be ushered in and Christ takes possession of His kingdom” (JS, History, 1838–1856, vol. E-1, page 1666).
• Quentin L. Cook: “I challenge all of us to work with people of other faiths to improve the moral fabric of our communities, nations, and world and to protect religious freedom” (“Restoring Morality and Religious Freedom,” Ensign, September 2012).
• Neil L. Andersen: “Some of our fellow Christians are, at times, uncertain about our beliefs and motives. Let us genuinely rejoice with them in our shared faith in Jesus Christ and in the New Testament scriptures we all love. In the days ahead, those who believe in Jesus Christ will need the friendship and support of one another.” (“We Talk of Christ,” General Conference, October 2020).

Today, I will find common cause with believers of other faiths. I will remember the Savior’s command to “contend against no church.” I will strive to support the faith and service of others, even when their beliefs differ from my own.