Ideas for Adults: The Worth of All Persons

The following was posted on the Church’s website prior to its 2022 revision.  It can also be found on the Wayback Machine.

Ideas for Adults

Worth of All Persons

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We seek to uphold and restore the equal worth of all people individually and in community.

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Inestimable Worth

Acts 10:34
Doctrine and Covenants 164:6a
“Brothers and Sisters of Mine” CCS 616

Logic would tell us the systems of this world are too large, too intricate, and too powerful for any one person or even one denomination to touch or change. Too often the systems trample on the least, the last, the lost, and the lonely.

Remembering the counsel given in Doctrine and Covenants 151 and 161–164, why do you think God is calling Community of Christ to address major societal problems? How does it tie into the idea that all people are of inestimable worth? What does “inestimable worth” mean?

Culture can cloud our views and make it difficult to see what God intends for humankind. For example, in the United States, immigration is a hotly debated topic. Would it be too simplistic to view it through the lens of seeing the world through God’s eyes? How do you approach tough social and political issues with sensitivity to the greater vision that God intends for humankind?

Action: Discuss in a class or group ways to address systems that degrade, impoverish, and harm people. Choose one issue, study it in depth, and take action.

Keywords: worth, poverty, discuss, scripture, study

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Equal Partners Enrich Each Other

1 Corinthians 12:12
“We Cannot Own the Sunlit Sky” CCS 301

Outreach International, Outreach Europe, World Accord, and SaintsCare have unique philosophies of the relationship between donors and the poor: mutuality (the mutual relationship that grows when both work together to carry out goals of health, independence, and sustainable living). In mutual relationships, there is not a “greater” and a “lesser,” but there are equals, in which both are enriched by the contributions of the other. While the change of circumstances of those in poverty seems most obvious, donors report time and again of the change that occurs when they intimately see the worth of persons and understand the struggle, the determination, and the capacity of those who are helped.

Action: Develop a relationship of mutuality between your group or congregation and those in need in your community. How does the relationship benefit both?

Keywords: mutuality, poverty, donors, worth, mission

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Cultivating Awareness of Human Worth

1 Corinthians 12:12
Doctrine and Covenants 164:6a
“With Gifts That Differ by Your Grace” CCS 328

In a quiet place, reflect on the true giftedness and beauty of people in your life and environment.

Action: Take photographs of people in your community—neighborhood or congregation—which highlight their uniqueness, worth, or giftedness. Share the images with the subjects of your photos. You may also want to check out the International Guild of Visual Peacemakers’ website for their photographs and videos of “the beauty and dignity of people” around the world.

Keywords: photography, worth, peace, personal, spiritual, practice

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Learning about Generations Together

Galatians 3:26
“For Everyone Born” CCS 285

Host a gathering for young and older adults to encourage intergenerational communication and healing of the spirit. Meeting in a home is best, because it builds a spirit of friendship. Learn together about the basic characteristics of generations in each culture. This may include these generations: Greatest Generation, Silent Generation, Baby Boomers, Generation X and Y, and Millennials. Discuss the cultural influences on the different generations and their basic worldviews. Explore the way each generation approaches religious life and spirituality. Read The Multigenerational Congregation: Meeting the Leadership Challenge by Gil Rendle, The Alban Institute, 2002, ISBN: 9781566992527.

Action: Pray a prayer of thanksgiving for the diversity in the group and for the blessing that each generation and worldview brings to the faith community.

Keywords: generations, diversity, age, personal, relationships