Apostle
visits Pocatello
visits Pocatello LDS elder’s talk broadcast to church faithful worldwide
POCATELLO — A leader of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints told a Pocatello audience Sunday that he’s concerned about the tendency of young members to postpone marriage.
Dallin H. Oaks, a member of the church’s Quorum of the Twelve Apos
tles, spoke to about 1,500 people crowded into the LDS Institute on Idaho State University’s Pocatello campus. His talk was broadcast to church members worldwide. Oaks encouraged college students to do more dating and less hanging out.
“I defined it as dating if the three P’s apply,” he said. “Dating is planned, paid for and paired off. Hanging out is when the girls prepare the food and the boys just freeload.” The church, Oaks said, focuses on family values, and programs aimed at young people continue to grow.
“We have to expand our programs to keep up with the demographics,” he said. “The best way to help people grow is to give them positive things to do.” Oaks urged young people to be optimistic about the future. “Marry, have children, get an education and have faith,” he said.
Oaks has six children, 29 grandchildren and nine greatgrandchildren. He and his second wife, Kristen, have been married 7 years.
“I’m not an expert, but I’m experienced,” he said.
He also urged LDS members to use the Sabbath to bolster their faith.
“This day of worship and rest from worldly labors is the divinely appointed anchor in the storms of life,” Oaks said.
Sunday marked the first time the educational “Fireside” presentation was broadcast to LDS stake centers around the world from Pocatello, said William McKee, public affairs representative for Southeast Idaho.
McKee said the church’s 13 million members — more than half live outside the U.S. — believe the 12 apostles
are called by God. “We believe we have 12 living apostles
, just as there were in Christ’s day,” he said. Currently, the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
is comprised of members from Canada, Germany and the United States, McKee said. Oaks, who now calls Salt Lake City home, has served in the position for 23 years. He was the Director of Union Pacific Railroad from 1979 to 1980. He left the railroad when he became a justice with the Utah Supreme Court.
At a reception held at the Marshall Rotunda in the Stephens Performing Arts Center before the fireside presentation, Oaks spoke to local civic leaders and members of Pocatello Interfaith.
Current world conditions are helping many people to once again find faith, he said.
“People need to get outside of themselves and have something bigger than themselves and something bigger than the president of the United States to believe in,” Oaks said.
BILL SCHAEFER / IDAHO STATE JOURNAL Elder Dallin Oaks, left, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, talks with federal Judge Lynn Winmill on Sunday afternoon in Pocatello. 
