“Save
the Family” in Your Town
by
Gary and Joy Lundberg
The
family is the beating heart that keeps a nation strong.
If families fail then nations fall, and all that’s good is gone.
The time has come, the time is now for everyone to see
That is we are to save the world, we must save the family.
“Save the Family” Song
These are the words of the chorus to the song Save the Family, written for the World Family Policy Center (WFPC) at Brigham Young University, by Janice Kapp Perry and Joy Lundberg, in celebration of the 2004 International Year of the Family. It was first sung at a United Nations side event in March, and again later that month in Mexico City at the World Congress of Families III Conference where WFPC gave 500 copies of the song on CD to government and pro-family non-governmental organizations leaders to use in their various countries. It’s recorded in four languages: English, Spanish, French and Arabic.
A month later Save the Family was performed by recording artists Randall Porter and Johanne Freschétte Perry at BYU Women’s Conference in the Marriott Center. The response since these events has been overwhelming. Here are two excerpts from the many letters we’ve received .
From Nevada: “I attended the 2004 BYU Women's Conference and heard Save the Family preformed at the closing session. I was so touched and inspired by its powerful, beautiful message that I sought out more information and found your website. I recently shared the song at a ward Personal, Home, and Family Enrichment Night that was centered on the family. I shared my strong love for the song and declared it our ‘family anthem’. I told how we listen to it daily, do house work by it, sing it in family home evening–each taking his part, listen to it in the car, on trips, etc. . . . It was a beautiful addition to our meeting, and brought the spirit of the night to each one there.”
From New Hampshire: “I think we will have our children’s sacrament meeting program perform it with two parents singing the main portion and the children joining on the final chorus. I get goose bumps when I think about doing this. . . . The Spirit is so strong in this song.”
From Argentina: “The Confederacy of Jovenes del Mercosur is a net of groups of young people that works in defense and promotion of the values that concerns life, family, women and youth in . . . the countries of Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay, Bolivia, Chile and Peru. . . We ask permission to use the song Save the Family as our official song for the II Jornadas Regionales in Argentina.”
We were pleased that they wanted to use the song, but more than that we were deeply heartened by the fact that there is an organization like this that is vigorously promoting family values among the youth in these countries.
We are happy to report that Save the Family CD and sheet music can now be downloaded without charge from the website http://www.savethefamilyworldwide.org. or if downloading is not a possibility the CD can be ordered for a nominal fee from that same site. This site is dedicated to providing information for interested citizens from all nations who want to join the effort to save the family in their own cities, towns and villages.
What You Can Do to Help Save the Family
Through our Church Service Mission at the World Family Policy Center we are organizing people of all faiths across the globe to hold Save the Family Meetings in their neighborhoods. Many people do not understand the dangers that are facing the family worldwide. Because of this we’re inviting you readers today to join us in an effort to inform and motivate to action the people in your community by holding a Save the Family Meeting this summer. It will not take a lot of time, but can have a powerful effect. If people all around the world hold informative meetings in their communities, neighborhoods, or churches and send us a brief report of the meetings stating their support of natural marriage, religion and family values, these reports will contribute to the preparations of The Doha International Conference for the Family to be held this November in Doha, Qatar—the culminating celebration of the 2004 International Year of the Family. This is a significant conference as relating to family policy at the U.N.
To assist you in planning your community meeting we are including a suggested outline below. The outline contains a link where supporting information can be found. We encourage you to invite friends, family members, and neighbors of all faiths to your meeting. It can be as large or as small as you wish, held in your home or at another location. At the meeting encourage those attending to hold their own meetings and gain the support of as many of their family, friends and colleagues as possible. A ripple effect can go out from your meeting and create a growing support system. You may find that you want to hold more than one meeting and, of course, we would be happy to have that happen.
We encourage you to forward this article, with your own personal note, to family and friends out of your area so they, too, can hold a Save the Family Meeting. If you have contact with friends in another country, please enlist their help as well. We need as many meetings as possible throughout the world supporting this vitally important effort to protect marriage and the family. It can have a tremendous impact. Please contact us at savethefamily@earthlink.net as soon as possible and let us know of your willingness to join us in this important work of helping protect families.
Suggested Format for Save the Family Community Meetings
• Play the song Save the Family as people come in.
• Welcome and congratulate everyone for caring enough to come.
• Make the point that we can no longer stand by and accept what is happening. We must be actively involved in defending and protecting natural marriage and the natural family. “As members of society, and as people of faith, we must work together to restore the family to its proper strength and function.” (Richard G. Wilkins, Director of BYU World Family Policy Center)
• Express your concern about what is happening that is destructive to the family.
• Read and select points from the following list of articles/pamphlets, or involve others by having a panel read and come prepared to discuss these issues. You are free to copy these items, giving credit to the author and/or site. These articles and others are available at http://www.savethefamilyworldwide.org.
1. The Social Role of the Family
2. UN and Family Policy
3. The Doha International Conference for the Family
4. Why Marriage Matters
5. Hardwired to Connect
6. Debate-Tested Sound Bites on Defending Marriage
• Help them clearly see what they can do by suggesting the following plan of action, also ask for their suggestions.
1. Write to government leaders urging support of natural marriage and the family values you hold sacred. (If in the United States, give attendees this website so they can easily access their government leaders: http://www.capwiz.com/fof/dbq/officials, and urge these leaders to support the Federal Marriage Amendment. If you live out of the U.S., please locate the website they could use in your country.)
2. Write letters to the editor of your local newspapers expressing your views and your expectations of government representatives to support natural marriage and family values.
3. Talk to others about these issues and urge their support.
4. Strengthen your own marriage and family—be your children’s and your community’s example of a stable family. Talk about the importance of marriage and family values with your children.
• After discussing ideas from the above papers, ask the attendees this question: What statement do we want to make to the leaders of our nation and the leaders of the world concerning protecting marriage and the family?
This statement will be the major part of your short report on your meeting.
• Keep a positive approach and express appreciation for their support. Encourage those in attendance from other neighborhoods or friends and family out of your area to hold and report their own meetings by contacting us at savethefamily@earthlink.net
• To conclude your meeting, distribute the handouts and play or sing Save the Family, inviting all to join in singing along with the music. This song can serve as a rallying call to action and a positive finale to your meeting.
Handouts: (Available at http://www.savethefamilyworldwide.org)
• Words to Save the Family
• List of pro-family websites, including website to easily access government leaders: http://www.capwiz.com/fof/dbq/officials
Watchmen On the Tower
Elder Dallin H. Oaks, in his talk Why We Must Act to Preserve the Families of the World, at the BYU World Family Policy Forum 1999, said:
“The prophet Isaiah gave a prophetic warning about watchmen who are ‘blind’ and ‘ignorant, dumb dogs [that] cannot bark,’ ‘sleeping, lying down [and] loving to slumber’ (Isaiah 56_10). The prophet likened them to ‘shepherds that cannot understand . . . [who] look to their own way, every one for his gain.’ (V. 11). When this happens, he declared, ‘the righteous perisheth, and no man layeth it to heart; (Isaiah 57:1).
“I am grateful that watchmen of the tower have alerted us to enemies and conditions that threaten to undermine the family—the foundation of societies and nations in every part of the world. Ironically, some of these enemies are working through the UN and using its stature and authority on the world stage to pursue anti-family efforts that must be of concern to us all. . . . [W]e must be sure that we, who should be watchmen on the tower, are not like the blind and slumbering watchmen that the prophet Isaiah condemned.”
This is our chance to be effective “watchmen” on the tower. These Save the Family Meetings can help you fulfill this important responsibility. We invite all to join with us in this urgent effort to protect the family. Email us at savethefamily@earthlink.net. To learn more visit http://www.savethefamilyworldwide.org.