Opinion

Building a Just World with Pure and Virtuous Principles

October 28, 2025

By: Elena Mart

Pure and Virtuous Principle

Each of us comes to earth with enough of God’s light and truth to begin to discern between light and darkness, and between truth and error (Cf., D&C 93: 2; Moroni 7: 10-19). That leaves each of us free to find our way with at least one pure and virtuous principle as our own fixed, immovable, and indestructible anchor, to start with.

Thereafter, each of us may learn, do, be, and teach many pure and virtuous principles—as our own reliable and enduring anchors of truth, light, law, rule, standard, or value—the faithful practice and personification of which produce, preserve, or restore the fruits of true enlightenment, virtue, integrity, liberty, hope, peace, and joy within each of us, within our families, and within society (Cf., D&C 88: 1-50; See also, parable at 51-61).

A World In Need of Pure and Virtuous Principles

“Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports.” —George Washington, President of the United States (1732—1799).

“We never shall be prosperous till we make pride and vanity yield to the dictates of honesty and prudence!” —Lydia Maria Child, American author and human rights activist (1802—1880).

Mighty as it was, the Roman Empire could not love and obey both God’s pure and virtuous principles of enlightenment, virtue, and integrity (on the right hand)—and Satan’s filthy and vicious principles of darkness, vice, and corruption (on the left). By attempting to include (even legalize) destructive diversity, Rome’s equalizing became vicious equalitarianism. (Compare definitions of equal and equalitarian in The eDictionary of Human Character, by M. Gregg Fager.) As such vicious principles prevailed, happiness, peace, and prosperity declined (Cf., Alma 41:10; 1 Nephi 20:22; Omni 1:6). The Roman Empire eventually became so viciously divided against itself that it could no longer stand (Cf., Matthew 12:25; Luke 11:17).

Believing certain pure and virtuous principles to be of God, the great majority of our American ancestors envisioned, established, and fought to preserve a stable nation of virtuous liberty and virtuous justice under virtuous law. They wanted their future generations to remain empowered by God to bring forth mankind’s outstanding achievements and blessings through our true and faithful obedience to God’s Law, and to only those man-made laws and rules of law that align with the pure and virtuous principles of God’s Law.

In America, as in Ancient Rome, grapes cannot be gathered from thorns; and figs cannot be gathered from thistles (Cf., Matthew 7:16). Fruit trees that do not bring forth good fruit are generally hewn down and cast into the fire (Cf., Matthew 7:19); and houses built upon sand are more vulnerable to collapse in catastrophic downpours than houses built upon rock (Cf., 2 Nephi 28:28).

Each pure and virtuous principle identified in The eDictionary of Human Character (i.e., each definition with a 2 in front of it) might prove to be among the legislative, executive, and judicial standards capable of producing, preserving, or restoring peace and prosperity. All leaders who wield power to govern are invited to consider becoming and remaining anchored in identifying, practicing, and sharing the pure and virtuous principles defined in The eDictionary of Human Character, and to begin now to govern in alignment with those principles.

Share Pure and Virtuous Principles of Peace and Prosperity with the World

“The strong economic condition of the masses is dependent on their right moral condition. . . . The despisers of godliness are the enemies of the true interest of our nation. . . . [To] preach Christ is the only effective way of preaching morality in all its branches.” —Thomas Chalmers, Scottish Religious Reformer, (1780—1847).

The eDictionary of Human Character, by M. Gregg Fager, provides a unique problem-defining and problem-solving language that addresses the universal need for a breakthrough classification system that allows for personal validation and verification of the true meaning and value of human characteristics (A through Z).

Honest use of this eDictionary can help you personally validate and verify the true meaning and value of any cultural, historical, legal, normative, popular, scientific, secular, traditional, or other form of thought, belief, doctrine, dogma, ideology, religion, philosophy, theology, or value capable of producing, preserving, or restoring their respective and consequent fruits within you, your family, and society.

What matters is how truly virtuous or how truly vicious their fruits prove to be within you, your family, and society. By their fruits, every one of us can personally ascertain the true meaning and value (and the appropriate assigned numerical value) of each one of them (Cf., Matthew 7).

The desired immediate impact of this work is to share the author’s personal knowledge and witness of those pure and virtuous principles of peace and prosperity which mankind must understand, do, be, and teach well enough to powerfully rise in unison above the world’s gathering predatory forces of darkness, vice, corruption, bondage, despair, turmoil, and misery. And the desired long-term outcomes of this work are maximum global peace and prosperity, and the perpetuation of all that is truly virtuous in the world and its youth, until Earth is governed by the Lord Jesus Christ and by His pure and virtuous principles of Celestial law.