Elder David J. Thomson, Area Seventy for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and LDS directors of public affairs from New Zealand met on 30 July with H.E. Jesus (Gary) Domingo, Ambassador for the Philippines to New Zealand, Cook Islands, Fiji, Niue, Samoa and Tonga.
The meeting with Ambassador Domingo took place at the Embassy of the Philippines in Wellington, New Zealand.
Ambassador Domingo praised the Church for its active role in the Pacific in ongoing efforts to support the family, faith and cultural cooperation.
“I greatly appreciate the leading role that the members of The Church of Christ of Latter-day Saints have played in New Zealand, the Philippines and throughout the Pacific in advancing inter-faith and multi-ethnic/cultural cooperation,” he said.
“I particularly appreciate the many Mormon missionaries who have come to the Philippines from the Pacific, who continue to act as ambassadors of our culture and language in their respective countries."
He continued: “The Latter-day Saints’ advocacy for the family is something which deeply resonates with Filipinos, being a very family-oriented society and people.”
Elder Thomson presented a framed document entitled The Family – A Proclamation to the World to the Ambassador in recognition of his work to support and strengthen families.
In presenting the gift, Elder Thomson said, “Many of the inspired principles contained in The Family A Proclamation to the World will strike a chord with the family-focused culture of our Filipino friends.”
“One of the great things I noticed while serving as a young missionary in the Philippines is the keen focus on the family with strong bonds of love and respect between parents and children who attend church together and serve in their neighbourhoods together,” recalled Elder Thomson.
Speaking of Latter-day Saint missionaries, Elder Thomson continued, “Missionary service is as much a blessing to those who go out to serve as it is for those who they serve, and the impact of that service goes far beyond the two years or 18-months of that assignment.”
“Elders and sisters from the Pacific who were sent by the Lord through prophets and apostles to serve in the Republic of the Philippines have felt the warmth and love of these good people and have now returned home.”
“At the same time, many Filipinos have travelled out around the world and now reside in the home countries of our returned missionaries. We have a great opportunity to re-kindle our love for these good people and this wonderful place where we served our missions by finding ways to interact with them in our home lands.”
Watch a short video on the family.
Mormons believe that the family is ordained of God and is central to His plan for the eternal destiny of His children. This divine plan makes it possible for individuals to return to His presence and for families to be united eternally.