Thomas S. Monson on Easter's message of peace through the Savior

President Thomas S. Monson (b. 1927) was sustained to the Quorum of Twelve Apostles in 1963.  He served as a counselor in the First Presidency with Presidents Benson, Hunter, and Hinckley until becoming Church president in 2008.

"On this beautiful Easter morning, prayers of gratitude for the life and mission of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, fill the Sabbath air while strains of inspiring music comfort our hearts and whisper to our souls the ageless salutation, 'Peace be unto you.'

"In a world where peace is such a universal quest, we sometimes wonder why violence walks our streets, accounts of murder and senseless killings fill the columns of our newspapers, and family quarrels and disputes mar the sanctity of the home and smother the tranquility of so many lives.

"Perhaps we stray from the path which leads to peace and find it necessary to pause, to ponder, and to reflect on the teachings of the Prince of Peace and determine to incorporate them in our thoughts and actions and to live a higher law, walk a more elevated road, and be a better disciple of Christ....

"The darkness of death can ever be dispelled by the light of revealed truth. 'I am the resurrection, and the life,' spoke the Master. 'He that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die' (John 11:25-26).

"Added to His own words are those of the angels, spoken to the weeping Mary Magdalene and the other Mary as they approached the tomb to care for the body of their Lord: 'Why seek ye the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen' (Luke 24:5-6).

"Such is the message of Easter morn. He lives! And because He lives all shall indeed live again. This knowledge provides the peace for loved ones of those whose graves are marked by the crosses of Normandy, those hallowed resting places in Flanders fields where the poppies blow in springtime, and for those who rest in countless other locations, including the depths of the sea. 'Oh, sweet the joy this sentence gives: "I know that my Redeemer lives!"' (Hymns no. 136)"

- Thomas S. Monson, "The Path to Peace," Ensign, May 1994, pp. 60-62
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Any who comprehend and begin to understand the message of Easter, even in part, recognize they have so much to be grateful for, as President Monson reminds us. We live in very troubling times; we are constantly reminded that "violence walks our streets" as we see continual accounts of tragedy and wickedness described in our media. There is really only one source of true peace to which we must turn in our day:

The most glorious message of that first Easter: because He lives, we too will live again! That is the ultimate source of peace for all of God's children.