Our three-fold purpose in Teaching: 
       a—­To guarantee salvation of the individual members of the
       Church.

       b—­To pass on the wonderful heritage handed down by our pioneer
       forefathers.

       c—­To make more easily possible the conversion of the world.

   “Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God;

   “For, behold, the Lord your Redeemer suffered death in the flesh;
   wherefore he suffered the pain of all men, that all men might repent
   and come unto him.

   “And he hath risen again from the dead, that he might bring all men
   unto him, on conditions of repentance;

   “And how great is his joy in the soul that repenteth.

   “Wherefore, you are called to cry repentance unto this people;

   “And if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying
   repentance unto his people, and bring, save it be one soul unto me,
   how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father?

“And now, if your joy will be great with one soul that you have brought unto me into the kingdom of my Father, how great will be your joy if you should bring many souls unto me?” (Doc. & Cov., Sec. 18:10-16.)

   “For behold, this is my work and my glory—­to bring to pass the
   immortality and eternal life of man.” (Moses 1:39.)

If this is the work and glory of the Lord, how great must be the responsibility of the teachers of Zion, His copartners in the business of saving humankind!  Next to parenthood, teaching involves us in the most sacred relationship known to man.  The teacher akin to the parent is the steward of human souls—­his purpose to bless and to elevate.

The first great question that should concern the Latter-day Saint teacher is, “Why do I teach?” To appreciate fully the real purposes behind teaching is the first great guarantee of success.  For teaching is “no mere job”—­it is a sacred calling—­a trust of the Lord Himself under the divine injunction, “Feed my sheep” (John 21:15).  For the teacher who has caught a glimpse of his real responsibility there is no indifference, no eleventh-hour preparation, no feeling of unconcern about the welfare of his pupils between lessons—­for him there is constant inspiration in the thought, “To me is given the privilege of being the cupbearer between the Master and His children who would drink at His fountain of truth.”

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has been variously designated by those not of us:  “The Great Industrial Church,” “The Church of Pioneers,” “The Church of Wonderful Organization.”  It might well be called “The Teaching Church.”  There is scarcely a man or woman in it that has not at some time been asked to respond to the call of teacher.  Our people have been a remarkable people because they have been remarkably taught—­taught of the Lord and His prophets.  Our future can be secure only as it is guaranteed this same good teaching.  Every teacher must come to realize that “Mormonism” is at stake when he teaches.  “Why do I teach?” goes to the very heart of teaching.