D&C 42: The Framing Square for a Zion People
I keep a framing square hanging on a nail in the garage. It is beat up and the paint is flaking, but it is still square. Every time I build something I check it against that square. I check it because even a quarter-degree error in the frame means the whole wall will be off by the time it reaches the ceiling.
Rules do not restrict a building. They make the building possible.
D&C 42 is the framing square for the early Church. It arrived in January 1831, a few months after the Church was organized, when a group of elders had just arrived in Ohio from New York. They needed to know how to live together. This section told them.
What Is the Law of Consecration in D&C 42
The most famous part of this chapter is the law of consecration, and it is worth reading carefully because it is more practical than you might expect.
And behold, thou wilt remember the poor, and consecrate of thy properties for their support that which thou hast to impart unto them, every man according to that which he has, even a bishop in my church.
And every man shall be made accountable unto me, a steward over his own property, or that which he has received, inasmuch as is sufficient for himself and family.
The pattern is simple. You consecrate what you have. The bishop assigns you a stewardship that covers your family's needs. The surplus goes into a storehouse for those who have less. Nobody goes without. Nobody hoards.
It is the kind of arrangement that only works if everyone actually means it. And the early Saints found it hard. But the principle has never been revoked. The question D&C 42 asks is not whether you have enough. The question is whether you see what you have as yours or as God's.
I think about this when I have a tool someone else needs. My framing square is the only one I have, but if my neighbor needed it I would hand it over. It is a tool meant to be used, and the consecration principle extends that logic to everything.
Meaning of Stewardship in LDS Scriptures
Stewardship is the other half of the equation. Consecration is the act of giving, while stewardship is the responsibility that comes back. You are trusted with something and you are accountable for how you manage it.
The chapter makes this explicit. You are made a steward over your own property, inasmuch as is sufficient for yourself and family. This does not mean giving everything away and becoming a beggar. You receive a portion to manage, and whatever is left goes to the storehouse.
It changes how you look at your paycheck, your house, your time. None of it is really yours. You are managing it for someone else. And you will be asked what you did with it.
Church Discipline and Repentance in Doctrine and Covenants
Not everything about this chapter is warm. There are hard lines in it. Verses 18 through 28 lay out the moral law: no killing, no stealing, no lying, no adultery. And there are consequences.
But he that has committed adultery and repents with all his heart, and forsaketh it, and doeth it no more, thou shalt forgive.
The chapter holds two things at once: the law is real and adultery is a serious sin, but the path back is also real. Repent with all your heart, forsake it, do not do it again. Then you are forgiven.
I appreciate that the chapter does not pretend the law can be bent or the consequences can be avoided. But it also does not pretend that a mistake is the end of the story.
The same balance shows up in the verses about healing. Some will be healed. Some will not. And those who do not have faith to be healed should be nourished with all tenderness.
That is the mark of a real community: you nourish people who are struggling rather than abandoning them.
How To Apply the Law of the Church to Modern Life
Some of the laws in this chapter are straightforward: do not kill, steal, or lie. Those have not changed.
Some laws need translation into modern terms, and the command for plain garments is about rejecting pride and competition in a world where what you wear still signals what you are worth. But the principle holds: let your value be in your work and your character, not in your appearance.
The command not to be idle still stings. I have wasted plenty of evenings scrolling through things I cannot remember five minutes later. Idleness is not rest but a kind of slow decay, and the chapter calls it out directly.
And the command to live together in love (verse 45) is harder than it sounds. Living in love with people who agree with you is easy. Living in love with people who annoy you or disappoint you is the real test.
I wrote about a different kind of community law in D&C 41: The First Bishop and the Law of the Church. That was about who leads. This is about how we live.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between consecration and stewardship in D&C 42?
Consecration is the act of offering your resources to the Lord through the Church. Stewardship is what comes after, where you are assigned a portion of those resources to manage for yourself and your family. Consecration is the giving. Stewardship is the managing.
Does D&C 42 say that some sins are unforgivable?
It says that those who murder shall not have forgiveness in this world nor in the world to come. But for many other serious sins, including adultery, the door is open for those who repent with all their heart and forsake the sin. The chapter draws a line but leaves a gate.
What does the command for plain garments mean today?
The principle rejects pride and social competition. In a modern context, your worth should not come from what you wear or how you display your wealth. Beauty belongs in the work of your own hands, with the status symbols left aside.
What does D&C 42 say about healing the sick?
Those with faith will be healed. But the chapter also says that those who do not have the faith to be healed should be nourished with all tenderness. It is a compassionate approach that does not blame the sick for their illness.
I wiped the dust off my framing square last night and checked a cabinet door I had been working on. I found the joint was still square and the door fit with the hinge sitting flat against the jamb.
Rules do not restrict a building. They make the building possible. The Saints in Kirtland learned that in 1831, and I am still learning it in my garage.
— D.