The founding charge of BYU is to teach every subject with the Spirit. It is not intended "that all of the faculty should be categorically teaching religion constantly in their classes, but . . . that every . . . teacher in this institution would keep his subject matter bathed in the light and color of the restored gospel."3

This ideal arises from the common purpose of all education at BYU--to build testimonies of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. A shared desire to "seek learning, even by study and also by faith" (D&C 88:118) knits BYU into a unique educational community. The students, faculty, and staff in this community possess a remarkable diversity of gifts, but they all think of themselves as brothers and sisters seeking together to master the academic disciplines while remaining mastered by the higher claims of discipleship to the Savior.

A spiritually strengthening education warms and enlightens students by the bright fire of their teachers' faith while enlarging their minds with knowledge. It also makes students responsible for developing their own testimonies by strenuous effort. Joseph Smith's words apply equally to faculty and students at BYU: "Thy mind, O man! if thou wilt lead a soul unto salvation, must stretch as high as the utmost heavens, and search into and contemplate the darkest abyss, and the broad expanse of eternity--thou must commune with God."4 Students need not ignore difficult and important questions. Rather, they should frame their questions in prayerful, faithful ways, leading them to answers that equip them to give "a reason of the hope that is in" them (1 Peter 3:15) and to articulate honestly and thoughtfully their commitments to Christ and to his Church.