Utah Valley University President Matthew Holland addressed hundreds of LDS young adults during a gathering at UVU's UCCU Events Center Sunday night about the importance of being active members in the community while retaining their moral standards.

“I speak to both men and women … it is imperative that you (women) follow this advice just as much as the men.”

The fireside was hosted by the Latter-day Saint Student Association.

Holland said his mother and wife have been stay-at-home-moms and that they can attest to how much an education helps a woman in motherhood.

Holland also spoke of the opportunity that some will have to serve their country, whether in the armed forces or as civic leader. “You are every bit as much a part of this key effort in preserving freedom,” he said.

He said that as students attend school, work in chosen careers and socialize that pulling away from the world to recharge “is necessary from time to time.” One way that is vital to this kind of re-centering, Holland said, is an immersion in spiritual education. He charged all present to enroll in classes at the LDS Institute of Religion.

Holland also touched on the subject of having a tolerant, open mind while holding to one’s beliefs.

“As you pursue this education, you will find things to which you disagree that will challenge things that you felt in the past. Guard against … new ideas that (will) lead you down the path to accepting that which goes against the teachings of the Lord.”

Holland invited his wife Paige to say a few words to the congregation before he began his remarks: “You are a beautiful sight," she said. "Of all the things President Holland and I do, you students are far and away the very best part of the opportunities. We love you, we pray for you and want what is best is for you. No matter what you face, you can always trust that the Lord loves you unconditionally and will bless you.”

Paige Holland encouraged students to fill their lives with righteous things, such as choosing good friends, good media and choosing to read from the scriptures.

Matthew Holland’s remarks stemmed from a scripture in Chapter 17 of book of John on the importance of being part of the world but not being of the world.

He defined being of the world as being a part of the degrading tendencies toward sin, including the “moral messiness” and false teachings of the world about the importance of marriage. Holland admonished young adults to be chaste and promised them that marriage is one of the “sweetest joys” a person can experience.

He spoke of several areas in which students can be “in the world but not of the world,” including education and civic responsibility. Holland emphasized that getting an education is vital to students prospering in a career.

Anne Squire is a senior at UVU studying English with an emphasis in literature and a minor in music. She is a presidential intern, a news writer for the UVU Review and a member of Phi Theta Kappa.