October 2026 General Conference › Themes › Giving
A giving economy: sacrificial laws vs something for nothing
Saturday set sacrificial giving laws (fasting, offerings, tithing) against gambling's take-without-giving logic, recasting money as a test of trust and neighbor-love.
A lens for pondering what was said, found through careful coding. Not an official summary; read the talks themselves for the full message. How it works“something for nothing”
What this theme is about
Elder Soares on fasting and President Christofferson on gambling spoke in the same Saturday morning session. President Christofferson's is the only talk built on survey data. The two tithing talks divide the promise: Elder Giuffra stresses the test of faith, Elder Villanueva the discipline of noticing blessings already received.
Direct invitations in this theme
Talks that carried this theme
Ordered by how many passages in each talk were coded to this theme.
The evidence
Coded passages from the talks, quoted word for word from the official texts.
“Though our fast offerings may seem small and simple, they become consecrated expressions of compassion, concern, and service.”
“more intentionally embrace the divine purpose of the law of the fast in a higher and holier way”
“Elder Giuffra, you are no one to deny this sister the blessings of the law of tithing. There are no exceptions to this commandment.”
“We keep the commandments because we love God, not merely because we hope to receive the blessings that come from obedience.”
“As we live the law of tithing, we often receive significant but subtle blessings that are not always what we expect and easily can be overlooked”
“the industry’s entire business model is built on its customers losing money”
“What is the opportunity cost of gambling?”
“A little gambling that seemingly has only a minor impact in your life may be more costly to them if they take license from your example.”
“Gambling is built on the desire to obtain something for nothing.”