October 1911
Eighty-Second Semi-Annual Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. (1911). Report of Discourses. Salt Lake City: The Deseret News.
EIGHTY-SECOND SEMI-ANNUAL CONFERENCE OF THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS
FIRST DAY.
PRESIDENT JOSEPH F. SMITH.
Vilification of the Saints and their leaders a strange phenomenon
PRESIDENT ANTHON H. LUND.
Recent persecution has increased investigation
PRESIDENT JOSEPH F SMITH.
President Taft's address heartily endorsed.
AFTERNOON SESSION.
PREST. JOHN HENRY SMITH
Establishment of this Government, and restoration of the Gospel
ELDER HEBER J. GRANT.
Saints give abundant evidence of love of God and mankind
John W. Young
ELDER REED SMOOT.
Good resulting from malicious articles recently published in magazines
SECOND DAY.
PRESIDENT FRANCIS M. LYMAN.
Faith is only one principle of salvation
ELDER HYRUM M. SMITH.
Qualifications of successful Teachers designated
ELDER GEORGE ALBERT SMITH.
God's commands an expression of a loving Father's wishes
PRESIDENT JOSEPH F. SMITH.
Reverence due to Teachers
AFTERNOON SESSION.
ELDER CHARLES W. PENROSE.
Christ the Revelator of Truth
ELDER GEORGE F. RICHARDS.
Sacrifice made willingly for the Gospel's sake
ELDER DAVID O. M'KAY.
The Church must be kept free from worldly evil
THIRD DAY.
ELDER ORSON F. WHITNEY.
Memorial Address in Honor of Orson Pratt
ELDER ANTHONY W. IVINS.
Tribute to founders and leaders of the Church
OVERFLOW MEETING.
ELDER GERMAN E. ELLSWORTH.
(President Northern States Mission.)
ELDER MELVIN J. BALLARD.
(President of Northwestern States Mission.)
ELDER ANDREW KIMBALL.
(President of St. Joseph Stake.)
ELDER CHARLES H. HART.
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
SECOND OVERFLOW MEETING.
ELDER CHARLES A. CALLIS.
(President of Southern States Mission.)
ELDER JOHN L. HERRICK.
(President of Western States Mission.)
ELDER FRANK Y. TAYLOR.
(President of Granite Stake.)
ELDER SAMUEL O. BENNION.
(President of Central States Mission.)
ELDER WILLIAM T. JACK.
(President of Cassia Stake.)
ELDER GEORGE ALBERT SMITH.
Admonition to sustain the Church authorities, and do the will of God
OUTDOOR MEETING.
ELDER BENJAMIN GODDARD.
(Of Bureau of Information.)
ELDER REY L. PRATT.
(President of the Mexican Mission.)
ELDER JOSEPH ECKERSLEY.
(Of the Presidency of Wayne Stake.)
ELDER JOSEPH R. SHEPHERD.
(President of Bear Lake Stake.)
ELDER MOSES W. TAYLOR.
(President of Summit Stake.)
CLOSING SESSION.
ELDER JOSEPH F. SMITH, JR.
Latter-day visions and revelations
PRESIDENT SEYMOUR B. YOUNG.
(Of First Council of Seventy.)
PATRIARCH JOHN SMITH.
AUTHORITIES SUSTAINED.
PRESIDENT JOSEPH F. SMITH.
Saints advised to live in unity, and keep out of debt
EIGHTY-SECOND SEMI-ANNUAL CONFERENCE OF THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS
FIRST DAY.
PRESIDENT JOSEPH F. SMITH.
Vilification of the Saints and their leaders a strange phenomenon
PRESIDENT ANTHON H. LUND.
Recent persecution has increased investigation
PRESIDENT JOSEPH F SMITH.
President Taft's address heartily endorsed.
AFTERNOON SESSION.
PREST. JOHN HENRY SMITH
Establishment of this Government, and restoration of the Gospel
ELDER HEBER J. GRANT.
Saints give abundant evidence of love of God and mankind
John W. Young
ELDER REED SMOOT.
Good resulting from malicious articles recently published in magazines
SECOND DAY.
PRESIDENT FRANCIS M. LYMAN.
Faith is only one principle of salvation
ELDER HYRUM M. SMITH.
Qualifications of successful Teachers designated
ELDER GEORGE ALBERT SMITH.
God's commands an expression of a loving Father's wishes
PRESIDENT JOSEPH F. SMITH.
Reverence due to Teachers
AFTERNOON SESSION.
ELDER CHARLES W. PENROSE.
Christ the Revelator of Truth
ELDER GEORGE F. RICHARDS.
Sacrifice made willingly for the Gospel's sake
ELDER DAVID O. M'KAY.
The Church must be kept free from worldly evil
THIRD DAY.
ELDER ORSON F. WHITNEY.
Memorial Address in Honor of Orson Pratt
ELDER ANTHONY W. IVINS.
Tribute to founders and leaders of the Church
OVERFLOW MEETING.
ELDER GERMAN E. ELLSWORTH.
(President Northern States Mission.)
ELDER MELVIN J. BALLARD.
(President of Northwestern States Mission.)
ELDER ANDREW KIMBALL.
(President of St. Joseph Stake.)
ELDER CHARLES H. HART.
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
SECOND OVERFLOW MEETING.
ELDER CHARLES A. CALLIS.
(President of Southern States Mission.)
ELDER JOHN L. HERRICK.
(President of Western States Mission.)
ELDER FRANK Y. TAYLOR.
(President of Granite Stake.)
ELDER SAMUEL O. BENNION.
(President of Central States Mission.)
ELDER WILLIAM T. JACK.
(President of Cassia Stake.)
ELDER GEORGE ALBERT SMITH.
Admonition to sustain the Church authorities, and do the will of God
OUTDOOR MEETING.
ELDER BENJAMIN GODDARD.
(Of Bureau of Information.)
ELDER REY L. PRATT.
(President of the Mexican Mission.)
ELDER JOSEPH ECKERSLEY.
(Of the Presidency of Wayne Stake.)
ELDER JOSEPH R. SHEPHERD.
(President of Bear Lake Stake.)
ELDER MOSES W. TAYLOR.
(President of Summit Stake.)
CLOSING SESSION.
ELDER JOSEPH F. SMITH, JR.
Latter-day visions and revelations
PRESIDENT SEYMOUR B. YOUNG.
(Of First Council of Seventy.)
PATRIARCH JOHN SMITH.
AUTHORITIES SUSTAINED.
PRESIDENT JOSEPH F. SMITH.
Saints advised to live in unity, and keep out of debt
EIGHTY-SECOND SEMI-ANNUAL CONFERENCE OF THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS
HELD IN THE Tabernacle and Assembly Hall
Salt Lake City, Utah, October 6, 7,8, 1911
with a full report of the discourses
PUBLISHED BY THE DESERET NEWS
GENERAL CONFERENCE OF THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS.
FIRST DAY.
The Eighty-Second Semi-Annual Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints convened in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, at 10 a. m. Friday, Oct. 6, 1911, President Joseph F. Smith presiding.
AUTHORITIES PRESENT.
There were present of the First Presidency, Joseph F. Smith, Anthon H. Lund, and John Henry Smith; of the Council of the Twelve Apostles, Francis M. Lyman, Heber J. Grant, Reed Smoot, Hyrum M. Smith, George Albert Smith, Charles W. Penrose, George F. Richards, Orson F. Whitney, David O. McKay, Anthony W. Ivins and Joseph F. Smith, Jr.; Presiding Patriarch John Smith; of' the First Council of Seventies, Seymour B. Young, Brigham H. Roberts, J. Golden Kimball, Rulon S. Wells, Joseph W. McMurrin and Charles H. Hart; (Levi Edgar Young was in attendance at later sessions); of the Presiding Bishopric, Charles W. Nibley, Orrin P. Miller, and David A. Smith. There were also a large number of Presidents of Stakes and Missions, with their Counselors, Bishops of Wards, Patriarchs, and numerous other prominent men and women representing various quorums and organizations of the Church.
President Joseph F. Smith called the assembly to order, and the conference services were commenced by the choir and congregation singing the hymn:
Redeemer of Israel, our only delight.
On whom for a blessing we call,
Our shadow by day, and our pillar by night,
Our King, our Deliv'rer, our all!
Prayer was offered by Elder German E. Ellsworth.
The choir and congregation sang the hymn:
Come, come ye saints, no toil nor labor fear,
But with joy wend your way;
Though hard to you this journey may appear,
Grace shall be as your day.
'Tis better far for us to strive,
Our useless cares from us to drive.
Do this, and joy your hearts will swell--
All is well! all is well!
HELD IN THE Tabernacle and Assembly Hall
Salt Lake City, Utah, October 6, 7,8, 1911
with a full report of the discourses
PUBLISHED BY THE DESERET NEWS
GENERAL CONFERENCE OF THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS.
FIRST DAY.
The Eighty-Second Semi-Annual Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints convened in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, at 10 a. m. Friday, Oct. 6, 1911, President Joseph F. Smith presiding.
AUTHORITIES PRESENT.
There were present of the First Presidency, Joseph F. Smith, Anthon H. Lund, and John Henry Smith; of the Council of the Twelve Apostles, Francis M. Lyman, Heber J. Grant, Reed Smoot, Hyrum M. Smith, George Albert Smith, Charles W. Penrose, George F. Richards, Orson F. Whitney, David O. McKay, Anthony W. Ivins and Joseph F. Smith, Jr.; Presiding Patriarch John Smith; of' the First Council of Seventies, Seymour B. Young, Brigham H. Roberts, J. Golden Kimball, Rulon S. Wells, Joseph W. McMurrin and Charles H. Hart; (Levi Edgar Young was in attendance at later sessions); of the Presiding Bishopric, Charles W. Nibley, Orrin P. Miller, and David A. Smith. There were also a large number of Presidents of Stakes and Missions, with their Counselors, Bishops of Wards, Patriarchs, and numerous other prominent men and women representing various quorums and organizations of the Church.
President Joseph F. Smith called the assembly to order, and the conference services were commenced by the choir and congregation singing the hymn:
Redeemer of Israel, our only delight.
On whom for a blessing we call,
Our shadow by day, and our pillar by night,
Our King, our Deliv'rer, our all!
Prayer was offered by Elder German E. Ellsworth.
The choir and congregation sang the hymn:
Come, come ye saints, no toil nor labor fear,
But with joy wend your way;
Though hard to you this journey may appear,
Grace shall be as your day.
'Tis better far for us to strive,
Our useless cares from us to drive.
Do this, and joy your hearts will swell--
All is well! all is well!
PRESIDENT JOSEPH F. SMITH.
OPENING ADDRESS.
Vilification of the Saints and their leaders a strange phenomenon. — The world not injured by our belief—Only Gospel truths taught by the Prophet Joseph Smith.—The doctrines divine, the hatred unjustifiable.— Personal denial of wrong doing.—Eternal relationship of parents and children.—Distant colonization objectionable.—Peace, goodwill, and industry enjoined.—Satan's rage increased, and his power diminished, when Saints are faithful.
I desire to express our feeling of welcome and good cheer to all the Latter-day Saints who have assembled here this morning for the opening session of our Conference. We are glad to see you, and we thank you for your presence here, for we feel that your presence is an evidence of the interest that you feel in our Conference, and in the great work of human redemption, in which you and we all are and should be earnestly engaged. It is a matter of congratulation, I think, to the Latter-day Saints that they are led by a spirit that inclines their thoughts, their minds and hearts towards the performance and' accomplishment of the duties and responsibilities that rest upon them, and I take it as an evidence of your good faith, and of your fervent belief and feeling in the cause in which we are engaged, that you are present here today.
I hope and pray that the Spirit of the Lord, the Spirit of wisdom and of eternal truth may pervade all the sessions of this Conference, including the meetings or gatherings of the various organizations which will hold their conventions during the time of the Conference. I hope that those who shall address the people may be led by the Spirit of God in their remarks, that they may speak words of comfort, of instruction, of wisdom and testimony to the Latter-day Saints regarding the great work of God that has been established in the latter days in the earth.
Whatever may be the feeling of those opposed to the work of the Lord, whatever may be the feeling of the unbelieving and scornful, and those that are contemptuous toward the work of the Lord, let the spirit of wisdom, of good judgment, of intelligence govern and direct all the acts and labors, and all the thoughts and desires of the Latter-day Saints. It matters but very little to me what men may think of me, or what they may say about me, so long as I can maintain a consciousness of having righteousness in view, of having an earnest desire to do good and not evil, and so long as I am conscious that I am, to the best of my knowledge and understanding, following the dictates of my conscience, and the promptings of the Spirit of the Lord to me in the line of my duty. -Yet we often wonder why people are led by such a spirit of bitterness, of animosity and opposition to any people or to any individual whose record in life has been, barring the common weaknesses of common mortality, absolutely above reproach. It is surprising how men can become so vile as to publish and declare slanderous things, falsehoods and misrepresentations with regard to men and people who have never in their lives done any man or woman, or any community of people in the world, any harm; who have never injured a soul, and whose whole life and mission, hopes, labors, and earnest desires have been to benefit the world, and to bless and ameliorate the condition of mankind. It is surprising that such is the case. Such has been the case from the beginning of this work until now, and such will continue to be the case so long as we abide in the truth, and are guided by the spirit of revelation, and have an earnest desire to do good to the children of men, and there are men who are full of wickedness and sin.
It was said away back in the early days in the State of Missouri, by the leaders of the persecution against the Saints there, that all they desired was that the Mormons, or the Latter-day Saints, should discard their idea of revelation from God in this dispensation; that they should renounce their faith in Prophets and their claim to the Apostleship, and to the restoration of the Holy Priesthood; that they should scatter abroad, cease to organize, and to maintain their organization, and become "like the rest of us." That was all that they demanded in that early day, and it is a very true and correct index to the feeling of our enemies that has existed ever since, to the present time. Men are moved by some influence, some spirit—judge ye what the nature of that spirit or influence is—to try with all their power to demoralize, debase, and sow the seeds of unbelief, the seeds of corruption, error, lack of faith, and desire to do good; to sow the seeds of disruption in the hearts of the people called Latter-day Saints, in order that their desire might be accomplished, that they should become "like the rest of them," like the rest. of the world, and what is the difference? The difference is simply this: We believe just as the best Christians, or so-called believers in Christ in the world believe, that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God; that He is the Savior of the world; that He is the Redeemer of men from sin and from death unto life; and there is no people, whatever their profession may be, that believe in Christ more firmly, more perfectly, more confidingly, than do the Latter-day Saints —but where is the difference? The difference, so far as that belief is concerned, is this: that the world say all that is necessary is to believe and you will be saved, but the Latter-day Saints declare that it is simply a mockery for men to say they believe in Christ, and refuse to do the works that He did; it is simply folly; it is un-Christian; it is inconsistent for men to say that all that is necessary for men is to believe in Christ and they shall be saved, when Christ Himself declared that He required all men to do the works that He did, and to keep the commandments that He gave unto them. This is the difference. We believe that it is necessary to do the work that He did. We believe it is necessary to implicitly obey His commands and to follow in His footsteps, to emulate His example to the best of our ability, that we may become more and more like unto Him. Now, so far as that is concerned, wherein is man injured? Who is hurt? Who in any sense in the world sustains any wrong at the hands of a people who believe in doing the works that were commanded of the Lord, and in following in His footsteps? Who is wronged by it? But the trouble is just as the Savior said: "If the light had not come, then would ye have been without condemnation." But this is the condemnation of the world, the light has come into the world, and the world loves darkness more than it does the light. That is the condemnation, and there is where the shoe pinches.
And what is the difference? We believe in the Prophet Joseph Smith; we believe that the Lord God Almighty raised up that boy and made him a Prophet; a Seer and a Revelator, and that through him, or that instrumentality, the Lord Almighty has restored to men the fulness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which is indeed the power of God unto salvation. The world don't believe it. They are welcome to their belief, whether it be belief or unbelief. We are not here as censors upon the judgment or belief of the children of men. We are not here to bring any railing accusations against men for their belief. Let them believe and worship how, where and what they may. That is their prerogative. But we object to their bringing railing accusations against our belief and our faith. We think that we should have the same privilege and liberty to believe as we please, that the world has, and that we accede to the world; and because we believe in Joseph Smith as a Prophet of God, the world is in no wise injured by it, but on the contrary, it is vastly benefited by that belief, at least to the extent that that belief takes hold upon honest men, and brings them to a knowledge of that great truth.
What did Joseph reveal? He revealed, or has been the instrument in the hands of God of revealing to the world Jesus, the Son of God, in His own person. He has been the instrument in the hands of the Lord of bringing the light to the inhabitants of the world that God lives, that Christ lives, whom to know is life eternal, and whom the world have ignorantly worshiped as a myth, as something that fills the immensity of space, but is indescribable; a something that is almighty and all-powerful and all-present, but without personal existence. Joseph has revealed to the world that Jesus Christ who was crucified and rose again from the dead, is a personal Being, in whose likeness and image man is made, or is begotten in the world, and that the Father is a person in exact similitude to the Son. We have the history of the Son, given us by His disciples who sojourned with Him while He was in the mortal flesh; that He was born of His mother, Mary; that He was called the carpenter's son; that He grew to manhood; that He taught the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and illustrated the example of righteousness, that is the true type for all mankind to imitate and follow; that He possessed power over death, and though they put Him to death, He rose again, and that while His body lay in the tomb, He proclaimed the same Gospel that He preached to the living, to those that were confined in darkness, and banishment from the presence of the Lord, in outer darkness, because of their wickedness while they were in the flesh; and quickened by the Spirit He went and preached the Gospel to them as He had preached it to the living; and that when He rose and identified Himself beyond the possibility of any doubt to the minds of those who witnessed and saw Him, and knew Him, and afterwards testified of Him to the world, that He was the same that was crucified, bearing the marks of the nails and of the spear in His body; that He was not a spirit; that He was flesh and bone as- tangible as man, and that a spirit had not this flesh and bone as He had. He declared this to the world: This same physical, tangible entity called Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Mary and the Son of God, in His resurrected body, came to Joseph Smith, revealed Himself to Joseph Smith, the same God, the same Christ, the same Redeemed of the world that was crucified on Calvary; and, that God, the Father, is like His Son; that it would be inconsistent and impossible for a spirit to beget a man like Christ, and therefore the Father and the Son are the exact resemblance of each other. Joseph revealed this to the world. Who is hurt by it? Who is injured by this fact and by this revelation to the children of men? In what respect is the world worse off for having received this knowledge? I tell you that the world would be better off, a thousand times better off, if they would but consider this truth and receive it in their hearts, and then be guided by the doctrine that Joseph Smith was the instrument in the hands of God in revealing anew to the world.
This, then, is the difference, but wherein are you injuring anybody by it? What wrong are you doing? None whatever. Why should men be embittered against you because of this, because of your belief in Joseph Smith? Why should they become your enemies because you declare your faith in a new revelation from the Father and from the Son to mankind for their guidance? Why should they? Let me tell you why: for the very same reason precisely that the embittered and unbelieving Pharisees and hypocrites of the Savior's time persecuted the Redeemer of earth, for the very reason that they later put to death the* disciples of Jesus Christ, whom He ordained as Apostles and as special witnesses of Himself, who bore testimony of Him and of the Gospel to all the nations of the earth. They put them to death one by one, some of them in the most cruel manner, simply because they preached Jesus Christ, and Him crucified and risen from the dead, and ascended into Heaven, and sitting with all glory and power and majesty and might at the right hand of His Father, God. The world felt injured by it. Why? Because it laid the axe at the root of the tree of error, of superstition and of tradition, of lack of faith, and unbelief. It laid the axe at the root of the tree of wickedness, in the world, and of ignorance of God and His principles, and the plan of life and salvation, and the world hated the disciples because of it, and they hated the Son of God because of it, and they crucified Him. They hated the disciples because of it, and they put them to death. That is why they hate you, for the same reason, that is those that do hate you, those that have exercised their power, their will and their thoughts or minds sufficiently to be imbued with the spirit of persecution and hatred against the light and the truth.
What else did Joseph reveal, or did the Lord, rather, reveal through him? He revealed the identical Gospel, precept for precept, principle for principle, doctrine for doctrine, ordinance for ordinance, the exact Gospel of Jesus Christ that He taught Himself, and in no way did Joseph Smith vary in the least degree from the doctrines taught by the Son of God, even to the doctrine in which the Lord Himself declared that if the Jews who were finding fault with him were the seed of Abraham, they would do the works of Abraham. So that I stand here without any fear of rational or reasonable or justifiable contradiction, to say that the Prophet Joseph Smith revealed no principle to man, that was not taught, believed in, accepted and approved by the Son of God when He was on the earth, not one thing, and we can prove it—prove it by Scriptures, and from history. But we need not enter into that. What did he reveal? He revealed the Father and Son, and the Holy Ghost, which is a personage of spirit, and not a personage of flesh and bone as God is, and as Jesus is. He revealed the doctrine that you must believe in God, that you must believe in Jesus Christ and in His power of redemption; that yon must believe, and believing, you must repent of your sins. Now, that- is a terrible crime in the eyes of some people, to be required to repent of their sins. If some men in the world, that have taken up arms against the Latter-day Saints, were to repent of their sins, God knows there would be nothing left of them. (Laughter.) Consequently it is an awful crime to ask men to repent of their sins, but that is what the Lord taught through Joseph Smith; repentance of sin, then baptism by immersion with Christ, being buried with Him in the water, in the liquid grave, and coming forth again out of the liquid grave in likeness of His resurrection from death to life, baptism by immersion, and the baptism of the Holy Ghost, by the laying on of hands; these are necessary for the salvation of the children of men. Joseph taught this. Who else taught it? Jesus taught it. Paul taught it. Peter taught it. James taught it. John taught it. Matthew and Luke and all the Apostles anciently taught this same doctrine, and left their testimony on record. and it has been handed down to all subsequent generations to the present and we have it to look at today. But some people think it is a crime for Latter-day Saints to hold to such doctrines as these now, in these latter days. They say it is presumption and assumption for man to say he possesses authority to baptize for the remission of sins, and to confer the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands. It was not an assumption in the days of Christ. nor was it a presumption on their part. Authority was given them, and they were sent out in the world to preach these doctrines, and baptize those who would believe; and those who should believe and should be baptized should be saved, as the Apostles have said. And yet Christ Himself has said, "And they that believe not shall be damned." That was His word; that was His decree and His law, and who will question the right of the Redeemer of men to say the way in which they shall be saved, and the way in which they cannot be saved? Who shall question His right to say that? Joseph repeated it. We believe it. We have accepted it, and in this respect we differ from the generality of mankind, and they are wroth about it, angry about it. Then what; was that all? No; the Lord revealed to the Prophet Joseph Smith that having been washed clean, having been cleansed from sin by baptism for the remission of sin, by one having authority from God to do it. that thereafter they were to live pure, chaste, holy, upright lives, and sin no more, if they could live without sin, or at least to do as nearly .that as it is possible for human creatures to do, who are possessed of the weaknesses that beset human nature. That was the doctrine of Joseph Smith, to live righteous lives; inasmuch as you have been purified, inasmuch as you have been cleansed from sin, inasmuch as God has remitted your sins through obedience to the ordinances of the Gospel, that you shall thereafter keep yourself pure and unspotted from the world. Anything wrong in that? Is the world injured by that? Any man injured by that procedure, or by that counsel and requirement? No. Well, then, what?
Then the Lord revealed the great principle of organization, by which His Church is to be governed, which the Lord Himself established in the Church, the authority of the Holy Priesthood, that of the High Priesthood, the Apostleship, the Seventies, and the Elders, and then the organizations of the Lesser Priesthood— the Bishops, the Priests, the Teachers and the Deacons—God established these organizations in the Church for the government of the people. What for? To oppress them? No. To injure them? No, a thousand times, no. What for? That they and their children might have the benefits of these organizations for instruction, for admonition, for guidance, for revelation, and for inspiration to do that which the Lord requires at their hands, that they may become perfect in their lives, and that they may perfect the organization to which they belong in the Church, as the Lord God has revealed those things to us; that thereby we may become stronger more intelligent, possessed of greater faith, of broader understanding of the truth, and of a higher conception .of God's principles and purposes, for the existence of the children of men in the earth, and for a broader and more perfect comprehension of the ultimate result of obedience to the laws of God. Is there anything wrong about it? Has anybody been injured?
Some people think that we are wonderfully injured, terribly wronged in consequence of these organizations. I am accused of being tyrannical and unjust. I am accused of robbing and wronging the Latter-day Saints. Well, you know about that. If there is a Latter-day Saint, or a Latter-day sinner beneath the sun, anywhere on earth, in hell, or anywhere else that can point the finger, to an act of mine, wherein they have sustained injury and wrong, God knows I will go farther than they could ask me to go, to make it right. I have never wronged any man, woman or child to my knowledge; and I defy wicked men or good men, or women, or anybody else, to point to an act of mine wherein I have violated God's law of chastity. Well, why do you say it? Because no man on earth knows it better than I do myself, and yet, my companions, my associates, those who have dwelt with me in secret and in public, those who know me can bear testimony to the same thing. I never used a dollar belonging to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, that I did not have a legitimate right to use, and that, too, by the consent and approval of my brethren, who have the right to say how the funds of the Church shall be expended. I pay my tithing and offerings precisely the same as you do, who are as faithful about it as I am. We do not all do our full duty with reference to this. Many of us shirk our responsibilities in regard to that, to some extent. That is, we feel a lack of faith in the principle and in the promise of the Lord, and we do not always come up to the full standard of the law.
Now, the Prophet Joseph Smith has also revealed to the world a principle that has been practically kept hid from the foundation of the world. What is it? The union of husband and wife for time and for all eternity. Who knew anything about it? Who comprehended the principle? Who understood the responsibility that dwells with the union of husband and wife, till Joseph Smith revealed it in the simplicity and plainness with which he has revealed it to the world? The world hates that principle, that is. some do, not all of them, because a great many now are beginning to be leavened with the leaven that Joseph Smith has put into the lump of meal, and now you will hear both ministers and laity say, "Oh, we hope to have the privilege of seeing and knowing and embracing our wives and our children in the world to come." But the Lord revealed that principle to Joseph Smith, and he taught it to the world, and I thank God for that principle. It has opened my eyes. If anything in the world could have made me a better man, or a better husband, if such a thing is possible for me to be a good husband at all, it is that principle that the Lord has revealed, which shows me the obligations that I am under to the mothers of my children. He has taught to us the' principle and the ordinance of the everlasting covenant, the union of parents and children for time and all eternity. What did the world know about it? Nothing. And yet the world is mad about these things, that is, the majority. I modify it, because I believe that there are thousands and tens of thousands of men in the world that are not identified with the Latter-day Saints, who actually believe those principles, and would accept them if their financial and social conditions in the world and their good name or reputation would only permit them to become members of the Church in good standing, and not lose their favor with the world—they would be glad to do it. They believe the doctrine. And not only that, but the Lord revealed through the Prophet Joseph Smith the necessity of the children turning their hearts towards their fathers, and revealed to the world the fact that the hearts of the fathers were already turned towards their children in the dispensation of the fulness of times, and that there was a work most sacred and most important that the children must perform, if they have the opportunity to do it, for the redemption of their dead, that have died without the knowledge of the Gospel. God has revealed these things through the Prophet Joseph Smith to the world, and the world don't like these things. Why? Because they are in advance of anything that they are willing to accept.
These things go beyond the mere belief that a man will be saved and exalted into the highest glory of God simply by saying on the gallows that he believes in the Lord Jesus Christ. That is a fallacy. Every man will be judged according to his works, whether they be good or whether they be evil, and that is a doctrine that was advanced and taught by the Prophet Joseph Smith in plainness that cannot be ignored; every man will be judged according to his works, whether they be good or whether they be evil. Anything short of that would not and could not be of God, if God is just, if God is righteous, if God is impartial; then this principle of justice is a righteous principle, and it certainly has emanated from God, and not from Joseph Smith, nor from man.
It would be unfair for me to occupy much more of your time this morning. I thank my God for what is called "Mormonism." I thank the Lord that He has permitted me to come into the world in this dispensation. I am full of gratitude to my heavenly Father that He has honored me with the Holy Priesthood; that He has called me to be a witness of Him, and a witness of His Son Jesus Christ to the children of men. I thank God my heavenly Father that He has honored me in the midst of my brethren, that He has given to me their confidence and their love, and that I am sustained and upheld by them in my ministry. I feel grateful and thankful for all these things; for these are better to me by far than any favors, praise or honors the world could bestow, and I have no fear of the evil that is said of me by wicked and corrupt men.
I believe in the Gospel in its fulness. I believe in the Holy Priesthood, in its power, in its rightfulness to administer in the temples and in the waters of baptism, and in the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost, and for healing of the sick, and for ordinations, and for all other purposes for which the Priesthood is rightfully used. I believe in the gathering of Israel, and I believe that the day will come when the valleys of the mountains will become too straight for the people of God. I believe that the time will come when we shall have to colonize abroad, when we shall have to spread abroad in the earth, for I believe that the Lord designs that eventually the people , that will name His name in righteousness, and that will believe in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, together with His works, will spread over the earth, and especially spread over this land of Joseph, which the Lord has preserved in which to establish His kingdom and His Church in the latter days. I believe that as much as can be, but I do not believe that the time has yet come when our people can scatter abroad here and there, singly or by twos or threes or by little companies, away off into Central America, away off into Southern Mexico, away off into the northern limits, and away down to the western sea, or over onto the Atlantic seaboard. I do not believe the time has come that we can diffuse our strength and scatter ourselves abroad in the world, or colonize to such an extent and carry out the purposes of the Lord. I don't think that time has come. When it comes the Lord will make it manifest, and we will be able to do it too when that time comes. I believe that an overruling providence compelled us to establish settlements in Canada when they were established there, and I believe that the same providence overruled and compelled us to establish settlements in northern Mexico at the time that they were established there. I believe that President Young was moved by a correct principle, and by prophecy and inspiration when he determined that we should settle in Arizona and New Mexico in the south. I think that he was moved by the spirit of wisdom when he determined that we should settle at and in the vicinity of St. George, and we should build a temple and establish a colony there. I believe this. Why? Because he directed those movements by the inspiration of the Almighty, and therefore it was right, and when the Spirit of the Lord moves upon His servants who preside over the Church to build colonies in distant lands, it will be time enough for you to go, and we will call you to go, some of you; but not till then.
Now, my brethren and sisters, in conclusion I want to say, this: you may think perhaps that I have devoted too much time in criticising, making illustrations between the doctrines of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and the doctrines of the world. You may I have been too generous in my use of reference, at least, to those who despitefully use you, and who persecute you, and who say all manner of evil against you falsely. You may think so, but I have done it merely with a view to showing the contrast between the spirit of the evil one, and the Spirit of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Our spirit is a spirit of peace, of good will to all mankind. We are seeking to build up and to establish righteousness in the hearts of the people, and I want to see you, as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, male and female, so industrious, so active in the discharge of your duties as Latter-day Saints, so humble, so submissive to. the will of the Lord that you will not have time to spend in magnifying the weaknesses, the follies and the faults of your neighbors and of your fellow members of the Church. The Lord knows there is evil enough said in the world thoughtlessly, and without any particular intent to do wrong, but merely through the weakness of men to talk, talk, talk and say nothing—let us work and not talk, Let us at least try to say no evil of our fellow members in the Church. Let us cease to magnify the follies and the weaknesses of members in the Church. Let us cease to find fault with those that preside over us, the Bishop and his counselors, the Presidency of the Stake, and the members of the High Council. Let us cease to find fault with industries which are instituted in our midst for the purpose of giving to the people prosperity and advancement, a means wherewith to build themselves up, and with which to build up, or help to build up Zion. Let us not find fault with these think things.
I have a letter in my pocket to day from a member, at least a former member of the Church, who is now ready to leave the Church, and wants his name taken from the records, because the sugar factories run on Sunday, and I am the President of the Utah-Idaho Sugar Company. My friends who are largely interested in this industry have honored me by making me the president of that organization. This man writes to me and demands that I shall stop the making of sugar on Sunday, and if I do not he wants his name taken from the rolls of the Church. Well, now, you can't reason with a man of that kind. You can argue with him, it is true, but you can't reason with him, for a man of that description has no reason, he is not capable of reason. The fact is that our sugar factories have brought more prosperity, more wealth into our country than any other single industry that has ever been established among us, and for nine months, at least nine months in the year, those sugar factories not only keep every Sabbath day holy, and do no work in it, but they keep every other day in the year, or in those months, sacred, too, for they do not do anything; they just lay idle for nine months in the year; but when they start, the juice from those beets has to run through miles and miles of piping, of tubes that are heated at a certain temperature, that is. necessary to evaporate the water from the juice, condense the juice into a condition to make sugar out of it; and if you stop that one day, you ruin the whole run for at least twenty-four hours, and perhaps a great deal more. And what else? Why, every stockholder and every man 'who raises beets in the country would be ruined, for the beet factories would have to shut up; they could not succeed if they did not, when they opened, run night and day, Sundays included, through to the end. It is the fool that saith in his heart, "No one has wisdom but me."
Now, my brethren and sisters, we are doing the best we know how. Our lives, our labors, our efforts, our intentions, are like an open book to all who may read clearly, and they may run while they read. I want my brethren and sisters to do as I am trying to do, and I don't want to say it boastfully, for I do not feel that way. I want von to pay your tithing as honestly as I do. That is all I will ask of you to do in that regard. And if you will pay your fast donations for the poor, and if you will help to maintain your ward organizations as you should, as members of the Church, in which promise of blessing is involved in every instance, I can tell you that the world will have less and less power, and less and less reason to say—I was going to say evil things—but they will find, less reason and less occasion to say flattering things of us, because we will be that much better, and the better we are, the more the devil will rage, and the more bitter he will be But as President Young said at one time, and as repeated later by President Woodruff, the more righteous and upright, pure and undefiled, the Latter- day Saints become, the less power will Satan have over them, for in proportion to your unity and uprightness, honesty, and fidelity to the cause in which you are engaged, in such proportion will the power of the adversary be weakened, and those who are seeking to entice your sons and daughters into haunts of shame, and dens of wickedness, that they might be defiled, corrupted, wicked and 'like the rest of them will have less power over you, if you will watch your children better, and live better lives yourselves.
God bless you, is my prayer, in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Elder Edwin Tout sang as a tenor solo, the hymn entitled, "Oh Home Beloved," the words of which were written by Prof. Evan Stephens.
OPENING ADDRESS.
Vilification of the Saints and their leaders a strange phenomenon. — The world not injured by our belief—Only Gospel truths taught by the Prophet Joseph Smith.—The doctrines divine, the hatred unjustifiable.— Personal denial of wrong doing.—Eternal relationship of parents and children.—Distant colonization objectionable.—Peace, goodwill, and industry enjoined.—Satan's rage increased, and his power diminished, when Saints are faithful.
I desire to express our feeling of welcome and good cheer to all the Latter-day Saints who have assembled here this morning for the opening session of our Conference. We are glad to see you, and we thank you for your presence here, for we feel that your presence is an evidence of the interest that you feel in our Conference, and in the great work of human redemption, in which you and we all are and should be earnestly engaged. It is a matter of congratulation, I think, to the Latter-day Saints that they are led by a spirit that inclines their thoughts, their minds and hearts towards the performance and' accomplishment of the duties and responsibilities that rest upon them, and I take it as an evidence of your good faith, and of your fervent belief and feeling in the cause in which we are engaged, that you are present here today.
I hope and pray that the Spirit of the Lord, the Spirit of wisdom and of eternal truth may pervade all the sessions of this Conference, including the meetings or gatherings of the various organizations which will hold their conventions during the time of the Conference. I hope that those who shall address the people may be led by the Spirit of God in their remarks, that they may speak words of comfort, of instruction, of wisdom and testimony to the Latter-day Saints regarding the great work of God that has been established in the latter days in the earth.
Whatever may be the feeling of those opposed to the work of the Lord, whatever may be the feeling of the unbelieving and scornful, and those that are contemptuous toward the work of the Lord, let the spirit of wisdom, of good judgment, of intelligence govern and direct all the acts and labors, and all the thoughts and desires of the Latter-day Saints. It matters but very little to me what men may think of me, or what they may say about me, so long as I can maintain a consciousness of having righteousness in view, of having an earnest desire to do good and not evil, and so long as I am conscious that I am, to the best of my knowledge and understanding, following the dictates of my conscience, and the promptings of the Spirit of the Lord to me in the line of my duty. -Yet we often wonder why people are led by such a spirit of bitterness, of animosity and opposition to any people or to any individual whose record in life has been, barring the common weaknesses of common mortality, absolutely above reproach. It is surprising how men can become so vile as to publish and declare slanderous things, falsehoods and misrepresentations with regard to men and people who have never in their lives done any man or woman, or any community of people in the world, any harm; who have never injured a soul, and whose whole life and mission, hopes, labors, and earnest desires have been to benefit the world, and to bless and ameliorate the condition of mankind. It is surprising that such is the case. Such has been the case from the beginning of this work until now, and such will continue to be the case so long as we abide in the truth, and are guided by the spirit of revelation, and have an earnest desire to do good to the children of men, and there are men who are full of wickedness and sin.
It was said away back in the early days in the State of Missouri, by the leaders of the persecution against the Saints there, that all they desired was that the Mormons, or the Latter-day Saints, should discard their idea of revelation from God in this dispensation; that they should renounce their faith in Prophets and their claim to the Apostleship, and to the restoration of the Holy Priesthood; that they should scatter abroad, cease to organize, and to maintain their organization, and become "like the rest of us." That was all that they demanded in that early day, and it is a very true and correct index to the feeling of our enemies that has existed ever since, to the present time. Men are moved by some influence, some spirit—judge ye what the nature of that spirit or influence is—to try with all their power to demoralize, debase, and sow the seeds of unbelief, the seeds of corruption, error, lack of faith, and desire to do good; to sow the seeds of disruption in the hearts of the people called Latter-day Saints, in order that their desire might be accomplished, that they should become "like the rest of them," like the rest. of the world, and what is the difference? The difference is simply this: We believe just as the best Christians, or so-called believers in Christ in the world believe, that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God; that He is the Savior of the world; that He is the Redeemer of men from sin and from death unto life; and there is no people, whatever their profession may be, that believe in Christ more firmly, more perfectly, more confidingly, than do the Latter-day Saints —but where is the difference? The difference, so far as that belief is concerned, is this: that the world say all that is necessary is to believe and you will be saved, but the Latter-day Saints declare that it is simply a mockery for men to say they believe in Christ, and refuse to do the works that He did; it is simply folly; it is un-Christian; it is inconsistent for men to say that all that is necessary for men is to believe in Christ and they shall be saved, when Christ Himself declared that He required all men to do the works that He did, and to keep the commandments that He gave unto them. This is the difference. We believe that it is necessary to do the work that He did. We believe it is necessary to implicitly obey His commands and to follow in His footsteps, to emulate His example to the best of our ability, that we may become more and more like unto Him. Now, so far as that is concerned, wherein is man injured? Who is hurt? Who in any sense in the world sustains any wrong at the hands of a people who believe in doing the works that were commanded of the Lord, and in following in His footsteps? Who is wronged by it? But the trouble is just as the Savior said: "If the light had not come, then would ye have been without condemnation." But this is the condemnation of the world, the light has come into the world, and the world loves darkness more than it does the light. That is the condemnation, and there is where the shoe pinches.
And what is the difference? We believe in the Prophet Joseph Smith; we believe that the Lord God Almighty raised up that boy and made him a Prophet; a Seer and a Revelator, and that through him, or that instrumentality, the Lord Almighty has restored to men the fulness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which is indeed the power of God unto salvation. The world don't believe it. They are welcome to their belief, whether it be belief or unbelief. We are not here as censors upon the judgment or belief of the children of men. We are not here to bring any railing accusations against men for their belief. Let them believe and worship how, where and what they may. That is their prerogative. But we object to their bringing railing accusations against our belief and our faith. We think that we should have the same privilege and liberty to believe as we please, that the world has, and that we accede to the world; and because we believe in Joseph Smith as a Prophet of God, the world is in no wise injured by it, but on the contrary, it is vastly benefited by that belief, at least to the extent that that belief takes hold upon honest men, and brings them to a knowledge of that great truth.
What did Joseph reveal? He revealed, or has been the instrument in the hands of God of revealing to the world Jesus, the Son of God, in His own person. He has been the instrument in the hands of the Lord of bringing the light to the inhabitants of the world that God lives, that Christ lives, whom to know is life eternal, and whom the world have ignorantly worshiped as a myth, as something that fills the immensity of space, but is indescribable; a something that is almighty and all-powerful and all-present, but without personal existence. Joseph has revealed to the world that Jesus Christ who was crucified and rose again from the dead, is a personal Being, in whose likeness and image man is made, or is begotten in the world, and that the Father is a person in exact similitude to the Son. We have the history of the Son, given us by His disciples who sojourned with Him while He was in the mortal flesh; that He was born of His mother, Mary; that He was called the carpenter's son; that He grew to manhood; that He taught the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and illustrated the example of righteousness, that is the true type for all mankind to imitate and follow; that He possessed power over death, and though they put Him to death, He rose again, and that while His body lay in the tomb, He proclaimed the same Gospel that He preached to the living, to those that were confined in darkness, and banishment from the presence of the Lord, in outer darkness, because of their wickedness while they were in the flesh; and quickened by the Spirit He went and preached the Gospel to them as He had preached it to the living; and that when He rose and identified Himself beyond the possibility of any doubt to the minds of those who witnessed and saw Him, and knew Him, and afterwards testified of Him to the world, that He was the same that was crucified, bearing the marks of the nails and of the spear in His body; that He was not a spirit; that He was flesh and bone as- tangible as man, and that a spirit had not this flesh and bone as He had. He declared this to the world: This same physical, tangible entity called Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Mary and the Son of God, in His resurrected body, came to Joseph Smith, revealed Himself to Joseph Smith, the same God, the same Christ, the same Redeemed of the world that was crucified on Calvary; and, that God, the Father, is like His Son; that it would be inconsistent and impossible for a spirit to beget a man like Christ, and therefore the Father and the Son are the exact resemblance of each other. Joseph revealed this to the world. Who is hurt by it? Who is injured by this fact and by this revelation to the children of men? In what respect is the world worse off for having received this knowledge? I tell you that the world would be better off, a thousand times better off, if they would but consider this truth and receive it in their hearts, and then be guided by the doctrine that Joseph Smith was the instrument in the hands of God in revealing anew to the world.
This, then, is the difference, but wherein are you injuring anybody by it? What wrong are you doing? None whatever. Why should men be embittered against you because of this, because of your belief in Joseph Smith? Why should they become your enemies because you declare your faith in a new revelation from the Father and from the Son to mankind for their guidance? Why should they? Let me tell you why: for the very same reason precisely that the embittered and unbelieving Pharisees and hypocrites of the Savior's time persecuted the Redeemer of earth, for the very reason that they later put to death the* disciples of Jesus Christ, whom He ordained as Apostles and as special witnesses of Himself, who bore testimony of Him and of the Gospel to all the nations of the earth. They put them to death one by one, some of them in the most cruel manner, simply because they preached Jesus Christ, and Him crucified and risen from the dead, and ascended into Heaven, and sitting with all glory and power and majesty and might at the right hand of His Father, God. The world felt injured by it. Why? Because it laid the axe at the root of the tree of error, of superstition and of tradition, of lack of faith, and unbelief. It laid the axe at the root of the tree of wickedness, in the world, and of ignorance of God and His principles, and the plan of life and salvation, and the world hated the disciples because of it, and they hated the Son of God because of it, and they crucified Him. They hated the disciples because of it, and they put them to death. That is why they hate you, for the same reason, that is those that do hate you, those that have exercised their power, their will and their thoughts or minds sufficiently to be imbued with the spirit of persecution and hatred against the light and the truth.
What else did Joseph reveal, or did the Lord, rather, reveal through him? He revealed the identical Gospel, precept for precept, principle for principle, doctrine for doctrine, ordinance for ordinance, the exact Gospel of Jesus Christ that He taught Himself, and in no way did Joseph Smith vary in the least degree from the doctrines taught by the Son of God, even to the doctrine in which the Lord Himself declared that if the Jews who were finding fault with him were the seed of Abraham, they would do the works of Abraham. So that I stand here without any fear of rational or reasonable or justifiable contradiction, to say that the Prophet Joseph Smith revealed no principle to man, that was not taught, believed in, accepted and approved by the Son of God when He was on the earth, not one thing, and we can prove it—prove it by Scriptures, and from history. But we need not enter into that. What did he reveal? He revealed the Father and Son, and the Holy Ghost, which is a personage of spirit, and not a personage of flesh and bone as God is, and as Jesus is. He revealed the doctrine that you must believe in God, that you must believe in Jesus Christ and in His power of redemption; that yon must believe, and believing, you must repent of your sins. Now, that- is a terrible crime in the eyes of some people, to be required to repent of their sins. If some men in the world, that have taken up arms against the Latter-day Saints, were to repent of their sins, God knows there would be nothing left of them. (Laughter.) Consequently it is an awful crime to ask men to repent of their sins, but that is what the Lord taught through Joseph Smith; repentance of sin, then baptism by immersion with Christ, being buried with Him in the water, in the liquid grave, and coming forth again out of the liquid grave in likeness of His resurrection from death to life, baptism by immersion, and the baptism of the Holy Ghost, by the laying on of hands; these are necessary for the salvation of the children of men. Joseph taught this. Who else taught it? Jesus taught it. Paul taught it. Peter taught it. James taught it. John taught it. Matthew and Luke and all the Apostles anciently taught this same doctrine, and left their testimony on record. and it has been handed down to all subsequent generations to the present and we have it to look at today. But some people think it is a crime for Latter-day Saints to hold to such doctrines as these now, in these latter days. They say it is presumption and assumption for man to say he possesses authority to baptize for the remission of sins, and to confer the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands. It was not an assumption in the days of Christ. nor was it a presumption on their part. Authority was given them, and they were sent out in the world to preach these doctrines, and baptize those who would believe; and those who should believe and should be baptized should be saved, as the Apostles have said. And yet Christ Himself has said, "And they that believe not shall be damned." That was His word; that was His decree and His law, and who will question the right of the Redeemer of men to say the way in which they shall be saved, and the way in which they cannot be saved? Who shall question His right to say that? Joseph repeated it. We believe it. We have accepted it, and in this respect we differ from the generality of mankind, and they are wroth about it, angry about it. Then what; was that all? No; the Lord revealed to the Prophet Joseph Smith that having been washed clean, having been cleansed from sin by baptism for the remission of sin, by one having authority from God to do it. that thereafter they were to live pure, chaste, holy, upright lives, and sin no more, if they could live without sin, or at least to do as nearly .that as it is possible for human creatures to do, who are possessed of the weaknesses that beset human nature. That was the doctrine of Joseph Smith, to live righteous lives; inasmuch as you have been purified, inasmuch as you have been cleansed from sin, inasmuch as God has remitted your sins through obedience to the ordinances of the Gospel, that you shall thereafter keep yourself pure and unspotted from the world. Anything wrong in that? Is the world injured by that? Any man injured by that procedure, or by that counsel and requirement? No. Well, then, what?
Then the Lord revealed the great principle of organization, by which His Church is to be governed, which the Lord Himself established in the Church, the authority of the Holy Priesthood, that of the High Priesthood, the Apostleship, the Seventies, and the Elders, and then the organizations of the Lesser Priesthood— the Bishops, the Priests, the Teachers and the Deacons—God established these organizations in the Church for the government of the people. What for? To oppress them? No. To injure them? No, a thousand times, no. What for? That they and their children might have the benefits of these organizations for instruction, for admonition, for guidance, for revelation, and for inspiration to do that which the Lord requires at their hands, that they may become perfect in their lives, and that they may perfect the organization to which they belong in the Church, as the Lord God has revealed those things to us; that thereby we may become stronger more intelligent, possessed of greater faith, of broader understanding of the truth, and of a higher conception .of God's principles and purposes, for the existence of the children of men in the earth, and for a broader and more perfect comprehension of the ultimate result of obedience to the laws of God. Is there anything wrong about it? Has anybody been injured?
Some people think that we are wonderfully injured, terribly wronged in consequence of these organizations. I am accused of being tyrannical and unjust. I am accused of robbing and wronging the Latter-day Saints. Well, you know about that. If there is a Latter-day Saint, or a Latter-day sinner beneath the sun, anywhere on earth, in hell, or anywhere else that can point the finger, to an act of mine, wherein they have sustained injury and wrong, God knows I will go farther than they could ask me to go, to make it right. I have never wronged any man, woman or child to my knowledge; and I defy wicked men or good men, or women, or anybody else, to point to an act of mine wherein I have violated God's law of chastity. Well, why do you say it? Because no man on earth knows it better than I do myself, and yet, my companions, my associates, those who have dwelt with me in secret and in public, those who know me can bear testimony to the same thing. I never used a dollar belonging to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, that I did not have a legitimate right to use, and that, too, by the consent and approval of my brethren, who have the right to say how the funds of the Church shall be expended. I pay my tithing and offerings precisely the same as you do, who are as faithful about it as I am. We do not all do our full duty with reference to this. Many of us shirk our responsibilities in regard to that, to some extent. That is, we feel a lack of faith in the principle and in the promise of the Lord, and we do not always come up to the full standard of the law.
Now, the Prophet Joseph Smith has also revealed to the world a principle that has been practically kept hid from the foundation of the world. What is it? The union of husband and wife for time and for all eternity. Who knew anything about it? Who comprehended the principle? Who understood the responsibility that dwells with the union of husband and wife, till Joseph Smith revealed it in the simplicity and plainness with which he has revealed it to the world? The world hates that principle, that is. some do, not all of them, because a great many now are beginning to be leavened with the leaven that Joseph Smith has put into the lump of meal, and now you will hear both ministers and laity say, "Oh, we hope to have the privilege of seeing and knowing and embracing our wives and our children in the world to come." But the Lord revealed that principle to Joseph Smith, and he taught it to the world, and I thank God for that principle. It has opened my eyes. If anything in the world could have made me a better man, or a better husband, if such a thing is possible for me to be a good husband at all, it is that principle that the Lord has revealed, which shows me the obligations that I am under to the mothers of my children. He has taught to us the' principle and the ordinance of the everlasting covenant, the union of parents and children for time and all eternity. What did the world know about it? Nothing. And yet the world is mad about these things, that is, the majority. I modify it, because I believe that there are thousands and tens of thousands of men in the world that are not identified with the Latter-day Saints, who actually believe those principles, and would accept them if their financial and social conditions in the world and their good name or reputation would only permit them to become members of the Church in good standing, and not lose their favor with the world—they would be glad to do it. They believe the doctrine. And not only that, but the Lord revealed through the Prophet Joseph Smith the necessity of the children turning their hearts towards their fathers, and revealed to the world the fact that the hearts of the fathers were already turned towards their children in the dispensation of the fulness of times, and that there was a work most sacred and most important that the children must perform, if they have the opportunity to do it, for the redemption of their dead, that have died without the knowledge of the Gospel. God has revealed these things through the Prophet Joseph Smith to the world, and the world don't like these things. Why? Because they are in advance of anything that they are willing to accept.
These things go beyond the mere belief that a man will be saved and exalted into the highest glory of God simply by saying on the gallows that he believes in the Lord Jesus Christ. That is a fallacy. Every man will be judged according to his works, whether they be good or whether they be evil, and that is a doctrine that was advanced and taught by the Prophet Joseph Smith in plainness that cannot be ignored; every man will be judged according to his works, whether they be good or whether they be evil. Anything short of that would not and could not be of God, if God is just, if God is righteous, if God is impartial; then this principle of justice is a righteous principle, and it certainly has emanated from God, and not from Joseph Smith, nor from man.
It would be unfair for me to occupy much more of your time this morning. I thank my God for what is called "Mormonism." I thank the Lord that He has permitted me to come into the world in this dispensation. I am full of gratitude to my heavenly Father that He has honored me with the Holy Priesthood; that He has called me to be a witness of Him, and a witness of His Son Jesus Christ to the children of men. I thank God my heavenly Father that He has honored me in the midst of my brethren, that He has given to me their confidence and their love, and that I am sustained and upheld by them in my ministry. I feel grateful and thankful for all these things; for these are better to me by far than any favors, praise or honors the world could bestow, and I have no fear of the evil that is said of me by wicked and corrupt men.
I believe in the Gospel in its fulness. I believe in the Holy Priesthood, in its power, in its rightfulness to administer in the temples and in the waters of baptism, and in the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost, and for healing of the sick, and for ordinations, and for all other purposes for which the Priesthood is rightfully used. I believe in the gathering of Israel, and I believe that the day will come when the valleys of the mountains will become too straight for the people of God. I believe that the time will come when we shall have to colonize abroad, when we shall have to spread abroad in the earth, for I believe that the Lord designs that eventually the people , that will name His name in righteousness, and that will believe in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, together with His works, will spread over the earth, and especially spread over this land of Joseph, which the Lord has preserved in which to establish His kingdom and His Church in the latter days. I believe that as much as can be, but I do not believe that the time has yet come when our people can scatter abroad here and there, singly or by twos or threes or by little companies, away off into Central America, away off into Southern Mexico, away off into the northern limits, and away down to the western sea, or over onto the Atlantic seaboard. I do not believe the time has come that we can diffuse our strength and scatter ourselves abroad in the world, or colonize to such an extent and carry out the purposes of the Lord. I don't think that time has come. When it comes the Lord will make it manifest, and we will be able to do it too when that time comes. I believe that an overruling providence compelled us to establish settlements in Canada when they were established there, and I believe that the same providence overruled and compelled us to establish settlements in northern Mexico at the time that they were established there. I believe that President Young was moved by a correct principle, and by prophecy and inspiration when he determined that we should settle in Arizona and New Mexico in the south. I think that he was moved by the spirit of wisdom when he determined that we should settle at and in the vicinity of St. George, and we should build a temple and establish a colony there. I believe this. Why? Because he directed those movements by the inspiration of the Almighty, and therefore it was right, and when the Spirit of the Lord moves upon His servants who preside over the Church to build colonies in distant lands, it will be time enough for you to go, and we will call you to go, some of you; but not till then.
Now, my brethren and sisters, in conclusion I want to say, this: you may think perhaps that I have devoted too much time in criticising, making illustrations between the doctrines of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and the doctrines of the world. You may I have been too generous in my use of reference, at least, to those who despitefully use you, and who persecute you, and who say all manner of evil against you falsely. You may think so, but I have done it merely with a view to showing the contrast between the spirit of the evil one, and the Spirit of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Our spirit is a spirit of peace, of good will to all mankind. We are seeking to build up and to establish righteousness in the hearts of the people, and I want to see you, as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, male and female, so industrious, so active in the discharge of your duties as Latter-day Saints, so humble, so submissive to. the will of the Lord that you will not have time to spend in magnifying the weaknesses, the follies and the faults of your neighbors and of your fellow members of the Church. The Lord knows there is evil enough said in the world thoughtlessly, and without any particular intent to do wrong, but merely through the weakness of men to talk, talk, talk and say nothing—let us work and not talk, Let us at least try to say no evil of our fellow members in the Church. Let us cease to magnify the follies and the weaknesses of members in the Church. Let us cease to find fault with those that preside over us, the Bishop and his counselors, the Presidency of the Stake, and the members of the High Council. Let us cease to find fault with industries which are instituted in our midst for the purpose of giving to the people prosperity and advancement, a means wherewith to build themselves up, and with which to build up, or help to build up Zion. Let us not find fault with these think things.
I have a letter in my pocket to day from a member, at least a former member of the Church, who is now ready to leave the Church, and wants his name taken from the records, because the sugar factories run on Sunday, and I am the President of the Utah-Idaho Sugar Company. My friends who are largely interested in this industry have honored me by making me the president of that organization. This man writes to me and demands that I shall stop the making of sugar on Sunday, and if I do not he wants his name taken from the rolls of the Church. Well, now, you can't reason with a man of that kind. You can argue with him, it is true, but you can't reason with him, for a man of that description has no reason, he is not capable of reason. The fact is that our sugar factories have brought more prosperity, more wealth into our country than any other single industry that has ever been established among us, and for nine months, at least nine months in the year, those sugar factories not only keep every Sabbath day holy, and do no work in it, but they keep every other day in the year, or in those months, sacred, too, for they do not do anything; they just lay idle for nine months in the year; but when they start, the juice from those beets has to run through miles and miles of piping, of tubes that are heated at a certain temperature, that is. necessary to evaporate the water from the juice, condense the juice into a condition to make sugar out of it; and if you stop that one day, you ruin the whole run for at least twenty-four hours, and perhaps a great deal more. And what else? Why, every stockholder and every man 'who raises beets in the country would be ruined, for the beet factories would have to shut up; they could not succeed if they did not, when they opened, run night and day, Sundays included, through to the end. It is the fool that saith in his heart, "No one has wisdom but me."
Now, my brethren and sisters, we are doing the best we know how. Our lives, our labors, our efforts, our intentions, are like an open book to all who may read clearly, and they may run while they read. I want my brethren and sisters to do as I am trying to do, and I don't want to say it boastfully, for I do not feel that way. I want von to pay your tithing as honestly as I do. That is all I will ask of you to do in that regard. And if you will pay your fast donations for the poor, and if you will help to maintain your ward organizations as you should, as members of the Church, in which promise of blessing is involved in every instance, I can tell you that the world will have less and less power, and less and less reason to say—I was going to say evil things—but they will find, less reason and less occasion to say flattering things of us, because we will be that much better, and the better we are, the more the devil will rage, and the more bitter he will be But as President Young said at one time, and as repeated later by President Woodruff, the more righteous and upright, pure and undefiled, the Latter- day Saints become, the less power will Satan have over them, for in proportion to your unity and uprightness, honesty, and fidelity to the cause in which you are engaged, in such proportion will the power of the adversary be weakened, and those who are seeking to entice your sons and daughters into haunts of shame, and dens of wickedness, that they might be defiled, corrupted, wicked and 'like the rest of them will have less power over you, if you will watch your children better, and live better lives yourselves.
God bless you, is my prayer, in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Elder Edwin Tout sang as a tenor solo, the hymn entitled, "Oh Home Beloved," the words of which were written by Prof. Evan Stephens.
PRESIDENT ANTHON H. LUND.
Recent persecution has increased investigation.— Missionaries diligent, and the work prospering.—Immigrants, and others without homes, advised to locate in rural districts. —Young members of the Church should attend the Church schools — Home products and home-made goods should be given preference.
Brother Stephens wrote the words of the beautiful song to which we have just listened. With you I have enjoyed the discourse of President Smith, and I hope that we will all remember the teachings he has given us. I am pleased to see this large congregation at the beginning of our conference. I believe we will have a time of joy and edification while we are together, and I pray that the Lord will bless . all who shall address us, that they may be able to give us the word of life.
Since last conference the work of the Lord has progressed encouragingly, and we have good reports from all the missions. There has been some persecutions. Some have sought to stir up the people against the Latter-day Saints, and to get our Elders expelled from the nations in which they are laboring. Even in good old England we have had something of this kind, to such a degree that one of the clergymen recommended that the Elders be carried across the island and dumped into the sea. I do not think that this opposition has had any harmful influence" against the Church. In fact, it has caused more inquiry to be made concerning the principles we believe in.
Some ladies in the East who are much opposed to Mormonism, hired a man to go abroad to speak against us. When he got to England he started to tell great things. Much of what he said was not true, and it was not difficult for President Clawson and the Elders to prove that his statements were contrary to facts. When this became known the storm subsided there. Then he went to Holland, and to Denmark; and so much was said by him, and by a certain priest there, that Brother Andrew Jenson felt it went too far, and he had them brought before the court for libel. Our American man got away. The other one had to meet the issue in court, and did not want to take the official oath. He had to do this, but then he had forgotten everything; he did not know what he had said; however, when the testimony was read to him, he was forced to say yes or no. In Sweden also some stir has been made, and for the first time since Brother Forsgren went to that country, in 1850, four Elders have been notified to leave. In Sweden the laws have been against us, and they have been able to imprison our Elders, but they have not expelled any of them from the country during the last sixty years. In Denmark, where we have perfect religious liberty, there has been quite a number forced to leave the country in years past on the plea that Denmark has the right to say who shall be her guests, but not lately. During this last onslaught the Danish press was friendly to the Elders. The latter declared that the accusations were not true, and so the press took up the matter and. demanded that the charges be proved by those who had made them. They were given a chance to do this, but failed to bring proofs.
The missionaries have been very faithful in bringing the glad message unto men. They are diligent; they report their labors weekly and monthly, so that the presidents of the different missions know exactly what the brethren are doing. They have held a great number of meetings; many books and tracts have been distributed, and many conversations held, to inform men and women concerning our faith and belief. Even as far as South Africa a little breeze of persecution has been felt, and some of the custom officers did not want to have our Elders land. I think, however, when they learn the untruths that have been told, they will feel to give our people the same liberty as arty other religious sect or denomination. Our Elders do not feel discouraged. They rejoice with those whom they are able to bring into the fold of Christ, and the people who join, rejoice in the doctrines of the Gospel, in the testimony they have received, and in the love they feel for one another.
The spirit of gathering is upon the people, though our Elders are not preaching it; but when people join the Church they desire also to go to the headquarters, where they can learn more concerning the ways of the Lord; and for this reason, emigration continues, notwithstanding the Elders who go abroad have been instructed to try to keep the people at home, to help build up stronger branches, and assist in the work of propagating the principles of the Gospel.
Concerning the emigrants I want to say that when they come here, the Saints should try to do what they can for them. Remember that in most cases they have used all their means to come here, and they arrive without any money, so that if they do not meet acquaintances, and nobody receives them, they feel tempted and discouraged. This is the very time when the friendly hand of the brethren should be extended unto them to make them feel that they have indeed arrived in Zion. It takes very little to do this. They are mostly people who are of the laboring class. All they desire is to get employment. I would advise the emigrants not to try to make a start in the large cities, but to get out into the settlements. They may not be able to get the class of work they have been accustomed to in the factories and the different employments they used to be engaged in, but in going out to the settlements they will be more likely to get a home of their own and in some degree become independent.
I rather deprecate this flocking to the large cities and leaving the rural districts. I believe that persons can sooner make themselves comfortable homes out in the rural districts than they can in the large cities. I allude to such as have no regular profession or trade. For them to locate in the cities means that they will probably always live from hand to mouth, while out in the country there is still lands to be taken up, and homes to make.
Some think when they come here and see the comfortable homes of many of their brethren, that if they had only come here in the early times they would have had a much better chance to obtain property. Well, you who came here before the advent of the railroad, as was alluded to yesterday, know that to build up a settlement meant much work and many hardships. There was a great deal of labor to do to bring about the conditions of today. There were roads to make in to the canyons, fields to be cultivated, fences to be built, schoolhouses and meeting houses to be erected, a great deal of labor to be done in common before we saw things as they are seen today in our midst. Those who come today, though they may not be able to take up lands in the neighborhood of large cities as cheaply as formerly, still they come into a country where much of the hard labor has been done, and they can join with their friends, their brethren and sisters, in enjoying the fruits of the labors of the pioneers. But there are places—new places where they can go. There is the Uintah country, where there is plenty of land and water; and to our young men who have no homes, I would say: go to such places. Try to get land. Land will grow in value, and the land-owner is the one that is more inclined to be patriotic, both to his country and his Church. Try to get places of your own, where you can feel 'This is my home. No landlord can tell me to leave. I am independent, though it is but a small cabin." Young man, don't be satisfied to spend your young life in day wage earning. Of course, there are many that must do this, many are adapted for it, and it is perhaps the life that they like most and would make them the happiest; but to our young men generally, who have initiative of their own, I would say, strike out for yourselves, and though it means hard labor, and in many cases deprivation of things you could have in the city, yet by and by, what you are doing will come back to you with more than interest, and you will be thankful that you have started for yourselves. This is a week day, and we can talk about temporal affairs, I suppose.
I want to say a word in regard to our Church schools. The Church expends a great deal of means for Church school education. It is not simply to give our young men and women an education. We have splendid state institutions, and now high schools are springing up everywhere, where a good secular education can be obtained. Our Church schools are not running in opposition to any of these. Of course, it may be that some of the courses are running parallel. That can not be entirely avoided. But in our Church schools we are teaching the principles of the Gospel; our religion, and this can not be done in the high schools or state institutions. It is necessary that the latter be kept free from religious teaching, because nobody would like to send children to an institution where they would be taught a religion not believed in by their parents, and hence our state institutions and common schools are kept free from religious instruction. The Latter-day Saints, however, feel that of all teaching, the teaching that leads to God and gives the children a knowledge of why they are here upon the earth, and what they must do to obtain eternal salvation, is of the greatest importance. This is what we are trying to give in the Church schools. We are glad that our people are in favor of education, and that they make so many sacrifices to have their children educated. I hope that our children are taking advantage of these opportunities, and that they are striving for an education for education's sake, and not with the idea in mind that by being educated they can make money without labor, and that labor is beneath them. We want our children taught that all labor is honorable, and that the hand ought to be trained just as well as the brain. This will make the best citizens. And again, brethren and sisters, remember that in the Church schools we are at liberty to teach the principles of religion and morality, and to instill in the hearts of our young men and women love of God and the things pertaining to Him. I would like to encourage our people to take advantage of the Church school system at the side of the others, and any man who is going on a mission—and nearly all our young men will have that privilege— ought to have an opportunity of going' to a Church school. We find that when such go abroad they are better qualified for the work to which they have been called.
A word to the people of the rural districts, our farmers. I want to put them in mind of what they can do. When I hear of so many things being imported into our state that could be raised here, I think that we are not using the wisdom that God has given us. We send our products east and west, and have them packed and returned to us, and we buy them here back again. Such a course needs no comment. I hope that our industries may multiply, that those who understand manufacturing will take hold and start such enterprises in our midst. We have too few of that kind. And then our farmers, instead of devoting' themselves entirely to raising wheat or grain," ought to try to turn their attention to raising other things that will pay. Those who live where there are sugar factories are blessed in having the opportunity of raising sugar beets, which bring the ready cash. When beet-raising was first tried, it was thought that it would not pay, but we find that in all the districts where there are sugar factories, the people are thankful that they have the opportunity of raising beets. People living" in other districts too far from the factories think that they cannot raise beets to advantage, but this is a mistake. I had a talk with the editor of the "Indiana Farmer," and he informed me that the farmers in Indiana have learned that by raising sugar beets and using them on the farm, they can make every ton into nine or ten dollars," especially by feeding them to the hogs. And here let me say that we import too much bacon. We send hundreds of thousands of dollars out of the state to buy bacon and hams, which we could raise at home just as well, and we would know better what kind of meat it is we get. I am not encouraging people to eat pork, but they ought to raise hogs enough to furnish the state with all the ham and bacon required. And I could mention many different things that we import, and which we could produce ourselves. Canneries ought to be established wherever we can raise the meat, fruit and vegetables for the canneries, so that we could export instead of import such things. Now, time will not allow me to talk more on this subject, but it is an important one and our people ought to give it some thought. We want to raise wheat and grains, the different cereals, but other things ought to be combined with it, because mixed husbandry is found to be the most profitable.
Before I close I would like to say to all of you, let us remember the saying of Jesus: "Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness;" and to seek His kingdom is not alone to find it and to do the first things required, but it means to continue to keep His commandments, to work for the upbuilding of His kingdom, and to exercise that righteousness which belongs to Him. Let us show to the world that we are earnest and sincere in that which we have received. Let it not be a matter of indifference to us, but every one seek to be full of the Spirit of the Lord, feel its burning influence within us, and ever be ready to do what we can to further the purposes of the Lord in this our probation. God bless you all. Amen.
Recent persecution has increased investigation.— Missionaries diligent, and the work prospering.—Immigrants, and others without homes, advised to locate in rural districts. —Young members of the Church should attend the Church schools — Home products and home-made goods should be given preference.
Brother Stephens wrote the words of the beautiful song to which we have just listened. With you I have enjoyed the discourse of President Smith, and I hope that we will all remember the teachings he has given us. I am pleased to see this large congregation at the beginning of our conference. I believe we will have a time of joy and edification while we are together, and I pray that the Lord will bless . all who shall address us, that they may be able to give us the word of life.
Since last conference the work of the Lord has progressed encouragingly, and we have good reports from all the missions. There has been some persecutions. Some have sought to stir up the people against the Latter-day Saints, and to get our Elders expelled from the nations in which they are laboring. Even in good old England we have had something of this kind, to such a degree that one of the clergymen recommended that the Elders be carried across the island and dumped into the sea. I do not think that this opposition has had any harmful influence" against the Church. In fact, it has caused more inquiry to be made concerning the principles we believe in.
Some ladies in the East who are much opposed to Mormonism, hired a man to go abroad to speak against us. When he got to England he started to tell great things. Much of what he said was not true, and it was not difficult for President Clawson and the Elders to prove that his statements were contrary to facts. When this became known the storm subsided there. Then he went to Holland, and to Denmark; and so much was said by him, and by a certain priest there, that Brother Andrew Jenson felt it went too far, and he had them brought before the court for libel. Our American man got away. The other one had to meet the issue in court, and did not want to take the official oath. He had to do this, but then he had forgotten everything; he did not know what he had said; however, when the testimony was read to him, he was forced to say yes or no. In Sweden also some stir has been made, and for the first time since Brother Forsgren went to that country, in 1850, four Elders have been notified to leave. In Sweden the laws have been against us, and they have been able to imprison our Elders, but they have not expelled any of them from the country during the last sixty years. In Denmark, where we have perfect religious liberty, there has been quite a number forced to leave the country in years past on the plea that Denmark has the right to say who shall be her guests, but not lately. During this last onslaught the Danish press was friendly to the Elders. The latter declared that the accusations were not true, and so the press took up the matter and. demanded that the charges be proved by those who had made them. They were given a chance to do this, but failed to bring proofs.
The missionaries have been very faithful in bringing the glad message unto men. They are diligent; they report their labors weekly and monthly, so that the presidents of the different missions know exactly what the brethren are doing. They have held a great number of meetings; many books and tracts have been distributed, and many conversations held, to inform men and women concerning our faith and belief. Even as far as South Africa a little breeze of persecution has been felt, and some of the custom officers did not want to have our Elders land. I think, however, when they learn the untruths that have been told, they will feel to give our people the same liberty as arty other religious sect or denomination. Our Elders do not feel discouraged. They rejoice with those whom they are able to bring into the fold of Christ, and the people who join, rejoice in the doctrines of the Gospel, in the testimony they have received, and in the love they feel for one another.
The spirit of gathering is upon the people, though our Elders are not preaching it; but when people join the Church they desire also to go to the headquarters, where they can learn more concerning the ways of the Lord; and for this reason, emigration continues, notwithstanding the Elders who go abroad have been instructed to try to keep the people at home, to help build up stronger branches, and assist in the work of propagating the principles of the Gospel.
Concerning the emigrants I want to say that when they come here, the Saints should try to do what they can for them. Remember that in most cases they have used all their means to come here, and they arrive without any money, so that if they do not meet acquaintances, and nobody receives them, they feel tempted and discouraged. This is the very time when the friendly hand of the brethren should be extended unto them to make them feel that they have indeed arrived in Zion. It takes very little to do this. They are mostly people who are of the laboring class. All they desire is to get employment. I would advise the emigrants not to try to make a start in the large cities, but to get out into the settlements. They may not be able to get the class of work they have been accustomed to in the factories and the different employments they used to be engaged in, but in going out to the settlements they will be more likely to get a home of their own and in some degree become independent.
I rather deprecate this flocking to the large cities and leaving the rural districts. I believe that persons can sooner make themselves comfortable homes out in the rural districts than they can in the large cities. I allude to such as have no regular profession or trade. For them to locate in the cities means that they will probably always live from hand to mouth, while out in the country there is still lands to be taken up, and homes to make.
Some think when they come here and see the comfortable homes of many of their brethren, that if they had only come here in the early times they would have had a much better chance to obtain property. Well, you who came here before the advent of the railroad, as was alluded to yesterday, know that to build up a settlement meant much work and many hardships. There was a great deal of labor to do to bring about the conditions of today. There were roads to make in to the canyons, fields to be cultivated, fences to be built, schoolhouses and meeting houses to be erected, a great deal of labor to be done in common before we saw things as they are seen today in our midst. Those who come today, though they may not be able to take up lands in the neighborhood of large cities as cheaply as formerly, still they come into a country where much of the hard labor has been done, and they can join with their friends, their brethren and sisters, in enjoying the fruits of the labors of the pioneers. But there are places—new places where they can go. There is the Uintah country, where there is plenty of land and water; and to our young men who have no homes, I would say: go to such places. Try to get land. Land will grow in value, and the land-owner is the one that is more inclined to be patriotic, both to his country and his Church. Try to get places of your own, where you can feel 'This is my home. No landlord can tell me to leave. I am independent, though it is but a small cabin." Young man, don't be satisfied to spend your young life in day wage earning. Of course, there are many that must do this, many are adapted for it, and it is perhaps the life that they like most and would make them the happiest; but to our young men generally, who have initiative of their own, I would say, strike out for yourselves, and though it means hard labor, and in many cases deprivation of things you could have in the city, yet by and by, what you are doing will come back to you with more than interest, and you will be thankful that you have started for yourselves. This is a week day, and we can talk about temporal affairs, I suppose.
I want to say a word in regard to our Church schools. The Church expends a great deal of means for Church school education. It is not simply to give our young men and women an education. We have splendid state institutions, and now high schools are springing up everywhere, where a good secular education can be obtained. Our Church schools are not running in opposition to any of these. Of course, it may be that some of the courses are running parallel. That can not be entirely avoided. But in our Church schools we are teaching the principles of the Gospel; our religion, and this can not be done in the high schools or state institutions. It is necessary that the latter be kept free from religious teaching, because nobody would like to send children to an institution where they would be taught a religion not believed in by their parents, and hence our state institutions and common schools are kept free from religious instruction. The Latter-day Saints, however, feel that of all teaching, the teaching that leads to God and gives the children a knowledge of why they are here upon the earth, and what they must do to obtain eternal salvation, is of the greatest importance. This is what we are trying to give in the Church schools. We are glad that our people are in favor of education, and that they make so many sacrifices to have their children educated. I hope that our children are taking advantage of these opportunities, and that they are striving for an education for education's sake, and not with the idea in mind that by being educated they can make money without labor, and that labor is beneath them. We want our children taught that all labor is honorable, and that the hand ought to be trained just as well as the brain. This will make the best citizens. And again, brethren and sisters, remember that in the Church schools we are at liberty to teach the principles of religion and morality, and to instill in the hearts of our young men and women love of God and the things pertaining to Him. I would like to encourage our people to take advantage of the Church school system at the side of the others, and any man who is going on a mission—and nearly all our young men will have that privilege— ought to have an opportunity of going' to a Church school. We find that when such go abroad they are better qualified for the work to which they have been called.
A word to the people of the rural districts, our farmers. I want to put them in mind of what they can do. When I hear of so many things being imported into our state that could be raised here, I think that we are not using the wisdom that God has given us. We send our products east and west, and have them packed and returned to us, and we buy them here back again. Such a course needs no comment. I hope that our industries may multiply, that those who understand manufacturing will take hold and start such enterprises in our midst. We have too few of that kind. And then our farmers, instead of devoting' themselves entirely to raising wheat or grain," ought to try to turn their attention to raising other things that will pay. Those who live where there are sugar factories are blessed in having the opportunity of raising sugar beets, which bring the ready cash. When beet-raising was first tried, it was thought that it would not pay, but we find that in all the districts where there are sugar factories, the people are thankful that they have the opportunity of raising beets. People living" in other districts too far from the factories think that they cannot raise beets to advantage, but this is a mistake. I had a talk with the editor of the "Indiana Farmer," and he informed me that the farmers in Indiana have learned that by raising sugar beets and using them on the farm, they can make every ton into nine or ten dollars," especially by feeding them to the hogs. And here let me say that we import too much bacon. We send hundreds of thousands of dollars out of the state to buy bacon and hams, which we could raise at home just as well, and we would know better what kind of meat it is we get. I am not encouraging people to eat pork, but they ought to raise hogs enough to furnish the state with all the ham and bacon required. And I could mention many different things that we import, and which we could produce ourselves. Canneries ought to be established wherever we can raise the meat, fruit and vegetables for the canneries, so that we could export instead of import such things. Now, time will not allow me to talk more on this subject, but it is an important one and our people ought to give it some thought. We want to raise wheat and grains, the different cereals, but other things ought to be combined with it, because mixed husbandry is found to be the most profitable.
Before I close I would like to say to all of you, let us remember the saying of Jesus: "Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness;" and to seek His kingdom is not alone to find it and to do the first things required, but it means to continue to keep His commandments, to work for the upbuilding of His kingdom, and to exercise that righteousness which belongs to Him. Let us show to the world that we are earnest and sincere in that which we have received. Let it not be a matter of indifference to us, but every one seek to be full of the Spirit of the Lord, feel its burning influence within us, and ever be ready to do what we can to further the purposes of the Lord in this our probation. God bless you all. Amen.
PRESIDENT JOSEPH F. SMITH.
President Taft's address heartily endorsed.
I do not know how many of the Latter-day Saints present at this meeting were not here yesterday, when we had the pleasure and profit of listening to the President of the United States, addressing the people from this stand on the great subject of Universal Peace. I hope the discourse that the President delivered here yesterday may be published in all the newspapers that every man and woman who reads the papers in the state may have the privilege of reading the sentiments expressed by our nation's Executive. I would like to say to you. that I sat her and listened with deep interest to his words, and T endorse without reserve every sentiment that he so ably and so eloquently expressed with reference to the great principle and glorious hope of "peace on earth and good will to man."
The choir and congregation sang the hymn:
We thank Thee, O God, for a Prophet,
To guide us in these latter days;
We thank Thee for sending the Gospel
To lighten our minds with its rays.
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Joseph E. Robinson.
Conference adjourned until 2 p. m.
President Taft's address heartily endorsed.
I do not know how many of the Latter-day Saints present at this meeting were not here yesterday, when we had the pleasure and profit of listening to the President of the United States, addressing the people from this stand on the great subject of Universal Peace. I hope the discourse that the President delivered here yesterday may be published in all the newspapers that every man and woman who reads the papers in the state may have the privilege of reading the sentiments expressed by our nation's Executive. I would like to say to you. that I sat her and listened with deep interest to his words, and T endorse without reserve every sentiment that he so ably and so eloquently expressed with reference to the great principle and glorious hope of "peace on earth and good will to man."
The choir and congregation sang the hymn:
We thank Thee, O God, for a Prophet,
To guide us in these latter days;
We thank Thee for sending the Gospel
To lighten our minds with its rays.
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Joseph E. Robinson.
Conference adjourned until 2 p. m.
AFTERNOON SESSION.
Conference was resumed at 2 p. m.
President Joseph F. Smith called the meeting to order.
The choir and congregation sang the hymn:
O ye mountains high, where the clear blue sky
Arches over the vales of the free,
Where the pure breezes blow and the clear streamlets flow,
How I've longed to your bosom to flee.
Prayer was offered by Elder Melvin J. Ballard.
The choir and congregation sang the hymn:
Now let us rejoice in the day of salvation;
No longer as strangers on earth need we roam,
Good tidings are sounding to us and each nation,
And shortly the hour of redemption will come.
Conference was resumed at 2 p. m.
President Joseph F. Smith called the meeting to order.
The choir and congregation sang the hymn:
O ye mountains high, where the clear blue sky
Arches over the vales of the free,
Where the pure breezes blow and the clear streamlets flow,
How I've longed to your bosom to flee.
Prayer was offered by Elder Melvin J. Ballard.
The choir and congregation sang the hymn:
Now let us rejoice in the day of salvation;
No longer as strangers on earth need we roam,
Good tidings are sounding to us and each nation,
And shortly the hour of redemption will come.
PREST. JOHN HENRY SMITH.
Establishment of this Government, and restoration of the Gospel, cause for rejoicing. — The Latter-day Church organization continues in its perfected form.—Priesthood and Saints fulfilling sacred duties.
I desire that you will give me the benefit of your faith and prayers, that the time which I occupy may be profitable to you as well as to myself. I rejoice in the fact that there are present upon this occasion all of the First Presidency of the Church, that there are present all of the Council of Apostles except Brother Clawson, who is engaged earnestly and fully in his duty of helping to proclaim the Gospel among the nations of the world. I am pleased that the Seven Presidents of Seventies are all in the city and are present excepting one of them, who may have been delayed or detained in the performance of duties resting upon him. The Patriarch of the Church, and I believe the Presiding Bishopric in their entirety are here today.
I rejoiced very much this morning in the telling Gospel discourse delivered to us, following his words of welcome, by the President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, to hear his voice declaring the mercies of our Heavenly Father, and bearing witness of the truth as established in the day and age in which we live, and expounding and explaining to us those primary doctrines of the Gospel, and reasoning with us upon those advanced principles of the Gospel revealed in this dispensation, with which the world at large has not been acquainted. It was a pleasure to me to hear his testimony to the mission and ministry of Jesus Christ, the Redeemer of the world, and to hear him declare in words of soberness the fact that the same Gospel, which was introduced by Him in that former dispensation, has been renewed to us in the dispensation in which we live, and that man was privileged to gaze upon the face of Jesus Christ and of God, our Heavenly Father.
The impress of the spirit of the work of the Almighty should gladden the heart of the aged who have left fatherland, connections and relations, and national ties, that they might be engaged in that wonderful work, having heard that message, "Come out of her, O ye my people, that ye receive not of her sins, and that ye partake not of her plagues;" that the trials and tribulations that would beset the nations would surely come in the due time of the Lord, and that as the warning cry went forth, declaring the glad message of the visitation of our Father in heaven, and His introduction of that heavenly messenger, the Savior of the world, and that the human family should again hear, in language clear and explicit, the doctrines announced by the Redeemer of the world. Joy abounded in my soul in the re-declaration in the presence of this vast congregation, of these truths, and of the nature of that work which lay upon the shoulders of the men and women to whom that warning had come, and into whose soul the impress of the Spirit from on high had found place and lodgment, and had led them to gather in this land, this land dedicated under our Father in heaven for the accomplishment of His great purpose, the up lift and blessing of the human race.
I rejoice in the declaration that came through the fathers called upon to establish this republic, in the Declaration of Independence, uttered and promulgated and expounded among the people of this land, the principles involved in the Constitution of the United States, and the opportunities that were to be placed within the reach of the children of men, to believe in God and to obey the laws and ordinances of the Gospel, that no one should molest nor make them afraid. While in the application of the great fundamental law, that opened the doors of liberty to the human race, it has been in the keeping of the American people, the law itself remains untarnished. Some, in their misapprehension, or over-zeal in regard to the regulation and care of their fellows, have failed to appreciate the fact that it was the design of providence to guard the consciences of men and open up to them the great privilege of religious freedom. They are at liberty to accept the doctrines of Buddha if they choose, or to believe in the mission and ministry of Mohammed, or to regard and honor the laws and views presented in the Koran, or in the doctrines announced by Moses, following the Jewish theories and ideas; they also who should believe in Jesus Christ in these latter days, and literally accept His doctrines, should with their fellow men enjoy their right to those laws, and live in harmony with the rules and principles set forth in the doctrines announced in this latter time, even as they were announced in that former day.
My brothers and my sisters, I rejoice when I think of the completeness of the organization of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; when I remember that the promise was given in the commencement that this work had been divinely established and would never again be taken from the earth; that this organization, with its prophets, its Apostles, its Pastors, its Teachers and its Evangelists, should remain unbroken. I remember that the Prophet Joseph Smith himself ministered under these rules and regulations, and that, after his passing there came to the front that grand man who led us to these mountains, with the band of other grand men, among the truest and best that ever breathed the breath of life, that came with him and continued the work, maintaining each principle and doctrine, announcing the glad message that had been entrusted to their watchcare. Having themselves been in the mission field, declaring the truth and pointing the way of life to mankind, raising that appeal which led you to gather into your mountain homes, "Come out of her, O ye my children, that ye receive not of her sins, and that ye partake not of her plagues."
There has been a continuance of the Church organization in an unbroken phalanx, with its Presidency holding the keys and rights of that presidency; the Council of the Apostles, complete and perfect, stalwart and true men, devoted to the cause, utilizing their talents in every way to extend the good work, and free themselves from the sacred responsibility that Cod our Father placed upon their shoulders. I rejoice when I remember that their associates, the Council of Seventy, devoted and true, have kept their faces in the direction of the extension of this great work; and that the great body of High Priests. Seventies, and Elders, in their entirety, have kept aflame in their hearts the message entrusted to their watch-care, and have been true in the fulfillment of the duties that have been imposed upon them.
As I gaze into the faces of this body of men and women, and recognize their worth, understanding the message they have in hand, the sacredness of the obligation that rests upon them, I pray my God that nothing shall ever cause one of them to waver from the truth. Their faces aflame with goodness and gladness, with the teachings and instructions and complete organization, from the Presidency, the Presiding Patriarch, the Apostles, the First Council of Seventy, the High Priests, the Patriarchs throughout the Church, the great body of Seventies, the great body of Elders, they recognize the fact that this world is unconquered by the word of God. They have been sent into the world to fulfil that mission of conquering the world by the declaration of the truth, by the advice and counsel of righteousness, by themselves walking so clean and free from the trammels of crime that they can look at the best people in the world, wherever they may be found, and declare, "I know that God lives- '; I know that Jesus Christ is the Redeemer of the world; I know He is the veritable Son of God, that He has opened the door to the human race, and the doctrines essential to the salvation of mankind are the doctrines announced by Himself. Thou shalt "believe in God the Eternal Father; thou shalt believe in the Redeemer of the world, and thou shalt witness thy belief by burial in baptism, and in the confirmation and receiving of the Holy Ghost, realizing that this message of morality, and the observance of these ordinances, rests upon every man and every woman in the land, to receive and apply them in their lives."
This body of men standing at the head of this work in a solid phalanx should (never turn their backs to their fellow men, but with their faces looking to mankind, should proclaim unto them, "This is the way, walk ye in it." Christ is the Redeemer of the world. The theories and fallacies of men in regard to this matter, seeking to make a myth of Him, are not true. He is the Christ, He is the Way and the- Life. He is the Redeemer of the race, and should be magnified and sustained by every Christian in the universe. Standing before you, I declare my absolute knowledge that He is the Son of God; that He is my Redeemer and your Redeemer, and that by Him, and through Him, and of Him the race will be reclaimed, and in no other way.
May heaven's blessings abound in your hearts. May you have the power to impress upon your sons and daughters that faith which will lead them along the lines of righteousness, and away from the schemes and devices of designing and misleading spirits, that the wicked may not be successful in entangling them in the meshes of crime. May you be enabled to say, as you point to the head of this work, "There stands the man God selected; here is the Church organization Jesus established, unbroken from the day it was fixe' 1 by the Prophet of the Lord, and God said it never would be taken from the earth or given to another people." It will never be given to this little organization, or that little party withdrawing from this work. Here stands this organization true to God, true to the principles He has announced, true to every requirement placed upon their shoulders, as men have ever been true to the obligations placed upon them. My brothers and my sisters, I am happy to be with you. I rejoice in the knowledge of the truth of this work, and bear my witness, in connection with my brethren, of its place and purpose and mission in the world, and to say that the men who speak of its overthrow, its displacement, its failure to accomplish its mission, are dreaming myths, for this work will not fail. God has decreed its success, and it is to become the joy of the race. Amen.
Sister Margaret Summerhays sang a soprano solo, entitled "Great peace have they that love the Lord."
Establishment of this Government, and restoration of the Gospel, cause for rejoicing. — The Latter-day Church organization continues in its perfected form.—Priesthood and Saints fulfilling sacred duties.
I desire that you will give me the benefit of your faith and prayers, that the time which I occupy may be profitable to you as well as to myself. I rejoice in the fact that there are present upon this occasion all of the First Presidency of the Church, that there are present all of the Council of Apostles except Brother Clawson, who is engaged earnestly and fully in his duty of helping to proclaim the Gospel among the nations of the world. I am pleased that the Seven Presidents of Seventies are all in the city and are present excepting one of them, who may have been delayed or detained in the performance of duties resting upon him. The Patriarch of the Church, and I believe the Presiding Bishopric in their entirety are here today.
I rejoiced very much this morning in the telling Gospel discourse delivered to us, following his words of welcome, by the President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, to hear his voice declaring the mercies of our Heavenly Father, and bearing witness of the truth as established in the day and age in which we live, and expounding and explaining to us those primary doctrines of the Gospel, and reasoning with us upon those advanced principles of the Gospel revealed in this dispensation, with which the world at large has not been acquainted. It was a pleasure to me to hear his testimony to the mission and ministry of Jesus Christ, the Redeemer of the world, and to hear him declare in words of soberness the fact that the same Gospel, which was introduced by Him in that former dispensation, has been renewed to us in the dispensation in which we live, and that man was privileged to gaze upon the face of Jesus Christ and of God, our Heavenly Father.
The impress of the spirit of the work of the Almighty should gladden the heart of the aged who have left fatherland, connections and relations, and national ties, that they might be engaged in that wonderful work, having heard that message, "Come out of her, O ye my people, that ye receive not of her sins, and that ye partake not of her plagues;" that the trials and tribulations that would beset the nations would surely come in the due time of the Lord, and that as the warning cry went forth, declaring the glad message of the visitation of our Father in heaven, and His introduction of that heavenly messenger, the Savior of the world, and that the human family should again hear, in language clear and explicit, the doctrines announced by the Redeemer of the world. Joy abounded in my soul in the re-declaration in the presence of this vast congregation, of these truths, and of the nature of that work which lay upon the shoulders of the men and women to whom that warning had come, and into whose soul the impress of the Spirit from on high had found place and lodgment, and had led them to gather in this land, this land dedicated under our Father in heaven for the accomplishment of His great purpose, the up lift and blessing of the human race.
I rejoice in the declaration that came through the fathers called upon to establish this republic, in the Declaration of Independence, uttered and promulgated and expounded among the people of this land, the principles involved in the Constitution of the United States, and the opportunities that were to be placed within the reach of the children of men, to believe in God and to obey the laws and ordinances of the Gospel, that no one should molest nor make them afraid. While in the application of the great fundamental law, that opened the doors of liberty to the human race, it has been in the keeping of the American people, the law itself remains untarnished. Some, in their misapprehension, or over-zeal in regard to the regulation and care of their fellows, have failed to appreciate the fact that it was the design of providence to guard the consciences of men and open up to them the great privilege of religious freedom. They are at liberty to accept the doctrines of Buddha if they choose, or to believe in the mission and ministry of Mohammed, or to regard and honor the laws and views presented in the Koran, or in the doctrines announced by Moses, following the Jewish theories and ideas; they also who should believe in Jesus Christ in these latter days, and literally accept His doctrines, should with their fellow men enjoy their right to those laws, and live in harmony with the rules and principles set forth in the doctrines announced in this latter time, even as they were announced in that former day.
My brothers and my sisters, I rejoice when I think of the completeness of the organization of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; when I remember that the promise was given in the commencement that this work had been divinely established and would never again be taken from the earth; that this organization, with its prophets, its Apostles, its Pastors, its Teachers and its Evangelists, should remain unbroken. I remember that the Prophet Joseph Smith himself ministered under these rules and regulations, and that, after his passing there came to the front that grand man who led us to these mountains, with the band of other grand men, among the truest and best that ever breathed the breath of life, that came with him and continued the work, maintaining each principle and doctrine, announcing the glad message that had been entrusted to their watchcare. Having themselves been in the mission field, declaring the truth and pointing the way of life to mankind, raising that appeal which led you to gather into your mountain homes, "Come out of her, O ye my children, that ye receive not of her sins, and that ye partake not of her plagues."
There has been a continuance of the Church organization in an unbroken phalanx, with its Presidency holding the keys and rights of that presidency; the Council of the Apostles, complete and perfect, stalwart and true men, devoted to the cause, utilizing their talents in every way to extend the good work, and free themselves from the sacred responsibility that Cod our Father placed upon their shoulders. I rejoice when I remember that their associates, the Council of Seventy, devoted and true, have kept their faces in the direction of the extension of this great work; and that the great body of High Priests. Seventies, and Elders, in their entirety, have kept aflame in their hearts the message entrusted to their watch-care, and have been true in the fulfillment of the duties that have been imposed upon them.
As I gaze into the faces of this body of men and women, and recognize their worth, understanding the message they have in hand, the sacredness of the obligation that rests upon them, I pray my God that nothing shall ever cause one of them to waver from the truth. Their faces aflame with goodness and gladness, with the teachings and instructions and complete organization, from the Presidency, the Presiding Patriarch, the Apostles, the First Council of Seventy, the High Priests, the Patriarchs throughout the Church, the great body of Seventies, the great body of Elders, they recognize the fact that this world is unconquered by the word of God. They have been sent into the world to fulfil that mission of conquering the world by the declaration of the truth, by the advice and counsel of righteousness, by themselves walking so clean and free from the trammels of crime that they can look at the best people in the world, wherever they may be found, and declare, "I know that God lives- '; I know that Jesus Christ is the Redeemer of the world; I know He is the veritable Son of God, that He has opened the door to the human race, and the doctrines essential to the salvation of mankind are the doctrines announced by Himself. Thou shalt "believe in God the Eternal Father; thou shalt believe in the Redeemer of the world, and thou shalt witness thy belief by burial in baptism, and in the confirmation and receiving of the Holy Ghost, realizing that this message of morality, and the observance of these ordinances, rests upon every man and every woman in the land, to receive and apply them in their lives."
This body of men standing at the head of this work in a solid phalanx should (never turn their backs to their fellow men, but with their faces looking to mankind, should proclaim unto them, "This is the way, walk ye in it." Christ is the Redeemer of the world. The theories and fallacies of men in regard to this matter, seeking to make a myth of Him, are not true. He is the Christ, He is the Way and the- Life. He is the Redeemer of the race, and should be magnified and sustained by every Christian in the universe. Standing before you, I declare my absolute knowledge that He is the Son of God; that He is my Redeemer and your Redeemer, and that by Him, and through Him, and of Him the race will be reclaimed, and in no other way.
May heaven's blessings abound in your hearts. May you have the power to impress upon your sons and daughters that faith which will lead them along the lines of righteousness, and away from the schemes and devices of designing and misleading spirits, that the wicked may not be successful in entangling them in the meshes of crime. May you be enabled to say, as you point to the head of this work, "There stands the man God selected; here is the Church organization Jesus established, unbroken from the day it was fixe' 1 by the Prophet of the Lord, and God said it never would be taken from the earth or given to another people." It will never be given to this little organization, or that little party withdrawing from this work. Here stands this organization true to God, true to the principles He has announced, true to every requirement placed upon their shoulders, as men have ever been true to the obligations placed upon them. My brothers and my sisters, I am happy to be with you. I rejoice in the knowledge of the truth of this work, and bear my witness, in connection with my brethren, of its place and purpose and mission in the world, and to say that the men who speak of its overthrow, its displacement, its failure to accomplish its mission, are dreaming myths, for this work will not fail. God has decreed its success, and it is to become the joy of the race. Amen.
Sister Margaret Summerhays sang a soprano solo, entitled "Great peace have they that love the Lord."
ELDER HEBER J. GRANT.
Saints give abundant evidence of love of God and mankind.—"Mormon" missionaries' self-denial rewarded by- God's approval.—Divine truth of their message proven by their virtuous lives. Love of money a cause of loss of faith. —Knowledge imparted by the Holy Spirit makes men steadfast.
It is always a pleasure to meet with the Latter-day Saints in stake and general conferences. I rejoice in the very splendid turnout that we have had during the meetings on this occasion. I do not remember to have ever seen so large a gathering at an opening session of any of our conferences as we had here this morning. It shows to me the faith of the Latter-day Saints, and is an evidence of their desire to hear the word of the Lord through the general authorities of the Church, who as a rule address the people assembled on these occasions. I earnestly desire that the time which I may occupy here this afternoon may be for our mutual benefit.
I rejoice in the gospel of Jesus Christ, and in the knowledge which I possess of the divinity of the work in which we are engaged. It is ever my earnest prayer that I may remain firm, steadfast and faithful, that I may not turn to the right nor to the left, but may walk in the straight and narrow path that leads to life eternal. This prayer which I offer for myself I also offer daily for all the Latter-day Saints; and I constantly pray that the honest the world over may see and comprehend the truth., I pray also that those of us who have received a knowledge of the truth may live according to the teachings of the Savior, that we may so order our lives that other men, seeing our good deeds, may glorify God, and that they may be led to the truth.
We find in the 22nd chapter of St. Matthew the following:
But when the Pharisees had heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, they were gathered together.
Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying,
Master, which is the great commandment in the law?
Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
This is the first and great commandment.
And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.
On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
The longer I live, the more I study the gospel, the more I come in contact with men, the more forcibly am I impressed with the truth of the sayings of our Savior in the words that I have just read to you. If we did in every deed love the Lord our God with all our heart, with all our mind, with all our soul, there would be no need of urging from time to time upon the people the necessity of keeping the commandments of the Lord" It would be a pleasure to them to serve God and keep His commandments. We are told that where a man's treasure is, there will his heart be also, and if we loved the Lord with all our heart and mind and soul, serving Him would be the great object of our lives, and the treasure we would work to gain would be His love. If we followed that second commandment, to love our neighbor as ourself, there would be no need of bishop's or High Council trials; our difficulties would all be settled amicably, if we really and truly loved our neighbor. It would be' almost a waste of time to appeal to the people for donations, to urge them to be liberal, to be generous, to strive for the benefit and welfare of their fellows.
While we as a people do not fully come up to the requirements of the first great commandment, nor completely meet the requirements of the second, yet, I bear my testimony to you here today, I believe that of all people upon the face of the earth, there is no other people who love the Lord their God as do the Latter-day Saints. There is no other people upon the face of the earth who give such absolute evidence of their love of God by their acts, by the sacrifices they make, by the labors they perform, by the diligence with which they strive to serve God and keep His commandments. I believe there is no other people to be found on the earth that compare to the Latter-day Saints in these respects. I believe also that there is no other people to be found where there is as much of brotherly love, of real harmony and good will, and a desire to bless their fellows, as can be found among the Latter-day Saints. Not only do we love our neighbors, but I believe that there is a greater love in the hearts of the Latter-day Saints, (and that they prove it by their acts.) for their fellow men, not of their own faith, than is to be found in other communities. I believe that we evidence this by the labors that we are performing. Reflect upon the fact that there are at the present time over two thousand men, in nearly all parts of the world proclaiming this gospel of Jesus Christ that you and I have received; that they are neglecting their business, that they are separated from their families, from their friends, from their loved ones, from all that is near and dear to the natural heart of man, and the labor which they are performing is a labor of love, without hope of reward whatever in this life. They have a hope of reward, of course, from God our Heavenly Father who rewards us by a rich outpouring of His Holy Spirit whenever we are engaged in His work.
This labor which is being performed is costing on an averse in the neighborhood of, if not fully, twenty dollars per month per capita for each and every one of those two thousand men, so that we find there is expended, while proclaiming the gospel, forty thousand dollars a month in expenses, as an evidence of the love of their fellows by these men and their families, who are supporting them. I feel that it is not exaggerating at all to say that these men would average, if they were at home laboring for the material things of this world at least sixty dollars a month per capita for their time; therefore we find that the Latter-day Saints, by giving their time and their means to promulgate this gospel of Jesus Christ which we have received, that they are contributing in round numbers one hundred and sixty thousand dollars per month as a substantial evidence of their love of their fellows, and of their desire to bring to them the knowledge of the gospel that they possess.
The world has said that Joseph Smith was a fallen prophet. They say that the leaders of the Latter-day Saints are wicked and corrupt men. Even our enemies bear witness that the rank and file of the Latter-day Saints are a good people. They say, it is only the leaders that are bad, and that are full of wickedness and robbery, and all manner of evils; and the Prophet Joseph Smith was the worst of the lot, because he established this terrible gospel called "Mormonism." The Savior said, "By their fruits ye shall know them," and this is the infallible rule that you and I and everybody else can lay down, by which to judge men—by their fruits. By the fruits of love of our fellows, we stand supreme above all the world in preaching this gospel. Freely we have received, and freely we give. This gospel of Jesus Christ, which the world says is a delusion, a snare and a fraud, to each and every man who goes out to proclaim it, and who lives an upright and virtuous life, it brings peace, it brings joy, it brings happiness unspeakable. In standing up and proclaiming that Joseph Smith was a prophet of the true and the living God, there are hundreds, yes, there are tens of thousands of men who have gone out to preach this gospel, and who can bear witness that God their Heavenly Father, by the inspiration of His Spirit, blessed them and gave them utterance in proclaiming the fact that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God, far beyond their natural ability of expression. They are able to bear witness that peace and joy ofttimes filled their very beings in testifying to the divinity of the mission of this man as a prophet of the true and living God; and that, after they have sat down, they have wept for joy because of the blessings of the Lord which have come to them while thus testifying.
It fell to my happy lot to labor for three years in Great Britain, and other parts of Europe, as the President of the European Mission. I came in contact with thirteen hundred Elders during that time, and I bear witness to you that those boys were sweet, that they were clean in their persons, in their thoughts, in their acts, that they were in very deed representatives of the gospel of Christ; that they were leading God-like and Christ-like lives. I bear witness to you that every one of them was ready and willing to testify, and did testify time and time again in my hearing, that under the influence of the sweet spirit that comes from our Heavenly Father, that they had had times of joy beyond their ability to express, in proclaiming this gospel of Jesus Christ. Do you mean to tell me that the fruits of the gospel, that brings joy and peace and happiness unspeakable to those that are proclaiming it, that are honest, that are upright, that are diligent, that are true,—do you mean to tell me that if that gospel was vile and wicked that it would fill the heart to overflowing with gratitude in those that are proclaiming it? Why, it is an absurdity.
I have often remarked, in public and in private, that, to me, one of the greatest of all the great testimonies of the divinity of the work in which you and I are engaged, is the fact that no man, in all the eighty years that this gospel has been proclaimed, has ever returned to us from a mission and announced that he has found the truth in some other part of the world. It is not to be found. Ministers warn their congregations against the Elders. They warn their congregations in the world against reading our tracts, against studying our literature, or listening, or having anything to do with the "Mormons." Did I warn one single, solitary Elder out of the thirteen hundred that I labored with, against the gospel that any man might have to give him? No. I warned him against doing evil. I warned him to shun wine and women, in the language of the late President Wilford Woodruff, "as he would the gates of hell." I warned him to live sweet and clean and pure, and to bow down and pray God, day by day, for the guidance of His Holy Spirit. I told him to study the Bible, to study the teachings of the Savior and of His Apostles, and proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ to the people. I said, keep yourself sweet and clean and pure, and study the gospel, and God will bless you; and God did bless them. Do you mean to tell me for eighty years God would allow men to go on, year after year, living virtuous, upright, honest lives, proclaiming a gospel that was not true, and that He would never bring one of those honest souls to a knowledge of the true gospel? What is the result on the other hand? Hundreds, yea, thousands have been pricked in their hearts, and by the inspiration of the Spirit, and the revelations of God to them, they have received a knowledge of the divinity of the work in which we are engaged. They have received the witness of the Holy Spirit to them, satisfying their souls, satisfying their very beings, causing them to cry out in joy that they know that God lives, that they know Jesus is the Christ, that they know Joseph Smith is a Prophet of the true and living God. No man on earth can say that he knows that what they say is not true. He may not believe their testimony, but he cannot rob them of the knowledge that they have. I may proclaim that I love my family, and a man may say, "I don't believe it," but that does not change the knowledge that I have that I do love them. When a man has received the witness of the Holy Spirit, when a man has received the knowledge that this gospel is true, and he knows it, and he proclaims it, the whole world, not believing, cannot change the knowledge that he has. The Latter- day Saint possesses this knowledge, and it is this knowledge that they have of the divinity of this work that enables them to live nearer to the first great commandment, than any other people, to love the Lord with all our heart.
The average man that did not have a knowledge of the gospel of Jesus Christ would never be an honest tithe-payer; he would not have the courage to obey that law. The natural selfishness of man is so great that he would not and could not do it. Why, we love money to such an extent that many people will sell their very souls for it. The great criterion of success in the world is that men can make money, but I want to say to you Latter-day Saints that to do this is not true success. As a man grows and increases in the things of this world, if he is not careful, he will lose the Spirit of the Lord, and he will set his heart upon the things of this world, and if he loses the Spirit of the Lord, and fails to be honest with God in the payment of his tithes, as strictly and honestly as he would account to a partner if he were engaged in business, that man will lessen his strength, will lessen his power, will lessen the testimony of the Spirit of God within his soul. There is no question of it in my mind. We must be honest with the Lord. The great trouble is that there are many people who, as they grow and increase in the things of this world, set their hearts upon them and lose the Spirit of the Lord. Therefore, that which is counted by the world as success is failure; because if a man starts out for a prize and he fails to secure it after laboring nearly a lifetime for that prize, certainly his life has been a failure. I know many individuals who, when they made small sums of money, were absolutely honest with the Lord, and paid one-tenth of it; but when they made large sums of money they paid all the way from one per cent, instead of ten, up to two or three per cent. What is the matter? Why, the appetite for money grows upon a man, increases and strengthens unless he is careful, just as much as the appetite for whiskey, and it gets possession of him, and he loves the money instead of loving it only for the good that he can do with it. He does not estimate properly the value of things. I once wrote a little sentiment for the Improvement Era, which was published fourteen years ago, as follows:
Not he who merely succeeds in making a fortune, and in so doing blunts the natural affections of the heart, and chases therefrom the love of his fellows, can be said to be truly successful: but he who so lives that those who know him best shall love him most; and that God, who knows not only his deeds, but also the inmost sentiments of his heart, shall love him; of such an one, only—notwithstanding he may die in poverty—can it be said indeed and of a truth, "he should be crowned with the wreath of success."
Speaking of the wrong estimate of things calls to my mind a little incident that I have related many times in public, of a good old sister, a faithful Latter-day Saint up in Scotland. I had a very fine valise presented to me by some of my business associates before I went on a mission. It was an alligator hide valise, and it had on it those great big lumps, you know, that the alligators grow on their backs, about as hard as steel. This good sister, who had been used to seeing "bags," as they call them over there, that were very smooth, and that cost six or eight shillings, said, "Oh, I do wish somebody would give Brother Grant a decent, respectable looking bag. What a pity it is that he has to carry such an awful looking bag." If somebody had given me a valise costing two or three dollars, she would have thought I had a treasure. I don't know what this valise cost that my friends gave me, because you know they say you must never look a gift horse in the mouth, and I didn't ask the price, but I did price one before this was given to me, that was not as nice, and the price was thirty dollars, so I suppose this one I had cost over thirty dollars; but the good sister, I am sure, would not have given six shillings for it. She did not know its value The next conference I attended was out at Sunderland, and there is one little section of the railroad that runs out there that carried only third-class passengers. In the compartment where I was there were some first class passengers, who had changed to third at the Junction. You know people ask why “Mormons” always travel third class, and the answer is "Because there is no fourth class." I leaned back in the seat, closed my eyes, and the gentlemen who had been traveling first class thought I was asleep. One of them said, "I am sure that gentleman is an American." The other one said, "How do you know?" "Oh, I am positive of it, I am sure of it." The other one said, "I am not. How do you know?" And he said, "Nobody but an American would waste so much money on a bag." So you see he knew the value.
The world thinks like the good old sister that we are wasting our money, because we will not exchange a forty or fifty dollar valise for one worth half a dozen shillings. They do not know the truth. They do not realize the value of the gospel of Jesus Christ. They do not know, for instance, the healing power of Almighty God that is in this Church. They do not know that there are men living who, but for the power of God, would not be here. I say to you that I know that I myself am a living witness of the healing power of Almighty God; that there are others now sitting upon this stand who would not be here today but for the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ, with all the power, with all the authority, with all the graces, with all the gifts that were ever enjoyed by former day saints.
This is God's truth that you and I have embraced. It is the gospel of Jesus Christ, and may He help us, that we may in very deed follow the admonition of the Savior, and so live that other men, seeing our good deeds, shall glorify God and be led to the truth, is my prayer and desire, and I ask it in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Saints give abundant evidence of love of God and mankind.—"Mormon" missionaries' self-denial rewarded by- God's approval.—Divine truth of their message proven by their virtuous lives. Love of money a cause of loss of faith. —Knowledge imparted by the Holy Spirit makes men steadfast.
It is always a pleasure to meet with the Latter-day Saints in stake and general conferences. I rejoice in the very splendid turnout that we have had during the meetings on this occasion. I do not remember to have ever seen so large a gathering at an opening session of any of our conferences as we had here this morning. It shows to me the faith of the Latter-day Saints, and is an evidence of their desire to hear the word of the Lord through the general authorities of the Church, who as a rule address the people assembled on these occasions. I earnestly desire that the time which I may occupy here this afternoon may be for our mutual benefit.
I rejoice in the gospel of Jesus Christ, and in the knowledge which I possess of the divinity of the work in which we are engaged. It is ever my earnest prayer that I may remain firm, steadfast and faithful, that I may not turn to the right nor to the left, but may walk in the straight and narrow path that leads to life eternal. This prayer which I offer for myself I also offer daily for all the Latter-day Saints; and I constantly pray that the honest the world over may see and comprehend the truth., I pray also that those of us who have received a knowledge of the truth may live according to the teachings of the Savior, that we may so order our lives that other men, seeing our good deeds, may glorify God, and that they may be led to the truth.
We find in the 22nd chapter of St. Matthew the following:
But when the Pharisees had heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, they were gathered together.
Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying,
Master, which is the great commandment in the law?
Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
This is the first and great commandment.
And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.
On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
The longer I live, the more I study the gospel, the more I come in contact with men, the more forcibly am I impressed with the truth of the sayings of our Savior in the words that I have just read to you. If we did in every deed love the Lord our God with all our heart, with all our mind, with all our soul, there would be no need of urging from time to time upon the people the necessity of keeping the commandments of the Lord" It would be a pleasure to them to serve God and keep His commandments. We are told that where a man's treasure is, there will his heart be also, and if we loved the Lord with all our heart and mind and soul, serving Him would be the great object of our lives, and the treasure we would work to gain would be His love. If we followed that second commandment, to love our neighbor as ourself, there would be no need of bishop's or High Council trials; our difficulties would all be settled amicably, if we really and truly loved our neighbor. It would be' almost a waste of time to appeal to the people for donations, to urge them to be liberal, to be generous, to strive for the benefit and welfare of their fellows.
While we as a people do not fully come up to the requirements of the first great commandment, nor completely meet the requirements of the second, yet, I bear my testimony to you here today, I believe that of all people upon the face of the earth, there is no other people who love the Lord their God as do the Latter-day Saints. There is no other people upon the face of the earth who give such absolute evidence of their love of God by their acts, by the sacrifices they make, by the labors they perform, by the diligence with which they strive to serve God and keep His commandments. I believe there is no other people to be found on the earth that compare to the Latter-day Saints in these respects. I believe also that there is no other people to be found where there is as much of brotherly love, of real harmony and good will, and a desire to bless their fellows, as can be found among the Latter-day Saints. Not only do we love our neighbors, but I believe that there is a greater love in the hearts of the Latter-day Saints, (and that they prove it by their acts.) for their fellow men, not of their own faith, than is to be found in other communities. I believe that we evidence this by the labors that we are performing. Reflect upon the fact that there are at the present time over two thousand men, in nearly all parts of the world proclaiming this gospel of Jesus Christ that you and I have received; that they are neglecting their business, that they are separated from their families, from their friends, from their loved ones, from all that is near and dear to the natural heart of man, and the labor which they are performing is a labor of love, without hope of reward whatever in this life. They have a hope of reward, of course, from God our Heavenly Father who rewards us by a rich outpouring of His Holy Spirit whenever we are engaged in His work.
This labor which is being performed is costing on an averse in the neighborhood of, if not fully, twenty dollars per month per capita for each and every one of those two thousand men, so that we find there is expended, while proclaiming the gospel, forty thousand dollars a month in expenses, as an evidence of the love of their fellows by these men and their families, who are supporting them. I feel that it is not exaggerating at all to say that these men would average, if they were at home laboring for the material things of this world at least sixty dollars a month per capita for their time; therefore we find that the Latter-day Saints, by giving their time and their means to promulgate this gospel of Jesus Christ which we have received, that they are contributing in round numbers one hundred and sixty thousand dollars per month as a substantial evidence of their love of their fellows, and of their desire to bring to them the knowledge of the gospel that they possess.
The world has said that Joseph Smith was a fallen prophet. They say that the leaders of the Latter-day Saints are wicked and corrupt men. Even our enemies bear witness that the rank and file of the Latter-day Saints are a good people. They say, it is only the leaders that are bad, and that are full of wickedness and robbery, and all manner of evils; and the Prophet Joseph Smith was the worst of the lot, because he established this terrible gospel called "Mormonism." The Savior said, "By their fruits ye shall know them," and this is the infallible rule that you and I and everybody else can lay down, by which to judge men—by their fruits. By the fruits of love of our fellows, we stand supreme above all the world in preaching this gospel. Freely we have received, and freely we give. This gospel of Jesus Christ, which the world says is a delusion, a snare and a fraud, to each and every man who goes out to proclaim it, and who lives an upright and virtuous life, it brings peace, it brings joy, it brings happiness unspeakable. In standing up and proclaiming that Joseph Smith was a prophet of the true and the living God, there are hundreds, yes, there are tens of thousands of men who have gone out to preach this gospel, and who can bear witness that God their Heavenly Father, by the inspiration of His Spirit, blessed them and gave them utterance in proclaiming the fact that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God, far beyond their natural ability of expression. They are able to bear witness that peace and joy ofttimes filled their very beings in testifying to the divinity of the mission of this man as a prophet of the true and living God; and that, after they have sat down, they have wept for joy because of the blessings of the Lord which have come to them while thus testifying.
It fell to my happy lot to labor for three years in Great Britain, and other parts of Europe, as the President of the European Mission. I came in contact with thirteen hundred Elders during that time, and I bear witness to you that those boys were sweet, that they were clean in their persons, in their thoughts, in their acts, that they were in very deed representatives of the gospel of Christ; that they were leading God-like and Christ-like lives. I bear witness to you that every one of them was ready and willing to testify, and did testify time and time again in my hearing, that under the influence of the sweet spirit that comes from our Heavenly Father, that they had had times of joy beyond their ability to express, in proclaiming this gospel of Jesus Christ. Do you mean to tell me that the fruits of the gospel, that brings joy and peace and happiness unspeakable to those that are proclaiming it, that are honest, that are upright, that are diligent, that are true,—do you mean to tell me that if that gospel was vile and wicked that it would fill the heart to overflowing with gratitude in those that are proclaiming it? Why, it is an absurdity.
I have often remarked, in public and in private, that, to me, one of the greatest of all the great testimonies of the divinity of the work in which you and I are engaged, is the fact that no man, in all the eighty years that this gospel has been proclaimed, has ever returned to us from a mission and announced that he has found the truth in some other part of the world. It is not to be found. Ministers warn their congregations against the Elders. They warn their congregations in the world against reading our tracts, against studying our literature, or listening, or having anything to do with the "Mormons." Did I warn one single, solitary Elder out of the thirteen hundred that I labored with, against the gospel that any man might have to give him? No. I warned him against doing evil. I warned him to shun wine and women, in the language of the late President Wilford Woodruff, "as he would the gates of hell." I warned him to live sweet and clean and pure, and to bow down and pray God, day by day, for the guidance of His Holy Spirit. I told him to study the Bible, to study the teachings of the Savior and of His Apostles, and proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ to the people. I said, keep yourself sweet and clean and pure, and study the gospel, and God will bless you; and God did bless them. Do you mean to tell me for eighty years God would allow men to go on, year after year, living virtuous, upright, honest lives, proclaiming a gospel that was not true, and that He would never bring one of those honest souls to a knowledge of the true gospel? What is the result on the other hand? Hundreds, yea, thousands have been pricked in their hearts, and by the inspiration of the Spirit, and the revelations of God to them, they have received a knowledge of the divinity of the work in which we are engaged. They have received the witness of the Holy Spirit to them, satisfying their souls, satisfying their very beings, causing them to cry out in joy that they know that God lives, that they know Jesus is the Christ, that they know Joseph Smith is a Prophet of the true and living God. No man on earth can say that he knows that what they say is not true. He may not believe their testimony, but he cannot rob them of the knowledge that they have. I may proclaim that I love my family, and a man may say, "I don't believe it," but that does not change the knowledge that I have that I do love them. When a man has received the witness of the Holy Spirit, when a man has received the knowledge that this gospel is true, and he knows it, and he proclaims it, the whole world, not believing, cannot change the knowledge that he has. The Latter- day Saint possesses this knowledge, and it is this knowledge that they have of the divinity of this work that enables them to live nearer to the first great commandment, than any other people, to love the Lord with all our heart.
The average man that did not have a knowledge of the gospel of Jesus Christ would never be an honest tithe-payer; he would not have the courage to obey that law. The natural selfishness of man is so great that he would not and could not do it. Why, we love money to such an extent that many people will sell their very souls for it. The great criterion of success in the world is that men can make money, but I want to say to you Latter-day Saints that to do this is not true success. As a man grows and increases in the things of this world, if he is not careful, he will lose the Spirit of the Lord, and he will set his heart upon the things of this world, and if he loses the Spirit of the Lord, and fails to be honest with God in the payment of his tithes, as strictly and honestly as he would account to a partner if he were engaged in business, that man will lessen his strength, will lessen his power, will lessen the testimony of the Spirit of God within his soul. There is no question of it in my mind. We must be honest with the Lord. The great trouble is that there are many people who, as they grow and increase in the things of this world, set their hearts upon them and lose the Spirit of the Lord. Therefore, that which is counted by the world as success is failure; because if a man starts out for a prize and he fails to secure it after laboring nearly a lifetime for that prize, certainly his life has been a failure. I know many individuals who, when they made small sums of money, were absolutely honest with the Lord, and paid one-tenth of it; but when they made large sums of money they paid all the way from one per cent, instead of ten, up to two or three per cent. What is the matter? Why, the appetite for money grows upon a man, increases and strengthens unless he is careful, just as much as the appetite for whiskey, and it gets possession of him, and he loves the money instead of loving it only for the good that he can do with it. He does not estimate properly the value of things. I once wrote a little sentiment for the Improvement Era, which was published fourteen years ago, as follows:
Not he who merely succeeds in making a fortune, and in so doing blunts the natural affections of the heart, and chases therefrom the love of his fellows, can be said to be truly successful: but he who so lives that those who know him best shall love him most; and that God, who knows not only his deeds, but also the inmost sentiments of his heart, shall love him; of such an one, only—notwithstanding he may die in poverty—can it be said indeed and of a truth, "he should be crowned with the wreath of success."
Speaking of the wrong estimate of things calls to my mind a little incident that I have related many times in public, of a good old sister, a faithful Latter-day Saint up in Scotland. I had a very fine valise presented to me by some of my business associates before I went on a mission. It was an alligator hide valise, and it had on it those great big lumps, you know, that the alligators grow on their backs, about as hard as steel. This good sister, who had been used to seeing "bags," as they call them over there, that were very smooth, and that cost six or eight shillings, said, "Oh, I do wish somebody would give Brother Grant a decent, respectable looking bag. What a pity it is that he has to carry such an awful looking bag." If somebody had given me a valise costing two or three dollars, she would have thought I had a treasure. I don't know what this valise cost that my friends gave me, because you know they say you must never look a gift horse in the mouth, and I didn't ask the price, but I did price one before this was given to me, that was not as nice, and the price was thirty dollars, so I suppose this one I had cost over thirty dollars; but the good sister, I am sure, would not have given six shillings for it. She did not know its value The next conference I attended was out at Sunderland, and there is one little section of the railroad that runs out there that carried only third-class passengers. In the compartment where I was there were some first class passengers, who had changed to third at the Junction. You know people ask why “Mormons” always travel third class, and the answer is "Because there is no fourth class." I leaned back in the seat, closed my eyes, and the gentlemen who had been traveling first class thought I was asleep. One of them said, "I am sure that gentleman is an American." The other one said, "How do you know?" "Oh, I am positive of it, I am sure of it." The other one said, "I am not. How do you know?" And he said, "Nobody but an American would waste so much money on a bag." So you see he knew the value.
The world thinks like the good old sister that we are wasting our money, because we will not exchange a forty or fifty dollar valise for one worth half a dozen shillings. They do not know the truth. They do not realize the value of the gospel of Jesus Christ. They do not know, for instance, the healing power of Almighty God that is in this Church. They do not know that there are men living who, but for the power of God, would not be here. I say to you that I know that I myself am a living witness of the healing power of Almighty God; that there are others now sitting upon this stand who would not be here today but for the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ, with all the power, with all the authority, with all the graces, with all the gifts that were ever enjoyed by former day saints.
This is God's truth that you and I have embraced. It is the gospel of Jesus Christ, and may He help us, that we may in very deed follow the admonition of the Savior, and so live that other men, seeing our good deeds, shall glorify God and be led to the truth, is my prayer and desire, and I ask it in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
At the close of his discourse, Elder Grant, by request of President Smith, read a telegram from
John W. Young,
of New York City, in which Brother Young expressed sentiments of high esteem for President Smith and his associates, and deep interest in the welfare of the Church.
John W. Young,
of New York City, in which Brother Young expressed sentiments of high esteem for President Smith and his associates, and deep interest in the welfare of the Church.
ELDER REED SMOOT.
Good resulting from malicious articles recently published in magazines.— Change manifest in attitude of intelligent people concerning the Church.— Pleasure in defending "Mormon" doctrines.— Ward teachers should more frequently visit homes of the Saints. —The great modern sin of immorality. —Saving of wheat recommended.
My brethren and sisters, I am suffering this afternoon from a severe headache, and I hope that while I occupy the short time this afternoon allotted to me, that I may forget it, and that I may have a portion of God's Spirit to be with me. I hope to be lead to testify to His goodness, not only to myself, but to His people in general.
"I am not ashamed of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation." I know as well as I live that, if the world is to be redeemed and mankind saved, it can only be through the power of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The longer I live and the more I see of this world the more positive I am that God is with His people, and blessing them in every way promised through obedience to the gospel. He is blessing you spiritually and temporally. I know of no people in all the world upon whom the blessings of our Heavenly Father are so bounteously bestowed. He is also blessing us with increased faith, and I believe that He is blessing us with greater knowledge of things divine.
While we see on all hands opposition to God's work, criticisms against His servants, falsehoods expressed, both from pulpit and press, I desire to testify to you that, as far as the people of God are concerned, they are growing and increasing in knowledge, in numbers, in faith, and, I believe, in the confidence and respect of honest men and honest women throughout all the world. I recognize that the recent magazine articles published against us are having their effect both for good and evil. I am sure they are having the effect of prejudicing unthinking people against the work of God and His people, while on the other hand I am sure they are having the effect of calling attention of thoughtful men to the fact that they are written by untruthful men, and the statements made are false upon their face. I have tried to figure out the effect these malicious, false, lying articles have had upon the Church, and I have come to the conclusion that among the millions of persons that have read the article, a great many have had their prejudices increased, and, on a basis of one hundred of these, most of them unthinking people, there are at least, fifty others who detect the purpose and object of the articles and their absolute falsehood. This being true, a feeling of sympathy has been created in the hearts of the latter towards a people so wickedly maligned; and I have also noted that they are the men and the women who think. They are the intelligent class of people; and I believe the result in the end will be for the good of the work of God.
I have faith that God will overrule all things for the advancement of His work. I am confident that if we are true to Him and keep His commandments that it will be but a short time until we will be known for good throughout the world. For eighty years we have had bitter opposition. For eighty years the press of the country has been filled with anti-Mormon articles. Eighty years is a short time, a mere passing moment, compared with eternity, so there is no reason for discouragement. I believe that it will not be many years before the honest people of the world, as well as the press and magazines, will be looking for and publishing the good and beautiful things found in the great plan of life and salvation as revealed through the Prophet Joseph Smith, instead of, as at present, seeking for everything that can cast a reflection upon the organization and members of the Church.
I have taken great pleasure, and shall always do so, in explaining the articles of our faith, our ideas of this life and the life to come, our faith in God and His Son Jesus Christ, our form of baptism and its object, our belief in the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost, as well as all the principles and ordinances of the gospel as revealed to the Prophet Joseph Smith. I testify to you that when explaining these great truths and especially our belief as to the hereafter, in the life to come, where we expect to meet our loved ones and know them, they appeal to many men and women. People are curious to know what our belief is on all questions that modern Christianity teaches, and some express themselves as not having known that we believed in Jesus Christ. It has always given me pleasure in testifying to our belief in Jesus Christ and Him crucified; our belief in God the Eternal Father; our belief in the literal resurrection of Jesus Christ, and that He is the actual Son of God. There is life, there is truth and power in "Mormonism." No man need be ashamed of its principles and its mission, nor need he at any time or in any place offer any excuse for the doctrines that have been revealed by God, and His Son Jesus Christ, in this dispensation.
My brethren and sisters, our greatest danger is within, and not without. Have we a testimony that God lives, and are we living so as to maintain it? Are we consistent and loyal supporters of the laws of God if so we need fear no opposition. I think that, taken as a whole, no people on earth comes nearer living correctly, yet we must not close our eyes to the fact that we have failings and shortcomings. I believe that one of the weaknesses in our Church work today is the neglect of ward teachers to regularly visit the homes of our people. It is true that we are all teachers, but there are certain men selected in every ward whose special duty it is to visit the homes of members of the Church. It is the teacher's duty to call at every home, no matter what position the head of the house occupies, whether it be the President of the Church, a member of the quorum of the Twelve, the president of a stake, bishop of a ward, or the humblest member in the ward. As soon as the teacher enters the door of a home, if it is the home of a Latter-day Saint, the family should be called together for instruction. The teacher then presides, and it is his duty to expound the principles of the gospel, to inquire as to the faith of each member of the family; whether they are attending to their prayers, whether there is anything in their home life contrary to the teachings of the Church and the Spirit of the Lord Jesus Christ. From the reports we receive there are homes that are not visited once a year. This is not as God intended. I plead with the bishopric of every ward where such a condition exists, to rectify it as quickly as possible. Instruct your teachers to visit every home at least once a month, and oftener if necessary. I believe that if this is done there will be a reformation in the lives of many.
As I scan newspaper reports from all parts of the world, and as I see the conditions of society in different sections of this country, I am convinced that one of the greatest evils now sapping the spiritual and physical strength of the people of the world is the evil of immorality. I take pleasure in testifying, for I know it is true, that the Latter-day Saints are as clean and virtuous a people as live on the earth. But, fathers and mothers, I call your attention to the fact that we are not entirely free, as a people, from this curse. There is a responsibility upon you fathers and you mothers to see that every child that God has given you is reared in the atmosphere of virtue, and that your daughters and your sons, for the Latter-day Saints have no double standard of virtue, are guarded and protected from every evil or evil influence. Every boy and every girl in the Church should grow to manhood or womanhood clean and free from immorality. Fathers and mothers, I beseech you not to let your girls walk the streets at night. bareheaded and unprotected. I wish I had the power to reach the ear and heart of every mother and impress upon her the evil of this disgraceful practice, the temptations accompanying it. Many may think there is no danger, but I know there is. No good can come from it, but evil and shame may be the result. The Bible, the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, all of the works of the Church teach us the value of a virtuous life, and the evils following an unclean life. I trust the time will come, through the teachings of the Church, and the watchfulness of the parents, when we can say there is no immorality among us. There is work for the teachers, for the Priesthood, for every father and every mother in Israel, as long as there is one case -of immorality in all the Church. We might say, as one of old, that "I am not my brother's keeper," but I say to every Latter-day Saint that I believe it is your duty, if you see a young boy or girl going wrong, to call the attention of the parent or guardian to it. It may be that you will receive a rebuff, but you will have the satisfaction of having done your duty. If the rebuff is given, I believe the time will come that the parent giving it will be sorry for it.
Nothing can happen to the Church, or in the Church, but what it affects all the members of the Church. No evil can be inflicted upon any part of it without affecting the whole body. I pray of you, when you see temptations and vice all around you, to guard well the children that God has given you. I thank God for the teachings of my parents. I thank Him for the example which they set me, and I desire to say to all Israel that it was the teachings and the example that I received from my parents that has kept me clean, as far as the vice of immorality is concerned. I have said many, many times to men of the world that if I should violate the law of chastity, I would leave the "Mormon" Church, or I would humble myself and seek God's forgiveness.
In connection with my brethren who have spoken during this conference, I have a testimony that God lives, that Jesus is the Christ, that this is His work, and that it will never be taken from the earth again; that we are God's people and that, as we strive to do His will, so will He bless and protect us. This is my testimony to the Latter-day Saints. It is my testimony to all the world, and God grant that you may have the same testimony. May you never waver in your duty or your loyalty to God's work, or to any requirement the principles of the gospel impose upon you. A testimony that God lives is one of the peculiarities of "Mormonism;" it is one of the promises of God to those that seek Him, and it is one the world cannot comprehend, nor can any person comprehend it until he has placed himself in a position to receive it, by complying with the requirements made of him by God.
I am pleased to see the people prospering as they are, and I am more than pleased to see throughout this State bounteous crops and harvests, and let me ask you, my brethren and sisters, to take care of them. Do not waste any portion of these bounties, but save all you can, for, in these days of unrest—and we see it on all hands—no man can tell what a year will bring forth. It would not surprise me to see the time come when the people will suffer for want of sufficient breadstuff. I hope the people will have at least a year's wheat supply on hand, rather than, as many are today, being in debt for the wheat consumed during the year past. So presidents of stakes, bishops of wards, leading brethren, wherever you give advice, encourage the people to take care of all the bounties that God is bestowing upon them, and I know if you will do it, it will be better for every man, and every family.
May God give us strength to do our duty. May He give us a determination to live by every word that proceedeth from His mouth, and be loyal and true to His work, I ask it in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
The choir and congregation sang the hymn:
Guide us, O Thou great Jehovah,
Lead us to the promised land,
We are weak, but Thou art able--
Hold us with Thy powerful hand.
Holy Spirit,
Feed us till the Savior comes.
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Samuel O. Bennion.
Conference adjourned until Saturday, Oct. 7th, 10 a. m.
Good resulting from malicious articles recently published in magazines.— Change manifest in attitude of intelligent people concerning the Church.— Pleasure in defending "Mormon" doctrines.— Ward teachers should more frequently visit homes of the Saints. —The great modern sin of immorality. —Saving of wheat recommended.
My brethren and sisters, I am suffering this afternoon from a severe headache, and I hope that while I occupy the short time this afternoon allotted to me, that I may forget it, and that I may have a portion of God's Spirit to be with me. I hope to be lead to testify to His goodness, not only to myself, but to His people in general.
"I am not ashamed of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation." I know as well as I live that, if the world is to be redeemed and mankind saved, it can only be through the power of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The longer I live and the more I see of this world the more positive I am that God is with His people, and blessing them in every way promised through obedience to the gospel. He is blessing you spiritually and temporally. I know of no people in all the world upon whom the blessings of our Heavenly Father are so bounteously bestowed. He is also blessing us with increased faith, and I believe that He is blessing us with greater knowledge of things divine.
While we see on all hands opposition to God's work, criticisms against His servants, falsehoods expressed, both from pulpit and press, I desire to testify to you that, as far as the people of God are concerned, they are growing and increasing in knowledge, in numbers, in faith, and, I believe, in the confidence and respect of honest men and honest women throughout all the world. I recognize that the recent magazine articles published against us are having their effect both for good and evil. I am sure they are having the effect of prejudicing unthinking people against the work of God and His people, while on the other hand I am sure they are having the effect of calling attention of thoughtful men to the fact that they are written by untruthful men, and the statements made are false upon their face. I have tried to figure out the effect these malicious, false, lying articles have had upon the Church, and I have come to the conclusion that among the millions of persons that have read the article, a great many have had their prejudices increased, and, on a basis of one hundred of these, most of them unthinking people, there are at least, fifty others who detect the purpose and object of the articles and their absolute falsehood. This being true, a feeling of sympathy has been created in the hearts of the latter towards a people so wickedly maligned; and I have also noted that they are the men and the women who think. They are the intelligent class of people; and I believe the result in the end will be for the good of the work of God.
I have faith that God will overrule all things for the advancement of His work. I am confident that if we are true to Him and keep His commandments that it will be but a short time until we will be known for good throughout the world. For eighty years we have had bitter opposition. For eighty years the press of the country has been filled with anti-Mormon articles. Eighty years is a short time, a mere passing moment, compared with eternity, so there is no reason for discouragement. I believe that it will not be many years before the honest people of the world, as well as the press and magazines, will be looking for and publishing the good and beautiful things found in the great plan of life and salvation as revealed through the Prophet Joseph Smith, instead of, as at present, seeking for everything that can cast a reflection upon the organization and members of the Church.
I have taken great pleasure, and shall always do so, in explaining the articles of our faith, our ideas of this life and the life to come, our faith in God and His Son Jesus Christ, our form of baptism and its object, our belief in the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost, as well as all the principles and ordinances of the gospel as revealed to the Prophet Joseph Smith. I testify to you that when explaining these great truths and especially our belief as to the hereafter, in the life to come, where we expect to meet our loved ones and know them, they appeal to many men and women. People are curious to know what our belief is on all questions that modern Christianity teaches, and some express themselves as not having known that we believed in Jesus Christ. It has always given me pleasure in testifying to our belief in Jesus Christ and Him crucified; our belief in God the Eternal Father; our belief in the literal resurrection of Jesus Christ, and that He is the actual Son of God. There is life, there is truth and power in "Mormonism." No man need be ashamed of its principles and its mission, nor need he at any time or in any place offer any excuse for the doctrines that have been revealed by God, and His Son Jesus Christ, in this dispensation.
My brethren and sisters, our greatest danger is within, and not without. Have we a testimony that God lives, and are we living so as to maintain it? Are we consistent and loyal supporters of the laws of God if so we need fear no opposition. I think that, taken as a whole, no people on earth comes nearer living correctly, yet we must not close our eyes to the fact that we have failings and shortcomings. I believe that one of the weaknesses in our Church work today is the neglect of ward teachers to regularly visit the homes of our people. It is true that we are all teachers, but there are certain men selected in every ward whose special duty it is to visit the homes of members of the Church. It is the teacher's duty to call at every home, no matter what position the head of the house occupies, whether it be the President of the Church, a member of the quorum of the Twelve, the president of a stake, bishop of a ward, or the humblest member in the ward. As soon as the teacher enters the door of a home, if it is the home of a Latter-day Saint, the family should be called together for instruction. The teacher then presides, and it is his duty to expound the principles of the gospel, to inquire as to the faith of each member of the family; whether they are attending to their prayers, whether there is anything in their home life contrary to the teachings of the Church and the Spirit of the Lord Jesus Christ. From the reports we receive there are homes that are not visited once a year. This is not as God intended. I plead with the bishopric of every ward where such a condition exists, to rectify it as quickly as possible. Instruct your teachers to visit every home at least once a month, and oftener if necessary. I believe that if this is done there will be a reformation in the lives of many.
As I scan newspaper reports from all parts of the world, and as I see the conditions of society in different sections of this country, I am convinced that one of the greatest evils now sapping the spiritual and physical strength of the people of the world is the evil of immorality. I take pleasure in testifying, for I know it is true, that the Latter-day Saints are as clean and virtuous a people as live on the earth. But, fathers and mothers, I call your attention to the fact that we are not entirely free, as a people, from this curse. There is a responsibility upon you fathers and you mothers to see that every child that God has given you is reared in the atmosphere of virtue, and that your daughters and your sons, for the Latter-day Saints have no double standard of virtue, are guarded and protected from every evil or evil influence. Every boy and every girl in the Church should grow to manhood or womanhood clean and free from immorality. Fathers and mothers, I beseech you not to let your girls walk the streets at night. bareheaded and unprotected. I wish I had the power to reach the ear and heart of every mother and impress upon her the evil of this disgraceful practice, the temptations accompanying it. Many may think there is no danger, but I know there is. No good can come from it, but evil and shame may be the result. The Bible, the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, all of the works of the Church teach us the value of a virtuous life, and the evils following an unclean life. I trust the time will come, through the teachings of the Church, and the watchfulness of the parents, when we can say there is no immorality among us. There is work for the teachers, for the Priesthood, for every father and every mother in Israel, as long as there is one case -of immorality in all the Church. We might say, as one of old, that "I am not my brother's keeper," but I say to every Latter-day Saint that I believe it is your duty, if you see a young boy or girl going wrong, to call the attention of the parent or guardian to it. It may be that you will receive a rebuff, but you will have the satisfaction of having done your duty. If the rebuff is given, I believe the time will come that the parent giving it will be sorry for it.
Nothing can happen to the Church, or in the Church, but what it affects all the members of the Church. No evil can be inflicted upon any part of it without affecting the whole body. I pray of you, when you see temptations and vice all around you, to guard well the children that God has given you. I thank God for the teachings of my parents. I thank Him for the example which they set me, and I desire to say to all Israel that it was the teachings and the example that I received from my parents that has kept me clean, as far as the vice of immorality is concerned. I have said many, many times to men of the world that if I should violate the law of chastity, I would leave the "Mormon" Church, or I would humble myself and seek God's forgiveness.
In connection with my brethren who have spoken during this conference, I have a testimony that God lives, that Jesus is the Christ, that this is His work, and that it will never be taken from the earth again; that we are God's people and that, as we strive to do His will, so will He bless and protect us. This is my testimony to the Latter-day Saints. It is my testimony to all the world, and God grant that you may have the same testimony. May you never waver in your duty or your loyalty to God's work, or to any requirement the principles of the gospel impose upon you. A testimony that God lives is one of the peculiarities of "Mormonism;" it is one of the promises of God to those that seek Him, and it is one the world cannot comprehend, nor can any person comprehend it until he has placed himself in a position to receive it, by complying with the requirements made of him by God.
I am pleased to see the people prospering as they are, and I am more than pleased to see throughout this State bounteous crops and harvests, and let me ask you, my brethren and sisters, to take care of them. Do not waste any portion of these bounties, but save all you can, for, in these days of unrest—and we see it on all hands—no man can tell what a year will bring forth. It would not surprise me to see the time come when the people will suffer for want of sufficient breadstuff. I hope the people will have at least a year's wheat supply on hand, rather than, as many are today, being in debt for the wheat consumed during the year past. So presidents of stakes, bishops of wards, leading brethren, wherever you give advice, encourage the people to take care of all the bounties that God is bestowing upon them, and I know if you will do it, it will be better for every man, and every family.
May God give us strength to do our duty. May He give us a determination to live by every word that proceedeth from His mouth, and be loyal and true to His work, I ask it in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
The choir and congregation sang the hymn:
Guide us, O Thou great Jehovah,
Lead us to the promised land,
We are weak, but Thou art able--
Hold us with Thy powerful hand.
Holy Spirit,
Feed us till the Savior comes.
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Samuel O. Bennion.
Conference adjourned until Saturday, Oct. 7th, 10 a. m.
SECOND DAY.
In the Tabernacle, Saturday, Oct. 7th, 10 a. m.
Conference was called to order by President Joseph F. Smith.
The choir and congregation sang the hymn:
How firm a foundation, ye Saints of the Lord,
Is laid for your faith in His excellent word!
What more can He say than to you He has said,
You who unto Jesus for refuge have fled?
Prayer was offered by Elder John L. Herrick.
The choir and congregation sang the hymn:
Praise to the man who communed with Jehovah!
Jesus anointed that "Prophet and Seer"--
Blessed to open the last dispensation;
Kings shall extol him and nations revere.
In the Tabernacle, Saturday, Oct. 7th, 10 a. m.
Conference was called to order by President Joseph F. Smith.
The choir and congregation sang the hymn:
How firm a foundation, ye Saints of the Lord,
Is laid for your faith in His excellent word!
What more can He say than to you He has said,
You who unto Jesus for refuge have fled?
Prayer was offered by Elder John L. Herrick.
The choir and congregation sang the hymn:
Praise to the man who communed with Jehovah!
Jesus anointed that "Prophet and Seer"--
Blessed to open the last dispensation;
Kings shall extol him and nations revere.
PRESIDENT FRANCIS M. LYMAN.
Faith is only one principle of salvation. —The Church prepares its members for eternal life.—Possession of the Holy Spirit the strength of the Saints. —All who hold the Priesthood should be teachers and exemplars of righteousness.— Acceptance of Priesthood implies willingness to perform duties thereof.—Duty of prayer incumbent on all.—Loyalty inculcated.—Exhortation to be pure in heart, and remarkable for good works.
My dear brethren and sisters, I trust that the same good spirit that attended the speakers yesterday may be with us this morning, and during all the sessions of the conference. We were greatly pleased with the remarks of our brethren yesterday, and no doubt we were reminded again of the doctrines that have brought us together, and that, with the spirit that has accompanied them,' has so thoroughly established this people. I see before me, I am persuaded, some of the choicest and most faithful of the Latter-day Saints; men and women who have been thoroughly tried, well experienced in the plan of life and salvation, the people that are generally with us on such occasions. Through my mind, yesterday, passed the thought, how precious it would be if all the Saints could gather with us. if we could all be together, and all have the privilege of enjoying the same spirit that we enjoy on such occasions. That is not possible, but it impresses me with the importance of the responsibility that rests upon the brethren and sisters who do gather together, and can be here, and will always be here, while they live; the same class, that is, the same percentage of the people from all the stakes of Zion, and representatives from the missions, and brothers and sisters who bear responsibility in the Church. We heard yesterday some of the excellencies of the gospel of salvation, the principles of truth that commend themselves to all honest people whose ears and hearts are open to receive the word, and without which principles we are advised that " men cannot be saved. We all remember that expression of the Apostle Paul, in regard to the principle of faith, that I have thought has unwittingly, deluded the Christian people generally in world, for he declared that "Without faith it is impossible to please God." Naturally, it has been taken that with faith the Lord may be pleased, and that too with faith alone. But we have come to understand that faith, genuine living faith produces the very important principle of repentance, and that without repentance it is not possible to please God. Without baptism for the remission of sins it is not possible to please Him. Without the gift of the Holy Ghost it is not possible to please Him. But, with these great and superior, and primary principles in the gospel of life and salvation, we have discovered and have proven in our lives that men may be saved.
I thought, while the brethren were talking yesterday, that it would be a good thing to bring a little scripture to your attention—these brethren— Stake Presidencies, High Councilors, Bishops and counselors, High Priests and Seventies, these men who are looked upon and considered the teachers among the people—and while I do this I trust that your hearts will be touched, I trust that your souls will be so opened by the presence of the Spirit of the Lord that you will not forget this scripture. It is homely, somewhat, but very important. It is a scripture that was given eighty-one and one-half years ago yesterday, on the 6th of April, 1830, and I am persuaded that it has not had quite the weight in our hearts that it should have, hence I desire to draw it to your attention, or your attention to it, and have it impressed upon your minds, for the conditions that are laid down here, that entitle the children of God to that saving ordinance of baptism, is of greater importance, I believe, than we have attached to it. I believe that the brethren, the Elders in the world, have not been quite as careful in this regard, nor the brethren at home, the bishops who hold the key to open the door for every body who comes into the Church. The bishop is the master of the situation in his ward, and everybody in his ward in the Church coming into the Church, born of Latter-day Saint parents, and so forth, all these are under the direct care and super vision of the bishop of the ward. I want us to discover the fact that this Church, with its order, its organization, perfection and authority, is most admirably planned and arranged by our Heavenly Father for the salvation of the children of men, for their training, their bringing up, and for preparing us for salvation in His kingdom; not only intended for our entrance into the kingdom, but to maintain our standing, fellowship, and growth therein, so that, though we are very enthusiastic, very devout and faithful in the beginning, that we shall continue in that condition until the finish of our contract with the Lord; that is to the end, and the end is when we die; that is the end of our obligation, taking us finally into the presence of God, with our sins forgiven and blotted out. We are not there yet, but we will get there very soon, one at a time, or a few at a time, as we came into this world. This is the scripture that I desire to impress upon your hearts, and that when we go home we can impress it on the hearts of those who could not come, officials and others, so that this may ring in the hearts and souls of Latter-day Saints. It is in regard to the manner of baptism, and in regard to the conditions that should obtain, and that must obtain, in order for us to receive the blessings of salvation that we seek, all those who humble themselves before God, and no one else can have this blessing.
"All those who humble themselves before God, and desire to be baptized and come forth with broken hearts and contrite spirits, and witness before the Church that they have truly repented of all their sins"—that is not a part of them, but the whole of them,—"and are willing to take upon them the name of 'Jesus Christ, having a determination to serve him to the end"—and I have told you what the end is—serve Him to the end of this probation, this mortal life of ours,—"and truly manifest"—that is, without any deception—"truly manifest by their works that they have received of the Spirit of Christ unto the remission of their sins, shall be received by baptism into His Church."
And all those who do not thus come before the Lord, humbling themselves, and with these conditions, shall not be received into this Church. Now, if there have been any received into this Church that have not met those conditions, they are at fault and they have not pleased the Lord. Their faith has not been genuine, for genuine faith produces genuine repentance, genuine baptism, a profitable and acceptable baptism unto the Lord, and the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands. Now, that is a splendid condition for people to be brought into when they enter this Church, and the Lord understood that the day this Church was organized, just as well as we begin to understand it today. When we have thus received the gospel, when we have received that measure of genuine faith, when we have obtained that gift from God, repentance that worketh reformation and that puts us in condition that our sins may be washed away—for sins are not washed away without genuine faith and repentance—and baptism is not acceptable to the Lord unless that same faith and repentance be attained to by those who would be baptized, then water baptism may follow, and then baptism of fire and the Holy Ghost. This is the secret—right here lies the secret, my brethren and sisters, of the strength of this Church. It is the individual testimony and witness of the Holy Ghost in the hearts of the people, that establishes every man and every women in righteousness, in purity, in faith, in morality, in uprightness and undefiled. How beautiful that is! What splendid doctrines! What great improvement that does make upon the natural, mortal, fallen man; and the fruit of it is to be discovered among the Latter-day Saints today in good measure. There is room, of course, for more to be good, faithful and true than we have today, and there will be no doubt in the future.
Now, the Lord is pleased with you. He is pleased with us so far as we have entered this Church properly, so far as we have remained in the Church, in His work in obedience, in humility, and in faith and devotion to Him, as we have entered it. Every man who has so come into the Church has that witness and testimony abiding in his heart of the Father, the witness of the Father and the Son, for the Lord has declared Himself unto' us; He has come unto us and borne witness to us of the doctrines that are presented, that they are true. Latter-day Saints know that they are true. They know it, having demonstrated and proven them to be true, and having the witness of the Spirit of the Lord, which inspires their hearts and brings joy and happiness to their souls, and in that is the strength of the Church. There are no standing armies; there is no compulsion; nothing of a physical nature brought to bear upon the Latter-day Saints; no man is compelled to take a position; no man is compelled take an ordination; no man is compelled to labor after he has received these favors; but they are instructed, counseled, labored with, they are persuaded, and generally converted to the importance of maintaining their standing and fellowship, that has prompted them to come into the kingdom and to maintain these conditions while they live. We feel their importance, and we recognize them among the brethren at home and abroad.
We are very anxious that this same spirit and desirable condition shall be not only maintained by the presiding brethren, officers in the Church, and those who stand at the head of departments in Zion, and at the head of missions in the field, but that the Elders—and all are Elders who bear the Melchizedek Priesthood; the Apostle is an Elder and should be addressed as an Elder instead of an Apostle; you should say "Elder Lyman," and the same to these brethren who hold the Apostleship. The Apostleship is a sacred term that ought not to be used in common parlance as we use it today. It was not in former times, in the days of President Young. It was after his death that Elders that are known as the Apostles in the Church were spoken of, or spoke of themselves as "Apostles." They are the Elders, the chief Elders of the Church. They are the Elders who hold the keys of the kingdom, and who bear the responsibility of the kingdom at home and abroad, under the direction of the First Presidency of the Church, and we are Elders, and so are all who bear the Melchizedek Priesthood; and it happens today that all the bishops in the Church bear the Melchizedek Priesthood, every one of them. Then we have the Lesser Priesthood, the Aaronic Priesthood—the Priests and the Teachers and the Deacons. We heard a little yesterday—I am not sure but I think it was Elder Smoot, who dropped the thought that we are all teachers. If you remember and will read this scripture, it is right here, I need not give much time to speak in regard to it, but you can study it for yourselves, in the twentieth section of the Doctrine and Covenants, you will find that the duties of a teacher are shared by the deacon. He is to work with the teacher, if occasion requires; and I have discovered, I think, in my ministry among the people, that the occasion always requires that the deacon should share with the teacher; and the teacher's duty is to watch over the Church always, and to be with and strengthen the Church. Now, if Elder Smoot was correct in that assertion that we are all teachers,—and I am willing to grant that—I don't know of any more important and valuable calling or appointment than that of a teacher. I understand that our Savior was the greatest of all teachers, and it was not too small a work for Him to pay attention to the teaching of the word of the Lord, and training the people, and so it should be from the greatest to the least in this Church; and the greater men are, the greater responsibility and the more they are elevated before the people, the greater teachers they should be, and of all teachers, the bishops of the wards should be the greatest teachers in the wards. They should be men, as Paul happened, accidentally, maybe, to say on one occasion when he was talking to Timothy, in his letter he said that the bishop, among other things, after telling that he should be blameless, the bishop should be without fault; he should be a perfect man; just do everything exactly right; but the injunction that I refer to is that the bishop should be "apt to teach," given to teaching. It should be natural for him to be a teacher, for if there be any fault with the teachers, they are his teachers; he has selected them; he has blessed them and set them apart; and if they be faulty and do not know exactly how to do things, the reproach be upon the bishop of the ward.
Another scripture I want to draw your attention to, and I want to expound a little scripture and extend a little scripture, as I have had occasion to remark in some conferences, to expound a scripture and extend it. Now, parents in Zion who fail to teach their children faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, repentance and baptism, the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost, the sin be upon the heads of the parents. Now, may I extend that scripture a little, so that it will not only take the father and mother of the children, but will take particularly the father of the ward, and say that the father who fails to teach his children how to teach, and fails to give them instruction, and fails to train them and bring them up in the way they should go, that when they are old they are competent teachers,—the bishop who fails to do this, with the assistance of his counselors who are chosen High Priests, and should be just as good as the bishop—the reproach be upon their heads. The responsibility that rests upon us, my brethren, who bear the Priesthood — for when men are ordained to the Priesthood, the Lesser Priesthood and the Greater Priesthood, when they receive these offices in the Priesthood it is indicative, it makes plain to the Church and to the world that these men are called with divine authority, that responsibility rests upon them, that they are expected to be workers.
Do you know now, I want to extend our practice a little farther than we have been doing. When we want a president of a stake, we want him for work and his counselors the same. When we want a high councilor, we want him for work When we want a bishop, we want him for work. When we want his counselor, we want him for work. When we want a man to preside over a mission, abroad in the world, we want him to work. When we want an Elder to go into the world, we want him because we have work there. There is employment in preaching the gospel. We want him to go out because there is something to do. Now, we have dropped somewhat into the fashion of ordaining Seventies and of ordaining Elders and ordaining Patriarchs; and the brethren don't go to work. Now, suppose when a brother is ordained an Apostle, or is ordained a Patriarch, he does not go to work. Why, he does not get the spirit of his calling. It is the man who takes hold of his ministry and the responsibility that is put upon him, who gets the spirit of his calling. It is so with a Seventy. He is ordained a Seventy and that is all—just ordained a Seventy, or he is just ordained an Elder, or just ordained a Priest, or Teacher or Deacon, or any of the offices in the Church, and he does not go to work; there isn't employment for him; the bishop has not so trained the material in his ward that when they are ordained to any position in the Priesthood, that there is employment. A man should work. It is indicative that he should work. He should be a prayerful man, at least when he receives the Priesthood. No man in this Church is entitled to receive divine authority from the Lord, and then forget Him. No man is entitled to receive the Priesthood in this Church, and stay at home on the Sabbath Day, and not partake of the sacrament. No man is entitled to have the Priesthood who does not remember the Lord and bow his knee before Him in the season thereof; and the Lord has said in a scripture that I may refer to. He that doth not pray, doth not say his prayers, remember his prayers before the Lord, in the season thereof, shall be had in remembrance. If you remember, that is what the Lord said to Zion, the children of Zion, and we are among them. That is what He said to the inhabitants of Zion, a commandment that He gave, that those who do not pray before the Lord in the season thereof, shall be had in remembrance; that is, shall be remembered by the bishop or by the judge of my people, and he is the judge of the people.
The bishop is the judge of every man. woman and child in his ward, and he is responsible; that is, he is responsible to take care of them, and to mind his own business in his ward, just as the president of the stake must mind his own business in his stake of Zion, and let nothing escape him. Now, the bishop is under obligation to instruct every man that he ordains, every man that he allows to be ordained and directs to be ordained, every man that is called to any position of responsibility in his ward, it is the business of that bishop, as a good father of the brethren, and fathers of the people, to instruct that brother if he receives the office of an Elder in order to go and be married in the Temple, to bear the Melchizedek Priesthood,—it is the business of that bishop to give instructions such as he will never forget in his life, tell him that it is his business to go home from the Temple, with his wife sealed to him for time and eternity, and be a faithful worker at home. He can always find something to do. He has the home to regulate. He has the order of prayer to regulate at his own hearth. It is his duty to offer prayer in his home.
These Latter-day Saints pray, they pray in the morning and they pray at night, and that is the season of prayer. And then they pray secretly. What do they pray for? Why, I have had brethren say, "If we were prayed for and remembered as you brethren are, it would be different. We all pray for President Smith and for the -General Authorities. We pray for all these quorums of the Priesthood, all these presiding brethren. If we had the benefit of prayers, we could be good people as you are." They think we are remarkably good, and we are pretty good. Well, now, what about our prayers? I want to know if there is one person in this Church that prays more faithfully for President Joseph F. Smith than he prays for you. I would like you to bear that in mind, my brethren and sisters who are here, that there is not a family so separated from the ward, and so far out on the range and in the mountains and canyons, and neglected and overlooked and forgotten, almost, maybe, by bishops of the wards,—President Smith never forgets to pray for that family or that man; he never forgets to pray for that woman, that mother in the family; never forgets to pray for the smallest, simplest child in the family. We pray every morning for you. We prayed this morning, I did, I prayed for you, and I presume you prayed for me. I prayed for all; my heart was opened so I could pray for all Latter-day Saints. I prayed for our government, our country. I thank the Lord for the strength of the country, of these great United States. Oh, what blessings they have vouchsafed to us, that we have been preserved, and that the Church is established, and so settled and fixed and protected by the wall of strength that God has established in these United States. How thankful we ought to be. We remember our neighbors; we pray for them; we pray for their conversion, and we set good examples before them.
We do not patronize the saloons, we do not patronize any of these evils that are about us. You know that we come to you with good in your stakes of Zion. There is not a presidency of a stake that we have not blessed and set apart and helped to select, not a high councilor, There has not been a Relief Society, not a Mutual Improvement Association organized, not a quorum organized, not a mission established in any part of the earth, but what the presiding officials have gone out with blessings, and with instruction in the hands of the servants of God who bear the Holy Priesthood. And then we do not forget them. We pray for them. We pray for them when they go, we pray for them when they return, we pray for them while they are abroad. I hope the Latter-day Saints do pray for us. I hope you pray for us at least as well as we pray for you; for I pray always for you, for every family in this Church. There is not sickness in any home but what we pray for the sick, as well as those whose names some times are handed in, that is to pray for especially. We have those requests by letter, sometimes—Please remember my wife, my daughter or son—and we pray for them. We call upon the Lord to notice that there is sickness in a home, that there is calamity or trouble or distress or sorrow somewhere, and we want it relieved. We call upon the Lord. That is what we do; and then we behave pretty well.
We are sober men, moral men, we are not corrupt and denied. We don't come to you with corrupt doctrines and principles to defile you. Have you been so instructed? Has any bishop, any elder, any seventy, any department of the Church been injured because we have carried corruption and trouble to them? No, we have been good to you, good to you all the time, and you have fed us and been good to us and kind to us, and slept us, but we have never trespassed upon you. We have never been inclined to trespass upon you, but to defend you and help you and instruct you, and reprove you if it were necessary, if you were in transgression and sin. We have tried to have you help us, and you have helped us. There is wonderful improvement made during the last decade or more, two or three decades, so far as my acquaintance has been with you brethren here, you leading, presiding brethren. I have been with you on all occasions and under all conditions and circumstances, when we have had our troubles and little contentions, and little divisions, and so forth, and we have always given you good advice and set you good examples These brethren here on this stand, whom you know, you know our hearts just as well as we know our own and you are witnesses; the people are our witnesses throughout this Church. They know we have been faithful and true to them, and that we have taught them to be loyal—loyal to our government, loyal to the government of God, and loyal to the government of our great country, for it is the Lord's country. He has established it and established this people. He has gathered the people, not only the Latter-day Saints, but He has gathered the oppressed and the downtrodden and the sorrowful and the humble and meek of the earth. God has gathered them to the land of Zion, the land of the pure in heart, the land where the pure in heart should dwell, and where all who dwell should be pure in heart.
Now, we want the Latter-day Saints to benefit, we want you to profit, we want you to take home to your wards and to your stakes of Zion the instructions and spirit of this conference, you brethren who preside, and that you shall attend to your own business; for the stakes of Zion are so extended, the wards are so numerous, and the General Authorities sitting in this little square here,—there are not many more than a score—upon whom rest the responsibilities of caring for the whole people at home and abroad, and to the preaching of the gospel throughout the world. And we need your help; we want you to be good; we want you to be faithful; we want you to be sober; we want you to be moral in principle, in spirit in body we want you to be clean and pure and faithful and humble. We want you to be humble yourselves before God. We want you to remain humble before God. We want you to repent of all your sins. We want you to take upon yourselves the name of the Lord Jesus Christ We want you to serve Him and honor Him. Having the commandments and observing them it will be positive evidence that you love the Lord and if you do this the Lord will come unto you. He will love you and the Father will love you and love us, and He will come unto us and manifest Himself unto us He will not manifest Himself unto those who do not remember Him and do not keep His commandments Those who remember Him and love Him will keep His commandments and the keeping of His commandments is positive evidence that they love Him.
We want our brethren and sisters, we want the Latter-day Saints to love the Lord, and to honor Him and to serve Him with full purpose of heart, for we want to be saved; we want you to be saved; we want to be together when we get on the other side, under good and favorable conditions. We will be better men there. We may not think there will be much change, but we will be a very great deal better men on the other side than we are here. Our children will love us better; the wife will love the husband better, and our neighbors will love us better, because the faults and failings and weaknesses that were manifested here will disappear. We discover them every day. They will disappear. They are of the earth earthy, and we will act like men on the other side. We will be better. We will live and repent, and our repentance that we maintain through this life will have its genuine fruit of success and of relief from sin and transgression, and our minds will be freed from any weight of sin or trouble that we had in this life.
We are going through a world of sin and distress and danger, yet it is a good world. I don't want to say a word against it, and I calculate to stay here as long as I can; but it is a world of danger, and trial and tribulation and hardship for men and women, but it is possible for us to endure, it is possible for us to serve the Lord; it is possible for us to do what is right, and nothing that is wrong. It is not necessary for us to do wrong, and we want to quit doing wrong and work righteousness and serve the Lord. Let the bishops then, the presiding brethren in the wards, remember these things. I talk to them because there are more of them here than I will see again until next April. I will not meet many of them between now and then, possibly, and we want the bishops to go into their wards, and we want them to take care of the people that are at large, the people who are roaming, and who are not gathered together, and who do not gather together in the ward meetings, who are not heard and seen there. Bring them together, hunt them up, try to know every family and to know what is the matter with every family, and draw their attention to the fact that if they do not partake of the sacrament, and do so worthily, it is positive evidence that they do not remember the Lord. If a man remembers the Lord he will keep His commandments, and we do keep them just to the measure of our love of God. You know where you are at, without me trying to find out. I could not if I tried, possibly, but you know. If you are serving the Lord and keeping His commandments perfectly and fully, that is positive evidence you love the Lord. If we do not do these things, we do not love the Lord as we should.
I pray the Lord to bless you, my brethren and sisters. I testify to you that this is the Lord's work. Our Heavenly Father, by His Son Jesus Christ, has established this work, and kingdom. Lie brought the Prophet Joseph Smith and made him a Prophet, and inspired and qualified him, and sustained him to his death, to the shedding of his blood. Our Father in Heaven did this through His Son Jesus Christ, and established this Church, and it is growing, it is spreading, it is gaining strength. But are there not some who are weakening? Yes, I suppose so. Some will be weakening, some will die off and pass away, but the Church will endure, and never grow less than it is today. It will grow stronger.
I have another thought that was expressed by one of the brethren here. You remember it. You heard it yesterday, that in a little while, the virtues of the Latter-day Saints will begin to be advertised and shed abroad among the people^ of the earth as a remarkable people. We will be a remarkable people, for we will be a sober people, a moral people, an upright people, people who are reliable and trusted in business matters and everything else; reliable in politics and government and governmental affairs. We won't rob the treasury, or rob anybody, or do anybody harm, but be conscientious, upright, good and reliable. If government authority is trusted in our hands, or in the hands of any of our brethren, it will be safe and there will not be a defaulter. It is a reproach to a people who have a defaulter. It is a reproach to us when we fall into sin. We want always to be free of these things, and stand in the presence of the Lord approved of Him.
I thank the Lord that we have been pretty good. I have no bad things to say about my brethren. I love them with all my heart. They are just as tender to me as my own dear children, just exactly, and I know my brethren, I know their hearts, every one of them, and you know them. They are just as true as steel, faithful, ready to live always in the service of God; then we will die when we can't help it. but we don't intend to die as long as we can help it. We intend to stay here and assist in the building up of the kingdom. We want to be servants of God. We desire to serve Him and assist in the accomplishment of His purposes in the earth. We desire to live a long time and bless the people. We desire to extend our hands over all Israel, and to bless them, and our neighbors included in Zion; for we are greatly mixed up at the present time, and there are very many good precious people among us, good, honest and moral people, to say nothing about those that are otherwise, either with us or on the outside.
Let the Latter-day Saints serve God, and love Him, and honor Him, and keep His commandments, and be united in listening to counsel and walking uprightly before the Lord, and deal justly and properly on all occasions, and in regard to all matters of every nature. That is our exhortation, and that is the doctrine we have been carrying to the people. We have gone for the good and virtuous in the world, and called men to repentance. We do not want men who do not repent. This is the gospel of repentance that is entrusted to us, which shall be preached to every creature, and he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, and he that believeth not, but rejecteth the message God has sent, will be condemned. It can't be helped. Be pure and upright and conscientious, and love the Lord, and He will come to you with His Spirit and sustain you now and forever, which I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Mr. Edward C. Clifford sang a baritone solo, entitled "Glory to God, who from the heavens above:"
Faith is only one principle of salvation. —The Church prepares its members for eternal life.—Possession of the Holy Spirit the strength of the Saints. —All who hold the Priesthood should be teachers and exemplars of righteousness.— Acceptance of Priesthood implies willingness to perform duties thereof.—Duty of prayer incumbent on all.—Loyalty inculcated.—Exhortation to be pure in heart, and remarkable for good works.
My dear brethren and sisters, I trust that the same good spirit that attended the speakers yesterday may be with us this morning, and during all the sessions of the conference. We were greatly pleased with the remarks of our brethren yesterday, and no doubt we were reminded again of the doctrines that have brought us together, and that, with the spirit that has accompanied them,' has so thoroughly established this people. I see before me, I am persuaded, some of the choicest and most faithful of the Latter-day Saints; men and women who have been thoroughly tried, well experienced in the plan of life and salvation, the people that are generally with us on such occasions. Through my mind, yesterday, passed the thought, how precious it would be if all the Saints could gather with us. if we could all be together, and all have the privilege of enjoying the same spirit that we enjoy on such occasions. That is not possible, but it impresses me with the importance of the responsibility that rests upon the brethren and sisters who do gather together, and can be here, and will always be here, while they live; the same class, that is, the same percentage of the people from all the stakes of Zion, and representatives from the missions, and brothers and sisters who bear responsibility in the Church. We heard yesterday some of the excellencies of the gospel of salvation, the principles of truth that commend themselves to all honest people whose ears and hearts are open to receive the word, and without which principles we are advised that " men cannot be saved. We all remember that expression of the Apostle Paul, in regard to the principle of faith, that I have thought has unwittingly, deluded the Christian people generally in world, for he declared that "Without faith it is impossible to please God." Naturally, it has been taken that with faith the Lord may be pleased, and that too with faith alone. But we have come to understand that faith, genuine living faith produces the very important principle of repentance, and that without repentance it is not possible to please God. Without baptism for the remission of sins it is not possible to please Him. Without the gift of the Holy Ghost it is not possible to please Him. But, with these great and superior, and primary principles in the gospel of life and salvation, we have discovered and have proven in our lives that men may be saved.
I thought, while the brethren were talking yesterday, that it would be a good thing to bring a little scripture to your attention—these brethren— Stake Presidencies, High Councilors, Bishops and counselors, High Priests and Seventies, these men who are looked upon and considered the teachers among the people—and while I do this I trust that your hearts will be touched, I trust that your souls will be so opened by the presence of the Spirit of the Lord that you will not forget this scripture. It is homely, somewhat, but very important. It is a scripture that was given eighty-one and one-half years ago yesterday, on the 6th of April, 1830, and I am persuaded that it has not had quite the weight in our hearts that it should have, hence I desire to draw it to your attention, or your attention to it, and have it impressed upon your minds, for the conditions that are laid down here, that entitle the children of God to that saving ordinance of baptism, is of greater importance, I believe, than we have attached to it. I believe that the brethren, the Elders in the world, have not been quite as careful in this regard, nor the brethren at home, the bishops who hold the key to open the door for every body who comes into the Church. The bishop is the master of the situation in his ward, and everybody in his ward in the Church coming into the Church, born of Latter-day Saint parents, and so forth, all these are under the direct care and super vision of the bishop of the ward. I want us to discover the fact that this Church, with its order, its organization, perfection and authority, is most admirably planned and arranged by our Heavenly Father for the salvation of the children of men, for their training, their bringing up, and for preparing us for salvation in His kingdom; not only intended for our entrance into the kingdom, but to maintain our standing, fellowship, and growth therein, so that, though we are very enthusiastic, very devout and faithful in the beginning, that we shall continue in that condition until the finish of our contract with the Lord; that is to the end, and the end is when we die; that is the end of our obligation, taking us finally into the presence of God, with our sins forgiven and blotted out. We are not there yet, but we will get there very soon, one at a time, or a few at a time, as we came into this world. This is the scripture that I desire to impress upon your hearts, and that when we go home we can impress it on the hearts of those who could not come, officials and others, so that this may ring in the hearts and souls of Latter-day Saints. It is in regard to the manner of baptism, and in regard to the conditions that should obtain, and that must obtain, in order for us to receive the blessings of salvation that we seek, all those who humble themselves before God, and no one else can have this blessing.
"All those who humble themselves before God, and desire to be baptized and come forth with broken hearts and contrite spirits, and witness before the Church that they have truly repented of all their sins"—that is not a part of them, but the whole of them,—"and are willing to take upon them the name of 'Jesus Christ, having a determination to serve him to the end"—and I have told you what the end is—serve Him to the end of this probation, this mortal life of ours,—"and truly manifest"—that is, without any deception—"truly manifest by their works that they have received of the Spirit of Christ unto the remission of their sins, shall be received by baptism into His Church."
And all those who do not thus come before the Lord, humbling themselves, and with these conditions, shall not be received into this Church. Now, if there have been any received into this Church that have not met those conditions, they are at fault and they have not pleased the Lord. Their faith has not been genuine, for genuine faith produces genuine repentance, genuine baptism, a profitable and acceptable baptism unto the Lord, and the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands. Now, that is a splendid condition for people to be brought into when they enter this Church, and the Lord understood that the day this Church was organized, just as well as we begin to understand it today. When we have thus received the gospel, when we have received that measure of genuine faith, when we have obtained that gift from God, repentance that worketh reformation and that puts us in condition that our sins may be washed away—for sins are not washed away without genuine faith and repentance—and baptism is not acceptable to the Lord unless that same faith and repentance be attained to by those who would be baptized, then water baptism may follow, and then baptism of fire and the Holy Ghost. This is the secret—right here lies the secret, my brethren and sisters, of the strength of this Church. It is the individual testimony and witness of the Holy Ghost in the hearts of the people, that establishes every man and every women in righteousness, in purity, in faith, in morality, in uprightness and undefiled. How beautiful that is! What splendid doctrines! What great improvement that does make upon the natural, mortal, fallen man; and the fruit of it is to be discovered among the Latter-day Saints today in good measure. There is room, of course, for more to be good, faithful and true than we have today, and there will be no doubt in the future.
Now, the Lord is pleased with you. He is pleased with us so far as we have entered this Church properly, so far as we have remained in the Church, in His work in obedience, in humility, and in faith and devotion to Him, as we have entered it. Every man who has so come into the Church has that witness and testimony abiding in his heart of the Father, the witness of the Father and the Son, for the Lord has declared Himself unto' us; He has come unto us and borne witness to us of the doctrines that are presented, that they are true. Latter-day Saints know that they are true. They know it, having demonstrated and proven them to be true, and having the witness of the Spirit of the Lord, which inspires their hearts and brings joy and happiness to their souls, and in that is the strength of the Church. There are no standing armies; there is no compulsion; nothing of a physical nature brought to bear upon the Latter-day Saints; no man is compelled to take a position; no man is compelled take an ordination; no man is compelled to labor after he has received these favors; but they are instructed, counseled, labored with, they are persuaded, and generally converted to the importance of maintaining their standing and fellowship, that has prompted them to come into the kingdom and to maintain these conditions while they live. We feel their importance, and we recognize them among the brethren at home and abroad.
We are very anxious that this same spirit and desirable condition shall be not only maintained by the presiding brethren, officers in the Church, and those who stand at the head of departments in Zion, and at the head of missions in the field, but that the Elders—and all are Elders who bear the Melchizedek Priesthood; the Apostle is an Elder and should be addressed as an Elder instead of an Apostle; you should say "Elder Lyman," and the same to these brethren who hold the Apostleship. The Apostleship is a sacred term that ought not to be used in common parlance as we use it today. It was not in former times, in the days of President Young. It was after his death that Elders that are known as the Apostles in the Church were spoken of, or spoke of themselves as "Apostles." They are the Elders, the chief Elders of the Church. They are the Elders who hold the keys of the kingdom, and who bear the responsibility of the kingdom at home and abroad, under the direction of the First Presidency of the Church, and we are Elders, and so are all who bear the Melchizedek Priesthood; and it happens today that all the bishops in the Church bear the Melchizedek Priesthood, every one of them. Then we have the Lesser Priesthood, the Aaronic Priesthood—the Priests and the Teachers and the Deacons. We heard a little yesterday—I am not sure but I think it was Elder Smoot, who dropped the thought that we are all teachers. If you remember and will read this scripture, it is right here, I need not give much time to speak in regard to it, but you can study it for yourselves, in the twentieth section of the Doctrine and Covenants, you will find that the duties of a teacher are shared by the deacon. He is to work with the teacher, if occasion requires; and I have discovered, I think, in my ministry among the people, that the occasion always requires that the deacon should share with the teacher; and the teacher's duty is to watch over the Church always, and to be with and strengthen the Church. Now, if Elder Smoot was correct in that assertion that we are all teachers,—and I am willing to grant that—I don't know of any more important and valuable calling or appointment than that of a teacher. I understand that our Savior was the greatest of all teachers, and it was not too small a work for Him to pay attention to the teaching of the word of the Lord, and training the people, and so it should be from the greatest to the least in this Church; and the greater men are, the greater responsibility and the more they are elevated before the people, the greater teachers they should be, and of all teachers, the bishops of the wards should be the greatest teachers in the wards. They should be men, as Paul happened, accidentally, maybe, to say on one occasion when he was talking to Timothy, in his letter he said that the bishop, among other things, after telling that he should be blameless, the bishop should be without fault; he should be a perfect man; just do everything exactly right; but the injunction that I refer to is that the bishop should be "apt to teach," given to teaching. It should be natural for him to be a teacher, for if there be any fault with the teachers, they are his teachers; he has selected them; he has blessed them and set them apart; and if they be faulty and do not know exactly how to do things, the reproach be upon the bishop of the ward.
Another scripture I want to draw your attention to, and I want to expound a little scripture and extend a little scripture, as I have had occasion to remark in some conferences, to expound a scripture and extend it. Now, parents in Zion who fail to teach their children faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, repentance and baptism, the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost, the sin be upon the heads of the parents. Now, may I extend that scripture a little, so that it will not only take the father and mother of the children, but will take particularly the father of the ward, and say that the father who fails to teach his children how to teach, and fails to give them instruction, and fails to train them and bring them up in the way they should go, that when they are old they are competent teachers,—the bishop who fails to do this, with the assistance of his counselors who are chosen High Priests, and should be just as good as the bishop—the reproach be upon their heads. The responsibility that rests upon us, my brethren, who bear the Priesthood — for when men are ordained to the Priesthood, the Lesser Priesthood and the Greater Priesthood, when they receive these offices in the Priesthood it is indicative, it makes plain to the Church and to the world that these men are called with divine authority, that responsibility rests upon them, that they are expected to be workers.
Do you know now, I want to extend our practice a little farther than we have been doing. When we want a president of a stake, we want him for work and his counselors the same. When we want a high councilor, we want him for work When we want a bishop, we want him for work. When we want his counselor, we want him for work. When we want a man to preside over a mission, abroad in the world, we want him to work. When we want an Elder to go into the world, we want him because we have work there. There is employment in preaching the gospel. We want him to go out because there is something to do. Now, we have dropped somewhat into the fashion of ordaining Seventies and of ordaining Elders and ordaining Patriarchs; and the brethren don't go to work. Now, suppose when a brother is ordained an Apostle, or is ordained a Patriarch, he does not go to work. Why, he does not get the spirit of his calling. It is the man who takes hold of his ministry and the responsibility that is put upon him, who gets the spirit of his calling. It is so with a Seventy. He is ordained a Seventy and that is all—just ordained a Seventy, or he is just ordained an Elder, or just ordained a Priest, or Teacher or Deacon, or any of the offices in the Church, and he does not go to work; there isn't employment for him; the bishop has not so trained the material in his ward that when they are ordained to any position in the Priesthood, that there is employment. A man should work. It is indicative that he should work. He should be a prayerful man, at least when he receives the Priesthood. No man in this Church is entitled to receive divine authority from the Lord, and then forget Him. No man is entitled to receive the Priesthood in this Church, and stay at home on the Sabbath Day, and not partake of the sacrament. No man is entitled to have the Priesthood who does not remember the Lord and bow his knee before Him in the season thereof; and the Lord has said in a scripture that I may refer to. He that doth not pray, doth not say his prayers, remember his prayers before the Lord, in the season thereof, shall be had in remembrance. If you remember, that is what the Lord said to Zion, the children of Zion, and we are among them. That is what He said to the inhabitants of Zion, a commandment that He gave, that those who do not pray before the Lord in the season thereof, shall be had in remembrance; that is, shall be remembered by the bishop or by the judge of my people, and he is the judge of the people.
The bishop is the judge of every man. woman and child in his ward, and he is responsible; that is, he is responsible to take care of them, and to mind his own business in his ward, just as the president of the stake must mind his own business in his stake of Zion, and let nothing escape him. Now, the bishop is under obligation to instruct every man that he ordains, every man that he allows to be ordained and directs to be ordained, every man that is called to any position of responsibility in his ward, it is the business of that bishop, as a good father of the brethren, and fathers of the people, to instruct that brother if he receives the office of an Elder in order to go and be married in the Temple, to bear the Melchizedek Priesthood,—it is the business of that bishop to give instructions such as he will never forget in his life, tell him that it is his business to go home from the Temple, with his wife sealed to him for time and eternity, and be a faithful worker at home. He can always find something to do. He has the home to regulate. He has the order of prayer to regulate at his own hearth. It is his duty to offer prayer in his home.
These Latter-day Saints pray, they pray in the morning and they pray at night, and that is the season of prayer. And then they pray secretly. What do they pray for? Why, I have had brethren say, "If we were prayed for and remembered as you brethren are, it would be different. We all pray for President Smith and for the -General Authorities. We pray for all these quorums of the Priesthood, all these presiding brethren. If we had the benefit of prayers, we could be good people as you are." They think we are remarkably good, and we are pretty good. Well, now, what about our prayers? I want to know if there is one person in this Church that prays more faithfully for President Joseph F. Smith than he prays for you. I would like you to bear that in mind, my brethren and sisters who are here, that there is not a family so separated from the ward, and so far out on the range and in the mountains and canyons, and neglected and overlooked and forgotten, almost, maybe, by bishops of the wards,—President Smith never forgets to pray for that family or that man; he never forgets to pray for that woman, that mother in the family; never forgets to pray for the smallest, simplest child in the family. We pray every morning for you. We prayed this morning, I did, I prayed for you, and I presume you prayed for me. I prayed for all; my heart was opened so I could pray for all Latter-day Saints. I prayed for our government, our country. I thank the Lord for the strength of the country, of these great United States. Oh, what blessings they have vouchsafed to us, that we have been preserved, and that the Church is established, and so settled and fixed and protected by the wall of strength that God has established in these United States. How thankful we ought to be. We remember our neighbors; we pray for them; we pray for their conversion, and we set good examples before them.
We do not patronize the saloons, we do not patronize any of these evils that are about us. You know that we come to you with good in your stakes of Zion. There is not a presidency of a stake that we have not blessed and set apart and helped to select, not a high councilor, There has not been a Relief Society, not a Mutual Improvement Association organized, not a quorum organized, not a mission established in any part of the earth, but what the presiding officials have gone out with blessings, and with instruction in the hands of the servants of God who bear the Holy Priesthood. And then we do not forget them. We pray for them. We pray for them when they go, we pray for them when they return, we pray for them while they are abroad. I hope the Latter-day Saints do pray for us. I hope you pray for us at least as well as we pray for you; for I pray always for you, for every family in this Church. There is not sickness in any home but what we pray for the sick, as well as those whose names some times are handed in, that is to pray for especially. We have those requests by letter, sometimes—Please remember my wife, my daughter or son—and we pray for them. We call upon the Lord to notice that there is sickness in a home, that there is calamity or trouble or distress or sorrow somewhere, and we want it relieved. We call upon the Lord. That is what we do; and then we behave pretty well.
We are sober men, moral men, we are not corrupt and denied. We don't come to you with corrupt doctrines and principles to defile you. Have you been so instructed? Has any bishop, any elder, any seventy, any department of the Church been injured because we have carried corruption and trouble to them? No, we have been good to you, good to you all the time, and you have fed us and been good to us and kind to us, and slept us, but we have never trespassed upon you. We have never been inclined to trespass upon you, but to defend you and help you and instruct you, and reprove you if it were necessary, if you were in transgression and sin. We have tried to have you help us, and you have helped us. There is wonderful improvement made during the last decade or more, two or three decades, so far as my acquaintance has been with you brethren here, you leading, presiding brethren. I have been with you on all occasions and under all conditions and circumstances, when we have had our troubles and little contentions, and little divisions, and so forth, and we have always given you good advice and set you good examples These brethren here on this stand, whom you know, you know our hearts just as well as we know our own and you are witnesses; the people are our witnesses throughout this Church. They know we have been faithful and true to them, and that we have taught them to be loyal—loyal to our government, loyal to the government of God, and loyal to the government of our great country, for it is the Lord's country. He has established it and established this people. He has gathered the people, not only the Latter-day Saints, but He has gathered the oppressed and the downtrodden and the sorrowful and the humble and meek of the earth. God has gathered them to the land of Zion, the land of the pure in heart, the land where the pure in heart should dwell, and where all who dwell should be pure in heart.
Now, we want the Latter-day Saints to benefit, we want you to profit, we want you to take home to your wards and to your stakes of Zion the instructions and spirit of this conference, you brethren who preside, and that you shall attend to your own business; for the stakes of Zion are so extended, the wards are so numerous, and the General Authorities sitting in this little square here,—there are not many more than a score—upon whom rest the responsibilities of caring for the whole people at home and abroad, and to the preaching of the gospel throughout the world. And we need your help; we want you to be good; we want you to be faithful; we want you to be sober; we want you to be moral in principle, in spirit in body we want you to be clean and pure and faithful and humble. We want you to be humble yourselves before God. We want you to remain humble before God. We want you to repent of all your sins. We want you to take upon yourselves the name of the Lord Jesus Christ We want you to serve Him and honor Him. Having the commandments and observing them it will be positive evidence that you love the Lord and if you do this the Lord will come unto you. He will love you and the Father will love you and love us, and He will come unto us and manifest Himself unto us He will not manifest Himself unto those who do not remember Him and do not keep His commandments Those who remember Him and love Him will keep His commandments and the keeping of His commandments is positive evidence that they love Him.
We want our brethren and sisters, we want the Latter-day Saints to love the Lord, and to honor Him and to serve Him with full purpose of heart, for we want to be saved; we want you to be saved; we want to be together when we get on the other side, under good and favorable conditions. We will be better men there. We may not think there will be much change, but we will be a very great deal better men on the other side than we are here. Our children will love us better; the wife will love the husband better, and our neighbors will love us better, because the faults and failings and weaknesses that were manifested here will disappear. We discover them every day. They will disappear. They are of the earth earthy, and we will act like men on the other side. We will be better. We will live and repent, and our repentance that we maintain through this life will have its genuine fruit of success and of relief from sin and transgression, and our minds will be freed from any weight of sin or trouble that we had in this life.
We are going through a world of sin and distress and danger, yet it is a good world. I don't want to say a word against it, and I calculate to stay here as long as I can; but it is a world of danger, and trial and tribulation and hardship for men and women, but it is possible for us to endure, it is possible for us to serve the Lord; it is possible for us to do what is right, and nothing that is wrong. It is not necessary for us to do wrong, and we want to quit doing wrong and work righteousness and serve the Lord. Let the bishops then, the presiding brethren in the wards, remember these things. I talk to them because there are more of them here than I will see again until next April. I will not meet many of them between now and then, possibly, and we want the bishops to go into their wards, and we want them to take care of the people that are at large, the people who are roaming, and who are not gathered together, and who do not gather together in the ward meetings, who are not heard and seen there. Bring them together, hunt them up, try to know every family and to know what is the matter with every family, and draw their attention to the fact that if they do not partake of the sacrament, and do so worthily, it is positive evidence that they do not remember the Lord. If a man remembers the Lord he will keep His commandments, and we do keep them just to the measure of our love of God. You know where you are at, without me trying to find out. I could not if I tried, possibly, but you know. If you are serving the Lord and keeping His commandments perfectly and fully, that is positive evidence you love the Lord. If we do not do these things, we do not love the Lord as we should.
I pray the Lord to bless you, my brethren and sisters. I testify to you that this is the Lord's work. Our Heavenly Father, by His Son Jesus Christ, has established this work, and kingdom. Lie brought the Prophet Joseph Smith and made him a Prophet, and inspired and qualified him, and sustained him to his death, to the shedding of his blood. Our Father in Heaven did this through His Son Jesus Christ, and established this Church, and it is growing, it is spreading, it is gaining strength. But are there not some who are weakening? Yes, I suppose so. Some will be weakening, some will die off and pass away, but the Church will endure, and never grow less than it is today. It will grow stronger.
I have another thought that was expressed by one of the brethren here. You remember it. You heard it yesterday, that in a little while, the virtues of the Latter-day Saints will begin to be advertised and shed abroad among the people^ of the earth as a remarkable people. We will be a remarkable people, for we will be a sober people, a moral people, an upright people, people who are reliable and trusted in business matters and everything else; reliable in politics and government and governmental affairs. We won't rob the treasury, or rob anybody, or do anybody harm, but be conscientious, upright, good and reliable. If government authority is trusted in our hands, or in the hands of any of our brethren, it will be safe and there will not be a defaulter. It is a reproach to a people who have a defaulter. It is a reproach to us when we fall into sin. We want always to be free of these things, and stand in the presence of the Lord approved of Him.
I thank the Lord that we have been pretty good. I have no bad things to say about my brethren. I love them with all my heart. They are just as tender to me as my own dear children, just exactly, and I know my brethren, I know their hearts, every one of them, and you know them. They are just as true as steel, faithful, ready to live always in the service of God; then we will die when we can't help it. but we don't intend to die as long as we can help it. We intend to stay here and assist in the building up of the kingdom. We want to be servants of God. We desire to serve Him and assist in the accomplishment of His purposes in the earth. We desire to live a long time and bless the people. We desire to extend our hands over all Israel, and to bless them, and our neighbors included in Zion; for we are greatly mixed up at the present time, and there are very many good precious people among us, good, honest and moral people, to say nothing about those that are otherwise, either with us or on the outside.
Let the Latter-day Saints serve God, and love Him, and honor Him, and keep His commandments, and be united in listening to counsel and walking uprightly before the Lord, and deal justly and properly on all occasions, and in regard to all matters of every nature. That is our exhortation, and that is the doctrine we have been carrying to the people. We have gone for the good and virtuous in the world, and called men to repentance. We do not want men who do not repent. This is the gospel of repentance that is entrusted to us, which shall be preached to every creature, and he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, and he that believeth not, but rejecteth the message God has sent, will be condemned. It can't be helped. Be pure and upright and conscientious, and love the Lord, and He will come to you with His Spirit and sustain you now and forever, which I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Mr. Edward C. Clifford sang a baritone solo, entitled "Glory to God, who from the heavens above:"
ELDER HYRUM M. SMITH
Qualifications of successful Teachers designated.—Detailed statement of Teachers' duties.—Proper deportment of family when Teachers visit.—The faithful strengthened, the slothful encouraged to good works, by Teachers.
The reference of the brethren to the question of teaching among the Latter-day Saints has given me a desire to speak a few words upon the same subject. It has come prominently before the attention of the General Authorities of the Church that there is a great lack of teaching among the stakes of Zion, and in the wards of the Church, a very great neglect of duty on the part of those who are called to be teachers among the people, and, as a consequence, the Saints in their families are not being visited and instructed as the Lord designed that they should be.
In the organization of the Church, the Lord has provided officers in the Holy Priesthood, and has defined their duties. We have been informed that it is the teacher's duty to be a watchman over the Church, to strengthen them, and to see that there is no iniquity in the Church, neither backbiting nor evil speaking, and to see that the people attend to their family duties and their Church duties. Brethren, we who are called to be teachers, many of us at least, have not as fully as we should have done, performed the labor allotted unto us.
Now, there is a certain preparation that should be had on the part of a teacher prior to his entering into the homes of the Saints to instruct them in their family and religious duties. In the first place, he should be duly ordained to the holy Priesthood, and called and set apart to labor among the people. Now, authority is not all that is necessary in order to be a successful teacher. Pie must have knowledge also, for except he have knowledge concerning the things of God, how can he impart instruction unto the Latter-day Saints? Therefore, the brother holding the Priesthood and designated as a teacher among the people ,should have a knowledge of the truth. Pie should be well informed upon the principles of the gospel. He should be familiar with the doctrines of life and salvation. He should be a student of the Scriptures. He should understand the word of the Lord, and be familiar with His commandments. And when he has this knowledge, then he should have a desire in his heart to impart of this knowledge unto the people, and to see that the people are instructed in the gospel, and are obedient thereto. Before a teacher attempts to go into the homes of the people on any special visit, he should make his going a matter of prayer before the Lord. As has been suggested by President Lyman, he should go before the Lord and ask His blessings upon his labors, that he might enjoy the inspiration of the Spirit, that by the Spirit he may be directed in whatsoever things he should say and do.
When he has made this preparation, and is qualified through knowledge and testimony, then when he enters into the homes of the Saints he can make inquiry of them concerning their condition and their conduct and their standing as members of the Church. The authority of the Priesthood gives him the right to ask questions of the family as to their diligence in keeping the commandments of the Lord, as to their faithfulness in performing the duties that the gospel enjoins upon them. The teacher has the right to inquire into everything pertaining to the welfare and standing of the people who call themselves Latter-day Saints. He may ask them if they live in peace together, if there is love, and affection existing between husband and wife, if there is proper affection and love in the father and the mother for the children, and whether or not the children respect and honor their fathers and their mothers, as the Lord has commanded. He may inquire if the children live together in love and peace as brothers and sisters ought to live, and if the family engage in prayer night and morning; and if the parents teach their children to pray vocally, and believe in and remember their secret prayers, as commanded in the revelations of the Lord. He may inquire of the Saints if they backbite or speak evil of their neighbors, or of one another, or if there is quarreling or contention, or dissension and lack of brotherly love and kindness exhibited in the family, on the part of any member towards any other member, or on the part of members of the family towards their neighbors and friends. He may inquire if the Saints sustain and uphold the Priesthood of God, and those whom the Lord has called to preside as general authorities in the Church, or as the local authorities in stake or ward or branch; whether or not they accent the restoration of the gospel and believe in it and believe in the Prophets who have been inspired and raised up to perform the work the Lord has allotted them in the latter days; and whether or not they accept the organization of the Church. The teacher may inquire of the family if they attend their sacrament meetings on the Sabbath day, and partake of the sacrament and if they do so worthily; and if they honor the Sabbath day and keep it holy. These servants of the Lord may also inquire if there are members in the family who take the name of the Lord in vain; if they are honest and if they are truthful, and if they are pure. All these things the teacher has the right to inquire about. and it is his duty to inquire about them.
As a part of the preparation of a teacher it would be well, it seems to me, to find out the condition and the standing of the members of the Church in the district, as shown by the ward records, and besides this, as I have shown, he has the right to inquire of the family and the members thereof in all things pertaining to their standing and fellowship and conduct as members of the Church. The teacher should be prepared, and able to expound the word of the Lord, and to preach the gospel, and to correct whatsoever ought to be corrected that he discovers in the family, or in any member thereof. He should also teach the first principles of the gospel. He should inquire of the parents if they have taught their children the gospel of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and repentance of sin, and baptism by immersion for the remission of sins, and the laying on of hands, for the gift of the Holy Ghost; and if they have taught them to pray, and walk uprightly before the Lord. And then, according as his findings may be, he can preach or give counsel or instruction. He should be prepared to answer questions that might be asked of him by members of the family, thereby enlightening their minds or removing therefrom doubts that may be lurking there concerning the doctrines of the Church or the principles of salvation. He should be able to make clear to the understanding of all the members of the household everything pertaining to this glorious latter- day work.
Now let the teachers go forth and do their duty, and accomplish the strengthening of the Church, and the increasing of faith among the people and stir up the Saints to greater diligence in the performing of the duties and obligations of their membership in the Church.
Now, my brethren and sisters, I would like to say a word pertaining to the duties of the Saints. You fathers and mothers, you heads of families, you parents of children who have homes in Zion, and you children, what is your duty with relation to the coming of the teachers into your households? It is the duty of the father or the head of the house to welcome most earnestly the servants of the Lord, to call his wife and his children together, and to bring order and peace in the house, and to introduce to his children or family the teachers as the servants of the Lord, who have come in the name of the Lord, and with the authority of the Priesthood, to teach the family and to inquire into their welfare and their conduct. Then the family shall submit to the instructions that the teacher shall be led to impart unto them, and there shall be no spirit of resentment or objection on the part of members of the family to the questions or inquiries that may be made of them by the servants of the Lord.
I have been informed by some teachers that there are some members of the Church who object to the teachers inquiring into their personal lives, and conduct, and questioning them about their faith in the gospel and their obedience in keeping the commandments of God considering them impertinent and unnecessary. Well now, you Latter-day Saints, if there are any who take such a position as that, you are in error, you are mistaken, and you don't understand the rights of the Priesthood as you should, nor the object of the coming of the teachers to your homes, as you should, neither have you the proper spirit in your own heart, if you resent the good will of the teachers when they ask these questions in order to find out your condition, that they may help you and bless you, and be a strength and a power to you in helping you to overcome the weaknesses of the flesh. You cannot show disrespect to the Priesthood without bringing upon yourselves the displeasure of the Lord. Most of us men in the Church hold the Priesthood ourselves, and if a teacher comes into my house and he holds a lesser office in the Priesthood than I, and for that reason or any other I resent his making inquiry into my personal life and conduct, and standing in the Church, I disrespect the Priesthood. If I disrespect the Priesthood as it is held by another, I dishonor the Priesthood as I may hold it myself, and I should not do that. We should respect the Priesthood and honor it, no matter who holds it, and especially should we honor and respect a man who endeavors to magnify his calling in the midst of the Saints.
Now I would like to say that much for both teacher and those who shall be taught, that we shall teach our children and set them the example, when the teachers come in to our houses, of respect for them as the servants of the Lord; show them that if they respect the teacher who holds the Priesthood, they likewise respect their father who also holds the Priesthood, and that in dishonoring any servant of God who holds that Priesthood, he dishonors his own father, and himself, and whosoever dishonors the Priesthood of God, shows dishonor to God Himself. Therefore, welcome the teachers to your homes, listen to them, answer their questions. We all may rest assured that whenever we object to any question that a teacher may ask, as he is moved upon and inspired by the Spirit of the Lord, we condemn ourselves. Where is the man who pays an honest tithing who will object to the teacher asking him if he pavs his tithing? Why, instead he will feel a little sorry if the teacher does not ask him that question, so that he may answer, yes, honestly, before the Lord I pay my tithes and my offerings. We will only object to those things wherein we fail to do our duty. If we object it will be when we are at fault. If we do not pay our tithing and offerings we do not want to be asked if we do pay them. If we are not pure in heart we would not like to be asked if we are. If we take the name of God in vain, why some of us would not like to have the bishop, or his representative, the teacher, inquire of us if we keep the Lord's name holy; and if we desecrate the Sabbath' day we may feel a little offended if we are asked about it, but we should not be. If we have the proper spirit, the proper understanding of the rights of the Priesthood, and of the organization, and authority of the Church, then even if we have offended in some things, we will have the spirit of humility and confess our sins, acknowledge our shortcomings, and have in our hearts the desire and show a willingness to be assisted by_ the teachers in overcoming these things; that through the instructions and the counsel and the good feelings of these servants of the Lord, we ourselves may be helped in overcoming these weaknesses of the flesh.
Now, I pray the Lord to bless us all, that we may put into effect the organization of the Church, to the end, that every home shall be visited by those holding the Priesthood, and that every man visiting shall be endowed with knowledge and inspiration and ability to teach, and that every family will have the spirit of reception, to receive and rejoice in whatsoever instructions may be imparted, and to receive likewise with humility whatsoever reproof may be found necessary to be given by those who are our instructors. Thus may the Church be indeed blessed and benefitted, and the people strengthened, and iniquity be done away, and sin be repented of, and righteousness and good feeling and love for God and man, and a determination to serve Him and keep His commandments, be manifest on the part of every member in the Church of God, in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Qualifications of successful Teachers designated.—Detailed statement of Teachers' duties.—Proper deportment of family when Teachers visit.—The faithful strengthened, the slothful encouraged to good works, by Teachers.
The reference of the brethren to the question of teaching among the Latter-day Saints has given me a desire to speak a few words upon the same subject. It has come prominently before the attention of the General Authorities of the Church that there is a great lack of teaching among the stakes of Zion, and in the wards of the Church, a very great neglect of duty on the part of those who are called to be teachers among the people, and, as a consequence, the Saints in their families are not being visited and instructed as the Lord designed that they should be.
In the organization of the Church, the Lord has provided officers in the Holy Priesthood, and has defined their duties. We have been informed that it is the teacher's duty to be a watchman over the Church, to strengthen them, and to see that there is no iniquity in the Church, neither backbiting nor evil speaking, and to see that the people attend to their family duties and their Church duties. Brethren, we who are called to be teachers, many of us at least, have not as fully as we should have done, performed the labor allotted unto us.
Now, there is a certain preparation that should be had on the part of a teacher prior to his entering into the homes of the Saints to instruct them in their family and religious duties. In the first place, he should be duly ordained to the holy Priesthood, and called and set apart to labor among the people. Now, authority is not all that is necessary in order to be a successful teacher. Pie must have knowledge also, for except he have knowledge concerning the things of God, how can he impart instruction unto the Latter-day Saints? Therefore, the brother holding the Priesthood and designated as a teacher among the people ,should have a knowledge of the truth. Pie should be well informed upon the principles of the gospel. He should be familiar with the doctrines of life and salvation. He should be a student of the Scriptures. He should understand the word of the Lord, and be familiar with His commandments. And when he has this knowledge, then he should have a desire in his heart to impart of this knowledge unto the people, and to see that the people are instructed in the gospel, and are obedient thereto. Before a teacher attempts to go into the homes of the people on any special visit, he should make his going a matter of prayer before the Lord. As has been suggested by President Lyman, he should go before the Lord and ask His blessings upon his labors, that he might enjoy the inspiration of the Spirit, that by the Spirit he may be directed in whatsoever things he should say and do.
When he has made this preparation, and is qualified through knowledge and testimony, then when he enters into the homes of the Saints he can make inquiry of them concerning their condition and their conduct and their standing as members of the Church. The authority of the Priesthood gives him the right to ask questions of the family as to their diligence in keeping the commandments of the Lord, as to their faithfulness in performing the duties that the gospel enjoins upon them. The teacher has the right to inquire into everything pertaining to the welfare and standing of the people who call themselves Latter-day Saints. He may ask them if they live in peace together, if there is love, and affection existing between husband and wife, if there is proper affection and love in the father and the mother for the children, and whether or not the children respect and honor their fathers and their mothers, as the Lord has commanded. He may inquire if the children live together in love and peace as brothers and sisters ought to live, and if the family engage in prayer night and morning; and if the parents teach their children to pray vocally, and believe in and remember their secret prayers, as commanded in the revelations of the Lord. He may inquire of the Saints if they backbite or speak evil of their neighbors, or of one another, or if there is quarreling or contention, or dissension and lack of brotherly love and kindness exhibited in the family, on the part of any member towards any other member, or on the part of members of the family towards their neighbors and friends. He may inquire if the Saints sustain and uphold the Priesthood of God, and those whom the Lord has called to preside as general authorities in the Church, or as the local authorities in stake or ward or branch; whether or not they accent the restoration of the gospel and believe in it and believe in the Prophets who have been inspired and raised up to perform the work the Lord has allotted them in the latter days; and whether or not they accept the organization of the Church. The teacher may inquire of the family if they attend their sacrament meetings on the Sabbath day, and partake of the sacrament and if they do so worthily; and if they honor the Sabbath day and keep it holy. These servants of the Lord may also inquire if there are members in the family who take the name of the Lord in vain; if they are honest and if they are truthful, and if they are pure. All these things the teacher has the right to inquire about. and it is his duty to inquire about them.
As a part of the preparation of a teacher it would be well, it seems to me, to find out the condition and the standing of the members of the Church in the district, as shown by the ward records, and besides this, as I have shown, he has the right to inquire of the family and the members thereof in all things pertaining to their standing and fellowship and conduct as members of the Church. The teacher should be prepared, and able to expound the word of the Lord, and to preach the gospel, and to correct whatsoever ought to be corrected that he discovers in the family, or in any member thereof. He should also teach the first principles of the gospel. He should inquire of the parents if they have taught their children the gospel of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and repentance of sin, and baptism by immersion for the remission of sins, and the laying on of hands, for the gift of the Holy Ghost; and if they have taught them to pray, and walk uprightly before the Lord. And then, according as his findings may be, he can preach or give counsel or instruction. He should be prepared to answer questions that might be asked of him by members of the family, thereby enlightening their minds or removing therefrom doubts that may be lurking there concerning the doctrines of the Church or the principles of salvation. He should be able to make clear to the understanding of all the members of the household everything pertaining to this glorious latter- day work.
Now let the teachers go forth and do their duty, and accomplish the strengthening of the Church, and the increasing of faith among the people and stir up the Saints to greater diligence in the performing of the duties and obligations of their membership in the Church.
Now, my brethren and sisters, I would like to say a word pertaining to the duties of the Saints. You fathers and mothers, you heads of families, you parents of children who have homes in Zion, and you children, what is your duty with relation to the coming of the teachers into your households? It is the duty of the father or the head of the house to welcome most earnestly the servants of the Lord, to call his wife and his children together, and to bring order and peace in the house, and to introduce to his children or family the teachers as the servants of the Lord, who have come in the name of the Lord, and with the authority of the Priesthood, to teach the family and to inquire into their welfare and their conduct. Then the family shall submit to the instructions that the teacher shall be led to impart unto them, and there shall be no spirit of resentment or objection on the part of members of the family to the questions or inquiries that may be made of them by the servants of the Lord.
I have been informed by some teachers that there are some members of the Church who object to the teachers inquiring into their personal lives, and conduct, and questioning them about their faith in the gospel and their obedience in keeping the commandments of God considering them impertinent and unnecessary. Well now, you Latter-day Saints, if there are any who take such a position as that, you are in error, you are mistaken, and you don't understand the rights of the Priesthood as you should, nor the object of the coming of the teachers to your homes, as you should, neither have you the proper spirit in your own heart, if you resent the good will of the teachers when they ask these questions in order to find out your condition, that they may help you and bless you, and be a strength and a power to you in helping you to overcome the weaknesses of the flesh. You cannot show disrespect to the Priesthood without bringing upon yourselves the displeasure of the Lord. Most of us men in the Church hold the Priesthood ourselves, and if a teacher comes into my house and he holds a lesser office in the Priesthood than I, and for that reason or any other I resent his making inquiry into my personal life and conduct, and standing in the Church, I disrespect the Priesthood. If I disrespect the Priesthood as it is held by another, I dishonor the Priesthood as I may hold it myself, and I should not do that. We should respect the Priesthood and honor it, no matter who holds it, and especially should we honor and respect a man who endeavors to magnify his calling in the midst of the Saints.
Now I would like to say that much for both teacher and those who shall be taught, that we shall teach our children and set them the example, when the teachers come in to our houses, of respect for them as the servants of the Lord; show them that if they respect the teacher who holds the Priesthood, they likewise respect their father who also holds the Priesthood, and that in dishonoring any servant of God who holds that Priesthood, he dishonors his own father, and himself, and whosoever dishonors the Priesthood of God, shows dishonor to God Himself. Therefore, welcome the teachers to your homes, listen to them, answer their questions. We all may rest assured that whenever we object to any question that a teacher may ask, as he is moved upon and inspired by the Spirit of the Lord, we condemn ourselves. Where is the man who pays an honest tithing who will object to the teacher asking him if he pavs his tithing? Why, instead he will feel a little sorry if the teacher does not ask him that question, so that he may answer, yes, honestly, before the Lord I pay my tithes and my offerings. We will only object to those things wherein we fail to do our duty. If we object it will be when we are at fault. If we do not pay our tithing and offerings we do not want to be asked if we do pay them. If we are not pure in heart we would not like to be asked if we are. If we take the name of God in vain, why some of us would not like to have the bishop, or his representative, the teacher, inquire of us if we keep the Lord's name holy; and if we desecrate the Sabbath' day we may feel a little offended if we are asked about it, but we should not be. If we have the proper spirit, the proper understanding of the rights of the Priesthood, and of the organization, and authority of the Church, then even if we have offended in some things, we will have the spirit of humility and confess our sins, acknowledge our shortcomings, and have in our hearts the desire and show a willingness to be assisted by_ the teachers in overcoming these things; that through the instructions and the counsel and the good feelings of these servants of the Lord, we ourselves may be helped in overcoming these weaknesses of the flesh.
Now, I pray the Lord to bless us all, that we may put into effect the organization of the Church, to the end, that every home shall be visited by those holding the Priesthood, and that every man visiting shall be endowed with knowledge and inspiration and ability to teach, and that every family will have the spirit of reception, to receive and rejoice in whatsoever instructions may be imparted, and to receive likewise with humility whatsoever reproof may be found necessary to be given by those who are our instructors. Thus may the Church be indeed blessed and benefitted, and the people strengthened, and iniquity be done away, and sin be repented of, and righteousness and good feeling and love for God and man, and a determination to serve Him and keep His commandments, be manifest on the part of every member in the Church of God, in the name of Jesus. Amen.
ELDER GEORGE ALBERT SMITH.
God's commands an expression of a loving Father's wishes.—Each member of the Church may receive inspiration.— Responsibility shared by all in God's work—Liberty and blessings assured only by righteousness.— Admonition to sustain the laws and government.
I have listened with very great interest, and I am sure with much profit to me, to the kind words of counsel and admonition that have been delivered to us by our brethren. I have thought what a beautiful organization we are identified with, and how merciful the Lord has been to us His Children in this day and age of the world. It is not hard for me to comply with the requirements that are made of me by my heavenly Father, and I realize that His teachings to me come through those whom He has chosen. When I was a child I recognized, or thought I did, that the commandments of the Lord were His laws and regulations for my guidance. I thought I recognized in the disobedience to those laws that punishment would follow, and as a child I presume I may have felt that the Lord had so arranged affairs and so ordained matters in this life that I must obey certain laws or swift retribution would follow. But as I grew older I have learned the lesson from another viewpoint, and now to me the laws of the Lord, so-called, the counsels contained in the Holy Scriptures, the revelations of the Lord to us in this day and age of the world, are but the sweet music of the voice of our Father in heaven in His mercy to us. They are but the advice and counsel of a loving parent, who is more concerned in our welfare than earthly parents can be, and consequently that which at one time seemed to bear the harsh name of law to me is now the loving and tender advice of an all wise heavenly Father. And so I say it is not hard for me to believe that it is best for me to keep the commandments of God.
I rejoice with you, my brethren in the privileges that we enjoy. I am grateful for my standing in the Church. I am thankful for all that has been given to me, and I am particularly pleased today to be considered worthy to enjoy the companionship of such men as those who are called to preside in Israel, and of such men and women as are in this congregation, and are scattered throughout the length and breadth of these great valleys of the mountains. I believe in you, my brethren and sisters. I have confidence in your faith and in your integrity, as I have confidence in those who preside over us. I realize that you are entitled to the same knowledge that he is who presides over the Church. You are entitled to the same inspiration that flows to those whom God has caused to be ordained as His leaders. You are entitled to the inspiration of the Spirit, and the knowledge that He is your Father, and when I say you I speak of all those who have obeyed the commandments of our Father, and have partaken of the sweet influence of the Spirit of the Lord in the Church of Christ. But, I realize that as each of us is entitled to the inspiration of the Lord in proportion to the manner in which we live a godly life, there comes to each of us a responsibility to do for others what has been done for us.
I realize, my brethren and my sisters, that I am responsible to the Lord for the furtherance of this work as the President of the Church is. I realize that each of you also are responsible to Him for the promotion of this work, as are those who preside over you. I cannot say, "Am I my brother's keeper?" I cannot shift the responsibility to those who preside over me, but standing in the ranks of the children of our Father I must bear my portion, I must carry that part of the load that the Lord places upon me, and if I shirk, then T realize that I forfeit the blessing that would come to me by obedience to the commandments of our Father. There is just one point that I desire to touch, that was upon mv mind before I came to the stand, and that is the condition that confronts us in this great nation. The Lord has given us a free country in which to live. It is only free to us so long as the laws that govern it are obeyed by the people who live here. The spirit of unrest that pervades the world is in fulfillment of the prophecies that the Lord made, that in these latter days there should be wars and rumors of wars; that there should be earthquakes, and the sea should heave itself beyond its bounds. I see in the daily bulletins as we read them in the press, the fulfillment of prophecy. I see the hand dealings of God with the children of men. Oh, how my heart is filled with gratitude that my lot has been cast in the land where the people of God dwell, the land of Zion, the land that is choice above all other lands, and that we enjoy the liberty of the government in which we live. I feel that, as long as the people of this land obey, or strive to keep the commandments of God, this liberty will continue to flow unto us, and that when selfishness, vice and crime arise, whether it be at the head or at the foot, there is a sapping of the vital life of the institutions of this land that bodes nothing but evil for us. I do hope and pray that the sons and daughters of God, born and reared under the folds of Old Glory, or who have made this their home, may stand true and faithful to the institutions of our country, and may ever raise their voices in defense of the law of the land, for it is the law of God to us in so much as it is for the uplifting of the children of men. Let us not associate ourselves with bands of men, or associations of individuals, who may be finding fault and criticising, striving to tear down, villifying men who are called to preside over us, destroying, as far as their influence may be, the free institutions that our Father has blessed us with. Oh, my brethren and sisters, let me plead with you that each of us, wherever we may be, may raise our voices in the interest of law as it has been established, and will continue to be administered in the land in which we live. Let us not be among those who breathe the spirit of treason. Let us not be among those who encourage the spirit of anarchy, for I say to you that our only hope, and the hope of the sons and daughters that God may bless us with, to enjoy peace and liberty in this land, is in standing by the Constitution that God has inspired to direct this government. Let us stand by the law-makers, and encourage them in the making of just laws, and stand by the executive departments, and the judiciary in the administration of those laws. God's house is a. house of order, and we may only hope to enjoy His blessings by being orderly in our lives, and by sustaining those institutions that He has given to us, not to curtail our joy, not to prevent our happiness, but that our happiness may be complete, and that our joy may be full.
May the Lord of Israel bless us, and may our brethren and sisters of other faiths, seeing us with a determination to be true children of the Lord, seeing in us a desire to be loyal to the institutions of our country, recognizing that beneath the folds of the flag that gives unto us the evidence of our liberty, we are marching onward steadily, with our faces to the responsibilities that confront us, not selfishly but with a desire to associate with all good men and women, and a desire to bless every child of our Father, wherever he may be. Let it be known throughout the land in which we live that in the valleys of these mountains there stands a body of men and women true to the institutions of our country, true to the privileges that God has blessed us with. If we will do this He will be pleased with us, and those who misunderstand us will realize some day that we are indeed their friends, their brethren and their sisters.
May the Lord continue to bless those who preside over us in the nation, and those who have been called in the midst of this people to preside, that we may not forfeit in any way the blessings of our Father by our lack of obedience, or our lack of faith; and by and by, when each of us shall be summoned home, as President Lyman has said, we will be ready, whether it be one by one or in groups. When we get to the other side we may be able to strike hands or look in each other's faces. We may feel that we have fought the good fight, and that we have kept the faith, and that we may receive at the hands of our Father that welcome plaudit, "Well done, good and faithful servant.”
May the Lord be with you all, and His blessings abound in your homes, and among all the people who are striving to do right in the world, and may peace abound in the land in which we live, and harmony and union abide in the hearts of the Latter-day Saints, is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
God's commands an expression of a loving Father's wishes.—Each member of the Church may receive inspiration.— Responsibility shared by all in God's work—Liberty and blessings assured only by righteousness.— Admonition to sustain the laws and government.
I have listened with very great interest, and I am sure with much profit to me, to the kind words of counsel and admonition that have been delivered to us by our brethren. I have thought what a beautiful organization we are identified with, and how merciful the Lord has been to us His Children in this day and age of the world. It is not hard for me to comply with the requirements that are made of me by my heavenly Father, and I realize that His teachings to me come through those whom He has chosen. When I was a child I recognized, or thought I did, that the commandments of the Lord were His laws and regulations for my guidance. I thought I recognized in the disobedience to those laws that punishment would follow, and as a child I presume I may have felt that the Lord had so arranged affairs and so ordained matters in this life that I must obey certain laws or swift retribution would follow. But as I grew older I have learned the lesson from another viewpoint, and now to me the laws of the Lord, so-called, the counsels contained in the Holy Scriptures, the revelations of the Lord to us in this day and age of the world, are but the sweet music of the voice of our Father in heaven in His mercy to us. They are but the advice and counsel of a loving parent, who is more concerned in our welfare than earthly parents can be, and consequently that which at one time seemed to bear the harsh name of law to me is now the loving and tender advice of an all wise heavenly Father. And so I say it is not hard for me to believe that it is best for me to keep the commandments of God.
I rejoice with you, my brethren in the privileges that we enjoy. I am grateful for my standing in the Church. I am thankful for all that has been given to me, and I am particularly pleased today to be considered worthy to enjoy the companionship of such men as those who are called to preside in Israel, and of such men and women as are in this congregation, and are scattered throughout the length and breadth of these great valleys of the mountains. I believe in you, my brethren and sisters. I have confidence in your faith and in your integrity, as I have confidence in those who preside over us. I realize that you are entitled to the same knowledge that he is who presides over the Church. You are entitled to the same inspiration that flows to those whom God has caused to be ordained as His leaders. You are entitled to the inspiration of the Spirit, and the knowledge that He is your Father, and when I say you I speak of all those who have obeyed the commandments of our Father, and have partaken of the sweet influence of the Spirit of the Lord in the Church of Christ. But, I realize that as each of us is entitled to the inspiration of the Lord in proportion to the manner in which we live a godly life, there comes to each of us a responsibility to do for others what has been done for us.
I realize, my brethren and my sisters, that I am responsible to the Lord for the furtherance of this work as the President of the Church is. I realize that each of you also are responsible to Him for the promotion of this work, as are those who preside over you. I cannot say, "Am I my brother's keeper?" I cannot shift the responsibility to those who preside over me, but standing in the ranks of the children of our Father I must bear my portion, I must carry that part of the load that the Lord places upon me, and if I shirk, then T realize that I forfeit the blessing that would come to me by obedience to the commandments of our Father. There is just one point that I desire to touch, that was upon mv mind before I came to the stand, and that is the condition that confronts us in this great nation. The Lord has given us a free country in which to live. It is only free to us so long as the laws that govern it are obeyed by the people who live here. The spirit of unrest that pervades the world is in fulfillment of the prophecies that the Lord made, that in these latter days there should be wars and rumors of wars; that there should be earthquakes, and the sea should heave itself beyond its bounds. I see in the daily bulletins as we read them in the press, the fulfillment of prophecy. I see the hand dealings of God with the children of men. Oh, how my heart is filled with gratitude that my lot has been cast in the land where the people of God dwell, the land of Zion, the land that is choice above all other lands, and that we enjoy the liberty of the government in which we live. I feel that, as long as the people of this land obey, or strive to keep the commandments of God, this liberty will continue to flow unto us, and that when selfishness, vice and crime arise, whether it be at the head or at the foot, there is a sapping of the vital life of the institutions of this land that bodes nothing but evil for us. I do hope and pray that the sons and daughters of God, born and reared under the folds of Old Glory, or who have made this their home, may stand true and faithful to the institutions of our country, and may ever raise their voices in defense of the law of the land, for it is the law of God to us in so much as it is for the uplifting of the children of men. Let us not associate ourselves with bands of men, or associations of individuals, who may be finding fault and criticising, striving to tear down, villifying men who are called to preside over us, destroying, as far as their influence may be, the free institutions that our Father has blessed us with. Oh, my brethren and sisters, let me plead with you that each of us, wherever we may be, may raise our voices in the interest of law as it has been established, and will continue to be administered in the land in which we live. Let us not be among those who breathe the spirit of treason. Let us not be among those who encourage the spirit of anarchy, for I say to you that our only hope, and the hope of the sons and daughters that God may bless us with, to enjoy peace and liberty in this land, is in standing by the Constitution that God has inspired to direct this government. Let us stand by the law-makers, and encourage them in the making of just laws, and stand by the executive departments, and the judiciary in the administration of those laws. God's house is a. house of order, and we may only hope to enjoy His blessings by being orderly in our lives, and by sustaining those institutions that He has given to us, not to curtail our joy, not to prevent our happiness, but that our happiness may be complete, and that our joy may be full.
May the Lord of Israel bless us, and may our brethren and sisters of other faiths, seeing us with a determination to be true children of the Lord, seeing in us a desire to be loyal to the institutions of our country, recognizing that beneath the folds of the flag that gives unto us the evidence of our liberty, we are marching onward steadily, with our faces to the responsibilities that confront us, not selfishly but with a desire to associate with all good men and women, and a desire to bless every child of our Father, wherever he may be. Let it be known throughout the land in which we live that in the valleys of these mountains there stands a body of men and women true to the institutions of our country, true to the privileges that God has blessed us with. If we will do this He will be pleased with us, and those who misunderstand us will realize some day that we are indeed their friends, their brethren and their sisters.
May the Lord continue to bless those who preside over us in the nation, and those who have been called in the midst of this people to preside, that we may not forfeit in any way the blessings of our Father by our lack of obedience, or our lack of faith; and by and by, when each of us shall be summoned home, as President Lyman has said, we will be ready, whether it be one by one or in groups. When we get to the other side we may be able to strike hands or look in each other's faces. We may feel that we have fought the good fight, and that we have kept the faith, and that we may receive at the hands of our Father that welcome plaudit, "Well done, good and faithful servant.”
May the Lord be with you all, and His blessings abound in your homes, and among all the people who are striving to do right in the world, and may peace abound in the land in which we live, and harmony and union abide in the hearts of the Latter-day Saints, is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
PRESIDENT JOSEPH F. SMITH.
Reverence due to Teachers.--Teachers visit all as members of the Church.
There is just a few words that I desire to say in relation to the subject on which some of the brethren have dwelt this morning, which I have no doubt they perfectly understand, but which, so far as I have heard, they omitted to say, and that is this: that the teachers who visit our homes do not come to visit us as Elders, or Seventies, or High Priests, or Apostles or Presidents. The teachers have jurisdiction over the membership of the Church, or the members of the Church, and when they come to visit us in our homes they, in their calling as teachers, visit us as members of the Church, and not as officers or members of the Priesthood. Consequently it is the duty of all members of the Church, no matter who they are or what Priesthood they hold, nor what office they hold in the Church,—it is their duty to disrobe themselves, if you please, of all authority except the right of membership, or to be members in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, for it is the duty and prerogative of the teacher to inquire into the standing of members of the Church. Now, if we will only bear that in mind we will have no difficulty at all with reference to our "high and mighty" positions in the Church.
When the teachers visit us we will remember that we are simply members of the Church, and it is the duty of the teachers to visit the members and to teach the members and to instruct the members of the Church, and to see that the members of the Church have no hard feelings, one against another; that the members of the Church are united in their family capacities and that they are in fellowship with the people of God, with their neighbors and with all mankind, and especially that they are in fellowship with God. That is the duty of the teacher, and when we keep that in mind everything respecting the duties and authority of the teachers will be plain and clear to us. I want to say this too, that if somebody should happen to mount upon the "high horse" of his authority in the Church, it will be very becoming in the teacher to gently take him off his "high horse" and bring him down to the level of his membership, and let him understand that he (the teacher) is there to teach him as a member of the Church, and not as an officer of it. The teacher has a right to inquire into the performance of the duties of all members and learn whether they are doing their duty as members in all things, or not.
The choir and congregation sang the hymn:
There is beauty all around, when there's love at home;
There is joy in ev'ry sound, when there's love at home.
Peace an'd plenty here abide, smiling sweet on ev'ry side,
Time doth softly, sweetly glide, when there's love at home.
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Rey L. Pratt.
Conference adjourned until 2 p. m.
Reverence due to Teachers.--Teachers visit all as members of the Church.
There is just a few words that I desire to say in relation to the subject on which some of the brethren have dwelt this morning, which I have no doubt they perfectly understand, but which, so far as I have heard, they omitted to say, and that is this: that the teachers who visit our homes do not come to visit us as Elders, or Seventies, or High Priests, or Apostles or Presidents. The teachers have jurisdiction over the membership of the Church, or the members of the Church, and when they come to visit us in our homes they, in their calling as teachers, visit us as members of the Church, and not as officers or members of the Priesthood. Consequently it is the duty of all members of the Church, no matter who they are or what Priesthood they hold, nor what office they hold in the Church,—it is their duty to disrobe themselves, if you please, of all authority except the right of membership, or to be members in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, for it is the duty and prerogative of the teacher to inquire into the standing of members of the Church. Now, if we will only bear that in mind we will have no difficulty at all with reference to our "high and mighty" positions in the Church.
When the teachers visit us we will remember that we are simply members of the Church, and it is the duty of the teachers to visit the members and to teach the members and to instruct the members of the Church, and to see that the members of the Church have no hard feelings, one against another; that the members of the Church are united in their family capacities and that they are in fellowship with the people of God, with their neighbors and with all mankind, and especially that they are in fellowship with God. That is the duty of the teacher, and when we keep that in mind everything respecting the duties and authority of the teachers will be plain and clear to us. I want to say this too, that if somebody should happen to mount upon the "high horse" of his authority in the Church, it will be very becoming in the teacher to gently take him off his "high horse" and bring him down to the level of his membership, and let him understand that he (the teacher) is there to teach him as a member of the Church, and not as an officer of it. The teacher has a right to inquire into the performance of the duties of all members and learn whether they are doing their duty as members in all things, or not.
The choir and congregation sang the hymn:
There is beauty all around, when there's love at home;
There is joy in ev'ry sound, when there's love at home.
Peace an'd plenty here abide, smiling sweet on ev'ry side,
Time doth softly, sweetly glide, when there's love at home.
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Rey L. Pratt.
Conference adjourned until 2 p. m.
AFTERNOON SESSION.
Conference was resumed at 2 p. m., in the Tabernacle.
President Joseph F. Smith called the congregation to order.
The choir and congregation sang the hymn:
O, say, what is truth? Tis the fairest gem
That the riches of worlds can produce;
And priceless the value of Truth will be, when
The proud monarch's costliest diadem
Is counted but dross and refuse
Prayer was offered by Elder David H. Cannon.
The choir and congregation sang the hymn:
God moves in a mysterious way,
His wonders to perform;
He plants His footsteps in the sea,
And rides upon the storm.
Conference was resumed at 2 p. m., in the Tabernacle.
President Joseph F. Smith called the congregation to order.
The choir and congregation sang the hymn:
O, say, what is truth? Tis the fairest gem
That the riches of worlds can produce;
And priceless the value of Truth will be, when
The proud monarch's costliest diadem
Is counted but dross and refuse
Prayer was offered by Elder David H. Cannon.
The choir and congregation sang the hymn:
God moves in a mysterious way,
His wonders to perform;
He plants His footsteps in the sea,
And rides upon the storm.
ELDER CHARLES W. PENROSE.
Christ the Revelator of truth.—God's purposes to be consummated in this age.—Man's spirit, and his immortal body, described. — Conditions of mankind after resurrection.—Eternal life explained.—Eternal life bestowed on those who live by laws of Truth.
If there is any one in this congregation who appreciates more highly than I do, the opportunity we have of assembling here to worship the Lord and receive instructions from His servants, it is because he has greater powers of appreciation and of enjoyment than I have. What there is of me in body and in spirit enjoys to the full this grand occasion, to assemble in general conference and unite our faith and our attention, to receive the impressions of the Holy Spirit upon our souls, and to be instructed in our duties, to be brought to a common understanding in regard to the principles of eternal life. This I suppose is the object we have in view—to gain eternal life, which means a great deal more than is generally understood in the world. We sometimes, in fact very often, quote the words of our Savior in that sublime prayer which He offered to the Lord, to be found in the seventeenth chanter of St. John's record and testimony, called the "Gospel of St. John." He said, "This is life eternal, to know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent." For many centuries the world has been in comparative darkness in regard to the true God, in regard to the relationship between Jesus Christ and Him, and between us and our Eternal Father. Thus far. I think, we have learned a great many things concerning our divine parentage, and the obligations we are under to Him for life, being, light and intelligence, and for the means to obtain the great gift of eternal life in His presence.
We yet know comparatively little concerning Him and His ways, but we have started on the right track, and we expect some time to see Him as He is, in all His glory and might and power, and to be made like Him, to be associated with Him, to be in full harmony with Him, and with beings of a like nature, and to enter into that blessing which is called eternal life.
We are indebted for that .which we know, and may be indebted for that which we expect to know about our Eternal Father, to Jesus Christ His Son, "whom He has made heir of all things, and by whom also He made the worlds." He is the real witness for God in the earth. He was "God manifest in the flesh" when He dwelt among men. And it is by Him and through Him and "of Him that all the truths which have been communicated to mortals, from the beginning of this world, have been made known. He is the chosen representative of the Father, and in Him dwelleth "the fulness of the Godhead bodily." He has had and now has under His direction men, mortal men, to represent Him, as far as He can be represented in mortality, and to carry on His work under His direction, and we are indebted, as an instrument in His hands, to the great Prophet of the nineteenth century, Joseph Smith, for bringing forth many grand and glorious truths concerning Deity and His work and His ways, His laws. His commandments, and His precepts. Sometimes we attribute these grand principles which we have received to the man through whom they came. We talk about "the religion of Joseph Smith." We talk about "the philosophy of Joseph Smith." But he never claimed that the religious truths which he brought forth, or the philosophical principles which were embodied therein, were his. He was an instrument in the hands of God of conveying divine truth, that truth which, as we have sung in the hymn this afternoon, is eternal and abideth forever.
Truth does not change with the centuries. It will not change with the eternal ages. The truth of God abideth forever. That which is true,- coming from Him in one age of the world, is true in another. That which is true on one of His worlds that He has created, is true in all the worlds that He has caused to be organized and sent forth, each in its place, rolling in space, revolving upon its own axis, preserved in its own. sphere, in its own orbit, and with the others contributing to the glory of God and bespeaking His handiwork. Truth never changes. Our conception of a truth may change as we grow in wisdom and understanding, and in clearness of spiritual vision. That which appeared to us to be true at one time we may find out later to be incorrect, and so it is we who change, and not the truth that changes.
President Smith, in that grand discourse he gave to us at the opening of this conference, referred to the Prophet Joseph, and to some of the glorious principles which have been revealed from heaven through him. These are but the beginning, the droppings of the shower of the great flood of truth which is to come. We are living in the dispensation of the fulness of times, and in this dispensation—the grandest and greatest of all, will be gathered in one all things that are in Christ, not only His people gathered from the various nations to Zion to build it up, to prepare the place for His feet, but the hosts that have passed away, whom He will bring with Him. Not only are the people to. be gathered together, but the glorious truths which have been made manifest in the ages that are past will all be brought forth in the dispensation in which we are living, and things kept hid from the foundation of the world will be made manifest; for the Lord has promised it, and His promises never fail of fulfillment. This dispensation in which we live is signalized by a great many things that are different in some respects to former dispensations, this being the great work of consummation of the purposes of the Almighty. The Father and the Son themselves appeared and opened this dispensation by speaking to the boy Joseph Smith.
There is some little difference of opinion in regard to that great manifestation, on which I would like to say a word or two this afternoon. The Prophet Joseph Smith gives a brief account of that visitation, which is to be found in the book called the Pearl of Great Price. We can there learn the main particulars in regard to that manifestation from on high, and it is well for us to read the Prophet's own words, so that we may know and understand how he considered it. Now, he called that manifestation given to him a "vision." Some of our brethren argue that it was not a vision, but that it was a reality. Well, is not a vision of that kind a reality? I view it in that light. I understand that Joseph Smith, when he had that manifestation which he repeatedly called a vision, actually saw the beings whom he described. To explain it properly we have to read Moses in his account of the vision of God that he had. That also is in the Pearl of Great Price, in the Book of Moses, chapter 1:11, and he explains it in this way: That he beheld the Lord and saw the glory that was round about Him, but he said "Not with my natural but with my spiritual eyes, for my natural eyes could not have beheld." Joseph, like Moses, saw in "vision," or with his "spiritual eyes." The fulness of the glory of God was not displayed to Moses even on that occasion, for no man, the Lord said, could behold the fulness of His glory and remain in the flesh.
Now, here is a principle that we should understand. "There is a spirit in man," or in the body of man. "Man," the Lord has revealed, "is spirit," and that part of man which is spirit was "in the beginning with God ;" and that Jesus, the Savior of the world, was "in the beginning with the Father, and is the firstborn." We, then, are His brethren and sisters. We were in the beginning with God, and we could behold Him with our spiritual eyes before we had any bodies of flesh and bones. Now we are in the body, we find that we are of a dual composition, that is to say, we are composed of those two first principles spoken of in the ninety-third section of the Doctrine and Covenants (verses 1-34). I use the term "first principles" because the Prophet Joseph used it when speaking on the subject. What are the "first principles" in the constitution of man as a mortal being? We are told that there are certain elements which enter into our composition, and that these elements are eternal; without beginning and without end. They are spirit and element—a term that is there used in the sense that we use the word matter—spirit and element, or spirit and "matter," if we use that term, though both are substantial, so the Prophet Joseph has explained by the revelations of God; for even spirit, which is so refined, so subtle in its nature that we cannot see it with our natural eyes, is material and eternal in its essence. So are the grosser elements that enter into the composition of our bodies. They are derived from the particles of which the earth is composed and from the atmosphere around it—the heaven and the earth. The first principles of element or matter are eternal, without beginning and without end. They may be organized, they may be disorganized, but in their essence they are eternal, and it takes the compound, the union of the spirit and of the element or matter to make a perfect being. Complete happiness cannot be obtained when these are separate. When the spirit of man is separate from the body it cannot receive "a fulness of joy;" it is not in a perfect condition. Man is perfect so far as the spirit state is concerned— in his spiritual being as an individual and as a son of God, begotten of the Father; he is perfect as to that "first estate," but that is not the fulness of perfection that exists in the personality of our Eternal Father, and to obtain eternal life, as the term is used in the revelations of God, we have to be made entirely and completely like Him from whom we have sprung. "The spirit and the body are the soul of man, and the resurrection from the dead is the redemption of the soul." And we are told in the Book of Mormon, as well as in the Doctrine and Covenants, that in the resurrection from the dead, when all shall be raised, "every man in his order," the spirit and the body will be joined together, and they will "not die after;" we are there told that the resurrection will come to all mankind, the great and the small, the good and the bad, all races and tribes and beings who are of the seed of Adam will be raised from the dead, and their bodies will not die after.
Now then, some may ask, perhaps, "well, isn't that eternal life, and will not eternal life come to all mankind, irrespective of their acts, if they are all to be raised from the dead and quickened so that they will not die again? No, that is not the eternal life that is spoken of in the revelations of God. to be the reward for, or the great effect of doing that which is right and avoiding that which is wrong, and becoming completely and perfectly like our divine Father. Some of our brethren in regard to that point —the universal resurrection—have been confused a little, because of an expression to be found in that glorious record called The Vision, in section seventy-six of the Doctrine and Covenants, one of the grandest things, I think, that was ever written. Of course I am not acquainted with all the literature of the ages. I am somewhat acquainted with theological writings of later times, but T have never read anything that can be compared with that glorious vision seen by the Prophet Joseph and Sidney Rigdon, and recorded in that section of the Doctrine and Covenants. Now, in that revelation we are told a little about the glories that are to come: those that are to be raised in the first resurrection and enter into celestial glory, or the glory of the sun are those who obey celestial law, who have fitted themselves for celestial glory so as to be quickened thereby when they are raised from the dead, by observing every precept and every commandment and every law of God. This is a natural process by which Our bodies are prepared to be quickened by the celestial glory, having rendered obedience unto the law, the spirit of which will quicken them. Next we are told about the terrestrial glory, that of those who shall enter into the terrestrial kingdom, whose glory compares with this just spoken of as the glory of the moon when compared with the sun. Then comes another division —that of the telestial glory like that of the stars in comparison with the others. Those who are fitted to enter into the telestial glory will be quickened by that glory, so the Lord says, when they have paid the just penalties for their sins and are raised from the dead; those who are only prepared to enter the telestial glory will be quickened by that glory. Then come those who are not worthy to enter either of these glories or kingdoms—the celestial, the terrestial or the telestial. These are they who are called the "sons of perdition."
Satan is named Perdition, and the heavens wept over him when he fell from his high estate; and those who have followed him so that they become imbued with his spirit, which is the spirit of destruction, in opposition to the spirit which brings life, are his. The spin it of murder enters their hearts; they are ready to put to death even the Son of God, if His existence in life comes in their way. They received light and truth and then altogether turned therefrom. They gain power to attain to the highest altitude of light and truth and glory, then they turn around and through falsehood and wickedness and corruption in their nature and in their works, they become servants unto Satan, sons of perdition. And the revelation says, that "all the rest, through the triumph and the glory of the Lamb, shall be brought forth by the resurrection of the dead" (verse 39). Now, then, because of that expression some of our brethren , entertain the notion that the sons of perdition will not be resurrected. But the Lord has told us, as you will read in section twenty-nine of the book of Doctrine and Covenants, that "then shall all the dead awake, for their graves shall be opened and they shall come forth, yea, even all." Very emphatic are the words in that section, verse twenty-six. The same doctrine is to be found in the Book of Mormon. But there is a passage in section eighty-eight, of the book of Doctrine and Covenants which will make the matter very clear to those who desire to understand it. I am not going to read this section; it is a long one and a most magnificent declaration of the purposes of God in regard to us in life, and the glory that is to come to us hereafter. In that section we have another declaration in regard to the resurrection, and the order of it, corresponding to that which we find in section seventy-six, but a little more explicit in some things, though not quite so much so in others. I will tell you what it says, and you can hunt it up when you go home. It is good for you to hunt up the Doctrine and Covenants and read the modern revelations of God. In that section the Lord gives an account of the coming forth of the different degrees among his children (as the several angels shall sound their trumps) and enter the celestial or the terrestial or the telestial glory. And then, he says, "another angel shall sound his trump, which is the forth trump, saying, "There are found among those who are to remain until that great and last day, even the end, who shall remain filthy still" (verse 102). They also shall be raised from the dead, for it is written, "and they who remain shall also be quickened, but they shall return again to their own place" (verse 32). They are not worthy to enter into the telestial nor into the terrestial nor into the celestial kingdom, and therefore, not being willing to obey law; but, as it is explained in verse thirty-five, "altogether abiding in sin, they cannot be sanctified by law nor mercy nor justice nor judgment, therefore they must needs remain filthy still." Because they became a law unto themselves, and would not abide the laws of God, neither in relation to the highest nor the other degrees that have been mentioned, and so they go away with the devil and his angels in eternity, and the height and extent and depth and the end of their torment no man knows except those who partake of that great condemnation.
So that, according to the revelations of God, all shall come forth by the power of Jesus Christ, and all who are worthy to enter into the celestial world will receive the celestial glory; those who were not valiant in the testimony of Jesus receive the terrestial glory; honorable men of the earth, who were blinded by the craftiness of men, who did not receive the gospel in the flesh, but afterwards received it, inherit the terrestial glory. Several classes are spoken of who inherit that glory. And then a great multitude that no man can number, the vast majority of the inhabitants of the earth, who would not receive the testimony of Jesus, would not receive the truth of God when it was declared unto them, they go away into punishment and suffer the wrath of God according to the claims of eternal justice. Justice will be dealt out to them, and they will suffer according to their desserts, and pay the uttermost farthing for their debts, and then sweet mercy will be extended, and they will be brought forth and inherit the telestial glory. But the others, who are not fit to be redeemed, either in the telestial or terrestial or celestial, are also to be raised from the dead, and because they would not abide in the truth made manifest unto them, but turned away from it willfully, going by degrees from wickedness to wickedness, from sin to sin, from darkness to darkness, they will go away into "outer darkness where there is weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth." This is known as "the second death." They are banished from the presence and ministrations of God; they cannot inherit His glory; they cannot obtain the gift of eternal life, but they go away with the devil and his angels and suffer the wrath of God till justice shall be satisfied. When that will be we do not know, and we have no account concerning their redemption. They must, however, to suffer this capital punishment, first receive the truth and understand it. They must walk in the light to a high and clear extent, and then repudiate it and become a law unto themselves, so that they can no more be sanctified, but "must needs remain filthy still." But, all the rest, by the resurrection through Jesus Christ and His power, will be brought forth in their time and in their place, and be redeemed into some degree of glory, and they will occupy that position for which they have fitted themselves by their own doings.
Now, about this grand gift of eternal life which is to be enjoyed by the faithful: is that inherent in everybody? Jesus Christ says that the Father gave Him certain souls whom He called His sheep. He prayed to the Father about them in the prayer that I have already alluded to. He says: "Thine they were and thou hast given them unto me, and I give unto them eternal life." In the tenth chapter of John and the twenty-eighth verse you will find the same sentiment repeated. "My sheep hear my voice and they follow me, and I know them and call them by name, and I give unto them eternal life, and no man shall pluck them out of my hands." Now, what does He refer to? Why, He is not speaking in regard to endless existence. Endless existence is the property of spirit. It is also the property of matter. One is as eternal as the other in its original essence or principle. Matter or element is eternal, spirit is eternal. But the sons and daughters of God who walk in His ways, who receive His truth which abides forever, who walk in its light, who conquer the lusts of the flesh and the pride of the world, the sins of the world and the powers of darkness, who overcome all things, who live by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God, who come into harmony with the great Eternal Father and Jesus Christ the Redeemer and beings of a like order, who become one with them and overcome all things,—they shall inherit all things, and they shall be like the Father and like the Son in glory, in happiness, in power, in dominion, "heirs of God and joint heirs with Jesus Christ." They shall inherit eternal life, not merely endless existence.
Existence is one thing; life is a great deal more. There are things that exist, but they manifest no life. There are persons that exist and manifest but little life. There are others that have life so far as it can be enjoyed in mortality to the full. They are alive in body, they are alive in mind, they are alive in spirit. They are spiritually, intellectually, physically alive, and the power of increase is with them, and in the eternal world God will give this great gift eternally unto those who are worthy of it. These shall come forth in the first, resurrection and inherit glory, immortality, eternal life and endless increase. One of the grand things referred to by President Smith as in the revelations of God to the Prophet Joseph, was the eternity of the marriage covenant, by which the man and the woman may be joined together according to God's order, and though death may part them, yet in the resurrection they shall come forth to be husband and wife, to be parents of children, to have the gift of endless, perpetual increase, the beginning of their kingdom and their glory in worlds without end. That is real life, the power to continue and the power to produce and to increase, the power of vitality in the spirit and in the body. That is full resurrection, and the body and the spirit being joined together.—you may call it a compound if you will, the body and the spirit being joined together inseparably, receiveth a fulness of joy, a fulness of glory, just like the Father, and just like the Son. Christ has passed through these conditions and is now an exalted being on high, exactly like the Father, who is a being with a body of flesh and bones quickened by the eternal spirit that quickeneth all things, and in Him dwelleth the fulness of truth and life and glory and power and increase forever and ever. And those who follow in the footsteps of Jesus Christ, who is now to all purposes like the Father, will inherit similar glory, and it will never fade away, and it will be exemplified in them to the full. The spirit of life will be within them in body and in spirit, and they will increase forever and ever, and like the blessing that comes to our elder brother, Jesus Christ, of the increase of their kingdom there shall be no end.
Now, my brethren and sisters, in order to attain unto this great glory—the gift of eternal life which comes to us from the Father, through Jesus Christ His Son, we must live for it. He will give unto us eternal life and we shall enjoy it to the full, if we are sanctified by the truth. That is a principle you will find in the prayer that I have alluded to, recorded in the seventeenth chapter of John. We have to be sanctified by the truth. We have to learn the truth and then live it. God will impart it unto us, here a little and there a little, line upon line, precept upon precept, and through His anointed servants whom He has called and appointed, He will convey to us those truths which we must receive in order to attain unto this great glory. Let us "live by every word that comes from the mouth of God." Let us be ready and be instant, in season and out of season, to perform our duties. Every man holding the Priesthood, every woman who is a member of the Church, strive to learn the truth as it is in Christ Jesus who speaks for the Father, learn the truth for ourselves, and be so imbued by the spirit of truth that we can discern truth from error and light from darkness, and then, having strength and power and ability in ourselves, to live by it, overcome all things, and be prepared to inherit all things. God help us to do so, for Christ's sake. Amen.
Brother David Rees sang a tenor solo, entitled, "Oh, Divine Redeemer."
Christ the Revelator of truth.—God's purposes to be consummated in this age.—Man's spirit, and his immortal body, described. — Conditions of mankind after resurrection.—Eternal life explained.—Eternal life bestowed on those who live by laws of Truth.
If there is any one in this congregation who appreciates more highly than I do, the opportunity we have of assembling here to worship the Lord and receive instructions from His servants, it is because he has greater powers of appreciation and of enjoyment than I have. What there is of me in body and in spirit enjoys to the full this grand occasion, to assemble in general conference and unite our faith and our attention, to receive the impressions of the Holy Spirit upon our souls, and to be instructed in our duties, to be brought to a common understanding in regard to the principles of eternal life. This I suppose is the object we have in view—to gain eternal life, which means a great deal more than is generally understood in the world. We sometimes, in fact very often, quote the words of our Savior in that sublime prayer which He offered to the Lord, to be found in the seventeenth chanter of St. John's record and testimony, called the "Gospel of St. John." He said, "This is life eternal, to know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent." For many centuries the world has been in comparative darkness in regard to the true God, in regard to the relationship between Jesus Christ and Him, and between us and our Eternal Father. Thus far. I think, we have learned a great many things concerning our divine parentage, and the obligations we are under to Him for life, being, light and intelligence, and for the means to obtain the great gift of eternal life in His presence.
We yet know comparatively little concerning Him and His ways, but we have started on the right track, and we expect some time to see Him as He is, in all His glory and might and power, and to be made like Him, to be associated with Him, to be in full harmony with Him, and with beings of a like nature, and to enter into that blessing which is called eternal life.
We are indebted for that .which we know, and may be indebted for that which we expect to know about our Eternal Father, to Jesus Christ His Son, "whom He has made heir of all things, and by whom also He made the worlds." He is the real witness for God in the earth. He was "God manifest in the flesh" when He dwelt among men. And it is by Him and through Him and "of Him that all the truths which have been communicated to mortals, from the beginning of this world, have been made known. He is the chosen representative of the Father, and in Him dwelleth "the fulness of the Godhead bodily." He has had and now has under His direction men, mortal men, to represent Him, as far as He can be represented in mortality, and to carry on His work under His direction, and we are indebted, as an instrument in His hands, to the great Prophet of the nineteenth century, Joseph Smith, for bringing forth many grand and glorious truths concerning Deity and His work and His ways, His laws. His commandments, and His precepts. Sometimes we attribute these grand principles which we have received to the man through whom they came. We talk about "the religion of Joseph Smith." We talk about "the philosophy of Joseph Smith." But he never claimed that the religious truths which he brought forth, or the philosophical principles which were embodied therein, were his. He was an instrument in the hands of God of conveying divine truth, that truth which, as we have sung in the hymn this afternoon, is eternal and abideth forever.
Truth does not change with the centuries. It will not change with the eternal ages. The truth of God abideth forever. That which is true,- coming from Him in one age of the world, is true in another. That which is true on one of His worlds that He has created, is true in all the worlds that He has caused to be organized and sent forth, each in its place, rolling in space, revolving upon its own axis, preserved in its own. sphere, in its own orbit, and with the others contributing to the glory of God and bespeaking His handiwork. Truth never changes. Our conception of a truth may change as we grow in wisdom and understanding, and in clearness of spiritual vision. That which appeared to us to be true at one time we may find out later to be incorrect, and so it is we who change, and not the truth that changes.
President Smith, in that grand discourse he gave to us at the opening of this conference, referred to the Prophet Joseph, and to some of the glorious principles which have been revealed from heaven through him. These are but the beginning, the droppings of the shower of the great flood of truth which is to come. We are living in the dispensation of the fulness of times, and in this dispensation—the grandest and greatest of all, will be gathered in one all things that are in Christ, not only His people gathered from the various nations to Zion to build it up, to prepare the place for His feet, but the hosts that have passed away, whom He will bring with Him. Not only are the people to. be gathered together, but the glorious truths which have been made manifest in the ages that are past will all be brought forth in the dispensation in which we are living, and things kept hid from the foundation of the world will be made manifest; for the Lord has promised it, and His promises never fail of fulfillment. This dispensation in which we live is signalized by a great many things that are different in some respects to former dispensations, this being the great work of consummation of the purposes of the Almighty. The Father and the Son themselves appeared and opened this dispensation by speaking to the boy Joseph Smith.
There is some little difference of opinion in regard to that great manifestation, on which I would like to say a word or two this afternoon. The Prophet Joseph Smith gives a brief account of that visitation, which is to be found in the book called the Pearl of Great Price. We can there learn the main particulars in regard to that manifestation from on high, and it is well for us to read the Prophet's own words, so that we may know and understand how he considered it. Now, he called that manifestation given to him a "vision." Some of our brethren argue that it was not a vision, but that it was a reality. Well, is not a vision of that kind a reality? I view it in that light. I understand that Joseph Smith, when he had that manifestation which he repeatedly called a vision, actually saw the beings whom he described. To explain it properly we have to read Moses in his account of the vision of God that he had. That also is in the Pearl of Great Price, in the Book of Moses, chapter 1:11, and he explains it in this way: That he beheld the Lord and saw the glory that was round about Him, but he said "Not with my natural but with my spiritual eyes, for my natural eyes could not have beheld." Joseph, like Moses, saw in "vision," or with his "spiritual eyes." The fulness of the glory of God was not displayed to Moses even on that occasion, for no man, the Lord said, could behold the fulness of His glory and remain in the flesh.
Now, here is a principle that we should understand. "There is a spirit in man," or in the body of man. "Man," the Lord has revealed, "is spirit," and that part of man which is spirit was "in the beginning with God ;" and that Jesus, the Savior of the world, was "in the beginning with the Father, and is the firstborn." We, then, are His brethren and sisters. We were in the beginning with God, and we could behold Him with our spiritual eyes before we had any bodies of flesh and bones. Now we are in the body, we find that we are of a dual composition, that is to say, we are composed of those two first principles spoken of in the ninety-third section of the Doctrine and Covenants (verses 1-34). I use the term "first principles" because the Prophet Joseph used it when speaking on the subject. What are the "first principles" in the constitution of man as a mortal being? We are told that there are certain elements which enter into our composition, and that these elements are eternal; without beginning and without end. They are spirit and element—a term that is there used in the sense that we use the word matter—spirit and element, or spirit and "matter," if we use that term, though both are substantial, so the Prophet Joseph has explained by the revelations of God; for even spirit, which is so refined, so subtle in its nature that we cannot see it with our natural eyes, is material and eternal in its essence. So are the grosser elements that enter into the composition of our bodies. They are derived from the particles of which the earth is composed and from the atmosphere around it—the heaven and the earth. The first principles of element or matter are eternal, without beginning and without end. They may be organized, they may be disorganized, but in their essence they are eternal, and it takes the compound, the union of the spirit and of the element or matter to make a perfect being. Complete happiness cannot be obtained when these are separate. When the spirit of man is separate from the body it cannot receive "a fulness of joy;" it is not in a perfect condition. Man is perfect so far as the spirit state is concerned— in his spiritual being as an individual and as a son of God, begotten of the Father; he is perfect as to that "first estate," but that is not the fulness of perfection that exists in the personality of our Eternal Father, and to obtain eternal life, as the term is used in the revelations of God, we have to be made entirely and completely like Him from whom we have sprung. "The spirit and the body are the soul of man, and the resurrection from the dead is the redemption of the soul." And we are told in the Book of Mormon, as well as in the Doctrine and Covenants, that in the resurrection from the dead, when all shall be raised, "every man in his order," the spirit and the body will be joined together, and they will "not die after;" we are there told that the resurrection will come to all mankind, the great and the small, the good and the bad, all races and tribes and beings who are of the seed of Adam will be raised from the dead, and their bodies will not die after.
Now then, some may ask, perhaps, "well, isn't that eternal life, and will not eternal life come to all mankind, irrespective of their acts, if they are all to be raised from the dead and quickened so that they will not die again? No, that is not the eternal life that is spoken of in the revelations of God. to be the reward for, or the great effect of doing that which is right and avoiding that which is wrong, and becoming completely and perfectly like our divine Father. Some of our brethren in regard to that point —the universal resurrection—have been confused a little, because of an expression to be found in that glorious record called The Vision, in section seventy-six of the Doctrine and Covenants, one of the grandest things, I think, that was ever written. Of course I am not acquainted with all the literature of the ages. I am somewhat acquainted with theological writings of later times, but T have never read anything that can be compared with that glorious vision seen by the Prophet Joseph and Sidney Rigdon, and recorded in that section of the Doctrine and Covenants. Now, in that revelation we are told a little about the glories that are to come: those that are to be raised in the first resurrection and enter into celestial glory, or the glory of the sun are those who obey celestial law, who have fitted themselves for celestial glory so as to be quickened thereby when they are raised from the dead, by observing every precept and every commandment and every law of God. This is a natural process by which Our bodies are prepared to be quickened by the celestial glory, having rendered obedience unto the law, the spirit of which will quicken them. Next we are told about the terrestrial glory, that of those who shall enter into the terrestrial kingdom, whose glory compares with this just spoken of as the glory of the moon when compared with the sun. Then comes another division —that of the telestial glory like that of the stars in comparison with the others. Those who are fitted to enter into the telestial glory will be quickened by that glory, so the Lord says, when they have paid the just penalties for their sins and are raised from the dead; those who are only prepared to enter the telestial glory will be quickened by that glory. Then come those who are not worthy to enter either of these glories or kingdoms—the celestial, the terrestial or the telestial. These are they who are called the "sons of perdition."
Satan is named Perdition, and the heavens wept over him when he fell from his high estate; and those who have followed him so that they become imbued with his spirit, which is the spirit of destruction, in opposition to the spirit which brings life, are his. The spin it of murder enters their hearts; they are ready to put to death even the Son of God, if His existence in life comes in their way. They received light and truth and then altogether turned therefrom. They gain power to attain to the highest altitude of light and truth and glory, then they turn around and through falsehood and wickedness and corruption in their nature and in their works, they become servants unto Satan, sons of perdition. And the revelation says, that "all the rest, through the triumph and the glory of the Lamb, shall be brought forth by the resurrection of the dead" (verse 39). Now, then, because of that expression some of our brethren , entertain the notion that the sons of perdition will not be resurrected. But the Lord has told us, as you will read in section twenty-nine of the book of Doctrine and Covenants, that "then shall all the dead awake, for their graves shall be opened and they shall come forth, yea, even all." Very emphatic are the words in that section, verse twenty-six. The same doctrine is to be found in the Book of Mormon. But there is a passage in section eighty-eight, of the book of Doctrine and Covenants which will make the matter very clear to those who desire to understand it. I am not going to read this section; it is a long one and a most magnificent declaration of the purposes of God in regard to us in life, and the glory that is to come to us hereafter. In that section we have another declaration in regard to the resurrection, and the order of it, corresponding to that which we find in section seventy-six, but a little more explicit in some things, though not quite so much so in others. I will tell you what it says, and you can hunt it up when you go home. It is good for you to hunt up the Doctrine and Covenants and read the modern revelations of God. In that section the Lord gives an account of the coming forth of the different degrees among his children (as the several angels shall sound their trumps) and enter the celestial or the terrestial or the telestial glory. And then, he says, "another angel shall sound his trump, which is the forth trump, saying, "There are found among those who are to remain until that great and last day, even the end, who shall remain filthy still" (verse 102). They also shall be raised from the dead, for it is written, "and they who remain shall also be quickened, but they shall return again to their own place" (verse 32). They are not worthy to enter into the telestial nor into the terrestial nor into the celestial kingdom, and therefore, not being willing to obey law; but, as it is explained in verse thirty-five, "altogether abiding in sin, they cannot be sanctified by law nor mercy nor justice nor judgment, therefore they must needs remain filthy still." Because they became a law unto themselves, and would not abide the laws of God, neither in relation to the highest nor the other degrees that have been mentioned, and so they go away with the devil and his angels in eternity, and the height and extent and depth and the end of their torment no man knows except those who partake of that great condemnation.
So that, according to the revelations of God, all shall come forth by the power of Jesus Christ, and all who are worthy to enter into the celestial world will receive the celestial glory; those who were not valiant in the testimony of Jesus receive the terrestial glory; honorable men of the earth, who were blinded by the craftiness of men, who did not receive the gospel in the flesh, but afterwards received it, inherit the terrestial glory. Several classes are spoken of who inherit that glory. And then a great multitude that no man can number, the vast majority of the inhabitants of the earth, who would not receive the testimony of Jesus, would not receive the truth of God when it was declared unto them, they go away into punishment and suffer the wrath of God according to the claims of eternal justice. Justice will be dealt out to them, and they will suffer according to their desserts, and pay the uttermost farthing for their debts, and then sweet mercy will be extended, and they will be brought forth and inherit the telestial glory. But the others, who are not fit to be redeemed, either in the telestial or terrestial or celestial, are also to be raised from the dead, and because they would not abide in the truth made manifest unto them, but turned away from it willfully, going by degrees from wickedness to wickedness, from sin to sin, from darkness to darkness, they will go away into "outer darkness where there is weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth." This is known as "the second death." They are banished from the presence and ministrations of God; they cannot inherit His glory; they cannot obtain the gift of eternal life, but they go away with the devil and his angels and suffer the wrath of God till justice shall be satisfied. When that will be we do not know, and we have no account concerning their redemption. They must, however, to suffer this capital punishment, first receive the truth and understand it. They must walk in the light to a high and clear extent, and then repudiate it and become a law unto themselves, so that they can no more be sanctified, but "must needs remain filthy still." But, all the rest, by the resurrection through Jesus Christ and His power, will be brought forth in their time and in their place, and be redeemed into some degree of glory, and they will occupy that position for which they have fitted themselves by their own doings.
Now, about this grand gift of eternal life which is to be enjoyed by the faithful: is that inherent in everybody? Jesus Christ says that the Father gave Him certain souls whom He called His sheep. He prayed to the Father about them in the prayer that I have already alluded to. He says: "Thine they were and thou hast given them unto me, and I give unto them eternal life." In the tenth chapter of John and the twenty-eighth verse you will find the same sentiment repeated. "My sheep hear my voice and they follow me, and I know them and call them by name, and I give unto them eternal life, and no man shall pluck them out of my hands." Now, what does He refer to? Why, He is not speaking in regard to endless existence. Endless existence is the property of spirit. It is also the property of matter. One is as eternal as the other in its original essence or principle. Matter or element is eternal, spirit is eternal. But the sons and daughters of God who walk in His ways, who receive His truth which abides forever, who walk in its light, who conquer the lusts of the flesh and the pride of the world, the sins of the world and the powers of darkness, who overcome all things, who live by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God, who come into harmony with the great Eternal Father and Jesus Christ the Redeemer and beings of a like order, who become one with them and overcome all things,—they shall inherit all things, and they shall be like the Father and like the Son in glory, in happiness, in power, in dominion, "heirs of God and joint heirs with Jesus Christ." They shall inherit eternal life, not merely endless existence.
Existence is one thing; life is a great deal more. There are things that exist, but they manifest no life. There are persons that exist and manifest but little life. There are others that have life so far as it can be enjoyed in mortality to the full. They are alive in body, they are alive in mind, they are alive in spirit. They are spiritually, intellectually, physically alive, and the power of increase is with them, and in the eternal world God will give this great gift eternally unto those who are worthy of it. These shall come forth in the first, resurrection and inherit glory, immortality, eternal life and endless increase. One of the grand things referred to by President Smith as in the revelations of God to the Prophet Joseph, was the eternity of the marriage covenant, by which the man and the woman may be joined together according to God's order, and though death may part them, yet in the resurrection they shall come forth to be husband and wife, to be parents of children, to have the gift of endless, perpetual increase, the beginning of their kingdom and their glory in worlds without end. That is real life, the power to continue and the power to produce and to increase, the power of vitality in the spirit and in the body. That is full resurrection, and the body and the spirit being joined together.—you may call it a compound if you will, the body and the spirit being joined together inseparably, receiveth a fulness of joy, a fulness of glory, just like the Father, and just like the Son. Christ has passed through these conditions and is now an exalted being on high, exactly like the Father, who is a being with a body of flesh and bones quickened by the eternal spirit that quickeneth all things, and in Him dwelleth the fulness of truth and life and glory and power and increase forever and ever. And those who follow in the footsteps of Jesus Christ, who is now to all purposes like the Father, will inherit similar glory, and it will never fade away, and it will be exemplified in them to the full. The spirit of life will be within them in body and in spirit, and they will increase forever and ever, and like the blessing that comes to our elder brother, Jesus Christ, of the increase of their kingdom there shall be no end.
Now, my brethren and sisters, in order to attain unto this great glory—the gift of eternal life which comes to us from the Father, through Jesus Christ His Son, we must live for it. He will give unto us eternal life and we shall enjoy it to the full, if we are sanctified by the truth. That is a principle you will find in the prayer that I have alluded to, recorded in the seventeenth chapter of John. We have to be sanctified by the truth. We have to learn the truth and then live it. God will impart it unto us, here a little and there a little, line upon line, precept upon precept, and through His anointed servants whom He has called and appointed, He will convey to us those truths which we must receive in order to attain unto this great glory. Let us "live by every word that comes from the mouth of God." Let us be ready and be instant, in season and out of season, to perform our duties. Every man holding the Priesthood, every woman who is a member of the Church, strive to learn the truth as it is in Christ Jesus who speaks for the Father, learn the truth for ourselves, and be so imbued by the spirit of truth that we can discern truth from error and light from darkness, and then, having strength and power and ability in ourselves, to live by it, overcome all things, and be prepared to inherit all things. God help us to do so, for Christ's sake. Amen.
Brother David Rees sang a tenor solo, entitled, "Oh, Divine Redeemer."
ELDER GEORGE F. RICHARDS.
Sacrifice made willingly for the Gospel's sake.—Hymns sung in L. D. S. meetings should express true sentiments. — Musical ability a God-given talent to be used.
I have seen, heard and felt much during this conference for which I am thankful to the Lord. The large attendance at the meetings, the singing, the inspiring remarks and the influence of the Holy Spirit. all contribute to make this conference most interesting.
Those of us who have had years of experience in the Church, who have tried to conform our lives to the spirit and teachings of the gospel love to hear it expounded and when we do hear it touched upon by song or sermon it vibrates through our souls. From speaker to hearer the Spirit flows as oil from vessel to vessel, and we are able to testify to its truth.
My heart has been made to rejoice in the testimony of my brethren. and in the instruction's they have given during this conference. As I listened to the opening discourse yesterday morning- by our beloved President, my mind seemed enlightened and my capacity enlarged to comprehend the beauties of the gospel, as I seldom have been privileged to do; and my love of the truth and my appreciation of what the Lord has done for me and for you in providing a means of salvation and exaltation in His presence were greatly stimulated.
I thank the Lord that I have been able to see the truth, to love it and to obey it; notwithstanding the gospel requires that we deny ourselves many things which our carnal appetites and desires crave, and the gratification of which would give us a degree of pleasure. Notwithstanding it requires us to sacrifice, in some instances, association with parents, wives, husbands, children, friends, occupation and place among the people, and to sacrifice our time and means. I thank God for the gospel. I desire to say unto this vast congregation that I find my greatest joy and satisfaction in denying myself, and sacrificing in this way for the gospel, to the extent that I have been called upon to thus sacrifice. It is my testimony to you, my brethren and sisters, and the stranger that is with us, that as we engage to serve the Lord, to keep His commandments, and in proper spirit deny ourselves and sacrifice for the cause of truth, we are better, happier and more hopeful. God sustains us by His power and by a testimony and assurance on « every occasion that the thing which we have done is pleasing and acceptable unto Him. Tt is food to our souls, it sustains and builds us up, it gives us joy, and hope of the blessing of eternal life.
I know the gospel is true, and I know the words to which we have listened during this conference are true, and I commend them to all who have had the privilege of hearing. The singing of the songs of Zion causes our souls to vibrate with a hearty response, and with our hearts full of joy and praise we sing to the Lord in our conferences, and in other meetings and worshiping assemblies. The Lord has said that when we sing His praises, when the sacred hymns are the sentiments of our hearts, they will be received by Him as a prayer, and will be answered in blessings upon our heads. I have been delighted with the singing during this conference, that of the choir and congregation, and also the vocal solos which we have heard.
Just a word of criticism in relation to singing, although I do not pose as a musician or a singer. In my traveling among the Saints, I have observed in some quarters that there is a disposition to displace the Latter-day Saint hymns with sectarian songs, which have been composed by those who know not the gospel, and not, in every instance, are the sentiments expressed in those songs in harmony with the truth. It is a matter of embarrassment to call our peoples' attention on such occasions to the necessity for culling out those hymns which do not express the truth, in which we can pour out our souls and sing with meaning and heart to the Lord, such as will .meet with His approval' and call down a blessing upon us. I suppose that some of our brethren, choir leaders, would say that these hymns are old, that we want something new, something full of life and vim. I want to call attention to the fact that that which is . dearer to us than all else, the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, is not new. There is nothing with which we have to do that is older than the gospel; there is nothing dearer. Do we love our fathers and our mothers less because of their age, because they are getting old? No; and I tell you that these hymns, which have been selected by inspiration from the Lord, they are never tiring- to the Latter-day Saints. They contain valuable sermons, and the people like to hear them, and we ought not to tire in singing them. Even in vocal solos there are some in our hymn books, such as "O, my Father," "The Seer," "Come, come ye Saints," and others that cannot be outdone or improved upon. I think it would be nice for our singers to try and arrange beautiful music to these beautiful words of praise and prayer to God. I know it would be edifying and appreciated by the Latter-day Saints, especially since we are adopting as a practice in the Church, more universally, congregational singing.
I desire to call attention of the bishops of the wards, and the choir leaders, to the fact that there is much talent among the Latter-day Saints which is dormant, which ought to be developing, and which should be encouraged among the young people. That is the time, while people are young, to develop the talent, and to utilize the abilities of those who are specially gifted. They should be encouraged to use, to a greater degree, the talent which God has given to them. I recognize that all talents are God-given. This would enable the Saints more universally to join in congregational singing. Unto the people I would say, when you are solicited to join with the choirs of the Church to sing these hymns, you ought to feel that it is a mission, and feel that you are honored, to be called to sing in the congregations of the Saints the hymns inspired of the Lord. This is a very important feature of the worship of the Latter-day Saints.
Brethren and sisters, I rejoice with you in the blessings of the Lord to us as a people; the blessings which I enjoy you enjoy; the knowledge and testimony which I have of the truth, I know that hundreds and thousands of you enjoy, in common with me. It is well for us to be reminded of these things as we always are when we meet in the worship of the Lord. I advise the Saints to be faithful in attendance upon their sacramental and worshiping meetings, as well as at your quorum and auxiliary association meetings, and thus give' evidence to the Lord of your appreciation of what He has done for you.
I pray the blessing of the Lord upon all Israel. May His Spirit guide us in the ways of truth, duty and righteousness, that we may be saved in His kingdom, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Sacrifice made willingly for the Gospel's sake.—Hymns sung in L. D. S. meetings should express true sentiments. — Musical ability a God-given talent to be used.
I have seen, heard and felt much during this conference for which I am thankful to the Lord. The large attendance at the meetings, the singing, the inspiring remarks and the influence of the Holy Spirit. all contribute to make this conference most interesting.
Those of us who have had years of experience in the Church, who have tried to conform our lives to the spirit and teachings of the gospel love to hear it expounded and when we do hear it touched upon by song or sermon it vibrates through our souls. From speaker to hearer the Spirit flows as oil from vessel to vessel, and we are able to testify to its truth.
My heart has been made to rejoice in the testimony of my brethren. and in the instruction's they have given during this conference. As I listened to the opening discourse yesterday morning- by our beloved President, my mind seemed enlightened and my capacity enlarged to comprehend the beauties of the gospel, as I seldom have been privileged to do; and my love of the truth and my appreciation of what the Lord has done for me and for you in providing a means of salvation and exaltation in His presence were greatly stimulated.
I thank the Lord that I have been able to see the truth, to love it and to obey it; notwithstanding the gospel requires that we deny ourselves many things which our carnal appetites and desires crave, and the gratification of which would give us a degree of pleasure. Notwithstanding it requires us to sacrifice, in some instances, association with parents, wives, husbands, children, friends, occupation and place among the people, and to sacrifice our time and means. I thank God for the gospel. I desire to say unto this vast congregation that I find my greatest joy and satisfaction in denying myself, and sacrificing in this way for the gospel, to the extent that I have been called upon to thus sacrifice. It is my testimony to you, my brethren and sisters, and the stranger that is with us, that as we engage to serve the Lord, to keep His commandments, and in proper spirit deny ourselves and sacrifice for the cause of truth, we are better, happier and more hopeful. God sustains us by His power and by a testimony and assurance on « every occasion that the thing which we have done is pleasing and acceptable unto Him. Tt is food to our souls, it sustains and builds us up, it gives us joy, and hope of the blessing of eternal life.
I know the gospel is true, and I know the words to which we have listened during this conference are true, and I commend them to all who have had the privilege of hearing. The singing of the songs of Zion causes our souls to vibrate with a hearty response, and with our hearts full of joy and praise we sing to the Lord in our conferences, and in other meetings and worshiping assemblies. The Lord has said that when we sing His praises, when the sacred hymns are the sentiments of our hearts, they will be received by Him as a prayer, and will be answered in blessings upon our heads. I have been delighted with the singing during this conference, that of the choir and congregation, and also the vocal solos which we have heard.
Just a word of criticism in relation to singing, although I do not pose as a musician or a singer. In my traveling among the Saints, I have observed in some quarters that there is a disposition to displace the Latter-day Saint hymns with sectarian songs, which have been composed by those who know not the gospel, and not, in every instance, are the sentiments expressed in those songs in harmony with the truth. It is a matter of embarrassment to call our peoples' attention on such occasions to the necessity for culling out those hymns which do not express the truth, in which we can pour out our souls and sing with meaning and heart to the Lord, such as will .meet with His approval' and call down a blessing upon us. I suppose that some of our brethren, choir leaders, would say that these hymns are old, that we want something new, something full of life and vim. I want to call attention to the fact that that which is . dearer to us than all else, the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, is not new. There is nothing with which we have to do that is older than the gospel; there is nothing dearer. Do we love our fathers and our mothers less because of their age, because they are getting old? No; and I tell you that these hymns, which have been selected by inspiration from the Lord, they are never tiring- to the Latter-day Saints. They contain valuable sermons, and the people like to hear them, and we ought not to tire in singing them. Even in vocal solos there are some in our hymn books, such as "O, my Father," "The Seer," "Come, come ye Saints," and others that cannot be outdone or improved upon. I think it would be nice for our singers to try and arrange beautiful music to these beautiful words of praise and prayer to God. I know it would be edifying and appreciated by the Latter-day Saints, especially since we are adopting as a practice in the Church, more universally, congregational singing.
I desire to call attention of the bishops of the wards, and the choir leaders, to the fact that there is much talent among the Latter-day Saints which is dormant, which ought to be developing, and which should be encouraged among the young people. That is the time, while people are young, to develop the talent, and to utilize the abilities of those who are specially gifted. They should be encouraged to use, to a greater degree, the talent which God has given to them. I recognize that all talents are God-given. This would enable the Saints more universally to join in congregational singing. Unto the people I would say, when you are solicited to join with the choirs of the Church to sing these hymns, you ought to feel that it is a mission, and feel that you are honored, to be called to sing in the congregations of the Saints the hymns inspired of the Lord. This is a very important feature of the worship of the Latter-day Saints.
Brethren and sisters, I rejoice with you in the blessings of the Lord to us as a people; the blessings which I enjoy you enjoy; the knowledge and testimony which I have of the truth, I know that hundreds and thousands of you enjoy, in common with me. It is well for us to be reminded of these things as we always are when we meet in the worship of the Lord. I advise the Saints to be faithful in attendance upon their sacramental and worshiping meetings, as well as at your quorum and auxiliary association meetings, and thus give' evidence to the Lord of your appreciation of what He has done for you.
I pray the blessing of the Lord upon all Israel. May His Spirit guide us in the ways of truth, duty and righteousness, that we may be saved in His kingdom, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
ELDER DAVID O. M'KAY.
The Church must be kept free from worldly evil.—Individual righteousness the strength of the Church.—Insidious forms and times of temptation- Resistance of evil wins respect even of the wicked.—The Saints "peculiar" because unspotted from the world.
Wordsworth once wrote of Milton, "Thy soul was like a star and dwelt apart." It seems to me, after listening to the brethren testify to the principles of the gospel and the high standard of living among the Latter-day Saints, that this people "dwells apart," that they should be in reality "a peculiar people." I do not mean that we are not to mingle with our friends who do not believe as we, neither do I believe that we fought to be exclusive; but as the Church of God we must "dwell apart." Now, in what way? James says that "Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father, is this, to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world." It is in the sense of keeping ourselves unspotted from the world that I take it the Church of God should be distinct, in this sense, that the children of the Church be as a star,—pure.
In that most impressive prayer of the Savior's, already referred to this afternoon, He says, speaking of His Apostles, "These are in the world," and then adds these significant words, "I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil." This is in harmony with the teachings of the Book of Mormon, as recorded in the42nd chapter of the Book of Alma, where it is explained why the children of God are here in this world; viz., to mingle with the sons of men, to gain an experience that will bring them back to God; but not to partake of the sins of the world. The Savior said to His Apostles on the same evening that He offered that beautiful prayer, "Be of good cheer. I have overcome the world." Going soon to meet His Father, He admonished them to follow His example praying not that God should take them out of the world, but that He should keep them from the evil.
I have never met a member of the Church who would not express himself, and, if occasion arose, who did not so express himself, as being willing to defend his membership if this Church were attacked. I have seen boys, apparently indifferent to Church interests, on occasions stand out in expressive defiance of the attack upon the Church. We frequently arrogate to ourselves the thought that it there were any encroachment upon this Church, we would be ready to stand out and defend it en masse. That feeling, that spirit of defense is always looking for some exceptional manifestation of opposition, something great that is coming. When such comes, we think we shall be ready to defend the Church, when, perhaps this very day, there has been an encroachment upon our souls which has weakened our power to defend the truth. Trees that can stand in the midst of the hurricane often yield to the destroying pests that you can scarcely see with a microscope, and the greatest foes of humanity today are those unseen microscopical microbes that attack the body. It is the unseen influences at work in society that are undermining the manhood and womanhood of today. It is these unseen influences that come from the world that get us when we are least prepared to defend ourselves. When we do not withstand the encroachments of these evil influences we weaken the possibility of defending the Church of Christ. This is an individual work, and what the individuals are, that the aggregate is.
I was with a party of friends recently, driving over a beautiful valley, not far from Salt Lake City. We passed a beautiful wheat field. It was an impressive sight really to see that dry farm of wheat, and one of the party expressed his admiration of the luxuriant growth in the field, and looked at it in general. There it stood apart from the sagebrush and barren surroundings. But he was not satisfied with looking at it in the aggregate; the conveyance was stopped and he looked at individual heads of wheat, and exclaimed, "Look what large heads." Just one; it was the individual stalk that gave him that impression. That was not enough. He broke the head, shuffled it in his hand, blew the chaff away, and examined each kernel. "The kernels," continued he, "are plump and solid." After all, the test of that wheat field was the individual kernel of wheat, and so it is in a community, so it is in the Church. The test, after all, of the efficiency of God's people is an individual one. What is the individual doing? Each one should ask, "Am I living so that I am keeping unspotted from the evil of the world?" God wants us here. His plan of redemption, so far as we are concerned, is here, and you, my fellow workers in the Church of Christ, are carrying the responsibility of testifying to the world that God s truth has been revealed, and that men and women can live in this world free and uncontaminated from the sins thereof, as did the Lord and Redeemer in His day.
Now, what do we mean by the world? It is sometimes used as an indefinite term. I take it that the world refers to the inhabitants who are alienated from the Saints of God. They are aliens to the Church, and it is the spirit of this alienation that we should keep ourselves free from. We are told by Paul not to conform to the fashions of the world. Titus was warned not to partake of those things, the evils of the world, and to "Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart." Purity of heart—Zion is the pure in heart, we have been told, and the strength of this Church lies in the purity of the thoughts and lives of its members, then the testimony of Jesus abides in the soul, and strength comes to each in dividual to withstand the evils of the world.
These evils present themselves insidiously in our daily associations. Thy come in the shape of temptations, as they came to the Savior after His baptism. What were those temptations? When Satan said, "Command these stones to be made bread," he was appealing to the appetite He knew that Jesus was hungry, that He was physically weak, and thought that by pointing to those little lime stones which resemble somewhat a Jewish loaf of bread, he could awaken a desire to eat. Failing in that, when He received the divine word, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” Satan then tried Him in another wav. He dared him—an appeal to His pride, to His vanity quoted scripture to support his temptation, for remember the devil can find scripture for his purpose, and "an evil soul producing holy witnesses is like a villain with a smiling cheek, a goodly apple rotten at the heart. Oh, what a goodly outside falsehood has." But the Savior answered him in terms of scripture, "It is also written, thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God." What was the third? An appeal to His love of power, domain, wealth, "All these, (the kingdoms of the world and the glory thereof), I will give you," said the tempter, "if you will only fall down and worship me." "Get thee hence, Satan, for it is written, thou shalt worship the Lord thy God; and Him only shalt thou serve." Now, nearly every temptation that comes to you and me comes in one of those forms. Classify them, and you will find -that under one of those three nearly every given temptation that makes you and me spotted, ever so little maybe, comes to us as (1) a temptation of the appetite; (2) a yielding to the pride and fashion and vanity of those alienated from the things of God; or (3) a gratifying of the passion, or a desire for the riches of the world, or power among men.
Now, when do temptations come? Why, they come to us in our social gatherings, they come to us at our weddings, they come to us in our politics, they come to us in our business relations, on the farm, in the mercantile establishment, in our dealings in all the affairs of life, we find these insidious influences working, and it is when they manifest themselves to the consciousness of each individual that the defense of truth ought to exert itself. There may never come a great opportunity to defend this Church.
It may not be on the mountain's height or over the stormy sea,
It may not be at the battlefront that my Lord shall have need of me,
But if by still shall voice He calls to lands that I do not know,
I will answer, dear Lord, with my hand in Thine,
I will go where you want me to go.
When that little small voice calls to the performance of duty, insignificant though it seem, and its performance unknown to any one save the individual and God, he who responds gains corresponding strength. Temptation often comes in the same quiet way. Perhaps the yielding to it may not be known by any one save the individual and his God, but if he does yield to it, he becomes to that extent weakened, and spotted with the evil of the world. Let me cite an instance: A young missionary was invited to a wedding in a foreign country, at which two of his acquaintances were joined together in the bonds of matrimony, the ceremony being performed by a minister of another church. This young man was the only member of the Mormon Church present amidst the one hundred or more guests at the table in the hotel. By each plate was the wine cup, filled to the brim, and also a glass of water. After the ceremony, as the guests were all in their places, the minister arose and said, "Now I propose that the company drink the health of the newly married couple.' They all arose. Now, propriety suggested that he take the wine cup. He was a missionary, he belonged to the Church that preaches the Word of Wisdom, revealed direct from God to the Prophet Joseph. Science since then has proved it to be indeed a word of wisdom. He was preaching that, and he was pretending to live it. Here was a time when he could indulge, no one would know; indeed it seemed to be the act of propriety, but he resisted. Now was the time to defend his Church, and that is what he did. He took the glass of water, and some of his immediate friends by him, dropping their wine cups followed his example, and at least half a dozen wine glasses remained untouched. Others saw it, and the circumstance furnished an excellent opportunity to converse with these guests upon the Word of Wisdom. Was he humiliated? No, he was strengthened. Were the guests embarrassed? No. Did they feel to condemn him? No. Condemnation was replaced by admiration, as it always is in the hearts of intelligent and God-fearing men and women. I admire that counselor in the presidency of a stake who, at a political party last fall, when asked to drink the health and success of that party, left his champagne untouched. When the chairman came he said, "You did not respond to the toast for the success of the party." Aren't you one with us?" He said, ^'Yes, I did." The chairman said, "There is your champagne untouched." "But," replied the counselor, "you see the glass of water is empty. I do not drink champagne nor intoxicants, but I am with you in wishing the success of the party." The man grasped his hand and said, "I admire your strength in living up to your principles." They always do. Grater admiration have I for a young man who, in California a few months ago, was entertained by a man of the world and who refused a kind of entertainment which, if it had been accepted, would have deprived mv friend of that which Latter- day Saints hold as sacred as life itself—his virtue. The man of the world was somewhat surprised, but at the same time admired the defense— for so I consider it—and the strength in that "Mormon" defending the truth and the principles of righteousness and the standard of living among the Latter-day Saints. Did that "Mormon" Elder lose anything? No. he is respected among the men today, the thinking men of the world. They always are. Now, as I sav. these temptations come to us in business transactions, or perhaps on the street car when we have an opportunity to refuse paying the corporation five cents. Stooping to cheat a corporation! Well, let us always remember this, that the corporation can afford to lose that nickel, but we cannot afford to take it, to steal it. It is an insignificant thing, isn't it? It is really a great thing, it is one of these insidious things stealing into the character of the individual.
Everywhere, in all places, let us remember that "Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father, is this, to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the sins of the world." Can we do it in aggregate? Is this just for the individual? Can we think of a body of men living this way', a hundred men and women, fifteen hundred men and women? If one can do it all can do it. I shall never forget, as long as I live, the impression my mother gave me when she told the story of those two thousand sons who went to battle under the leadership of Helaman. Think of those boys. Hold them as a pattern, you priests, teachers and deacons, yes, and high priests, seventies and elders. If two thousand men in that ancient time could live such lives, two thousand, nay ten thousand and a hundred thousand men can live it today. These were their principles, founded upon the principle of faith, inculcated into their hearts by their mothers, who taught them in their youth that if they prayed to God nothing doubting, their prayers should be answered. Such is their testimony; such was the result of their mothers' teachings, showing the influence of home on the boys' lives.
They were all young men and they were exceeding valiant for courage, for strength and activity, and behold this was not all. They were men who were true at all times and in whatsoever thing they were entrusted.
Now, I tell you that is good gospel,
Yea, they were men of truth and soberness, for they had been taught to keep the commandments of God and to walk uprightly before Him. Now, it came to pass that Helaman did march at the head of his two thousand stripling soldiers, to the support of the people in the borders of the land on the south by the sea.
You know the story, you know how successful they were, and how God Messed them, as He will bless every man and woman, no matter where he may be, who will stand for righteousness and truth, and live so as to keep himself unspotted from the world. As I think of these two thousand men going out to defend their homes, pure in their lives, steadfast in their testimony of God's truth, so I want to think of the Priesthood throughout all Israel, high priests, seventies, whose duty is to preach these things by their lives and words, of our elders, our young men, priests, teachers and deacons—a solid phalanx of men standing before the world as a light that cannot be hid, because their lives are clean and pure. They are unspotted from the world. Then we shall indeed be a "peculiar people" and become as God would have us, because we are preaching the gospel by our acts. "If you love me," says the Lord, "keep my commandments."
May He help us to do it, keep us pure and free,- our homes pure and true, that our children may breathe the atmosphere of purity and virtue, and we be ever true to the testimony of God that we have in our hearts; viz., that the gospel of Jesus Christ is restored to the earth, that His prophets are upon the earth, that He revealed the grandest of truths to the Prophet Joseph Smith in this dispensation of the fullness of times, and that we holding the holy priesthood must carry the responsibility of setting the example of truth and purity unto the whole world—I say may He help us to do this, is my prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen.
The choir and congregation sang the hymn:
The Spirit of God like a fire is burning!
The Latter-day glory begins to come forth;
The visions and blessings of old are returning,
And angels are coming to visit the earth.
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Lewis Anderson.
Conference adjourned until Sunday, Oct. 8th, 10 a. m.
The Church must be kept free from worldly evil.—Individual righteousness the strength of the Church.—Insidious forms and times of temptation- Resistance of evil wins respect even of the wicked.—The Saints "peculiar" because unspotted from the world.
Wordsworth once wrote of Milton, "Thy soul was like a star and dwelt apart." It seems to me, after listening to the brethren testify to the principles of the gospel and the high standard of living among the Latter-day Saints, that this people "dwells apart," that they should be in reality "a peculiar people." I do not mean that we are not to mingle with our friends who do not believe as we, neither do I believe that we fought to be exclusive; but as the Church of God we must "dwell apart." Now, in what way? James says that "Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father, is this, to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world." It is in the sense of keeping ourselves unspotted from the world that I take it the Church of God should be distinct, in this sense, that the children of the Church be as a star,—pure.
In that most impressive prayer of the Savior's, already referred to this afternoon, He says, speaking of His Apostles, "These are in the world," and then adds these significant words, "I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil." This is in harmony with the teachings of the Book of Mormon, as recorded in the42nd chapter of the Book of Alma, where it is explained why the children of God are here in this world; viz., to mingle with the sons of men, to gain an experience that will bring them back to God; but not to partake of the sins of the world. The Savior said to His Apostles on the same evening that He offered that beautiful prayer, "Be of good cheer. I have overcome the world." Going soon to meet His Father, He admonished them to follow His example praying not that God should take them out of the world, but that He should keep them from the evil.
I have never met a member of the Church who would not express himself, and, if occasion arose, who did not so express himself, as being willing to defend his membership if this Church were attacked. I have seen boys, apparently indifferent to Church interests, on occasions stand out in expressive defiance of the attack upon the Church. We frequently arrogate to ourselves the thought that it there were any encroachment upon this Church, we would be ready to stand out and defend it en masse. That feeling, that spirit of defense is always looking for some exceptional manifestation of opposition, something great that is coming. When such comes, we think we shall be ready to defend the Church, when, perhaps this very day, there has been an encroachment upon our souls which has weakened our power to defend the truth. Trees that can stand in the midst of the hurricane often yield to the destroying pests that you can scarcely see with a microscope, and the greatest foes of humanity today are those unseen microscopical microbes that attack the body. It is the unseen influences at work in society that are undermining the manhood and womanhood of today. It is these unseen influences that come from the world that get us when we are least prepared to defend ourselves. When we do not withstand the encroachments of these evil influences we weaken the possibility of defending the Church of Christ. This is an individual work, and what the individuals are, that the aggregate is.
I was with a party of friends recently, driving over a beautiful valley, not far from Salt Lake City. We passed a beautiful wheat field. It was an impressive sight really to see that dry farm of wheat, and one of the party expressed his admiration of the luxuriant growth in the field, and looked at it in general. There it stood apart from the sagebrush and barren surroundings. But he was not satisfied with looking at it in the aggregate; the conveyance was stopped and he looked at individual heads of wheat, and exclaimed, "Look what large heads." Just one; it was the individual stalk that gave him that impression. That was not enough. He broke the head, shuffled it in his hand, blew the chaff away, and examined each kernel. "The kernels," continued he, "are plump and solid." After all, the test of that wheat field was the individual kernel of wheat, and so it is in a community, so it is in the Church. The test, after all, of the efficiency of God's people is an individual one. What is the individual doing? Each one should ask, "Am I living so that I am keeping unspotted from the evil of the world?" God wants us here. His plan of redemption, so far as we are concerned, is here, and you, my fellow workers in the Church of Christ, are carrying the responsibility of testifying to the world that God s truth has been revealed, and that men and women can live in this world free and uncontaminated from the sins thereof, as did the Lord and Redeemer in His day.
Now, what do we mean by the world? It is sometimes used as an indefinite term. I take it that the world refers to the inhabitants who are alienated from the Saints of God. They are aliens to the Church, and it is the spirit of this alienation that we should keep ourselves free from. We are told by Paul not to conform to the fashions of the world. Titus was warned not to partake of those things, the evils of the world, and to "Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart." Purity of heart—Zion is the pure in heart, we have been told, and the strength of this Church lies in the purity of the thoughts and lives of its members, then the testimony of Jesus abides in the soul, and strength comes to each in dividual to withstand the evils of the world.
These evils present themselves insidiously in our daily associations. Thy come in the shape of temptations, as they came to the Savior after His baptism. What were those temptations? When Satan said, "Command these stones to be made bread," he was appealing to the appetite He knew that Jesus was hungry, that He was physically weak, and thought that by pointing to those little lime stones which resemble somewhat a Jewish loaf of bread, he could awaken a desire to eat. Failing in that, when He received the divine word, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” Satan then tried Him in another wav. He dared him—an appeal to His pride, to His vanity quoted scripture to support his temptation, for remember the devil can find scripture for his purpose, and "an evil soul producing holy witnesses is like a villain with a smiling cheek, a goodly apple rotten at the heart. Oh, what a goodly outside falsehood has." But the Savior answered him in terms of scripture, "It is also written, thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God." What was the third? An appeal to His love of power, domain, wealth, "All these, (the kingdoms of the world and the glory thereof), I will give you," said the tempter, "if you will only fall down and worship me." "Get thee hence, Satan, for it is written, thou shalt worship the Lord thy God; and Him only shalt thou serve." Now, nearly every temptation that comes to you and me comes in one of those forms. Classify them, and you will find -that under one of those three nearly every given temptation that makes you and me spotted, ever so little maybe, comes to us as (1) a temptation of the appetite; (2) a yielding to the pride and fashion and vanity of those alienated from the things of God; or (3) a gratifying of the passion, or a desire for the riches of the world, or power among men.
Now, when do temptations come? Why, they come to us in our social gatherings, they come to us at our weddings, they come to us in our politics, they come to us in our business relations, on the farm, in the mercantile establishment, in our dealings in all the affairs of life, we find these insidious influences working, and it is when they manifest themselves to the consciousness of each individual that the defense of truth ought to exert itself. There may never come a great opportunity to defend this Church.
It may not be on the mountain's height or over the stormy sea,
It may not be at the battlefront that my Lord shall have need of me,
But if by still shall voice He calls to lands that I do not know,
I will answer, dear Lord, with my hand in Thine,
I will go where you want me to go.
When that little small voice calls to the performance of duty, insignificant though it seem, and its performance unknown to any one save the individual and God, he who responds gains corresponding strength. Temptation often comes in the same quiet way. Perhaps the yielding to it may not be known by any one save the individual and his God, but if he does yield to it, he becomes to that extent weakened, and spotted with the evil of the world. Let me cite an instance: A young missionary was invited to a wedding in a foreign country, at which two of his acquaintances were joined together in the bonds of matrimony, the ceremony being performed by a minister of another church. This young man was the only member of the Mormon Church present amidst the one hundred or more guests at the table in the hotel. By each plate was the wine cup, filled to the brim, and also a glass of water. After the ceremony, as the guests were all in their places, the minister arose and said, "Now I propose that the company drink the health of the newly married couple.' They all arose. Now, propriety suggested that he take the wine cup. He was a missionary, he belonged to the Church that preaches the Word of Wisdom, revealed direct from God to the Prophet Joseph. Science since then has proved it to be indeed a word of wisdom. He was preaching that, and he was pretending to live it. Here was a time when he could indulge, no one would know; indeed it seemed to be the act of propriety, but he resisted. Now was the time to defend his Church, and that is what he did. He took the glass of water, and some of his immediate friends by him, dropping their wine cups followed his example, and at least half a dozen wine glasses remained untouched. Others saw it, and the circumstance furnished an excellent opportunity to converse with these guests upon the Word of Wisdom. Was he humiliated? No, he was strengthened. Were the guests embarrassed? No. Did they feel to condemn him? No. Condemnation was replaced by admiration, as it always is in the hearts of intelligent and God-fearing men and women. I admire that counselor in the presidency of a stake who, at a political party last fall, when asked to drink the health and success of that party, left his champagne untouched. When the chairman came he said, "You did not respond to the toast for the success of the party." Aren't you one with us?" He said, ^'Yes, I did." The chairman said, "There is your champagne untouched." "But," replied the counselor, "you see the glass of water is empty. I do not drink champagne nor intoxicants, but I am with you in wishing the success of the party." The man grasped his hand and said, "I admire your strength in living up to your principles." They always do. Grater admiration have I for a young man who, in California a few months ago, was entertained by a man of the world and who refused a kind of entertainment which, if it had been accepted, would have deprived mv friend of that which Latter- day Saints hold as sacred as life itself—his virtue. The man of the world was somewhat surprised, but at the same time admired the defense— for so I consider it—and the strength in that "Mormon" defending the truth and the principles of righteousness and the standard of living among the Latter-day Saints. Did that "Mormon" Elder lose anything? No. he is respected among the men today, the thinking men of the world. They always are. Now, as I sav. these temptations come to us in business transactions, or perhaps on the street car when we have an opportunity to refuse paying the corporation five cents. Stooping to cheat a corporation! Well, let us always remember this, that the corporation can afford to lose that nickel, but we cannot afford to take it, to steal it. It is an insignificant thing, isn't it? It is really a great thing, it is one of these insidious things stealing into the character of the individual.
Everywhere, in all places, let us remember that "Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father, is this, to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the sins of the world." Can we do it in aggregate? Is this just for the individual? Can we think of a body of men living this way', a hundred men and women, fifteen hundred men and women? If one can do it all can do it. I shall never forget, as long as I live, the impression my mother gave me when she told the story of those two thousand sons who went to battle under the leadership of Helaman. Think of those boys. Hold them as a pattern, you priests, teachers and deacons, yes, and high priests, seventies and elders. If two thousand men in that ancient time could live such lives, two thousand, nay ten thousand and a hundred thousand men can live it today. These were their principles, founded upon the principle of faith, inculcated into their hearts by their mothers, who taught them in their youth that if they prayed to God nothing doubting, their prayers should be answered. Such is their testimony; such was the result of their mothers' teachings, showing the influence of home on the boys' lives.
They were all young men and they were exceeding valiant for courage, for strength and activity, and behold this was not all. They were men who were true at all times and in whatsoever thing they were entrusted.
Now, I tell you that is good gospel,
Yea, they were men of truth and soberness, for they had been taught to keep the commandments of God and to walk uprightly before Him. Now, it came to pass that Helaman did march at the head of his two thousand stripling soldiers, to the support of the people in the borders of the land on the south by the sea.
You know the story, you know how successful they were, and how God Messed them, as He will bless every man and woman, no matter where he may be, who will stand for righteousness and truth, and live so as to keep himself unspotted from the world. As I think of these two thousand men going out to defend their homes, pure in their lives, steadfast in their testimony of God's truth, so I want to think of the Priesthood throughout all Israel, high priests, seventies, whose duty is to preach these things by their lives and words, of our elders, our young men, priests, teachers and deacons—a solid phalanx of men standing before the world as a light that cannot be hid, because their lives are clean and pure. They are unspotted from the world. Then we shall indeed be a "peculiar people" and become as God would have us, because we are preaching the gospel by our acts. "If you love me," says the Lord, "keep my commandments."
May He help us to do it, keep us pure and free,- our homes pure and true, that our children may breathe the atmosphere of purity and virtue, and we be ever true to the testimony of God that we have in our hearts; viz., that the gospel of Jesus Christ is restored to the earth, that His prophets are upon the earth, that He revealed the grandest of truths to the Prophet Joseph Smith in this dispensation of the fullness of times, and that we holding the holy priesthood must carry the responsibility of setting the example of truth and purity unto the whole world—I say may He help us to do this, is my prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen.
The choir and congregation sang the hymn:
The Spirit of God like a fire is burning!
The Latter-day glory begins to come forth;
The visions and blessings of old are returning,
And angels are coming to visit the earth.
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Lewis Anderson.
Conference adjourned until Sunday, Oct. 8th, 10 a. m.
THIRD DAY.
In the Tabernacle, Sunday, Oct. 8th, 10 a. m.
Conference was called to order by- President Joseph F. Smith, and he announced that an overflow meeting will convene this morning, in the Assembly Hall, for the benefit of the many who can not be accommodated in the overcrowded Tabernacle.
The choir sang the hymn:
An angel from on high
The long, long silence broke;
Descending from the sky,
These gracious words he spoke:
Lo! in Cumorah's lonely hill,
A sacred record lies concealed.
Prayer was offered by Elder Charles A. Callis.
Lizzie T. Edward, Pearl K. Davis, Fred Graham, and Moroni J. Thomas rendered a quartette, entitled, "As the dew from heaven distilling."
President Joseph F. Smith announced that part of the morning service will be devoted to an address by Elder Orson F. Whitney, in honor of the memory of a great man of God, the late Apostle Orson Pratt. By request of President Smith, the family and relatives of Apostle Pratt arose in the congregation, and it was observed that they numbered about four hundred persons.
In the Tabernacle, Sunday, Oct. 8th, 10 a. m.
Conference was called to order by- President Joseph F. Smith, and he announced that an overflow meeting will convene this morning, in the Assembly Hall, for the benefit of the many who can not be accommodated in the overcrowded Tabernacle.
The choir sang the hymn:
An angel from on high
The long, long silence broke;
Descending from the sky,
These gracious words he spoke:
Lo! in Cumorah's lonely hill,
A sacred record lies concealed.
Prayer was offered by Elder Charles A. Callis.
Lizzie T. Edward, Pearl K. Davis, Fred Graham, and Moroni J. Thomas rendered a quartette, entitled, "As the dew from heaven distilling."
President Joseph F. Smith announced that part of the morning service will be devoted to an address by Elder Orson F. Whitney, in honor of the memory of a great man of God, the late Apostle Orson Pratt. By request of President Smith, the family and relatives of Apostle Pratt arose in the congregation, and it was observed that they numbered about four hundred persons.
ELDER ORSON F. WHITNEY.
Memorial Address in Honor of Orson Pratt, Apostle, Pioneer, Philosopher, Scientist, and Historian—Life and Character of "The St. Paul of Mormondom"—Illustrative Anecdotes All God's gifts designed for the General Good—The World gone Money- Mad—An Intellectual and a Spiritual Millionaire.
One hundred years ago, in a humble village of the Empire State, a man was born of whom it was said, as he lay in his casket at Salt Lake City on the 6th of October, 1881, that he had traveled more miles, preached more sermons, studied and written more upon the Gospel and upon science, than any other man in the Church. That man was Orson Pratt, and the speaker who eulogized him was Wilford Woodruff, his fellow Apostle and Pioneer.
There were many who knew Orson Pratt better than I, but none admired or esteemed him more. And yet my knowledge of him was not based upon intimate association; I scarcely knew him in a social way, and never had the opportunity to converse with him. My acquaintance with the man was wholly of a public character, and the information I possess concerning his career is shared by tens of thousands.
He was of English and Puritan descent, his father's ancestor, Lieutenant William Pratt, being among the first settlers of Hartford, Connecticut. Lieutenant Pratt's father was Reverend William Pratt, of Stevenidge, Hertfordshire, England. Orson Pratt was born at Hartford, Washington County, New York, Sept. 19, 1811. His parents were Jared Pratt and his wife Charity Dickinson. Orson was next to the youngest of six children. His elder brother Parley was destined like himself to become a noted preacher and writer, and one of the earliest settlers of the Rocky mountain region. Jared Pratt was a weaver and a tiller of the soil. He had no faith in creeds or churches, but taught his children to be moral, and to believe in the Bible.
Orson received his first schooling at New Lebanon, Columbia County, in his native State. To that place the family moved when he was three or four years old. He was sent to school several months in each year until the spring of 1822, when he hired out as a farm boy. Whether in school or out, his studious mind was always at work, and at intervals he picked up a knowledge of arithmetic, bookkeeping, geography, grammar and surveying.
Though a frequent reader of the Scriptures, he was not deeply concerned about religion until the autumn of 1829, when he began to pray fervently for spiritual light and guidance. About a year later two Elders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints came into his neighborhood and held meetings. One of these Elders was his brother, Parley P. Pratt, by whom Orson was baptized on the nineteenth anniversary of his birth. October of that year found him at Fayette, Seneca County, the birthplace of the Church, which was then only six months old. While there he met the Prophet Joseph Smith, and was confirmed by him a member and ordained an Elder on the first day of November, 1830. His first mission, taken soon after, was to Colesville, in Broome County.
Early in 1831 he followed the fortunes of the Saints to Ohio, and at Kirtland, where he presided . over the Elders, was ordained a High Priest by Sidney Rigdon. From that time forth he was busy traveling, preaching, and building up branches pf the Church. Among his converts in the Eastern States were his brother Anson, at Hurlgate, Long Island; Amasa M. Lyman, at Bath, New Hampshire; and the Farr, Snow, and Gates families in Vermont. At Kirtland he taught an evening grammar school, and was himself a student under Professor Seixas, a New York savant, who certified to his proficiency in Hebrew, after a course of instruction extending through eight weeks.
Orson Pratt helped to organize Zion's Camp, and during the journey to Missouri, whither the expedition went to reinstate the Jackson County Saints upon the lands from which they had been driven by mob violence, he had charge of several wagons. When cholera broke out in camp, he was one of those attacked by it, but his great faith and iron will saved him, while others perished. In Missouri he was a member of the High Council.
At Columbus, Ohio, in April, 1835, he learned that he had been chosen one of the Twelve Apostles, and was expected to be at Kirtland on the twenty-sixth of that month, for ordination. A journey of two days by stage-coach enabled him to arrive there on the day appointed, and he was ordained an Apostle under the hands of David Whitmer and Oliver Cowdery, two of the Three Witnesses to the Book of Mormon.
When the Church moved from Ohio, Orson Pratt was presiding over a large branch in New York City. Summoned to Far West, Missouri, which had become the headquarters of the Latter-day Saints, he was on his way there with his family, and had reached St. Louis, where he was ice-bound, the rivers being frozen, when he learned of the expulsion of his people from that State. He rejoined them at Quincy, Illinois, in the spring of 1839.
During the previous summer, while the Saints were still in Missouri, the Prophet, voicing the word of the Lord, had directed the Apostles to take a mission to Europe, and the appointment designated the very date upon which they should leave Far West, starting from the Temple lot in that city. This was before the mob troubles arose, and before there was any prospect of an armed collision between Missourians and Mormons. But now all was changed! The Saints had been driven out; and it was almost as much as a Mormon's life was worth to be seen in Missouri. The day set for the departure of the Apostles was approaching, but they were far away, and the mob leaders were boasting that "Joe Smith's prophecy" concerning the event would fail. Joseph himself was a prisoner in the hands of the Missourians, as was his brother, Hyrum Smith, also Parley P. Pratt, and other leaders; but Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, Orson Pratt,, John Taylor, and others of the Twelve were at liberty, and they determined to fulfill the Prophet's prediction. Accordingly before daybreak on the day appointed, April 26, 1839, they rode into Far West, held a meeting on the Temple lot, ordained Wilford Woodruff and George A. Smith to the Apostleship, and started upon their foreign mission; the enemy meanwhile wrapt in slumber, oblivious to what was taking place.
Delayed by the founding of Nauvoo, Illinois, and by an epidemic of fever and ague that swept over that newly settled region, the Apostles did not cross the Atlantic until about a year later. Landing at Liverpool, penniless, and among strangers, they remained in Great Britain a little over twelve months, during which period they baptized seven or eight thousand persons, and raised up branches of the Church in almost every noted city and town throughout ' the United Kingdom. They also established a periodical, "The Millennial Star," with Parley P. Pratt as editor; published five thousand copies of the Book of Mormon, fifty thousand tracts, and three thousand hymn books; besides emigrating a thousand people to Nauvoo, and founding a permanent emigration agency. The British Mission had previously been opened by Heber C. Kimball and Orson Hyde, with their associates; now its foundations were laid broad and deep.
In the assignment of mission fields Scotland fell to Orson Pratt. It has been said that a Scotchman should always be in the right, for he is hard to turn. The Apostle proved the truth of this saying during his experience in and around Edinburgh, where he fasted, prayed, and preached for nine months, succeeding, after much difficulty, in raising up a branch of more than two hundred members. His patient zeal never flagged. His dairy climbs up the slopes of Arthur's Seat, a mountain overlooking the town and from the summit of which he besought the God of Israel to give him the hearts of that people, is one of the picturesque episodes of "Mormon" missionary life. While upon this mission he published his pamphlet. "Remarkable Visions," the perusal of which drew many into the Church. He returned to America early in 1841.
During the next few years he resided at Nauvoo, where he had charge of a mathematical school, and was a member of the City Council. He also filled missions in the East, and at the City of Washington presented a memorial, prepared by himself and others, signed by the members of the Nauvoo City Council, praying for redress of the wrongs suffered by the Saints while in Missouri. During his leisure moments he calculated eclipses and prepared an almanac for publication in 1845. It was entitled "The Prophetic Almanac," and was calculated from the latitude and meridian of Nauvoo and other American towns. "From 1836 to 1844," says the Apostle, "I occupied much of my leisure time in study, and made myself thoroughly acquainted with algebra, geometry, trigonometry, conic sections, differential and integral calculus, astronomy, and most of the physical sciences. These studies I pursued without the assistance of a teacher." He was in the East when the Prophet and the Patriarch were slain, and returned to Nauvoo soon after the martyrdom.
The exodus of the Latter-day Saints from Illinois began in February, 1846. The Mississippi River was frozen over, and some of the companies crossed on the ice. Orson Pratt, who had recently returned from another eastern mission, was one of the leaders of this migratory p movement, which was destined to redeem an arid waste, and found an empire in the heart of the Great American Desert. During their slow progress over the snow-covered or rain-soaked prairies to the bluffs of the Missouri River, the pilgrims halted many times, and were even under the necessity of forming temporary settlements. Garden Grove and Mount Pisgah, at which places the leaders, in council, decided to send a company of pioneers to the Rocky Mountains, in advance of the main body of the people. Preparations for this expedition were under way when, at the Bluffs, in July, 1846, the enlistment of the Mormon Battalion, five hundred volunteers, as part of the United States military force then invading Mexico and her provinces, postponed the departure of the Pioneers until the next season.
Orson Pratt was one of the one hundred and forty-three men led by President Brigham Young from the Missouri River westward during the spring and summer of 1847. They started from the "Mormon" town of Winter Quarters (now Florence, Nebraska), about the middle of April, arriving in Salt Lake Valley on Saturday, the 24th of July. Brother Pratt entered the valley three days in advance of the general arrival.
It happened thus. President Young, after leaving Fort Bridger, had been attacked by mountain fever, and under his direction Orson Pratt, with a number of men and wagons, led the way down Echo Canyon, up East Canyon, through and over the Wasatch Mountains toward the shores of the Great Salt Lake. From the summit of Big Mountain, on the nineteenth of July, Orson Pratt and John Brown, riding ahead of their companions, caught the first glimpse of the valley; and on the 21st, Orson Pratt and Erastus Snow, the latter a messenger from President Young, emerged from Emigration Canyon, a little south of where Fort Douglas now stands. They had a single saddle horse, and were riding by turns. The day being warm. Brother Snow took off his coat and hung it loosely over the saddle bow. Missing it, he rode back toward the mountains to look for it, leaving his companion to walk on alone to the banks of City Creek. This stream then divided into two branches, one flowing south, the other west. Thus it was that Orson Pratt was the first of the Pioneers to tread the site of Salt Lake City.
Any other member of that historic band might have done as much had chance or destiny so decided; but how many of them could have laid out the town that was founded here that memorable summer? This honor also fell to Orson Pratt, who, assisted by Henry G. Sherwood, ran the original survey of Salt Lake City, on Monday, the 2nd of August. He ascertained the altitude of the Valley, and determined its latitude and longitude. We are also indebted to Orson Pratt and a few men like him for what we know of the experiences of the Pioneers during and after their journey to the West.
From the summer of 1848 to the spring of 1851, this Apostle presided 'over the European Mission, with headquarters at Liverpool. The British Isles contained at that time, according to his published statement, about 40,000 Latter-day Saints. President Pratt's reputation as speaker and writer had preceded him, and the sun of his fame now rose nigh to the zenith. As president, preacher, editor, and author, he labored almost incessantly. Every noted town in the three kingdoms heard the sound of his voice, deep, sonorous, powerful, proclaiming with fervid and fearless eloquence the principles he had been sent to promulge—the principles of the Everlasting Gospel. While editing the Millennial Star, he wrote, published and distributed many pamphlets on doctrinal, historical, and philosophical themes, and with means obtained from the sale of his works, supplied the urgent needs of a portion of his family who were still on the Iowa frontier. He was visiting them in the spring of 1850, when he received word from President Young that he was honorably released from his mission and at liberty to return to Utah.
In the Legislative Assembly of the Territory, almost from the beginning, Orson Pratt was a member of the Council, and he sat in every subsequent Legislature when at home. During several sessions he was Speaker of the House of Representatives.
As one of the corps of instructors of the University of Deseret, now University of Utah, he delivered, in the winter and spring of 1851-1852. a series of twelve public lectures on astronomy, which awakened general interest. He had now achieved fame in the field of higher mathematics, having discovered, in November. 1850, a law governing planetary rotation, and subsequently making other scientific discoveries. Professor Proctor, the astronomer, while lecturing at Salt Lake City early in the eighties, referred almost reverently to Professor Pratt, expressing the opinion that there were but four real mathematicians in the world, and that Orson Pratt was one of them. He was such an ardent lover of knowledge, and so anxious to disseminate it, that he offered to teach the youth of the community free, if they would give their time to study.
In August, 1852, he took up a temporary residence in Washington, D. C. where he published "The Seer," a periodical devoted to the dissemination of "Mormon" doctrines. In its columns appeared the revelation on Plural Marriage and Joseph Smith's prophecy on War. At the same time he presided over the Latter-day Saints in all the States of the Union and in the adjoining British provinces. Then followed another presiding mission in Great Britain, from which he returned by way of California, while Johnston's army, sent to Utah to put down an imaginary rebellion, was in winter quarters east of the Wasatch Mountains.
The spring of 1864 found the Apostle at Vienna, endeavoring to obtain a foothold for missionary work in the Austrian capital. But the laws of that country were too stringent for such an undertaking, and he, with his companion, Elder William W. Riter, returned to England. There President Pratt published, in May, 1866, an edition of his mathematical work, "Pratt's Cubic and Bi-Quadratic Equations." Three years later, in New York City, he transcribed and published the Book of Mormon in the phonetic characters of "The Deseret Alphabet."
August, 1870, was made memorable by a great public discussion in the Salt Lake Tabernacle, where Orson Pratt, the "Mormon" apostle, debated with Dr. John P. Newman, Methodist pastor and Chaplain of the United States Senate, the question, "Does the Bible sanction Polygamy?" The debate lasted three days, and was listened to by ten thousand people. The umpires, chosen by both parties, rendered no decision—that being one of the preliminary conditions—but it was the general verdict of "Mormons" and Gentiles that while Newman, was the more eloquent, ornately so, at least, Pratt was the better informed, and the more logical. Both men were thorough scriptorians, but the Apostle surprised even his learned opponent by his profound knowledge of the original Hebrew, and his clearcut mathematical demonstrations. The Boston "Banner of Light," commenting on the result, said: "Some one carrying more guns than Dr. Newman will have to be sent out missionarying among the 'Mormons.' "
In 1874 Orson Pratt became the Church Historian, an office held by him during the remainder of his days. In 1877 he went to England to transcribe and publish an edition of the Book of Mormon in the Pitman phonetic characters, but was recalled almost immediately by the death of President Brigham Young. The ensuing autumn found him revisiting scenes of early "Mormon" history, in company with his fellow Apostle, Joseph F. Smith.
December of that year brought another mission, the last one undertaken by this valiant veteran in the cause of Christ. It was his fifteenth voyage over the ocean; this time to stereotype and publish at Liverpool the Book of Mormon and the Doctrine and Covenants, as arranged by him in paragraphs, with footnotes and references. He also published while there his astronomical work, "Key to the Universe." In London he made a discovery regarding the Great Pyramid of Egypt, a discovery conclusively demonstrating to his mind that the date of the organization of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is symbolized in the chronological floor line of the Grand Gallery, in that ancient monument.
The Apostle was now advanced in years, almost upon the summit of his three score and ten. His appearance was truly patriarchal, hair and beard being white as snow. Powerful in build, though of but medium stature, he was still mentally and physically strong. During the whole period of his final mission, ending in September, 1879, he worked, for weeks at a stretch, not less than eighteen hours out of the twenty-four. The enfeebled state of his health after his return showed that the heavy labor had told severely upon him.
Two years later, on the third day of October, he died at his home in Salt Lake City. Just before breathing his last, he dictated to President Joseph F. Smith, who took down the words as the dying man uttered them, this epitaph, to be placed upon his tombstone: "My body sleeps for a moment, but my testimony lives and shall endure forever."
"The St. Paul of Mormondom”—as Tullidge styles him, was a preacher eloquent and powerful, a theologian learned and profound, a linguist to whom dead languages were an open book, a writer lucid and logical, a ' scientist of eminent attainments. Essentially a sage, having the philosophical temperament as well as the philosophical cast of mind, he might easily have been classed with the Wise Men of Greece, or even with the Hebrew Prophets.
The philosophical side of his nature may be illustrated by an anecdote. One of the evidences of the humble circumstances in which he lived was a weather-beaten though respectable straw hat which he wore both summer and winter. One day his daughter, Mrs. Joseph Kimball, asked him: "Father, why do you wear a straw hat in winter ?" "To keep my head warm," he answered. "But," she persisted, "is a straw hat warm in winter?" "Warmer than no hat at all, my daughter," was the reply—worthy of a Diogenes.
Another incident tells something of his power of concentration, and his ability to control his feelings — all the more remarkable, when it is known that Orson Pratt was as high-spirited as he was fearless and determined. He was preaching at Liverpool, in the open air, when a noisy fellow, pushing his way through the crowd and planting himself squarely in front, began to denounce him. The speaker, without deigning to notice the interruption, raised his stentorian voice, and going right on with his discourse, poured forth a volume of sound that completely drowned the voice of his would-be disturber. The fellow then shouted his objections, but the Apostle, still further increasing his own lung power, again rendered the tones of the hoodlum inaudible." This 'was kept up until the latter ceased from sheer exhaustion, and retired amid the laughter of the bystanders. The orator then lowered his voice to normal pitch, and continued his subject to the end.
Orson Pratt stood at the head of a patriarchal household, the husband of several wives, the father of forty-five children, thirty-two of whom, evenly divided as to sons and daughters, survived him. Many of these are present today. His direct descendants—children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren—now number nearly four-hundred.
It was a foregone conclusion that with a family so large, and a life so devoted to the public interest, he could hardly have died wealthy, even had he so desired. But it is exceedingly doubtful that he ever cherished such a desire. Had he been asked the question, once put to Agassiz, "Why do you not use your ability to acquire a fortune?" he would probably have answered, -as did the greatest naturalist, ' "I haven't the time."
He may have lacked the gift. Be it so. Perhaps he had other gifts, just as great, and even greater.' The mind must be fed, as well as the body. "Man shall not live by bread alone," and he who ministers to the intellect and the spirit is, and ought to be, as consequential in any community as the capitalist, the business man, the politician, the executive, whose skill is in governing men, or in acquiring and managing property, and ministering to the physical needs of his fellows. It may yet transpire that the true mission of the man of affairs, in one of its functions at least, is to free such men as Orson Pratt from the excess of business cares and burdens, and give them time to devote to other pursuits, just as important and quite as useful, in the long run, as those which the many most appreciate. Doubtless there were times when this man found it difficult to provide for his family the bread that perishes. One reason was that like his great Master, our Elder Brother, he had to "be about his Father's business," feeding a starving world with the bread of eternal life.
Why should any man assume, be he writer, preacher, or financier, that his ability was given for his own exclusive benefit, and his neighbor's ability for the benefit of the public? No gift from God was ever' intended for self aggrandizement. All such endowments are altruistic in purpose, and were designed for mutual help and the general good. Nor should aptitude in any direction be rated at its mere market value. Men pay most, as a rule, for things of least consequence. The gifts of the Gospel, which are not . to be purchased, which are beyond all price, would be discounted in any market in the world. They who despise any of God's gifts are fit subjects for the divine clemency. They should be forgiven, "for they know not what they do." All kinds of good men are needed in the work of the Lord, and some day, under a better social system than now prevails, they will be found laboring, every man for the interest of his neighbor, "and doing all things with an eye single to the glory of God."
"Without purse or scrip"—that was the insignia of the Apostolic mission; and He who gave that mission "had not where to lay his head." Not that He was powerless to provide for Himself and His friends, for He possessed all things; but He made His servants poor, that the world might be proved, and the Lord's true disciples known. He who gives even a cup of cold water to a servant of God athirst, shall in nowise lose his reward.
The American nation—the whole civilized world, or a great part of it, has gone money-mad, grasping after gold, and caring little or nothing as to how they acquire it; marrying for money, stealing for money, killing for money—anything to get money. "Put money in thy purse," seems to be the 'slogan of the present hour; which might be well enough, as to money honestly obtained, if more people were found willing to open their purses, take the money out again, and use it as the divine Giver intended it to be used, "How much is he worth in dollars and cents?" or "What is his capacity for making and keeping ?" is too often the gauge of a man's greatness in these modern times. A false standard, unworthy of a great nation and a great people.
What a predicament the world would be in if our Heavenly Father should act upon that principle? God's greatness is shown not so much by His ability to create and possess, as by His willingness to bestow, to give, to share, to minister to the welfare and happiness of His children, to provide ways and means for their advancement, opening for them the avenues of progress leading to those summits of glory which He Himself has attained. And He expects us to be like Him, to emulate His example, to be perfect even as He is perfect, according to our sphere.
Thank heaven there are some men and some women who bow not down to the god of gold; men and women who are not for sale; men and women with whom the Giver, not the gift, is supreme. Such a man was the Prophet Joseph Smith. Such were his associates and his successors. Such men lead us today, and such are all true Latter-day Saints, the world over.
Such a man was Orson Pratt, a true and genuine Apostle. "A rich man," said President John Taylor at his funeral. Yes, for "he who hath eternal life is rich." Eternal riches was his quest. In moderate, even lowly circumstances, so far as this world's wealth was concerned, he was rich in powers of mind and accumulations of knowledge; an intellectual and a spiritual millionaire.
Brother John T. Hand sang a tenor solo, entitled, "If with all your hearts ye seek Me."
Memorial Address in Honor of Orson Pratt, Apostle, Pioneer, Philosopher, Scientist, and Historian—Life and Character of "The St. Paul of Mormondom"—Illustrative Anecdotes All God's gifts designed for the General Good—The World gone Money- Mad—An Intellectual and a Spiritual Millionaire.
One hundred years ago, in a humble village of the Empire State, a man was born of whom it was said, as he lay in his casket at Salt Lake City on the 6th of October, 1881, that he had traveled more miles, preached more sermons, studied and written more upon the Gospel and upon science, than any other man in the Church. That man was Orson Pratt, and the speaker who eulogized him was Wilford Woodruff, his fellow Apostle and Pioneer.
There were many who knew Orson Pratt better than I, but none admired or esteemed him more. And yet my knowledge of him was not based upon intimate association; I scarcely knew him in a social way, and never had the opportunity to converse with him. My acquaintance with the man was wholly of a public character, and the information I possess concerning his career is shared by tens of thousands.
He was of English and Puritan descent, his father's ancestor, Lieutenant William Pratt, being among the first settlers of Hartford, Connecticut. Lieutenant Pratt's father was Reverend William Pratt, of Stevenidge, Hertfordshire, England. Orson Pratt was born at Hartford, Washington County, New York, Sept. 19, 1811. His parents were Jared Pratt and his wife Charity Dickinson. Orson was next to the youngest of six children. His elder brother Parley was destined like himself to become a noted preacher and writer, and one of the earliest settlers of the Rocky mountain region. Jared Pratt was a weaver and a tiller of the soil. He had no faith in creeds or churches, but taught his children to be moral, and to believe in the Bible.
Orson received his first schooling at New Lebanon, Columbia County, in his native State. To that place the family moved when he was three or four years old. He was sent to school several months in each year until the spring of 1822, when he hired out as a farm boy. Whether in school or out, his studious mind was always at work, and at intervals he picked up a knowledge of arithmetic, bookkeeping, geography, grammar and surveying.
Though a frequent reader of the Scriptures, he was not deeply concerned about religion until the autumn of 1829, when he began to pray fervently for spiritual light and guidance. About a year later two Elders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints came into his neighborhood and held meetings. One of these Elders was his brother, Parley P. Pratt, by whom Orson was baptized on the nineteenth anniversary of his birth. October of that year found him at Fayette, Seneca County, the birthplace of the Church, which was then only six months old. While there he met the Prophet Joseph Smith, and was confirmed by him a member and ordained an Elder on the first day of November, 1830. His first mission, taken soon after, was to Colesville, in Broome County.
Early in 1831 he followed the fortunes of the Saints to Ohio, and at Kirtland, where he presided . over the Elders, was ordained a High Priest by Sidney Rigdon. From that time forth he was busy traveling, preaching, and building up branches pf the Church. Among his converts in the Eastern States were his brother Anson, at Hurlgate, Long Island; Amasa M. Lyman, at Bath, New Hampshire; and the Farr, Snow, and Gates families in Vermont. At Kirtland he taught an evening grammar school, and was himself a student under Professor Seixas, a New York savant, who certified to his proficiency in Hebrew, after a course of instruction extending through eight weeks.
Orson Pratt helped to organize Zion's Camp, and during the journey to Missouri, whither the expedition went to reinstate the Jackson County Saints upon the lands from which they had been driven by mob violence, he had charge of several wagons. When cholera broke out in camp, he was one of those attacked by it, but his great faith and iron will saved him, while others perished. In Missouri he was a member of the High Council.
At Columbus, Ohio, in April, 1835, he learned that he had been chosen one of the Twelve Apostles, and was expected to be at Kirtland on the twenty-sixth of that month, for ordination. A journey of two days by stage-coach enabled him to arrive there on the day appointed, and he was ordained an Apostle under the hands of David Whitmer and Oliver Cowdery, two of the Three Witnesses to the Book of Mormon.
When the Church moved from Ohio, Orson Pratt was presiding over a large branch in New York City. Summoned to Far West, Missouri, which had become the headquarters of the Latter-day Saints, he was on his way there with his family, and had reached St. Louis, where he was ice-bound, the rivers being frozen, when he learned of the expulsion of his people from that State. He rejoined them at Quincy, Illinois, in the spring of 1839.
During the previous summer, while the Saints were still in Missouri, the Prophet, voicing the word of the Lord, had directed the Apostles to take a mission to Europe, and the appointment designated the very date upon which they should leave Far West, starting from the Temple lot in that city. This was before the mob troubles arose, and before there was any prospect of an armed collision between Missourians and Mormons. But now all was changed! The Saints had been driven out; and it was almost as much as a Mormon's life was worth to be seen in Missouri. The day set for the departure of the Apostles was approaching, but they were far away, and the mob leaders were boasting that "Joe Smith's prophecy" concerning the event would fail. Joseph himself was a prisoner in the hands of the Missourians, as was his brother, Hyrum Smith, also Parley P. Pratt, and other leaders; but Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, Orson Pratt,, John Taylor, and others of the Twelve were at liberty, and they determined to fulfill the Prophet's prediction. Accordingly before daybreak on the day appointed, April 26, 1839, they rode into Far West, held a meeting on the Temple lot, ordained Wilford Woodruff and George A. Smith to the Apostleship, and started upon their foreign mission; the enemy meanwhile wrapt in slumber, oblivious to what was taking place.
Delayed by the founding of Nauvoo, Illinois, and by an epidemic of fever and ague that swept over that newly settled region, the Apostles did not cross the Atlantic until about a year later. Landing at Liverpool, penniless, and among strangers, they remained in Great Britain a little over twelve months, during which period they baptized seven or eight thousand persons, and raised up branches of the Church in almost every noted city and town throughout ' the United Kingdom. They also established a periodical, "The Millennial Star," with Parley P. Pratt as editor; published five thousand copies of the Book of Mormon, fifty thousand tracts, and three thousand hymn books; besides emigrating a thousand people to Nauvoo, and founding a permanent emigration agency. The British Mission had previously been opened by Heber C. Kimball and Orson Hyde, with their associates; now its foundations were laid broad and deep.
In the assignment of mission fields Scotland fell to Orson Pratt. It has been said that a Scotchman should always be in the right, for he is hard to turn. The Apostle proved the truth of this saying during his experience in and around Edinburgh, where he fasted, prayed, and preached for nine months, succeeding, after much difficulty, in raising up a branch of more than two hundred members. His patient zeal never flagged. His dairy climbs up the slopes of Arthur's Seat, a mountain overlooking the town and from the summit of which he besought the God of Israel to give him the hearts of that people, is one of the picturesque episodes of "Mormon" missionary life. While upon this mission he published his pamphlet. "Remarkable Visions," the perusal of which drew many into the Church. He returned to America early in 1841.
During the next few years he resided at Nauvoo, where he had charge of a mathematical school, and was a member of the City Council. He also filled missions in the East, and at the City of Washington presented a memorial, prepared by himself and others, signed by the members of the Nauvoo City Council, praying for redress of the wrongs suffered by the Saints while in Missouri. During his leisure moments he calculated eclipses and prepared an almanac for publication in 1845. It was entitled "The Prophetic Almanac," and was calculated from the latitude and meridian of Nauvoo and other American towns. "From 1836 to 1844," says the Apostle, "I occupied much of my leisure time in study, and made myself thoroughly acquainted with algebra, geometry, trigonometry, conic sections, differential and integral calculus, astronomy, and most of the physical sciences. These studies I pursued without the assistance of a teacher." He was in the East when the Prophet and the Patriarch were slain, and returned to Nauvoo soon after the martyrdom.
The exodus of the Latter-day Saints from Illinois began in February, 1846. The Mississippi River was frozen over, and some of the companies crossed on the ice. Orson Pratt, who had recently returned from another eastern mission, was one of the leaders of this migratory p movement, which was destined to redeem an arid waste, and found an empire in the heart of the Great American Desert. During their slow progress over the snow-covered or rain-soaked prairies to the bluffs of the Missouri River, the pilgrims halted many times, and were even under the necessity of forming temporary settlements. Garden Grove and Mount Pisgah, at which places the leaders, in council, decided to send a company of pioneers to the Rocky Mountains, in advance of the main body of the people. Preparations for this expedition were under way when, at the Bluffs, in July, 1846, the enlistment of the Mormon Battalion, five hundred volunteers, as part of the United States military force then invading Mexico and her provinces, postponed the departure of the Pioneers until the next season.
Orson Pratt was one of the one hundred and forty-three men led by President Brigham Young from the Missouri River westward during the spring and summer of 1847. They started from the "Mormon" town of Winter Quarters (now Florence, Nebraska), about the middle of April, arriving in Salt Lake Valley on Saturday, the 24th of July. Brother Pratt entered the valley three days in advance of the general arrival.
It happened thus. President Young, after leaving Fort Bridger, had been attacked by mountain fever, and under his direction Orson Pratt, with a number of men and wagons, led the way down Echo Canyon, up East Canyon, through and over the Wasatch Mountains toward the shores of the Great Salt Lake. From the summit of Big Mountain, on the nineteenth of July, Orson Pratt and John Brown, riding ahead of their companions, caught the first glimpse of the valley; and on the 21st, Orson Pratt and Erastus Snow, the latter a messenger from President Young, emerged from Emigration Canyon, a little south of where Fort Douglas now stands. They had a single saddle horse, and were riding by turns. The day being warm. Brother Snow took off his coat and hung it loosely over the saddle bow. Missing it, he rode back toward the mountains to look for it, leaving his companion to walk on alone to the banks of City Creek. This stream then divided into two branches, one flowing south, the other west. Thus it was that Orson Pratt was the first of the Pioneers to tread the site of Salt Lake City.
Any other member of that historic band might have done as much had chance or destiny so decided; but how many of them could have laid out the town that was founded here that memorable summer? This honor also fell to Orson Pratt, who, assisted by Henry G. Sherwood, ran the original survey of Salt Lake City, on Monday, the 2nd of August. He ascertained the altitude of the Valley, and determined its latitude and longitude. We are also indebted to Orson Pratt and a few men like him for what we know of the experiences of the Pioneers during and after their journey to the West.
From the summer of 1848 to the spring of 1851, this Apostle presided 'over the European Mission, with headquarters at Liverpool. The British Isles contained at that time, according to his published statement, about 40,000 Latter-day Saints. President Pratt's reputation as speaker and writer had preceded him, and the sun of his fame now rose nigh to the zenith. As president, preacher, editor, and author, he labored almost incessantly. Every noted town in the three kingdoms heard the sound of his voice, deep, sonorous, powerful, proclaiming with fervid and fearless eloquence the principles he had been sent to promulge—the principles of the Everlasting Gospel. While editing the Millennial Star, he wrote, published and distributed many pamphlets on doctrinal, historical, and philosophical themes, and with means obtained from the sale of his works, supplied the urgent needs of a portion of his family who were still on the Iowa frontier. He was visiting them in the spring of 1850, when he received word from President Young that he was honorably released from his mission and at liberty to return to Utah.
In the Legislative Assembly of the Territory, almost from the beginning, Orson Pratt was a member of the Council, and he sat in every subsequent Legislature when at home. During several sessions he was Speaker of the House of Representatives.
As one of the corps of instructors of the University of Deseret, now University of Utah, he delivered, in the winter and spring of 1851-1852. a series of twelve public lectures on astronomy, which awakened general interest. He had now achieved fame in the field of higher mathematics, having discovered, in November. 1850, a law governing planetary rotation, and subsequently making other scientific discoveries. Professor Proctor, the astronomer, while lecturing at Salt Lake City early in the eighties, referred almost reverently to Professor Pratt, expressing the opinion that there were but four real mathematicians in the world, and that Orson Pratt was one of them. He was such an ardent lover of knowledge, and so anxious to disseminate it, that he offered to teach the youth of the community free, if they would give their time to study.
In August, 1852, he took up a temporary residence in Washington, D. C. where he published "The Seer," a periodical devoted to the dissemination of "Mormon" doctrines. In its columns appeared the revelation on Plural Marriage and Joseph Smith's prophecy on War. At the same time he presided over the Latter-day Saints in all the States of the Union and in the adjoining British provinces. Then followed another presiding mission in Great Britain, from which he returned by way of California, while Johnston's army, sent to Utah to put down an imaginary rebellion, was in winter quarters east of the Wasatch Mountains.
The spring of 1864 found the Apostle at Vienna, endeavoring to obtain a foothold for missionary work in the Austrian capital. But the laws of that country were too stringent for such an undertaking, and he, with his companion, Elder William W. Riter, returned to England. There President Pratt published, in May, 1866, an edition of his mathematical work, "Pratt's Cubic and Bi-Quadratic Equations." Three years later, in New York City, he transcribed and published the Book of Mormon in the phonetic characters of "The Deseret Alphabet."
August, 1870, was made memorable by a great public discussion in the Salt Lake Tabernacle, where Orson Pratt, the "Mormon" apostle, debated with Dr. John P. Newman, Methodist pastor and Chaplain of the United States Senate, the question, "Does the Bible sanction Polygamy?" The debate lasted three days, and was listened to by ten thousand people. The umpires, chosen by both parties, rendered no decision—that being one of the preliminary conditions—but it was the general verdict of "Mormons" and Gentiles that while Newman, was the more eloquent, ornately so, at least, Pratt was the better informed, and the more logical. Both men were thorough scriptorians, but the Apostle surprised even his learned opponent by his profound knowledge of the original Hebrew, and his clearcut mathematical demonstrations. The Boston "Banner of Light," commenting on the result, said: "Some one carrying more guns than Dr. Newman will have to be sent out missionarying among the 'Mormons.' "
In 1874 Orson Pratt became the Church Historian, an office held by him during the remainder of his days. In 1877 he went to England to transcribe and publish an edition of the Book of Mormon in the Pitman phonetic characters, but was recalled almost immediately by the death of President Brigham Young. The ensuing autumn found him revisiting scenes of early "Mormon" history, in company with his fellow Apostle, Joseph F. Smith.
December of that year brought another mission, the last one undertaken by this valiant veteran in the cause of Christ. It was his fifteenth voyage over the ocean; this time to stereotype and publish at Liverpool the Book of Mormon and the Doctrine and Covenants, as arranged by him in paragraphs, with footnotes and references. He also published while there his astronomical work, "Key to the Universe." In London he made a discovery regarding the Great Pyramid of Egypt, a discovery conclusively demonstrating to his mind that the date of the organization of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is symbolized in the chronological floor line of the Grand Gallery, in that ancient monument.
The Apostle was now advanced in years, almost upon the summit of his three score and ten. His appearance was truly patriarchal, hair and beard being white as snow. Powerful in build, though of but medium stature, he was still mentally and physically strong. During the whole period of his final mission, ending in September, 1879, he worked, for weeks at a stretch, not less than eighteen hours out of the twenty-four. The enfeebled state of his health after his return showed that the heavy labor had told severely upon him.
Two years later, on the third day of October, he died at his home in Salt Lake City. Just before breathing his last, he dictated to President Joseph F. Smith, who took down the words as the dying man uttered them, this epitaph, to be placed upon his tombstone: "My body sleeps for a moment, but my testimony lives and shall endure forever."
"The St. Paul of Mormondom”—as Tullidge styles him, was a preacher eloquent and powerful, a theologian learned and profound, a linguist to whom dead languages were an open book, a writer lucid and logical, a ' scientist of eminent attainments. Essentially a sage, having the philosophical temperament as well as the philosophical cast of mind, he might easily have been classed with the Wise Men of Greece, or even with the Hebrew Prophets.
The philosophical side of his nature may be illustrated by an anecdote. One of the evidences of the humble circumstances in which he lived was a weather-beaten though respectable straw hat which he wore both summer and winter. One day his daughter, Mrs. Joseph Kimball, asked him: "Father, why do you wear a straw hat in winter ?" "To keep my head warm," he answered. "But," she persisted, "is a straw hat warm in winter?" "Warmer than no hat at all, my daughter," was the reply—worthy of a Diogenes.
Another incident tells something of his power of concentration, and his ability to control his feelings — all the more remarkable, when it is known that Orson Pratt was as high-spirited as he was fearless and determined. He was preaching at Liverpool, in the open air, when a noisy fellow, pushing his way through the crowd and planting himself squarely in front, began to denounce him. The speaker, without deigning to notice the interruption, raised his stentorian voice, and going right on with his discourse, poured forth a volume of sound that completely drowned the voice of his would-be disturber. The fellow then shouted his objections, but the Apostle, still further increasing his own lung power, again rendered the tones of the hoodlum inaudible." This 'was kept up until the latter ceased from sheer exhaustion, and retired amid the laughter of the bystanders. The orator then lowered his voice to normal pitch, and continued his subject to the end.
Orson Pratt stood at the head of a patriarchal household, the husband of several wives, the father of forty-five children, thirty-two of whom, evenly divided as to sons and daughters, survived him. Many of these are present today. His direct descendants—children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren—now number nearly four-hundred.
It was a foregone conclusion that with a family so large, and a life so devoted to the public interest, he could hardly have died wealthy, even had he so desired. But it is exceedingly doubtful that he ever cherished such a desire. Had he been asked the question, once put to Agassiz, "Why do you not use your ability to acquire a fortune?" he would probably have answered, -as did the greatest naturalist, ' "I haven't the time."
He may have lacked the gift. Be it so. Perhaps he had other gifts, just as great, and even greater.' The mind must be fed, as well as the body. "Man shall not live by bread alone," and he who ministers to the intellect and the spirit is, and ought to be, as consequential in any community as the capitalist, the business man, the politician, the executive, whose skill is in governing men, or in acquiring and managing property, and ministering to the physical needs of his fellows. It may yet transpire that the true mission of the man of affairs, in one of its functions at least, is to free such men as Orson Pratt from the excess of business cares and burdens, and give them time to devote to other pursuits, just as important and quite as useful, in the long run, as those which the many most appreciate. Doubtless there were times when this man found it difficult to provide for his family the bread that perishes. One reason was that like his great Master, our Elder Brother, he had to "be about his Father's business," feeding a starving world with the bread of eternal life.
Why should any man assume, be he writer, preacher, or financier, that his ability was given for his own exclusive benefit, and his neighbor's ability for the benefit of the public? No gift from God was ever' intended for self aggrandizement. All such endowments are altruistic in purpose, and were designed for mutual help and the general good. Nor should aptitude in any direction be rated at its mere market value. Men pay most, as a rule, for things of least consequence. The gifts of the Gospel, which are not . to be purchased, which are beyond all price, would be discounted in any market in the world. They who despise any of God's gifts are fit subjects for the divine clemency. They should be forgiven, "for they know not what they do." All kinds of good men are needed in the work of the Lord, and some day, under a better social system than now prevails, they will be found laboring, every man for the interest of his neighbor, "and doing all things with an eye single to the glory of God."
"Without purse or scrip"—that was the insignia of the Apostolic mission; and He who gave that mission "had not where to lay his head." Not that He was powerless to provide for Himself and His friends, for He possessed all things; but He made His servants poor, that the world might be proved, and the Lord's true disciples known. He who gives even a cup of cold water to a servant of God athirst, shall in nowise lose his reward.
The American nation—the whole civilized world, or a great part of it, has gone money-mad, grasping after gold, and caring little or nothing as to how they acquire it; marrying for money, stealing for money, killing for money—anything to get money. "Put money in thy purse," seems to be the 'slogan of the present hour; which might be well enough, as to money honestly obtained, if more people were found willing to open their purses, take the money out again, and use it as the divine Giver intended it to be used, "How much is he worth in dollars and cents?" or "What is his capacity for making and keeping ?" is too often the gauge of a man's greatness in these modern times. A false standard, unworthy of a great nation and a great people.
What a predicament the world would be in if our Heavenly Father should act upon that principle? God's greatness is shown not so much by His ability to create and possess, as by His willingness to bestow, to give, to share, to minister to the welfare and happiness of His children, to provide ways and means for their advancement, opening for them the avenues of progress leading to those summits of glory which He Himself has attained. And He expects us to be like Him, to emulate His example, to be perfect even as He is perfect, according to our sphere.
Thank heaven there are some men and some women who bow not down to the god of gold; men and women who are not for sale; men and women with whom the Giver, not the gift, is supreme. Such a man was the Prophet Joseph Smith. Such were his associates and his successors. Such men lead us today, and such are all true Latter-day Saints, the world over.
Such a man was Orson Pratt, a true and genuine Apostle. "A rich man," said President John Taylor at his funeral. Yes, for "he who hath eternal life is rich." Eternal riches was his quest. In moderate, even lowly circumstances, so far as this world's wealth was concerned, he was rich in powers of mind and accumulations of knowledge; an intellectual and a spiritual millionaire.
Brother John T. Hand sang a tenor solo, entitled, "If with all your hearts ye seek Me."
ELDER ANTHONY W. IVINS
Tribute to founders and leaders of the Church.—Repentance and righteousness inculcated.-Characteristics of a righteous man.
After listening to the eloquent remarks which have just been made, and thinking of the many good things which have been said during the sessions of this conference, I feel very much as Alexander expressed himself at the death of his father, Philip, that there was nothing more left to be done; because it does seem to me that the doctrines of the gospel of Christ, that the ideals which it holds up to us, and which we are all expected to seek after and to emulate, have been so fully expounded that no man or woman who has been present need leave this assembly, this great conference gathering, in doubt as to his duty or her duty as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. For me to attempt to continue the subject treated by Elder Whitney would be like coming down from Point Lookout, on the Emigration Canyon railroad, into Liberty Park, in order that we might view the beauties of this valley. But his remarks have suggested one thought, a thought to which I shall venture to give a few moments discussion, and in order to emphasize it I will first read this brief verse from Proverbs, "Righteousness exalteth a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people."
I would like to amplify that and say that as righteousness exalteth a nation, so it exalteth a community, so it exalteth an individual: and as sin is a reproach to any people, so is sin a reproach to any individual. The one outstanding characteristic in the life of Orson Pratt—and when I refer to Orson Pratt I refer also to those men with whom he was associated, and with whom he labored— the one thing which has always appealed to me, the one thing which stands out in bold relief above all others, is the righteousness of their lives. They were not sinful men, but men who sought to do God's will, men who loved the Lord with all their hearts, men who devoted their lives to the welfare of humanity, because they loved their fellow man. To sin is to transgress the laws of God, and this they did not do. To sin is to be disobedient to the divine will, and this they did not do. To sin is to violate the command of God, either in purpose or in conduct; this they did not do. To sin is to perform any act which we know to be wrong, or to leave undone any known duty.
I love the memory of these men, the memory of the men who founded the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, men whose history has been written into the pages of the history of this Church, and the men who are now associated with it, directing its destinies, and managing its affairs, because I know them to be righteous men, and I know that God will exalt them. I know that He will exalt and magnify His people because of righteousness, not that righteousness prevails perhaps to the degree that it might, not that we are all entirely free from sin, not that we all do the will of the Father as we ought, not that there are not some of us who violate the command of God in purpose and in conduct,—but I sincerely believe, and that belief is the result of careful observation as I associate with the people, the great masses of Latter-day Saints are like these men, these historic men whose memory we hold so dear. They are righteous men and women.
Let me appeal to you, my brethren and sisters, you Latter-day Saints who are here this afternoon, that you remember this scripture which I have read, the far reaching importance of it, the effect upon the lives of individuals, communities and nations of works of righteousness, its effect for good, and the far reaching effect of evil, of transgression of the law of God, of sinful practices of sinful acts. If my brethren and sisters could think of this important question as I think of it, I feel certain that there would not be a soul in the Church whose resolution would not be to serve the Lord their God, and if there are sins, if there are those who have transgressed, thank the Lord for the doctrine of repentance, for He has provided that sinful men and women, men and women who have transgressed His laws may repent and receive a remission of their sins. I believe you will all agree with me that the tendency of the world at large is towards transgression of God's laws. Men and women are inclined to be sinful, and sin shuts us out from the presence of God and results in spiritual blindness and death, and so must we have continued forever, had not the Lord in His mercy, through the atonement of His Son Jesus Christ, provided that through repentance from sin we may be forgiven, and our sins be blotted out and remembered against us no more. We may thus be reestablished in the faith of our fathers, and in the fellowship of our brethren and our sisters.
Christ taught repentance from sin. John the Baptist proclaimed repentance, called upon people to forsake their sinful habits, to be baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and he declared to them that He who should come after, who was greater than he, would baptize them with fire and with the Holy Ghost, the Spirit of the Lord which fortifies us against sin when we have received it. And so the transgressor is not left without hope of everlasting life. It is only required of him that he come back to the Lord in humility, that he come back to Him in faith, that he repent of his wrongdoing. This it was which brought joy to the father of the prodigal son, not that he had been a transgressor, not that he had wasted his substance, not that he had consorted with wicked men and women. This did not make him better, far from it, but when repentance came to his heart and he returned and said, "Father I have sinned against heaven and before thee, and I am no longer worthy to be called thy son. I am willing to come back as thy servant, to serve thee henceforth, only that I may be forgiven." The heart of the father was touched. Why? Because this my son who was dead, this my son who had gone away from the truth, my son who had forgotten the Lord, forgotten me his father, is alive again. He has repented of his sins, he has seen his error, he has come back to me, and I forgive him with all my heart. And he rejoiced, just as the good shepherd rejoiced who, leaving the ninety-nine sheep which he had carefully gathered into the fold, went out into the storm and sleet of the mountain to look for the one lamb which had been lost, and when he found it he came back rejoicing because he had found that which was lost.
Christ bore witness to us that there was greater rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who shall repent and come back to the Lord, than over ninety-nine just men who need no repentance. He did not mean by that to depreciate the value of righteousness and the appreciation in which God our Father holds righteous men and women who have been faithful all their lives, but to illustrate the awful condition of a fallen soul; to illustrate the condition of one who denies God and gives way to sin, and is left without hope of everlasting life. When such a one returns it is like one redeemed from the dead. So, my brethren and sisters, men and women, our Father has placed us here that we may preach repentance to our fellows, extend the hand of sympathy to those who are in error, that we may redeem, if in our power it lies, the sinner in our midst, and bring him back into the fold of Christ. This characterized the lives of the men who founded this Church. This characterized the lives of all men and women who have believed in Jesus Christ as the Redeemer of the world, and it ought to characterize the life of every Latter-day Saint.
As I contemplate the truths of the gospel which have been expounded at this conference, this conviction comes to me, that I must be a righteous man, and yet I must not be a self-righteous man. I must be righteous in humility before the Lord, never glorying in my own strength, lest I fall. I must be a charitable man, and yet I must, be just, for whenever my charity shall prompt me to subvert justice, that which is righteous and right, I have perverted that great command of the Almighty. I must be tolerant in my views, but my tolerance must not lead me to indulgence, or to approve of indulgence in others. I must tolerate them in righteousness, in that which has the approval of the Lord and all good men, but not farther than that, for the Lord cannot look upon sin with any degree of allowance. I must be temperate, and teach others temperance. I must be truthful and teach truth to other people. I must be liberal, but I must not be extravagant, because that would be displeasing to the Lord. I must be an industrious man, laboring, striving after those things which are necessary in order that my wants and the wants of my family and the necessities of the Church of which I am a member may be provided for; but in my industry, in my desire to acquire and accumulate I must not be selfish. I must not seek to unrighteously possess myself of that which belongs to another, but carefully consider the welfare, the rights, property rights of my brethren and sisters. I may be ambitious, for the Lord desires that we shall strive for better things; but my ambition, the accomplishment of my own purposes must never be at the expense of that which properly belongs to my fellows. I must not destroy or tear down in order that I may build myself up, but in humility labor, accepting that which comes to me with gratitude to the Lord, seeking to add to it by righteous means. I must be charitable; I must love my fellow .men; I must seek to administer to him. In other words, I must do just what this passage of scripture says I ought to do. I must endeavor in my life to be governed by principles of righteousness and not transgress either in purpose or in conduct the commandments of the Lord my God.
Now, my brethren and sisters, if we can all go out with this truth fixed in our hearts, resolved that as the Lord gives us strength so will we become, if we are not already, so will we continue who are already, to be righteous men and women, fearing to do wrong, daring always to do that which is right, advocating the truth, with our faces firmly but not aggressively set against evil of all kinds, that we may not be intense partisans, but that we may with firmness, consistency, and humility continue true to the commandments which God has given us, advocating them in the world and exemplifying them in our lives. Then, the Lord will always be with us, and He will magnify and exalt us, and He will make us what He desires that this Church shall be, a light to all the world, setting examples worthy of emulation, that other men and women, seeing them, may be led to glorify the name of God our Father and to repent of their sins and keep His commandments. To this end may the Lord bless us and help us, I pray through Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Joseph F. Smith announced that another overflow meeting will be held in the Assembly Hall, at 2 p. m., also, if necessary, an outdoor meeting will be held outdoors, near the Bureau of Information, at the same hour.
The male members of the choir sang the hymn:
The morning breaks, the shadows flee';
Lo! Zion's standard is unfurled.
The dawning of a brighter day
Majestic rises on the world.
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Junius F. Wells.
Conference adjourned until 2 p. m.
Tribute to founders and leaders of the Church.—Repentance and righteousness inculcated.-Characteristics of a righteous man.
After listening to the eloquent remarks which have just been made, and thinking of the many good things which have been said during the sessions of this conference, I feel very much as Alexander expressed himself at the death of his father, Philip, that there was nothing more left to be done; because it does seem to me that the doctrines of the gospel of Christ, that the ideals which it holds up to us, and which we are all expected to seek after and to emulate, have been so fully expounded that no man or woman who has been present need leave this assembly, this great conference gathering, in doubt as to his duty or her duty as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. For me to attempt to continue the subject treated by Elder Whitney would be like coming down from Point Lookout, on the Emigration Canyon railroad, into Liberty Park, in order that we might view the beauties of this valley. But his remarks have suggested one thought, a thought to which I shall venture to give a few moments discussion, and in order to emphasize it I will first read this brief verse from Proverbs, "Righteousness exalteth a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people."
I would like to amplify that and say that as righteousness exalteth a nation, so it exalteth a community, so it exalteth an individual: and as sin is a reproach to any people, so is sin a reproach to any individual. The one outstanding characteristic in the life of Orson Pratt—and when I refer to Orson Pratt I refer also to those men with whom he was associated, and with whom he labored— the one thing which has always appealed to me, the one thing which stands out in bold relief above all others, is the righteousness of their lives. They were not sinful men, but men who sought to do God's will, men who loved the Lord with all their hearts, men who devoted their lives to the welfare of humanity, because they loved their fellow man. To sin is to transgress the laws of God, and this they did not do. To sin is to be disobedient to the divine will, and this they did not do. To sin is to violate the command of God, either in purpose or in conduct; this they did not do. To sin is to perform any act which we know to be wrong, or to leave undone any known duty.
I love the memory of these men, the memory of the men who founded the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, men whose history has been written into the pages of the history of this Church, and the men who are now associated with it, directing its destinies, and managing its affairs, because I know them to be righteous men, and I know that God will exalt them. I know that He will exalt and magnify His people because of righteousness, not that righteousness prevails perhaps to the degree that it might, not that we are all entirely free from sin, not that we all do the will of the Father as we ought, not that there are not some of us who violate the command of God in purpose and in conduct,—but I sincerely believe, and that belief is the result of careful observation as I associate with the people, the great masses of Latter-day Saints are like these men, these historic men whose memory we hold so dear. They are righteous men and women.
Let me appeal to you, my brethren and sisters, you Latter-day Saints who are here this afternoon, that you remember this scripture which I have read, the far reaching importance of it, the effect upon the lives of individuals, communities and nations of works of righteousness, its effect for good, and the far reaching effect of evil, of transgression of the law of God, of sinful practices of sinful acts. If my brethren and sisters could think of this important question as I think of it, I feel certain that there would not be a soul in the Church whose resolution would not be to serve the Lord their God, and if there are sins, if there are those who have transgressed, thank the Lord for the doctrine of repentance, for He has provided that sinful men and women, men and women who have transgressed His laws may repent and receive a remission of their sins. I believe you will all agree with me that the tendency of the world at large is towards transgression of God's laws. Men and women are inclined to be sinful, and sin shuts us out from the presence of God and results in spiritual blindness and death, and so must we have continued forever, had not the Lord in His mercy, through the atonement of His Son Jesus Christ, provided that through repentance from sin we may be forgiven, and our sins be blotted out and remembered against us no more. We may thus be reestablished in the faith of our fathers, and in the fellowship of our brethren and our sisters.
Christ taught repentance from sin. John the Baptist proclaimed repentance, called upon people to forsake their sinful habits, to be baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and he declared to them that He who should come after, who was greater than he, would baptize them with fire and with the Holy Ghost, the Spirit of the Lord which fortifies us against sin when we have received it. And so the transgressor is not left without hope of everlasting life. It is only required of him that he come back to the Lord in humility, that he come back to Him in faith, that he repent of his wrongdoing. This it was which brought joy to the father of the prodigal son, not that he had been a transgressor, not that he had wasted his substance, not that he had consorted with wicked men and women. This did not make him better, far from it, but when repentance came to his heart and he returned and said, "Father I have sinned against heaven and before thee, and I am no longer worthy to be called thy son. I am willing to come back as thy servant, to serve thee henceforth, only that I may be forgiven." The heart of the father was touched. Why? Because this my son who was dead, this my son who had gone away from the truth, my son who had forgotten the Lord, forgotten me his father, is alive again. He has repented of his sins, he has seen his error, he has come back to me, and I forgive him with all my heart. And he rejoiced, just as the good shepherd rejoiced who, leaving the ninety-nine sheep which he had carefully gathered into the fold, went out into the storm and sleet of the mountain to look for the one lamb which had been lost, and when he found it he came back rejoicing because he had found that which was lost.
Christ bore witness to us that there was greater rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who shall repent and come back to the Lord, than over ninety-nine just men who need no repentance. He did not mean by that to depreciate the value of righteousness and the appreciation in which God our Father holds righteous men and women who have been faithful all their lives, but to illustrate the awful condition of a fallen soul; to illustrate the condition of one who denies God and gives way to sin, and is left without hope of everlasting life. When such a one returns it is like one redeemed from the dead. So, my brethren and sisters, men and women, our Father has placed us here that we may preach repentance to our fellows, extend the hand of sympathy to those who are in error, that we may redeem, if in our power it lies, the sinner in our midst, and bring him back into the fold of Christ. This characterized the lives of the men who founded this Church. This characterized the lives of all men and women who have believed in Jesus Christ as the Redeemer of the world, and it ought to characterize the life of every Latter-day Saint.
As I contemplate the truths of the gospel which have been expounded at this conference, this conviction comes to me, that I must be a righteous man, and yet I must not be a self-righteous man. I must be righteous in humility before the Lord, never glorying in my own strength, lest I fall. I must be a charitable man, and yet I must, be just, for whenever my charity shall prompt me to subvert justice, that which is righteous and right, I have perverted that great command of the Almighty. I must be tolerant in my views, but my tolerance must not lead me to indulgence, or to approve of indulgence in others. I must tolerate them in righteousness, in that which has the approval of the Lord and all good men, but not farther than that, for the Lord cannot look upon sin with any degree of allowance. I must be temperate, and teach others temperance. I must be truthful and teach truth to other people. I must be liberal, but I must not be extravagant, because that would be displeasing to the Lord. I must be an industrious man, laboring, striving after those things which are necessary in order that my wants and the wants of my family and the necessities of the Church of which I am a member may be provided for; but in my industry, in my desire to acquire and accumulate I must not be selfish. I must not seek to unrighteously possess myself of that which belongs to another, but carefully consider the welfare, the rights, property rights of my brethren and sisters. I may be ambitious, for the Lord desires that we shall strive for better things; but my ambition, the accomplishment of my own purposes must never be at the expense of that which properly belongs to my fellows. I must not destroy or tear down in order that I may build myself up, but in humility labor, accepting that which comes to me with gratitude to the Lord, seeking to add to it by righteous means. I must be charitable; I must love my fellow .men; I must seek to administer to him. In other words, I must do just what this passage of scripture says I ought to do. I must endeavor in my life to be governed by principles of righteousness and not transgress either in purpose or in conduct the commandments of the Lord my God.
Now, my brethren and sisters, if we can all go out with this truth fixed in our hearts, resolved that as the Lord gives us strength so will we become, if we are not already, so will we continue who are already, to be righteous men and women, fearing to do wrong, daring always to do that which is right, advocating the truth, with our faces firmly but not aggressively set against evil of all kinds, that we may not be intense partisans, but that we may with firmness, consistency, and humility continue true to the commandments which God has given us, advocating them in the world and exemplifying them in our lives. Then, the Lord will always be with us, and He will magnify and exalt us, and He will make us what He desires that this Church shall be, a light to all the world, setting examples worthy of emulation, that other men and women, seeing them, may be led to glorify the name of God our Father and to repent of their sins and keep His commandments. To this end may the Lord bless us and help us, I pray through Jesus Christ. Amen.
President Joseph F. Smith announced that another overflow meeting will be held in the Assembly Hall, at 2 p. m., also, if necessary, an outdoor meeting will be held outdoors, near the Bureau of Information, at the same hour.
The male members of the choir sang the hymn:
The morning breaks, the shadows flee';
Lo! Zion's standard is unfurled.
The dawning of a brighter day
Majestic rises on the world.
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Junius F. Wells.
Conference adjourned until 2 p. m.
OVERFLOW MEETING.
An overflow session of the Conference was held in the Assembly Hall, adjoining the Tabernacle, at 10 a. m., Sunday, Oct. 8th, 1911. The services were presided over by Elder Hyrum M. Smith.
The Temple choir under direction of Prof. C. J. Thomas, rendered the musical exercises.
The choir sang the hymn:
Sweetly may the blessed Spirit
On each faithful bosom shine;
May we every grace inherit;
Lord, we seek a boon divine.
Prayer was offered by Elder Ferdinand F. Hintze.
The choir sang the hymn:
Ere long the vail will rend in twain,
The King descend with all His train;
The earth will shake with awful fright,
And all creation feel His might.
An overflow session of the Conference was held in the Assembly Hall, adjoining the Tabernacle, at 10 a. m., Sunday, Oct. 8th, 1911. The services were presided over by Elder Hyrum M. Smith.
The Temple choir under direction of Prof. C. J. Thomas, rendered the musical exercises.
The choir sang the hymn:
Sweetly may the blessed Spirit
On each faithful bosom shine;
May we every grace inherit;
Lord, we seek a boon divine.
Prayer was offered by Elder Ferdinand F. Hintze.
The choir sang the hymn:
Ere long the vail will rend in twain,
The King descend with all His train;
The earth will shake with awful fright,
And all creation feel His might.
ELDER GERMAN E. ELLSWORTH
(President Northern States Mission.)
I am pleased, my brethren and sisters, to have the privilege of attending this general conference of the Church. I have been delighted and instructed by the counsel, advice and admonition that we have received thus far.
I sincerely pray that, while I occupy the time, the Spirit of the Lord will direct me, that I may clearly express the thoughts that come to me while standing before you. In the opening address, our beloved President, touched upon many of the glorious things that were revealed by the Lord to the Prophet Joseph Smith, for the education and preparation of His children upon the earth, to help them to come back and dwell with Him. Among the others, there was one thought which has been beautifully expressed by the poet that struck me forcibly. It is found in the hymn, "O My Father," wherein it says:
"I had learned to call Thee Father,
Through Thy Spirit from on high,
But, until the key of knowledge
Was restored, I knew not why."
Most little children in the earth have been taught by parents and teachers to worship some kind of a Supreme Being, and for lack of power to explain their God they have taught them to worship our Father as a reality. Naturally, they have looked upon "Our Father in Heaven" as a personal being, the prototype of men, and in whose image we were created. It is only when the children have grown older that they worship the Lord (if they worship at all), in the abstract. They try to worship a being without body, without parts, and without passions. In this regard, we were like the rest of the world until the restoration of the Gospel. But, when the "key of knowledge was restored," we then understood really who God and Christ are. They visited the Prophet Joseph Smith, and revealed again Their true character to the world, which revelation enables us to know better than the rest of mankind who God and Christ are. As one, of the speakers quoted yesterday, "To know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent, is life eternal." True, we have the scriptures that have been an aid in bringing much light and information into the world, but in addition to the ancient scriptures, we have the glorious revelations and manifestations of our Heavenly Father to the Prophet Joseph Smith, and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter- day Saints, which light and truth is causing thousands in the denominations and sects of the world to also believe in a personal God. As Latter-day Saints we ought to rejoice in these things. It has also been revealed and taught to the Latter-day Saints that, associated with our Father in Heaven we have a Mother there. The poet, in the same verse partly quoted above, gave expression to this beautiful truth:
"In the heavens are parents single?
No; the thought makes reason stare!
Truth is reason; truth eternal
Tells me I've a Mother there."
The people of the world, in a large measure, after eighty years have elapsed, are growing in belief in the consistency of this idea; they are beginning to say if we had a Father in Heaven, we must have had a mother, and to sustain that thought they quote the scripture, "God created Adam and Eve in His own image, male and female created He them."
During the late conference of the Northern States Mission, in Nauvoo, the fact was impressed upon my mind concerning the great liberty, rights and privileges that were asserted by the Prophet Joseph Smith should belong to women, in the organization of the Relief Society of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Since that time many organizations have sprung up among the women in this and other lands. They have been given a chance to become in very deed the helpmeets of men, and their equal in many of the walks of life. Today we find numerous societies, clubs and organizations for the betterment, education and upbuilding of the women of the world. They have been given liberty, and opportunity for advancement far more since the Prophet Joseph Smith's day than in almost any other period in the history of the world. This is in keeping with what was promised concerning the last days, that knowledge should be multiplied, and that "truth should spring out of the earth and righteousness look down from heaven," not only for the blessing of men, but also for the women, for all of God's children, both male and female. I believe that the light of the Gospel is now rapidly permeating the whole world, and particularly the Christian world, along the lines revealed to our great Latter-day Prophet, and these truths are being recognized as coming from the Lord. Thousands now are heard to express a belief in God as being our Father, and having some kind of personality. Some sectarian ministers are now preaching that Christ was the revelation of God the Father to the children of men; and, while many may still believe that He is a spirit, or an essence, or some other substance, they are tending toward an absolute belief that Christ was a resurrected man, or a resurrected Redeemer, with a body of flesh and bones.
I believe, too, that the Christian world are fast growing to comprehend the true mission of women in the earth. Particularly in the last few years is this manifest. The thinking classes are now proclaiming to the world that the highest mission of women is to be mothers, and to seek to build up a better race—to successfully do their part in peopling the earth with a noble and intelligent class of citizens. In harmony with this idea, one of the present-day poets has expressed the same truth of motherhood in heaven as found in the "O My Father" hymn. I will read this to you, for it illustrates how the spirit of the Gospel is. taking hold of the children of our Father, and it is in harmony with the declaration of President Joseph F. Smith concerning light coming into the world through the Prophet Joseph Smith. The poem is entitled "Completion," by its author, Ella Wheeler Wilcox, but I have called it "Eternal Motherhood," and it is, as I have said, in harmony with the idea of our having a mother in heaven, and in harmony with the light that has been given to the world, in relation to this subject.
When I shall meet God's generous dispensers
Of all the riches in the heavenly store,
Those lesser gods, who act as recompensers
For loneliness and loss upon this shore,
Methinks, abashed, and somewhat hesitating,
My soul its wish and longing will declare,
Lest they reply: "Here are no bounties waiting:
We gave on earth, your portion and your share."
Then I shall answer: "Yea, I do remember
The many blessings to my life allowed;
My June was always longer than December,
My sun was always stronger than my cloud,
My joy was ever deeper than mv sorrow,
My gain was ever greater than my loss,
My yesterday seemed less than my tomorrow,
The crown looked always larger than the cross.
"I have known love in all its radiant splendor;
It shone upon my pathway to the end.
I trod no road that did not bloom with tender
And fragrant blossoms planted by some friend.
And those material things we call successes,
In modest measure crowned my earthly lot.
Yet was there one sweet happiness that blesses
The life of woman which to me came not.
"I knew the hope of motherhood; a season
I felt a fluttering heart beat 'neath my own;
A little cry—then silence. For that reason
I dare, to you, my only wish make known.
The babe who grew to angelhood in heaven,
I never watched unfold from child to man,
And so I ask that unto me be given
That motherhood which was God's primal plan.
"All womankind He meant to share its glories.
He meant us all to nurse our babes to rest,
To croon them songs, to tell them sleepy stories,
Else why the wonder of a woman's breast?
He must provide for all earth's cheated mothers
In His vast space of shining sphere on sphere,
And with my son there must be many others --
My spirit children who will claim me here.
"Fair creatures by my loving thoughts created --
Too finely fashioned for a mortal birth--
Between the border of two worlds they waited
Until they saw my spirit leave the earth.
In God's great nursery they must be waiting
To welcome me with many an infant wile.
Now let me go and satisfy this longing
To mother children for a little while."
Now the light along this and every other line revealed to the Prophet Joseph Smith is permeating the hearts of the children of men, and though they have not acknowledged the source; the time will soon come when they will be glad to give credit where credit is due, and even praise the Lord for that source by which light and information have been given to the world. The Latter-day Saints, above all people, have defended and upheld the high moral standard of woman, and her divine mission and work in the earth. The Lord has acknowledged their labors upon the earth; He has borne witness in the hearts of the women that they are placed upon the earth to be mothers of the children of God, and in rearing their sons and daughters have joy and satisfaction. The women of Zion can rejoice and take heart in the great calling given them, in being privileged to be the earthly mothers of the elect sons of our Heavenly Father. God loves them, and has manifested that they are blessed above all other women of the earth. They will be thrice welcome in His kingdom for their faithfulness and devotion to their high calling of motherhood.
May the light and intelligence that God has so abundantly given to the Latter-day Saints eventually permeate the hearts of all the children of men, till God's kingdom is established and His will be done in earth as it is done in heaven, is my prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen.
(President Northern States Mission.)
I am pleased, my brethren and sisters, to have the privilege of attending this general conference of the Church. I have been delighted and instructed by the counsel, advice and admonition that we have received thus far.
I sincerely pray that, while I occupy the time, the Spirit of the Lord will direct me, that I may clearly express the thoughts that come to me while standing before you. In the opening address, our beloved President, touched upon many of the glorious things that were revealed by the Lord to the Prophet Joseph Smith, for the education and preparation of His children upon the earth, to help them to come back and dwell with Him. Among the others, there was one thought which has been beautifully expressed by the poet that struck me forcibly. It is found in the hymn, "O My Father," wherein it says:
"I had learned to call Thee Father,
Through Thy Spirit from on high,
But, until the key of knowledge
Was restored, I knew not why."
Most little children in the earth have been taught by parents and teachers to worship some kind of a Supreme Being, and for lack of power to explain their God they have taught them to worship our Father as a reality. Naturally, they have looked upon "Our Father in Heaven" as a personal being, the prototype of men, and in whose image we were created. It is only when the children have grown older that they worship the Lord (if they worship at all), in the abstract. They try to worship a being without body, without parts, and without passions. In this regard, we were like the rest of the world until the restoration of the Gospel. But, when the "key of knowledge was restored," we then understood really who God and Christ are. They visited the Prophet Joseph Smith, and revealed again Their true character to the world, which revelation enables us to know better than the rest of mankind who God and Christ are. As one, of the speakers quoted yesterday, "To know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent, is life eternal." True, we have the scriptures that have been an aid in bringing much light and information into the world, but in addition to the ancient scriptures, we have the glorious revelations and manifestations of our Heavenly Father to the Prophet Joseph Smith, and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter- day Saints, which light and truth is causing thousands in the denominations and sects of the world to also believe in a personal God. As Latter-day Saints we ought to rejoice in these things. It has also been revealed and taught to the Latter-day Saints that, associated with our Father in Heaven we have a Mother there. The poet, in the same verse partly quoted above, gave expression to this beautiful truth:
"In the heavens are parents single?
No; the thought makes reason stare!
Truth is reason; truth eternal
Tells me I've a Mother there."
The people of the world, in a large measure, after eighty years have elapsed, are growing in belief in the consistency of this idea; they are beginning to say if we had a Father in Heaven, we must have had a mother, and to sustain that thought they quote the scripture, "God created Adam and Eve in His own image, male and female created He them."
During the late conference of the Northern States Mission, in Nauvoo, the fact was impressed upon my mind concerning the great liberty, rights and privileges that were asserted by the Prophet Joseph Smith should belong to women, in the organization of the Relief Society of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Since that time many organizations have sprung up among the women in this and other lands. They have been given a chance to become in very deed the helpmeets of men, and their equal in many of the walks of life. Today we find numerous societies, clubs and organizations for the betterment, education and upbuilding of the women of the world. They have been given liberty, and opportunity for advancement far more since the Prophet Joseph Smith's day than in almost any other period in the history of the world. This is in keeping with what was promised concerning the last days, that knowledge should be multiplied, and that "truth should spring out of the earth and righteousness look down from heaven," not only for the blessing of men, but also for the women, for all of God's children, both male and female. I believe that the light of the Gospel is now rapidly permeating the whole world, and particularly the Christian world, along the lines revealed to our great Latter-day Prophet, and these truths are being recognized as coming from the Lord. Thousands now are heard to express a belief in God as being our Father, and having some kind of personality. Some sectarian ministers are now preaching that Christ was the revelation of God the Father to the children of men; and, while many may still believe that He is a spirit, or an essence, or some other substance, they are tending toward an absolute belief that Christ was a resurrected man, or a resurrected Redeemer, with a body of flesh and bones.
I believe, too, that the Christian world are fast growing to comprehend the true mission of women in the earth. Particularly in the last few years is this manifest. The thinking classes are now proclaiming to the world that the highest mission of women is to be mothers, and to seek to build up a better race—to successfully do their part in peopling the earth with a noble and intelligent class of citizens. In harmony with this idea, one of the present-day poets has expressed the same truth of motherhood in heaven as found in the "O My Father" hymn. I will read this to you, for it illustrates how the spirit of the Gospel is. taking hold of the children of our Father, and it is in harmony with the declaration of President Joseph F. Smith concerning light coming into the world through the Prophet Joseph Smith. The poem is entitled "Completion," by its author, Ella Wheeler Wilcox, but I have called it "Eternal Motherhood," and it is, as I have said, in harmony with the idea of our having a mother in heaven, and in harmony with the light that has been given to the world, in relation to this subject.
When I shall meet God's generous dispensers
Of all the riches in the heavenly store,
Those lesser gods, who act as recompensers
For loneliness and loss upon this shore,
Methinks, abashed, and somewhat hesitating,
My soul its wish and longing will declare,
Lest they reply: "Here are no bounties waiting:
We gave on earth, your portion and your share."
Then I shall answer: "Yea, I do remember
The many blessings to my life allowed;
My June was always longer than December,
My sun was always stronger than my cloud,
My joy was ever deeper than mv sorrow,
My gain was ever greater than my loss,
My yesterday seemed less than my tomorrow,
The crown looked always larger than the cross.
"I have known love in all its radiant splendor;
It shone upon my pathway to the end.
I trod no road that did not bloom with tender
And fragrant blossoms planted by some friend.
And those material things we call successes,
In modest measure crowned my earthly lot.
Yet was there one sweet happiness that blesses
The life of woman which to me came not.
"I knew the hope of motherhood; a season
I felt a fluttering heart beat 'neath my own;
A little cry—then silence. For that reason
I dare, to you, my only wish make known.
The babe who grew to angelhood in heaven,
I never watched unfold from child to man,
And so I ask that unto me be given
That motherhood which was God's primal plan.
"All womankind He meant to share its glories.
He meant us all to nurse our babes to rest,
To croon them songs, to tell them sleepy stories,
Else why the wonder of a woman's breast?
He must provide for all earth's cheated mothers
In His vast space of shining sphere on sphere,
And with my son there must be many others --
My spirit children who will claim me here.
"Fair creatures by my loving thoughts created --
Too finely fashioned for a mortal birth--
Between the border of two worlds they waited
Until they saw my spirit leave the earth.
In God's great nursery they must be waiting
To welcome me with many an infant wile.
Now let me go and satisfy this longing
To mother children for a little while."
Now the light along this and every other line revealed to the Prophet Joseph Smith is permeating the hearts of the children of men, and though they have not acknowledged the source; the time will soon come when they will be glad to give credit where credit is due, and even praise the Lord for that source by which light and information have been given to the world. The Latter-day Saints, above all people, have defended and upheld the high moral standard of woman, and her divine mission and work in the earth. The Lord has acknowledged their labors upon the earth; He has borne witness in the hearts of the women that they are placed upon the earth to be mothers of the children of God, and in rearing their sons and daughters have joy and satisfaction. The women of Zion can rejoice and take heart in the great calling given them, in being privileged to be the earthly mothers of the elect sons of our Heavenly Father. God loves them, and has manifested that they are blessed above all other women of the earth. They will be thrice welcome in His kingdom for their faithfulness and devotion to their high calling of motherhood.
May the light and intelligence that God has so abundantly given to the Latter-day Saints eventually permeate the hearts of all the children of men, till God's kingdom is established and His will be done in earth as it is done in heaven, is my prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen.
ELDER MELVIN J. BALLARD.
(President of Northwestern States Mission.)
Our beloved President, Joseph F. Smith, in his opening address to this conference, made reference to some of the material things In which the Church has been interested. It has caused me to think, my brethren and sisters, that God is interested in the material condition of His children, as much, perhaps, as He is in their spiritual welfare, for, to Him, all things are spiritual. I have discovered this, as you who have been preaching the gospel have also, that it is exceeding difficult to interest in our message men or women who are hungry, or who are in dire necessity for the things of life, or whose lives are so depressed by long hours of service that they are too tired to become interested in the gospel.
Looking over the past, we discover that God has always been interested in the material welfare of His children. How bounteously He has provided the things of' life that men are in need of, in the forming of the earth, in the organizing of the elements, in the soil and the water, the coal, iron and oil, the gold and the silver, and all things that are calculated to make life enjoyable upon the earth. And God designs that His bounties should be distributed in a just and right manner, that those who labor should enjoy the fruits of their labor, that the idler should "not eat the bread or wear the raiment of him who labors," and that there should be a just and honorable distribution among all His children. In the early ages of the world He gave, together with many spiritual laws, temporal laws also for the material interests of His people, the observance of which so perfected them in material as in spiritual things, that we are told of at least one great community who had "all things in common," and became perfect, so much so that God removed them from the knowledge of the world, or at least from that particular part of the earth, so that their place of habitation has not yet been discovered by men. I refer to Enoch and his people, whom the scriptures say were translated because of their perfection. Again, among the laws God gave to Moses He condescended to speak of material things. Many of these laws were intended as a "schoolmaster" to bring them to greater things that God had in mind for them, both spiritual and temporal.
When Jesus ministered among men He announced advanced spiritual laws, and, in all probability, He gave information with respect to material things as well. I cannot think that the apostles, of their own initiative, began to establish that order of things that made them to have "all things in common," so that the people brought, the scriptures tell us, all their earthly things and put them down at the apostles' feet for a common store. So also in the establishment of this latter-day work, God has likewise been concerned for the material welfare of His people. Many of the revelations given to the Prophet Joseph Smith, deal with temporal things, imparting information calculated to be an essential blessing to the people. The Prophet, himself, was instructed to labor for the material welfare of the people, in the building of cities, and in assisting to establish mercantile and other institutions looking to the benefit of the people; he seemed to keep these material things in mind, so much so that many on the outside have found fault with the Prophet on this account. I believe that they who complain have not properly understood the object the Church had in these matters.
I begin to realize the necessity of the Church taking interest in more than the spiritual welfare of the people, and I notice that this idea is growing in many of the leading churches of today. Recently a certain congregation in the east, replying to questions sent to them by the minister as to why they did not attend church, expressed themselves as being dissatisfied with what they heard there. One of the delinquent's said: "The reason is, you are always telling me about the time that I am going to wear a white robe; why don't you tell me how to get a few white shirts now?" I believe that feeling will continue to grow. There is complaint against the ministers, who are referred to as "sky pilots," that they live above the things of the earth, and are soaring beyond the comprehension of mankind, who are in need of assistance in the settlement of problems that ought to be solved now. Not that we contend the church should usurp the functions of the state, but, wherein the state lacks in ministering to the wants of the people, the church should provide for those wants.
We have discovered in the revelations of God to this Church, that He has provided, even in the minutest detail, for the government of the life of each member, his physical conduct as well as his spiritual regulation. For example, we are told we should "retire early to rest, and arise early, that we might be invigorated and refreshed;" that we should abstain from the use of tea, coffee, tobacco, liquor and other things that are injurious. Attention has also been paid to regulating the amusements of the people, in the dance, the theatre, etc. Members of other churches have ignored these dangers, 'and permit their children, in many instances, to mingle with men and women who have no character; nor do they seem to feel any responsibility for the moral welfare of their young men and women. We believe that the Church was justified in taking into consideration the needs of its boys and girls, and providing for them necessary and proper amusement. We believe that the Church has been justified in looking to the material welfare of the people in all directions.
Not long ago, an editor in the city of Vancouver, B. C, made an attack upon us, sarcastically, saying that we ought to go to the backdoors of Europe and bring the poor out to our communities, and make them till the soil, and then extract one-tenth of their earnings from them, that being the method, he said, by which the Church has become wealthy. ' It is no reproach upon us for preaching to the poor; don't you remember it was the poor that had the gospel preached unto them in the days of the Savior? If a tenth of their earnings has made the Church "immensely rich," what has the nine-tenths done for those who were before always dependent, having to go to the poor house when old age came upon them, and never knowing the joy of owning' their own homes. It is true that in the days that are past the Church did, through the Perpetual Emigration Fund, aid many men and women to come from the land of their nativity to this glorious land, and assisted them in becoming located upon the soil, helped them to acquire homes,- and saw them become independent, ninety per cent, we are told, eventually owning their own homes. The Church influenced them to construct irrigation ditches; and lent them aid and assistance in many ways. It helped them in the disposal of their crops; it assisted in the construction of a railroad, that enabled the products of the country abroad to be brought in, and the shipping out of products grown or manufactured here. Before the days of the railroad, the Church interested itself in the beet sugar industry, bringing machinery across the plains with ox-teams; but owing to the people not understanding beet culture as they do today, that enterprise was a failure then. But today, that industry has been established very largely through the efforts of the Church, so that beet farmers are now the most independent farmers in the community, they are well to do, as a rule, and this industry has been a great blessing to them in many respects.
The Church authorities saw the prices that were charged by transient merchants who brought their goods here to be sold, and, by their instigation, a commercial institution was organized, which purchased goods in large quantities, shipped them in cheaply, and, by selling to the people at reasonable figures, it became a great blessing to the men and women struggling here for a livelihood, and for means to rear and educate their children. This institution has since been a great price leveler. The Church sought to establish woolen mills, iron works, shoe factories, and other enterprises calculated to be a blessing to the people. It did not leave them in ignorance, but built school houses and meeting houses, and gave them opportunities to acquire information, until now our state ranks third among all the states in our Union in the matter of our education. No wonder the "Mormon" men and women pay their tithing; they have received abundant returns in the numerous blessings that have flowed to them in a material way and also in a spiritual way. They have never been robbed by the Church, and have no reason to complain, but many reasons to rejoice.
I do not raise any objection to the Church interesting itself in enterprises for the blessing of the community. I expect to see the day when the Church will aid even more than it is doing now. The law of tithing was calculated to be only as a "school master" to bring us to greater and better things. The greater and better things are that we shall reach that condition when we shall practice and enjoy that system of Enoch, which was revealed to the Prophet Joseph, and the keys of which are held by the Latter-day Saints today. This will eventually bring us to enjoy on an equality the material wealth of the world, so that we shall have no rich and no poor, and have no oppression of one by another. Men shall love each other, otherwise there would be no reign of peace, no millennium.
We have no quarrel with our Socialist friends. While we recognize they have some truth, yet what the world needs, more than socialistic system and methods, is a people so trained that they can keep themselves in line, and maintain high ideals and standards. Why was it that many of the communities that were founded and established to colonize and develop the west, outside of the Latter-day Saints, failed? A man in Portland recently told me there was something remarkable about our people, as he recounted the failures of others and our successes. I stated, it is the unity of our faith, constituting within us a strong binding force, so that we have been enabled to stand together for a long period without getting results, not becoming discouraged, but continuing mutually working for the common good.
Let me tell you that the solution of the great problem that is confronting the world today, between capital and labor, shall be completely solved through the instrumentality that God has devised, and through the faithfulness of the Latter- day Saints. An ensign, and a pattern to the world in these things, shall be raised and established through the men and women who have obeyed the "school-master." and are prepared to learn better and higher things. Let us fix our -eyes upon these things, for the Lord has decreed they shall be established. The men and women who do not obey the "schoolmaster," and keep themselves up to the standard of that law, will not keep the higher law. That man and that woman who pay their tithes, thereby witnessing that they are indebted to God, showing that they are but leasers of the portion of earth upon which they dwell, giving to Him grateful acknowledgment of His rightful ownership of it. and complying with the conditions upon which final ownership may be secured to them as an everlasting inheritance, unto them only will there be given the greater things.
Every man and woman ought to feel thankful unto the Lord for the glorious privileges that we have of being material assistance unto the Church. I know it is a splendid system that has been devised and given to the Latter-day Saints. God wants to make us unselfish: He wants to make us generous. He loves a generous giver, and He provides such with what He designs they shall bestow. He wants, not our dollars, but our hearts. In giving, our hearts should go with the gifts, this makes us truly liberal, as He is liberal.
The father and mother who are constantly giving to their children, providing them education and giving them social position, as well as the necessaries and comforts of life, and denying themselves personal comforts in order to bestow the means upon their children, should have respect, grateful acknowledgment, and honor from their boys and girls. I have looked with sorrow upon boys and girls who have been indulged by their parents and then complained that they did not get more, that they were not given a better hat, or a better suit of clothes, and thus brought grief to their parents who were doing all they could for them, even with great sacrifice to themselves. I have looked with sorrow upon fathers and mothers under such conditions as these, when their children seemed to be ungrateful. What is the return that the father and mother want? They merely desire that their son or daughter acknowledge their obligation for the generous support and provision that is made for them. Such boys and girls ought to go to their fathers and mothers, put their arms around them and kiss them and say, God bless you father, God bless you mother, I appreciate your sacrifice, and I want to do something for you. What can I do? That pays and compensates the heart of that father and mother.
God is like our fathers and mothers in His great, grand scheme of giving to and providing for His children, and He is grieved when He sees us receiving ungratefully the good things that He provides, coveting what He gives to others, and begrudging that which ' we should return as a tribute to Him. God loves to see a spirit of thankfulness manifested by His children.
God bless us and help us to keep fixed in our hearts and minds these things that He has revealed to us. Let us labor through these years of preparation—for we are in a state of preparation—to accomplish what the Lord has laid out for us to do, not only for our own salvation but for that of our children and, as much as lies in our power, for the salvation of all our brethren and sisters in the earth. God help us to live up to these high ideals, and merit His promised blessings, I ask in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
The choir rendered a selection, entitled, "Hushed was the evening hymn."
(President of Northwestern States Mission.)
Our beloved President, Joseph F. Smith, in his opening address to this conference, made reference to some of the material things In which the Church has been interested. It has caused me to think, my brethren and sisters, that God is interested in the material condition of His children, as much, perhaps, as He is in their spiritual welfare, for, to Him, all things are spiritual. I have discovered this, as you who have been preaching the gospel have also, that it is exceeding difficult to interest in our message men or women who are hungry, or who are in dire necessity for the things of life, or whose lives are so depressed by long hours of service that they are too tired to become interested in the gospel.
Looking over the past, we discover that God has always been interested in the material welfare of His children. How bounteously He has provided the things of' life that men are in need of, in the forming of the earth, in the organizing of the elements, in the soil and the water, the coal, iron and oil, the gold and the silver, and all things that are calculated to make life enjoyable upon the earth. And God designs that His bounties should be distributed in a just and right manner, that those who labor should enjoy the fruits of their labor, that the idler should "not eat the bread or wear the raiment of him who labors," and that there should be a just and honorable distribution among all His children. In the early ages of the world He gave, together with many spiritual laws, temporal laws also for the material interests of His people, the observance of which so perfected them in material as in spiritual things, that we are told of at least one great community who had "all things in common," and became perfect, so much so that God removed them from the knowledge of the world, or at least from that particular part of the earth, so that their place of habitation has not yet been discovered by men. I refer to Enoch and his people, whom the scriptures say were translated because of their perfection. Again, among the laws God gave to Moses He condescended to speak of material things. Many of these laws were intended as a "schoolmaster" to bring them to greater things that God had in mind for them, both spiritual and temporal.
When Jesus ministered among men He announced advanced spiritual laws, and, in all probability, He gave information with respect to material things as well. I cannot think that the apostles, of their own initiative, began to establish that order of things that made them to have "all things in common," so that the people brought, the scriptures tell us, all their earthly things and put them down at the apostles' feet for a common store. So also in the establishment of this latter-day work, God has likewise been concerned for the material welfare of His people. Many of the revelations given to the Prophet Joseph Smith, deal with temporal things, imparting information calculated to be an essential blessing to the people. The Prophet, himself, was instructed to labor for the material welfare of the people, in the building of cities, and in assisting to establish mercantile and other institutions looking to the benefit of the people; he seemed to keep these material things in mind, so much so that many on the outside have found fault with the Prophet on this account. I believe that they who complain have not properly understood the object the Church had in these matters.
I begin to realize the necessity of the Church taking interest in more than the spiritual welfare of the people, and I notice that this idea is growing in many of the leading churches of today. Recently a certain congregation in the east, replying to questions sent to them by the minister as to why they did not attend church, expressed themselves as being dissatisfied with what they heard there. One of the delinquent's said: "The reason is, you are always telling me about the time that I am going to wear a white robe; why don't you tell me how to get a few white shirts now?" I believe that feeling will continue to grow. There is complaint against the ministers, who are referred to as "sky pilots," that they live above the things of the earth, and are soaring beyond the comprehension of mankind, who are in need of assistance in the settlement of problems that ought to be solved now. Not that we contend the church should usurp the functions of the state, but, wherein the state lacks in ministering to the wants of the people, the church should provide for those wants.
We have discovered in the revelations of God to this Church, that He has provided, even in the minutest detail, for the government of the life of each member, his physical conduct as well as his spiritual regulation. For example, we are told we should "retire early to rest, and arise early, that we might be invigorated and refreshed;" that we should abstain from the use of tea, coffee, tobacco, liquor and other things that are injurious. Attention has also been paid to regulating the amusements of the people, in the dance, the theatre, etc. Members of other churches have ignored these dangers, 'and permit their children, in many instances, to mingle with men and women who have no character; nor do they seem to feel any responsibility for the moral welfare of their young men and women. We believe that the Church was justified in taking into consideration the needs of its boys and girls, and providing for them necessary and proper amusement. We believe that the Church has been justified in looking to the material welfare of the people in all directions.
Not long ago, an editor in the city of Vancouver, B. C, made an attack upon us, sarcastically, saying that we ought to go to the backdoors of Europe and bring the poor out to our communities, and make them till the soil, and then extract one-tenth of their earnings from them, that being the method, he said, by which the Church has become wealthy. ' It is no reproach upon us for preaching to the poor; don't you remember it was the poor that had the gospel preached unto them in the days of the Savior? If a tenth of their earnings has made the Church "immensely rich," what has the nine-tenths done for those who were before always dependent, having to go to the poor house when old age came upon them, and never knowing the joy of owning' their own homes. It is true that in the days that are past the Church did, through the Perpetual Emigration Fund, aid many men and women to come from the land of their nativity to this glorious land, and assisted them in becoming located upon the soil, helped them to acquire homes,- and saw them become independent, ninety per cent, we are told, eventually owning their own homes. The Church influenced them to construct irrigation ditches; and lent them aid and assistance in many ways. It helped them in the disposal of their crops; it assisted in the construction of a railroad, that enabled the products of the country abroad to be brought in, and the shipping out of products grown or manufactured here. Before the days of the railroad, the Church interested itself in the beet sugar industry, bringing machinery across the plains with ox-teams; but owing to the people not understanding beet culture as they do today, that enterprise was a failure then. But today, that industry has been established very largely through the efforts of the Church, so that beet farmers are now the most independent farmers in the community, they are well to do, as a rule, and this industry has been a great blessing to them in many respects.
The Church authorities saw the prices that were charged by transient merchants who brought their goods here to be sold, and, by their instigation, a commercial institution was organized, which purchased goods in large quantities, shipped them in cheaply, and, by selling to the people at reasonable figures, it became a great blessing to the men and women struggling here for a livelihood, and for means to rear and educate their children. This institution has since been a great price leveler. The Church sought to establish woolen mills, iron works, shoe factories, and other enterprises calculated to be a blessing to the people. It did not leave them in ignorance, but built school houses and meeting houses, and gave them opportunities to acquire information, until now our state ranks third among all the states in our Union in the matter of our education. No wonder the "Mormon" men and women pay their tithing; they have received abundant returns in the numerous blessings that have flowed to them in a material way and also in a spiritual way. They have never been robbed by the Church, and have no reason to complain, but many reasons to rejoice.
I do not raise any objection to the Church interesting itself in enterprises for the blessing of the community. I expect to see the day when the Church will aid even more than it is doing now. The law of tithing was calculated to be only as a "school master" to bring us to greater and better things. The greater and better things are that we shall reach that condition when we shall practice and enjoy that system of Enoch, which was revealed to the Prophet Joseph, and the keys of which are held by the Latter-day Saints today. This will eventually bring us to enjoy on an equality the material wealth of the world, so that we shall have no rich and no poor, and have no oppression of one by another. Men shall love each other, otherwise there would be no reign of peace, no millennium.
We have no quarrel with our Socialist friends. While we recognize they have some truth, yet what the world needs, more than socialistic system and methods, is a people so trained that they can keep themselves in line, and maintain high ideals and standards. Why was it that many of the communities that were founded and established to colonize and develop the west, outside of the Latter-day Saints, failed? A man in Portland recently told me there was something remarkable about our people, as he recounted the failures of others and our successes. I stated, it is the unity of our faith, constituting within us a strong binding force, so that we have been enabled to stand together for a long period without getting results, not becoming discouraged, but continuing mutually working for the common good.
Let me tell you that the solution of the great problem that is confronting the world today, between capital and labor, shall be completely solved through the instrumentality that God has devised, and through the faithfulness of the Latter- day Saints. An ensign, and a pattern to the world in these things, shall be raised and established through the men and women who have obeyed the "school-master." and are prepared to learn better and higher things. Let us fix our -eyes upon these things, for the Lord has decreed they shall be established. The men and women who do not obey the "schoolmaster," and keep themselves up to the standard of that law, will not keep the higher law. That man and that woman who pay their tithes, thereby witnessing that they are indebted to God, showing that they are but leasers of the portion of earth upon which they dwell, giving to Him grateful acknowledgment of His rightful ownership of it. and complying with the conditions upon which final ownership may be secured to them as an everlasting inheritance, unto them only will there be given the greater things.
Every man and woman ought to feel thankful unto the Lord for the glorious privileges that we have of being material assistance unto the Church. I know it is a splendid system that has been devised and given to the Latter-day Saints. God wants to make us unselfish: He wants to make us generous. He loves a generous giver, and He provides such with what He designs they shall bestow. He wants, not our dollars, but our hearts. In giving, our hearts should go with the gifts, this makes us truly liberal, as He is liberal.
The father and mother who are constantly giving to their children, providing them education and giving them social position, as well as the necessaries and comforts of life, and denying themselves personal comforts in order to bestow the means upon their children, should have respect, grateful acknowledgment, and honor from their boys and girls. I have looked with sorrow upon boys and girls who have been indulged by their parents and then complained that they did not get more, that they were not given a better hat, or a better suit of clothes, and thus brought grief to their parents who were doing all they could for them, even with great sacrifice to themselves. I have looked with sorrow upon fathers and mothers under such conditions as these, when their children seemed to be ungrateful. What is the return that the father and mother want? They merely desire that their son or daughter acknowledge their obligation for the generous support and provision that is made for them. Such boys and girls ought to go to their fathers and mothers, put their arms around them and kiss them and say, God bless you father, God bless you mother, I appreciate your sacrifice, and I want to do something for you. What can I do? That pays and compensates the heart of that father and mother.
God is like our fathers and mothers in His great, grand scheme of giving to and providing for His children, and He is grieved when He sees us receiving ungratefully the good things that He provides, coveting what He gives to others, and begrudging that which ' we should return as a tribute to Him. God loves to see a spirit of thankfulness manifested by His children.
God bless us and help us to keep fixed in our hearts and minds these things that He has revealed to us. Let us labor through these years of preparation—for we are in a state of preparation—to accomplish what the Lord has laid out for us to do, not only for our own salvation but for that of our children and, as much as lies in our power, for the salvation of all our brethren and sisters in the earth. God help us to live up to these high ideals, and merit His promised blessings, I ask in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
The choir rendered a selection, entitled, "Hushed was the evening hymn."
ELDER ANDREW KIMBALL.
(President of St. Joseph Stake.)
The Latter-day Saints are known as a peculiar people, and among their peculiarities is the fact that they are a plain and common-sense people, endeavoring to live in harmony as the sons and daughters of God. In listening to the remarks of those who have preceded me, I am strengthened in that thought, which I desire to dwell upon, that is, that we are looking forward to even a stronger degree of unity, not only unity in faith, but in material affairs as well. To attain to this position, I am inclined to advise, that those who are blessed today with the material things of life should restrain themselves a little, that they should hold back in the expenditure of funds upon their children, that there might, consequently, be a more equal condition. I regret to notice, without any disposition to criticize, however, the tendency towards classification. I have observed in our Church schools that parents who can afford to dress them well, are allowing their girls to attend school clad in silks and satins, with their heads adorned by expensive hats, and some of the boys also are dressed in the finest of fashionable clothing. The boys and girls that develop in this life to the best men and women, are usually children of poor parents. This habit I am speaking of to some extent humiliates' the feelings of those not well off.
I notice that there has been improvement among the ladies in that they have acquired the habit of uncovering their heads in our meetings. There is a better condition in this respect, they are thus on an equality, not trying to outdo one another, or to distract the attention of the congregation. This is enough to make us feel better for the change.
If you carefully observe the men and women who have made the best of this life, you will find that generally, they are those whose parents have not been able to squander means on their sons and daughters. At Berkley, California, one of the lecturers in the Summer School made this observation, that we must get back to first principles again. I submit, my brethren and sisters, that we ought to get back those sweet feelings that we enjoyed when the Saints would walk long distances to congregate, that they might have a good shake of the hands and meet on equality. I remember the early days in this valley, when our mothers wore the same kind of bonnets, and dressed in calico, they did not envy each other, they were all equal. But, I do not consider there is anything too good for the children of God, if we don't worship it. There is no fabric, too nice for the pure daughters of God. It is the flaunting of rich clothing in such a way as to annoy those who are less fortunate in life that creates inequality and hurts the feelings of the people. I do hope, my brethren and sisters, that we will endeavor to restrain ourselves in the follies and fashions of the world. In my experience I have learned that the men and women we love most are not those who dress the finest, but are those who make the best of the opportunities presented to them. The man and woman that we place in any position any time we need them, are they who will work cheerfully and do anything that is desired of them. We can depend upon such men. whether it be in the digging of a ditch or speaking in the. pulpit, whatever they may be called upon to do.
Regarding our missionaries, some of our Elders spend too much money in the world. While traveling in the mission field, T traveled almost absolutely without purse or scrip. It is to be regretted that some of our boys now find they have not enough faith to preach without purse or scrip in the world. We want our boys to go out among the people and win their way. "The laborer is worthy of his hire." I always thought it an unfair proposition that, when we go out and give our time, and make the sacrifice of the comforts of home, to carry the pearl of great price to the world, that the people are not willing to give us our food and a bed to sleep in. I think it is a mistake for us to spend so much money, we are not training the people of the world aright in that direction. I have experienced it, and know what I am talking about. In my own experience, and in association with other elders I have found we have succeeded best when we went without purse or scrip.
In this great educational period every boy and girl must go to school, we want them to go and we desire that they should have educational privileges. But what is it doing for us at home? If we want to have a weak generation of boys and girls give them a fine education and all the money they want for fashionable clothes and amusements. The rank and file of this people, the substantial element upon whom God may rely, will go right along avoiding extremes, and can always be depended upon. If we are going to reach the splendid condition Brother Ballard has been telling us about, it will be by restraining ourselves, getting back into the ranks, and using the common sense God has given us, not following after the foolish fashions of the world. I submit it matters little what the position may be, as a rule the strongest, the happiest, the best, and the wisest of men are those who dress simply and live simply, who work for the good of humanity. May God grant that we shall all realize these things, and march in the ranks with the people of God, who are building up His kingdom and accomplishing His purposes upon the earth, is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
(President of St. Joseph Stake.)
The Latter-day Saints are known as a peculiar people, and among their peculiarities is the fact that they are a plain and common-sense people, endeavoring to live in harmony as the sons and daughters of God. In listening to the remarks of those who have preceded me, I am strengthened in that thought, which I desire to dwell upon, that is, that we are looking forward to even a stronger degree of unity, not only unity in faith, but in material affairs as well. To attain to this position, I am inclined to advise, that those who are blessed today with the material things of life should restrain themselves a little, that they should hold back in the expenditure of funds upon their children, that there might, consequently, be a more equal condition. I regret to notice, without any disposition to criticize, however, the tendency towards classification. I have observed in our Church schools that parents who can afford to dress them well, are allowing their girls to attend school clad in silks and satins, with their heads adorned by expensive hats, and some of the boys also are dressed in the finest of fashionable clothing. The boys and girls that develop in this life to the best men and women, are usually children of poor parents. This habit I am speaking of to some extent humiliates' the feelings of those not well off.
I notice that there has been improvement among the ladies in that they have acquired the habit of uncovering their heads in our meetings. There is a better condition in this respect, they are thus on an equality, not trying to outdo one another, or to distract the attention of the congregation. This is enough to make us feel better for the change.
If you carefully observe the men and women who have made the best of this life, you will find that generally, they are those whose parents have not been able to squander means on their sons and daughters. At Berkley, California, one of the lecturers in the Summer School made this observation, that we must get back to first principles again. I submit, my brethren and sisters, that we ought to get back those sweet feelings that we enjoyed when the Saints would walk long distances to congregate, that they might have a good shake of the hands and meet on equality. I remember the early days in this valley, when our mothers wore the same kind of bonnets, and dressed in calico, they did not envy each other, they were all equal. But, I do not consider there is anything too good for the children of God, if we don't worship it. There is no fabric, too nice for the pure daughters of God. It is the flaunting of rich clothing in such a way as to annoy those who are less fortunate in life that creates inequality and hurts the feelings of the people. I do hope, my brethren and sisters, that we will endeavor to restrain ourselves in the follies and fashions of the world. In my experience I have learned that the men and women we love most are not those who dress the finest, but are those who make the best of the opportunities presented to them. The man and woman that we place in any position any time we need them, are they who will work cheerfully and do anything that is desired of them. We can depend upon such men. whether it be in the digging of a ditch or speaking in the. pulpit, whatever they may be called upon to do.
Regarding our missionaries, some of our Elders spend too much money in the world. While traveling in the mission field, T traveled almost absolutely without purse or scrip. It is to be regretted that some of our boys now find they have not enough faith to preach without purse or scrip in the world. We want our boys to go out among the people and win their way. "The laborer is worthy of his hire." I always thought it an unfair proposition that, when we go out and give our time, and make the sacrifice of the comforts of home, to carry the pearl of great price to the world, that the people are not willing to give us our food and a bed to sleep in. I think it is a mistake for us to spend so much money, we are not training the people of the world aright in that direction. I have experienced it, and know what I am talking about. In my own experience, and in association with other elders I have found we have succeeded best when we went without purse or scrip.
In this great educational period every boy and girl must go to school, we want them to go and we desire that they should have educational privileges. But what is it doing for us at home? If we want to have a weak generation of boys and girls give them a fine education and all the money they want for fashionable clothes and amusements. The rank and file of this people, the substantial element upon whom God may rely, will go right along avoiding extremes, and can always be depended upon. If we are going to reach the splendid condition Brother Ballard has been telling us about, it will be by restraining ourselves, getting back into the ranks, and using the common sense God has given us, not following after the foolish fashions of the world. I submit it matters little what the position may be, as a rule the strongest, the happiest, the best, and the wisest of men are those who dress simply and live simply, who work for the good of humanity. May God grant that we shall all realize these things, and march in the ranks with the people of God, who are building up His kingdom and accomplishing His purposes upon the earth, is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
ELDER CHARLES H. HART.
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
The question asked by one of old was? “Canst thou by searching find out God? It is interesting to me to observe man’ s efforts, without the aid of divine revelation to find out God. I would not disparage the argument from creature to creator, from design to designer; and yet I appreciate the limitations that there are to that line of argument. We have in scripture some instances of this process of reasoning "from nature up to nature's God." For instance, the Psalmist David exclaims: "The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament showeth his handiwork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night showeth knowledge. There is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard." There is also in the Book of Mormon a beautiful instance that occurs in connections with the controversy between Korihor, the anti Christ, and Alma, the great high priest. Korihor had been putting forth his agnostic arguments, and Alma meets him, in part, with this remark: "The scriptures are laid before thee, yea, and all things denote there is a God; yea, even the earth and all things that are upon the face of it, yea, and its motion; yea, and also all the planets which move in their regular form, doth witness that there is a Supreme Creator."
I noticed in the last number of the Improvement Era a beautiful selection along this line --
There is a God. The herbs of the valley, the cedars of the mountains, bless Him; the insect sports in his beam; the bird sings Him in the foliage; the thunder proclaims Him in the heavens the ocean declares His immensity; man alone has said, "There is no God." Unite in thought at the same instant the most beautiful objects in nature. Suppose that you see at once all the hours of the day, and all the seasons of the year a morning of spring and a morning of autumn—a night bespangled with stars and a night darkened with clouds — meadows enameled with flowers—forests hoary with snow—fields gilded by the tints of autumn—then alone you will have a just conception of the universe! While you are gazing on that sun which is plunging into the vault of the west, another observer admires him emerging from the gilded gates of the east. By what inconceivable power does that aged star, which is sinking fatigued and burning in the shades of evening, reappear at the same instant fresh and humid with the rosy dew of the morning? At every hour of the day, the glorious orb is at once rising, resplendent as noon-day, and settling in the west; or rather, our senses deceive us, and there is properly speaking, no east or west, no north or south in the world.
Proctor, the astronomer who once paid a just tribute to Orson Pratt whose memorial services are being celebrated today, Richard A. Proctor, in introducing his work entitled "Other Worlds than Ours," uses a scriptural quotation—"Lo, these are but a portion of His ways" —meaning the ways of the universe, the marvels of' the- universe—"Lo these are but a portion of His ways, they are but a whisper of His glory, and the thunder of His power who* can comprehend?" And yet, notwithstanding all the evidences that we have of the. existence of Deity — and the strong and legitimate argument that we have from design to designer, yet that is not of itself sufficient to reveal unto us all the attributes of God. Mr. Herbert Spencer, the great naturalist, after a life time in the study of nature, declared,
But one truth must ever grow clearer, the truth that there is an Inscrutable Existence everywhere manifested to which we can neither find or conceive beginning or end.
Again,
Amid the mysteries which become the more mysterious the more they are thought about, there will remain this one absolute certainty, that we are ever in the presence of an Infinite Energy, from which all things proceed.
Sir Oliver Lodge declared:
To my mind a great world-soul intimately connected with our own, is the most reasonable explanation of the process by which things came to be.
But notwithstanding this process of reason, we should not lose sight of the fact that without revelation we could not know all the attributes of God—could not. "find out the Almighty unto perfection."
Peter tells us in holy writ that, "all flesh is as the grass and the glory of man as the flower of. grass. The grass withereth and the flower thereof falleth away; but the word of the Lord endureth forever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you." Just as the statue of the Prophet Joseph and the statue of his brother the Patriarch stand upon granite foundations, so the gospel of salvation is grounded upon the granite bedrock of everlasting truth. It is an interesting fact that philosopher, poet and statesman, have grasped something of the great gospel truths. For instance, Joseph Smith placed emphasis upon the doctrine of faith. We have Sir Oliver Lodge asserting: "Faith and trust in the love and goodness underlying the universe seems to me to be the most vital and helpful thing."
Emerson exclaims:
Belief and love,—a believing love will lift from your shoulders a vast load of care. O, my brothers, God exists. There is a soul at the center of nature and over the will of every man so that none of us can wrong the universe. * * The whole course of things goes to teach us faith. We need only obey. There is goodness for each of us and by lowly listening, we shall hear the right word.
Carlyle gives us to understand that skepticism means not intellectual doubt alone, but moral doubt; all sorts of infidelity, insincerity and spiritual paralysis. That our minds are not given us to doubt with and cavil with but to come to some sure understanding upon matters concerning which we are to act.
Hugo tells us:
We live by affirmation, quite as much as we do by bread. That faith is a necessity, and woe to the man who believes nothing.
Carlyle also reminds us that
For man's well-being, faith is properly the one thing needful; how with it martyrs otherwise weak, can cheerfully endure the shame and the cross; and without it, weaklings puke up their sick existence by suicide in the midst of luxury.
Tolstoi, in his book, "What I Believe," confesses --
I only passed from Nihilism to the church, because I felt the impossibility of living without faith—without a knowledge of what is good and evil, resting on something more than upon animal instincts.
Take the words of the statesman in addition to that of the philosopher. We have Senator Beveridge in his work, 'The Young Man and the World,", advising the young man who is about to become a teacher to see first to this question of faith :—"Speaking as one of the men of the street, as one of the millions, I think the best thing for you to attend to is this question of faith, Faith is only another name for power." Look to your faith then you who seek to save the souls of men. The Prophet Joseph taught the true relation between faith and works. Likewise one of the poets approaches a statement of our own belief in these words:
If faith produce not works, I see
That faith is not a living tree.
Thus faith and works together grow,
No separate life they e'er may know.
They're soul and body, hand and heart,
What God hath joined, let no man part.
So we might go on with the views of the philosopher, poet, and statesman, corroborating this principle upon which the Prophet Joseph gave us corrected information.
There was published recently in Public Opinion a quotation from a speech or the writings of the great English premier, William E. Gladstone, in reference to the inconsistency of the skeptic. He said:
I contend that the skeptic is of all men the most inconsistent and irrational. He uses a plea against religion which he never uses against anything he wants to do or any idea he wants to embrace, viz., demonstrative evidence. Every day and all day long he is acting on evidence not demonstrative.
He then gives numerous illustrations, and goes on to say,
But when he comes to religion, he is seized with a great religious scrupulosity and demands as a pre-condition of homage to God what every where else he 'dispenses with and then ends with thinking himself more rational than other people.
This caused the editor of Public Opinion to remark:
We who believe ought not to stand upon the defensive. We have a right to demand that unbelief offer us some explanation of the phenomena of life, and show us that it is more probable than our explanation. What is your explanation of an intelligible universe if there is no intelligible God who has made us and who made it? What is your explanation of the fact that whenever man has emerged from a purely animal condition that there are altars and priests and temples and worship, if, in all these centuries he has found that worship unmeaning and unreal? What is your explanation of the fact that after eighteen centuries of moral and intellectual development and criticism and controversy, the Bible is still the world's best seller? What is your explanation of the fact that wherever the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth have become known He is the most revered and loved of all the figures in human history?
I think we have reached a stage in the history of "Mormonism" when we may properly assume the same attitude, and call upon the world to give its explanation of "Mormonism," of all the phenomena of "Mormonism." If individuals are not satisfied with the explanation that Joseph Smith gave of how he came by the Book of Mormon, and of the revelations contained in the Doctrine and Covenants, and of the translation of those ancient documents comprising the Pearl of Great Price, and of all the other numerous phenomena of "Mormonism"— if they are not satisfied, I say, with his explanation of these things, then we may say to them, What is your explanation of how these marvelous books came into existence? Are you satisfied with the Spaulding theory, of how the Book of Mormon came to be? Are you satisfied with the thought that Sidney Rigdon wrote the Book of Mormon, while, as a matter of fact, he never saw it until after it was published and handed to him by Parley P. Pratt? So we may demand the world's explanation of other phenomena of "Mormonism." The teachings of these brethren who have spoken during this conference up to this time are a part of this system of "Mormonism ;" and what is your explanation,—let me ask those who do not believe,—of these things? A testimony of these truths was deliberately sealed by the blood of the Prophet. What is your explanation of the marvels of "Mormonism?"
The responsibility rests upon the jury of the world who have access to the truth, to place a proper estimate upon the sincere testimony of the three witnesses, and of the eight witnesses, and the testimony of Joseph, and the testimony of the complete and perfect organization of the Church, and of the wonderful history of "Mormonism," and of all of its beautiful and divine doctrines.
Time does not permit a development of this theme; I can only suggest this line of thought to you. The Lord bless you. Amen.
The choir sang the hymn:
Come, all ye Saints who dwell on earth,
Your cheerful voices raise,
Our great Redeemer's love to sing,
And celebrate His praise.
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Joseph E. Robinson.
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
The question asked by one of old was? “Canst thou by searching find out God? It is interesting to me to observe man’ s efforts, without the aid of divine revelation to find out God. I would not disparage the argument from creature to creator, from design to designer; and yet I appreciate the limitations that there are to that line of argument. We have in scripture some instances of this process of reasoning "from nature up to nature's God." For instance, the Psalmist David exclaims: "The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament showeth his handiwork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night showeth knowledge. There is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard." There is also in the Book of Mormon a beautiful instance that occurs in connections with the controversy between Korihor, the anti Christ, and Alma, the great high priest. Korihor had been putting forth his agnostic arguments, and Alma meets him, in part, with this remark: "The scriptures are laid before thee, yea, and all things denote there is a God; yea, even the earth and all things that are upon the face of it, yea, and its motion; yea, and also all the planets which move in their regular form, doth witness that there is a Supreme Creator."
I noticed in the last number of the Improvement Era a beautiful selection along this line --
There is a God. The herbs of the valley, the cedars of the mountains, bless Him; the insect sports in his beam; the bird sings Him in the foliage; the thunder proclaims Him in the heavens the ocean declares His immensity; man alone has said, "There is no God." Unite in thought at the same instant the most beautiful objects in nature. Suppose that you see at once all the hours of the day, and all the seasons of the year a morning of spring and a morning of autumn—a night bespangled with stars and a night darkened with clouds — meadows enameled with flowers—forests hoary with snow—fields gilded by the tints of autumn—then alone you will have a just conception of the universe! While you are gazing on that sun which is plunging into the vault of the west, another observer admires him emerging from the gilded gates of the east. By what inconceivable power does that aged star, which is sinking fatigued and burning in the shades of evening, reappear at the same instant fresh and humid with the rosy dew of the morning? At every hour of the day, the glorious orb is at once rising, resplendent as noon-day, and settling in the west; or rather, our senses deceive us, and there is properly speaking, no east or west, no north or south in the world.
Proctor, the astronomer who once paid a just tribute to Orson Pratt whose memorial services are being celebrated today, Richard A. Proctor, in introducing his work entitled "Other Worlds than Ours," uses a scriptural quotation—"Lo, these are but a portion of His ways" —meaning the ways of the universe, the marvels of' the- universe—"Lo these are but a portion of His ways, they are but a whisper of His glory, and the thunder of His power who* can comprehend?" And yet, notwithstanding all the evidences that we have of the. existence of Deity — and the strong and legitimate argument that we have from design to designer, yet that is not of itself sufficient to reveal unto us all the attributes of God. Mr. Herbert Spencer, the great naturalist, after a life time in the study of nature, declared,
But one truth must ever grow clearer, the truth that there is an Inscrutable Existence everywhere manifested to which we can neither find or conceive beginning or end.
Again,
Amid the mysteries which become the more mysterious the more they are thought about, there will remain this one absolute certainty, that we are ever in the presence of an Infinite Energy, from which all things proceed.
Sir Oliver Lodge declared:
To my mind a great world-soul intimately connected with our own, is the most reasonable explanation of the process by which things came to be.
But notwithstanding this process of reason, we should not lose sight of the fact that without revelation we could not know all the attributes of God—could not. "find out the Almighty unto perfection."
Peter tells us in holy writ that, "all flesh is as the grass and the glory of man as the flower of. grass. The grass withereth and the flower thereof falleth away; but the word of the Lord endureth forever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you." Just as the statue of the Prophet Joseph and the statue of his brother the Patriarch stand upon granite foundations, so the gospel of salvation is grounded upon the granite bedrock of everlasting truth. It is an interesting fact that philosopher, poet and statesman, have grasped something of the great gospel truths. For instance, Joseph Smith placed emphasis upon the doctrine of faith. We have Sir Oliver Lodge asserting: "Faith and trust in the love and goodness underlying the universe seems to me to be the most vital and helpful thing."
Emerson exclaims:
Belief and love,—a believing love will lift from your shoulders a vast load of care. O, my brothers, God exists. There is a soul at the center of nature and over the will of every man so that none of us can wrong the universe. * * The whole course of things goes to teach us faith. We need only obey. There is goodness for each of us and by lowly listening, we shall hear the right word.
Carlyle gives us to understand that skepticism means not intellectual doubt alone, but moral doubt; all sorts of infidelity, insincerity and spiritual paralysis. That our minds are not given us to doubt with and cavil with but to come to some sure understanding upon matters concerning which we are to act.
Hugo tells us:
We live by affirmation, quite as much as we do by bread. That faith is a necessity, and woe to the man who believes nothing.
Carlyle also reminds us that
For man's well-being, faith is properly the one thing needful; how with it martyrs otherwise weak, can cheerfully endure the shame and the cross; and without it, weaklings puke up their sick existence by suicide in the midst of luxury.
Tolstoi, in his book, "What I Believe," confesses --
I only passed from Nihilism to the church, because I felt the impossibility of living without faith—without a knowledge of what is good and evil, resting on something more than upon animal instincts.
Take the words of the statesman in addition to that of the philosopher. We have Senator Beveridge in his work, 'The Young Man and the World,", advising the young man who is about to become a teacher to see first to this question of faith :—"Speaking as one of the men of the street, as one of the millions, I think the best thing for you to attend to is this question of faith, Faith is only another name for power." Look to your faith then you who seek to save the souls of men. The Prophet Joseph taught the true relation between faith and works. Likewise one of the poets approaches a statement of our own belief in these words:
If faith produce not works, I see
That faith is not a living tree.
Thus faith and works together grow,
No separate life they e'er may know.
They're soul and body, hand and heart,
What God hath joined, let no man part.
So we might go on with the views of the philosopher, poet, and statesman, corroborating this principle upon which the Prophet Joseph gave us corrected information.
There was published recently in Public Opinion a quotation from a speech or the writings of the great English premier, William E. Gladstone, in reference to the inconsistency of the skeptic. He said:
I contend that the skeptic is of all men the most inconsistent and irrational. He uses a plea against religion which he never uses against anything he wants to do or any idea he wants to embrace, viz., demonstrative evidence. Every day and all day long he is acting on evidence not demonstrative.
He then gives numerous illustrations, and goes on to say,
But when he comes to religion, he is seized with a great religious scrupulosity and demands as a pre-condition of homage to God what every where else he 'dispenses with and then ends with thinking himself more rational than other people.
This caused the editor of Public Opinion to remark:
We who believe ought not to stand upon the defensive. We have a right to demand that unbelief offer us some explanation of the phenomena of life, and show us that it is more probable than our explanation. What is your explanation of an intelligible universe if there is no intelligible God who has made us and who made it? What is your explanation of the fact that whenever man has emerged from a purely animal condition that there are altars and priests and temples and worship, if, in all these centuries he has found that worship unmeaning and unreal? What is your explanation of the fact that after eighteen centuries of moral and intellectual development and criticism and controversy, the Bible is still the world's best seller? What is your explanation of the fact that wherever the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth have become known He is the most revered and loved of all the figures in human history?
I think we have reached a stage in the history of "Mormonism" when we may properly assume the same attitude, and call upon the world to give its explanation of "Mormonism," of all the phenomena of "Mormonism." If individuals are not satisfied with the explanation that Joseph Smith gave of how he came by the Book of Mormon, and of the revelations contained in the Doctrine and Covenants, and of the translation of those ancient documents comprising the Pearl of Great Price, and of all the other numerous phenomena of "Mormonism"— if they are not satisfied, I say, with his explanation of these things, then we may say to them, What is your explanation of how these marvelous books came into existence? Are you satisfied with the Spaulding theory, of how the Book of Mormon came to be? Are you satisfied with the thought that Sidney Rigdon wrote the Book of Mormon, while, as a matter of fact, he never saw it until after it was published and handed to him by Parley P. Pratt? So we may demand the world's explanation of other phenomena of "Mormonism." The teachings of these brethren who have spoken during this conference up to this time are a part of this system of "Mormonism ;" and what is your explanation,—let me ask those who do not believe,—of these things? A testimony of these truths was deliberately sealed by the blood of the Prophet. What is your explanation of the marvels of "Mormonism?"
The responsibility rests upon the jury of the world who have access to the truth, to place a proper estimate upon the sincere testimony of the three witnesses, and of the eight witnesses, and the testimony of Joseph, and the testimony of the complete and perfect organization of the Church, and of the wonderful history of "Mormonism," and of all of its beautiful and divine doctrines.
Time does not permit a development of this theme; I can only suggest this line of thought to you. The Lord bless you. Amen.
The choir sang the hymn:
Come, all ye Saints who dwell on earth,
Your cheerful voices raise,
Our great Redeemer's love to sing,
And celebrate His praise.
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Joseph E. Robinson.
SECOND OVERFLOW MEETING.
Another meeting of the Conference was held in the Assembly Hall, at 2 p. m., at which Elder George Albert Smith presided.
The Murray choir, under direction of conductor W. F. Robinson, rendered the musical exercises.
The choir rendered a sacred chorus, entitled, "Sing and magnify."
Prayer was offered by Elder R. S. Collett.
The choir sang the hymn:
O awake! my slumb'ring minstrel,
Let my harp forget its spell;
Say, O say, in sweetest accents,
Zion prospers, all is well.
Another meeting of the Conference was held in the Assembly Hall, at 2 p. m., at which Elder George Albert Smith presided.
The Murray choir, under direction of conductor W. F. Robinson, rendered the musical exercises.
The choir rendered a sacred chorus, entitled, "Sing and magnify."
Prayer was offered by Elder R. S. Collett.
The choir sang the hymn:
O awake! my slumb'ring minstrel,
Let my harp forget its spell;
Say, O say, in sweetest accents,
Zion prospers, all is well.
ELDER CHARLES A. CALLIS.
(President of Southern States Mission.)
It is my earnest prayer that the remarks I shall offer at this meeting shall be dictated by the good spirit. More than any other people on the face of the earth, the Latter-day Saints should be impressed with the sense of duty. It will indeed be an unfortunate thing for this people if they ever, at any time, lose this sense of duty. We hear a great deal of talk in these days about our rights, rights we think we ought to enjoy. But, I believe that if we, especially the Latter-day Saints, would think more about our obligations than our rights we would be a happier, a more devout and a more grateful people.
Of all the people on the face of the earth, we should be the most grateful, for we have received more light and truth concerning spiritual things than have many of our fellow men. God has blessed us with the fullness of the gospel. The Prophet Joseph Smith opened the heavenly worlds to view, and unto us, by the gift and the power of the Holy Ghost, hath been revealed truths that are withheld from the people of the world who do not hearken unto the counsels of God. Indeed, the gift of the Holy Ghost is a strong proof that God is no respecter of persons, because to the poor and to the rich, the learned and the ignorant, if they believe and obey the gospel with sincere intent, is given the gift of the Holy Ghost, which "leads and guides into all truth." So then even the poor man who has never been in a university as a student may say, with Job, when given the Holy Ghost, "I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that in the latter day he shall stand upon the earth." He speaks from the heart, and this heart-knowledge is the most direct, the most convincing knowledge of the gospel that we can have. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is faithfully pursuing its mission of preaching Christ and Him crucified. That is our mission, and, with God's help, we are pressing along our way.
It has ever been the case that when new light and truth have been introduced into the world, the powers of darkness have bitterly fought the introduction of that light and truth. "Mormonism" stands for the introduction of the whole truth concerning Jesus, the Christ. You will recall, in the days when Wycliffe and Tyndall were translating the Bible into the English language, that men and women might peruse the precious truths in that volume, the evil one stirred up the clergy against these men, against the work that they were accomplishing, and with the sword and with the stake they fought the introduction of the Bible into the homes of the people; but the work was accomplished. One of these men gave up his life in order that the Bible might be translated into the English language and introduced into the homes of the people. God's word could not fail, for Jesus said, "Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life; and they are they which testify of me." That was the reason why Satan fought the translation of the Bible into the English language. His work, has ever been and ever will be, to fight the gospel and purposes of Jesus Christ. Men, philosophers, today ask the question, why, in the centuries past, did the clergy, above all people, fight the translation,—the diffusion of the knowledge the Bible contains amongst the people? We must look for the answer in the saying of the Savior already quoted: "Search the scriptures; * * they are they which testify of me," Satan did not want the people to search the scriptures, he wanted to keep the prophecies contained in the scriptures and the mission of the scriptures from being fulfilled. He sought to have the Bible withheld from the people, that they might be kept in ignorance of the divine sonship of the Son of God. The time came when men began to deny their God.
Look in the world today at the number of ministers denying the divinity of Jesus Christ. They admit— and perhaps we ought to feel thankful for this gracious admission —they concede, that Jesus was a great teacher, a great man, but many of them deny His divinity, deny that he was the Redeemer of the world. God in His goodness and mercy decreed that He would raise up a witness for the Lord Jesus Christ, when men should begin to deny Him, a witness who might convince them that Jesus is indeed the Christ. God has caused to be brought forth another volume of scripture, to testify to the divinity of the Lord Jesus Christ. Men said that the canon of scripture was full. They said that God had ceased to speak to men from heaven, and they seemed to rest in this belief until:
An angel from on high,
The long, long silence broke;
Descending from the sky,
These gracious words He spoke --
Lo! in Cumorah's lonely hill,
A sacred record lies concealed.
Joseph Smith, by the gift and the power of God, translated the Book of Mormon. What are some of the beautiful truths that the sacred Nephite record teaches? Shining as gems of spiritual truth, these two great heavenly truths stand prominent: The Book of Mormon establishes the truth of the Bible. The Book of Mormon declares that Jesus was and is the Christ, the Son of God, the Redeemer of the world. A book declaring these two glorious truths is surely entitled to a fair and serious consideration. Compare the difficulties, the trials and persecutions that Joseph Smith suffered, in bringing forth the Book of Mormon, with the treatment and persecution that overtook Wycliffe and Tyndall, who brought forth the Bible in the English language, and the similarity is absolutely startling. The reason for the persecution in both cases is precisely the same, Jesus said, "Search the scriptures: for they are they which testify of me." Men began to lose faith in God when "Lo, from Cumorah's lonely hill" was brought forth the Book of Mormon, that declares that Jesus was the Christ, and that men could not gain salvation except in and through and by the Lord Jesus Christ. And so the devil, knowing the power, knowing the light that was coming into the world, wielded all his powers in fighting that book, and its translator. Joseph Smith gave up his life as a martyr; his life was taken to satisfy the cruel unrighteous demands, and the hatred of those wicked men who persecuted him even to death's door.
In a short time, not long hence, philosophers, scholars and statesmen will ask, why did the people fight the introduction of the Book of Mormon, which is such a glorious and a powerful witness for the Lord Jesus Christ? History will repeat itself, and this answer will be given: Jesus said, "Search the scriptures; * * they are they which testify of me." The Book of Mormon is scripture, it is the word of God, it testifies of His Son, and because of that, evil powers sought to prevent its translation, and the introduction of that sacred book into the homes of the people.
My brethren and sisters, the. efforts of the evil one will surely fail, for the angel said unto Joseph, "The knowledge that this record contains shall go unto every nation and kindred and people." The prediction made by the angel to the prophet of God is being fulfilled, and it will be completely fulfilled in God's own due time.
We are told in the scriptures that the Bible and the Book of Mormon shall be one in God's hand for the confounding of false doctrine. It was said of Joseph, who was sold into Egypt, that he should "push the people together to the ends of the earth." By the Bible and the Book of Mormon false doctrine is being confounded; and as God has put them together—"one in mine hand" —we say "What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder." The Latter-day Saints, imbued with the sense of duty, feeling that upon them rests the obligation to preach this gospel, will go forth by the power of God in the discharge of their duty, until the testimony of Jesus, which is the "spirit of prophecy" shall spread over the world like a sea of glory, until it covers the earth from pole to pole. To this mission, God grant that we may ever be faithful, is my prayer, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
(President of Southern States Mission.)
It is my earnest prayer that the remarks I shall offer at this meeting shall be dictated by the good spirit. More than any other people on the face of the earth, the Latter-day Saints should be impressed with the sense of duty. It will indeed be an unfortunate thing for this people if they ever, at any time, lose this sense of duty. We hear a great deal of talk in these days about our rights, rights we think we ought to enjoy. But, I believe that if we, especially the Latter-day Saints, would think more about our obligations than our rights we would be a happier, a more devout and a more grateful people.
Of all the people on the face of the earth, we should be the most grateful, for we have received more light and truth concerning spiritual things than have many of our fellow men. God has blessed us with the fullness of the gospel. The Prophet Joseph Smith opened the heavenly worlds to view, and unto us, by the gift and the power of the Holy Ghost, hath been revealed truths that are withheld from the people of the world who do not hearken unto the counsels of God. Indeed, the gift of the Holy Ghost is a strong proof that God is no respecter of persons, because to the poor and to the rich, the learned and the ignorant, if they believe and obey the gospel with sincere intent, is given the gift of the Holy Ghost, which "leads and guides into all truth." So then even the poor man who has never been in a university as a student may say, with Job, when given the Holy Ghost, "I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that in the latter day he shall stand upon the earth." He speaks from the heart, and this heart-knowledge is the most direct, the most convincing knowledge of the gospel that we can have. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is faithfully pursuing its mission of preaching Christ and Him crucified. That is our mission, and, with God's help, we are pressing along our way.
It has ever been the case that when new light and truth have been introduced into the world, the powers of darkness have bitterly fought the introduction of that light and truth. "Mormonism" stands for the introduction of the whole truth concerning Jesus, the Christ. You will recall, in the days when Wycliffe and Tyndall were translating the Bible into the English language, that men and women might peruse the precious truths in that volume, the evil one stirred up the clergy against these men, against the work that they were accomplishing, and with the sword and with the stake they fought the introduction of the Bible into the homes of the people; but the work was accomplished. One of these men gave up his life in order that the Bible might be translated into the English language and introduced into the homes of the people. God's word could not fail, for Jesus said, "Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life; and they are they which testify of me." That was the reason why Satan fought the translation of the Bible into the English language. His work, has ever been and ever will be, to fight the gospel and purposes of Jesus Christ. Men, philosophers, today ask the question, why, in the centuries past, did the clergy, above all people, fight the translation,—the diffusion of the knowledge the Bible contains amongst the people? We must look for the answer in the saying of the Savior already quoted: "Search the scriptures; * * they are they which testify of me," Satan did not want the people to search the scriptures, he wanted to keep the prophecies contained in the scriptures and the mission of the scriptures from being fulfilled. He sought to have the Bible withheld from the people, that they might be kept in ignorance of the divine sonship of the Son of God. The time came when men began to deny their God.
Look in the world today at the number of ministers denying the divinity of Jesus Christ. They admit— and perhaps we ought to feel thankful for this gracious admission —they concede, that Jesus was a great teacher, a great man, but many of them deny His divinity, deny that he was the Redeemer of the world. God in His goodness and mercy decreed that He would raise up a witness for the Lord Jesus Christ, when men should begin to deny Him, a witness who might convince them that Jesus is indeed the Christ. God has caused to be brought forth another volume of scripture, to testify to the divinity of the Lord Jesus Christ. Men said that the canon of scripture was full. They said that God had ceased to speak to men from heaven, and they seemed to rest in this belief until:
An angel from on high,
The long, long silence broke;
Descending from the sky,
These gracious words He spoke --
Lo! in Cumorah's lonely hill,
A sacred record lies concealed.
Joseph Smith, by the gift and the power of God, translated the Book of Mormon. What are some of the beautiful truths that the sacred Nephite record teaches? Shining as gems of spiritual truth, these two great heavenly truths stand prominent: The Book of Mormon establishes the truth of the Bible. The Book of Mormon declares that Jesus was and is the Christ, the Son of God, the Redeemer of the world. A book declaring these two glorious truths is surely entitled to a fair and serious consideration. Compare the difficulties, the trials and persecutions that Joseph Smith suffered, in bringing forth the Book of Mormon, with the treatment and persecution that overtook Wycliffe and Tyndall, who brought forth the Bible in the English language, and the similarity is absolutely startling. The reason for the persecution in both cases is precisely the same, Jesus said, "Search the scriptures: for they are they which testify of me." Men began to lose faith in God when "Lo, from Cumorah's lonely hill" was brought forth the Book of Mormon, that declares that Jesus was the Christ, and that men could not gain salvation except in and through and by the Lord Jesus Christ. And so the devil, knowing the power, knowing the light that was coming into the world, wielded all his powers in fighting that book, and its translator. Joseph Smith gave up his life as a martyr; his life was taken to satisfy the cruel unrighteous demands, and the hatred of those wicked men who persecuted him even to death's door.
In a short time, not long hence, philosophers, scholars and statesmen will ask, why did the people fight the introduction of the Book of Mormon, which is such a glorious and a powerful witness for the Lord Jesus Christ? History will repeat itself, and this answer will be given: Jesus said, "Search the scriptures; * * they are they which testify of me." The Book of Mormon is scripture, it is the word of God, it testifies of His Son, and because of that, evil powers sought to prevent its translation, and the introduction of that sacred book into the homes of the people.
My brethren and sisters, the. efforts of the evil one will surely fail, for the angel said unto Joseph, "The knowledge that this record contains shall go unto every nation and kindred and people." The prediction made by the angel to the prophet of God is being fulfilled, and it will be completely fulfilled in God's own due time.
We are told in the scriptures that the Bible and the Book of Mormon shall be one in God's hand for the confounding of false doctrine. It was said of Joseph, who was sold into Egypt, that he should "push the people together to the ends of the earth." By the Bible and the Book of Mormon false doctrine is being confounded; and as God has put them together—"one in mine hand" —we say "What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder." The Latter-day Saints, imbued with the sense of duty, feeling that upon them rests the obligation to preach this gospel, will go forth by the power of God in the discharge of their duty, until the testimony of Jesus, which is the "spirit of prophecy" shall spread over the world like a sea of glory, until it covers the earth from pole to pole. To this mission, God grant that we may ever be faithful, is my prayer, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
ELDER JOHN L. HERRICK.
(President of Western States Mission.)
The inspirational remarks of President Smith at the opening of the conference suggested to my mind this question: Is it worth while to be an exemplary Latter-day Saint? Emerson said, "A man is relieved and gay when he has put his heart into his work and done his best, what he has said and done otherwise shall bring him no peace." I believe those words.
In the missionary field we have opportunities for observing many things which do not ordinarily come to the attention of the people at home in the body of the Church and I call to mind an experience of recent date which will illustrate the point I would like to make: A professor of several years standing at the law school of Ann Arbor had moved to Colorado for his health, and in talking with one of our members over a business proposition he made the remark, "I was in Ann Arbor for a number of years. I had occasion to know and see men who came there to study law and it was my observation that the young men who came from Utah, most of whom were known as 'Mormons,' were ahead of all others of the world that came to that institution. Let me ask you why," said he, "why is it that they made such records ?" The answer was given that, undoubtedly, it was because of the lives that those men had been urged to live; that they had been taught in their youth to be virtuous, to abstain from alcoholic liquors and from tobacco, tea, coffee and stimulants of every kind. "Well," he said, "if that be the case, I would to God that my children might be reared in such an atmosphere instead of where they are today." It is not only those, my friends, who go to school to Ann Arbor and the colleges of the East or West—it is not only to those we are to look for exemplary men and women, but it is to every one of us, and if we wish for it in our hearts to be exemplary in our manners, in our habits, we do more than any other one thing in the world to advocate "Mormonism."
Let me give you another picture: A family with whom we became acquainted in Denver had visited a number of families in Utah, and we were invited to their home one evening to have dinner with a number of others of their friends, and as coffee was placed before us and we declined they asked why it was, and the opportunity came for me to explain that it was a part of our religion, a tenet of our faith, that we abstain from the use of such things. "Why, that is a peculiar thing!" said the gentleman, "we have been out in Utah a number of times in the home of so and so," (and, by the way, the man he spoke of was a man of my own town and I knew him very well,—a man representative in the Church, too), "and they have put both tea and coffee before us in their home and we never knew that your people had such a law in the Church.'" Now, it may have been that those good people, out of generosity in entertaining the visitors, desired them to have what they wanted. It was not a question, hardly, of deciding that they could put on the usual beverage, as was illustrated a few days ago through one of the illustrious men of this nation, in addressing a toast to the Chief Executive of this country, when he said, "I propose a toast to our honored guest with the sparkling beverage sealed with the approval of the Almighty," and that was water. Perhaps our friends thought that they could not put water on the table without being thought lacking in courtesy when entertaining their friends from abroad, but it seems to me that we ought to live up to every principle in our homes, and let people who visit us understand how we live and what we do there. It will go farther toward impressing them with our belief and our faith than any thing else.
Just now we in Colorado, of the Western States Mission, are in the centre of the fight being waged by a renegade member of one of the splendid and cherished families of this state, a fight that is intended to rid Colorado of the "Mormon Plague." Think of it! Well I see in it only good, for at the time when one of his greatest efforts thus far made during his campaign in one of the churches in Denver a few weeks ago, a prominent citizen of this country, a man who has traveled world wide, stepped out on the street during a meeting one Sunday afternoon in Denver, with several hundred people assembled, and interrupted one of our speakers, saying, "Young man, permit me to say a few words.” He took his place with the elders and said to the people, "I want to say to you that I have traveled all over the world. I have also traveled largely in Utah and wherever there are 'Mormons,' and I have done approximately two million dollars worth of business with them and have yet to lose a dollar, and I want to say to you here today that they are an honest people and a good people. Furthermore, when it comes to morality, you will not find angels in heaven any purer than the women and girls who belong to the 'Mormon' Church." He continued, "Utah ranks third in education in the United States. And who has accomplished that? Why the 'Mormon' people, because they have been in control of Utah for all these years. I was born and raised a Roman Catholic, but," said he, "I am going to raise my voice here and everywhere I go in behalf of that people." An acquaintance of his, a traveling man whom he had not met for several years, stepped out after he had concluded his talk, and said, "I want to say amen to what has been said by my friend, for I have had large business interests in Utah for over twenty years and what he has said to you is true." Another man still, a stranger to both, took off his hat and remarked, "The words spoken here are true."
Now, perhaps we may have a little agitation; I don't doubt it; but when we can have men who will, of their own accord, stand up on the street corners and defend us, I think we have nothing particularly to fear.
My brothers and sisters, there may arise certain things in our lives which will bring to us the thought that good days are preparing for us a raise in rents, a political victory; the return of a lost one a bringing back to life of a dear one who was afflicted; all may tend temporarily to bring us to believe that all is well. But after all, it depends on individual action. Ours is essentially an individual work and each one of us will have to answer for his or her actions, not only in a measure to our friends and neighbors, but to our God. Again, the words of Emerson, "Nothing can bring you peace but yourselves. Nothing can bring you peace but the triumph of principles.” We have the principles which will exalt and save us if we will rightly live them. Let us not fear the world. Let us admonish all to weigh well the principles that we teach and practice and see if they and therein anything objectionable. Let us look them straight in the face and say we claim the God given right in this free country to believe as we choose, "and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, when or what they may."
May the blessings, of heaven be with you my dear friends and like wise all Israel, that our principles may direct us aright and that our examples may be such that they will attract the world; and that we may be saved in the kingdom of God, in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Brother Manasseh Smith sang a tenor solo, entitled, "Fairest Lord, Jesus."
(President of Western States Mission.)
The inspirational remarks of President Smith at the opening of the conference suggested to my mind this question: Is it worth while to be an exemplary Latter-day Saint? Emerson said, "A man is relieved and gay when he has put his heart into his work and done his best, what he has said and done otherwise shall bring him no peace." I believe those words.
In the missionary field we have opportunities for observing many things which do not ordinarily come to the attention of the people at home in the body of the Church and I call to mind an experience of recent date which will illustrate the point I would like to make: A professor of several years standing at the law school of Ann Arbor had moved to Colorado for his health, and in talking with one of our members over a business proposition he made the remark, "I was in Ann Arbor for a number of years. I had occasion to know and see men who came there to study law and it was my observation that the young men who came from Utah, most of whom were known as 'Mormons,' were ahead of all others of the world that came to that institution. Let me ask you why," said he, "why is it that they made such records ?" The answer was given that, undoubtedly, it was because of the lives that those men had been urged to live; that they had been taught in their youth to be virtuous, to abstain from alcoholic liquors and from tobacco, tea, coffee and stimulants of every kind. "Well," he said, "if that be the case, I would to God that my children might be reared in such an atmosphere instead of where they are today." It is not only those, my friends, who go to school to Ann Arbor and the colleges of the East or West—it is not only to those we are to look for exemplary men and women, but it is to every one of us, and if we wish for it in our hearts to be exemplary in our manners, in our habits, we do more than any other one thing in the world to advocate "Mormonism."
Let me give you another picture: A family with whom we became acquainted in Denver had visited a number of families in Utah, and we were invited to their home one evening to have dinner with a number of others of their friends, and as coffee was placed before us and we declined they asked why it was, and the opportunity came for me to explain that it was a part of our religion, a tenet of our faith, that we abstain from the use of such things. "Why, that is a peculiar thing!" said the gentleman, "we have been out in Utah a number of times in the home of so and so," (and, by the way, the man he spoke of was a man of my own town and I knew him very well,—a man representative in the Church, too), "and they have put both tea and coffee before us in their home and we never knew that your people had such a law in the Church.'" Now, it may have been that those good people, out of generosity in entertaining the visitors, desired them to have what they wanted. It was not a question, hardly, of deciding that they could put on the usual beverage, as was illustrated a few days ago through one of the illustrious men of this nation, in addressing a toast to the Chief Executive of this country, when he said, "I propose a toast to our honored guest with the sparkling beverage sealed with the approval of the Almighty," and that was water. Perhaps our friends thought that they could not put water on the table without being thought lacking in courtesy when entertaining their friends from abroad, but it seems to me that we ought to live up to every principle in our homes, and let people who visit us understand how we live and what we do there. It will go farther toward impressing them with our belief and our faith than any thing else.
Just now we in Colorado, of the Western States Mission, are in the centre of the fight being waged by a renegade member of one of the splendid and cherished families of this state, a fight that is intended to rid Colorado of the "Mormon Plague." Think of it! Well I see in it only good, for at the time when one of his greatest efforts thus far made during his campaign in one of the churches in Denver a few weeks ago, a prominent citizen of this country, a man who has traveled world wide, stepped out on the street during a meeting one Sunday afternoon in Denver, with several hundred people assembled, and interrupted one of our speakers, saying, "Young man, permit me to say a few words.” He took his place with the elders and said to the people, "I want to say to you that I have traveled all over the world. I have also traveled largely in Utah and wherever there are 'Mormons,' and I have done approximately two million dollars worth of business with them and have yet to lose a dollar, and I want to say to you here today that they are an honest people and a good people. Furthermore, when it comes to morality, you will not find angels in heaven any purer than the women and girls who belong to the 'Mormon' Church." He continued, "Utah ranks third in education in the United States. And who has accomplished that? Why the 'Mormon' people, because they have been in control of Utah for all these years. I was born and raised a Roman Catholic, but," said he, "I am going to raise my voice here and everywhere I go in behalf of that people." An acquaintance of his, a traveling man whom he had not met for several years, stepped out after he had concluded his talk, and said, "I want to say amen to what has been said by my friend, for I have had large business interests in Utah for over twenty years and what he has said to you is true." Another man still, a stranger to both, took off his hat and remarked, "The words spoken here are true."
Now, perhaps we may have a little agitation; I don't doubt it; but when we can have men who will, of their own accord, stand up on the street corners and defend us, I think we have nothing particularly to fear.
My brothers and sisters, there may arise certain things in our lives which will bring to us the thought that good days are preparing for us a raise in rents, a political victory; the return of a lost one a bringing back to life of a dear one who was afflicted; all may tend temporarily to bring us to believe that all is well. But after all, it depends on individual action. Ours is essentially an individual work and each one of us will have to answer for his or her actions, not only in a measure to our friends and neighbors, but to our God. Again, the words of Emerson, "Nothing can bring you peace but yourselves. Nothing can bring you peace but the triumph of principles.” We have the principles which will exalt and save us if we will rightly live them. Let us not fear the world. Let us admonish all to weigh well the principles that we teach and practice and see if they and therein anything objectionable. Let us look them straight in the face and say we claim the God given right in this free country to believe as we choose, "and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, when or what they may."
May the blessings, of heaven be with you my dear friends and like wise all Israel, that our principles may direct us aright and that our examples may be such that they will attract the world; and that we may be saved in the kingdom of God, in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Brother Manasseh Smith sang a tenor solo, entitled, "Fairest Lord, Jesus."
ELDER FRANK Y. TAYLOR.
(President of Granite Stake.)
I pray, my brethren and sisters, that the Spirit of the Lord may direct my utterance this afternoon. I have been interested in what has been said in all the sessions of the conference, and in the remarks of our mission presidents this afternoon. It brings to my mind the thought that the fruits of "Mormonism" are good, particularly to those who are laboring in the ministry, devoting their time to the work of the Lord. I have often remarked that no greater blessing could come to a young man than to be called on a mission to proclaim the truth to the nations of the earth. If he does not do much good to other people, at least he makes a man of himself, and returns full of dignity, grace and testimony of the work of the Lord.
I was traveling in the southern part of the state a few years ago, with a man who was an atheist, a good man, but without faith in the work of the Lord. He formerly belonged to this Church, and had witnessed the grace and the goodness of it; but he had fallen into darkness, and the light within him had become very dark indeed. We were traveling together on the same train, and with us was a young man who had just returned from a mission, who was on the way to his little home settlement. We entered into conversation with him, and found him a splendid sample of youth and manhood, clean, and pure in his habits. It seemed like his whole soul was full of sunshine and good cheer. He reported to us his missionary experiences, his call, and how gladly he had accepted it, and yet with what fear he went into the world, fearful of his lack of knowledge of the world and of what would happen in his case; but he had faith, and he went, believing in the Lord Jesus Christ, in the divinity of the mission of the Prophet Joseph Smith, and that this is the work of the Lord. He bore that testimony with faith and courage, in the face of the opposition of the world. He told us of his ups and downs, of the doors that had been closed in his face, of many evil things that had been said about him and his companions, the work, and the people living in these valleys of the mountains. Further, he related some of the pleasures that he enjoyed in his ministry, when proclaiming these things, and told of the witness he had of the Spirit of the Lord. In common with nearly all of our young men who have been out proclaiming this Gospel, he testified that the most pleasant time in his life was out in his missionary field. My friend was much entertained in the remarks which this young man had to make. He had known of other young men returning from missions, and had witnessed similar development evidenced in them. Quite a concourse of people was at the station to receive this young man, and the tears of joy and happiness witnessed in his behalf, in that settlement, had quite an effect upon my friend. After the train went on, he turned to me and said:
"I don't know what there is about this faith of yours that brings about this wonderful result. I have a boy about the age of the young man who has just left us, and I would be glad to have him go out into the world as a missionary, if he could only come back with the same spirit, energy, life and beauty that this boy manifests on his return, because truly something wonderful has happened in his life. If my boy could go without his having to accept your faith, and get the education that these your missionary boys receive, I would rather have him do it than to have him take the same length of time in the best college in the land." Again he said, "I don't know what there is about your religion that brings this result, and yet I witness the result."
I tried to explain to him what there is in it that brings this result; but, of course, he would not accept my reasoning, because his darkness was so great, owing to lack of faith in this work. I knew him. He was a man of the world. I rejoiced that the fruits of this missionary work were so manifest. It is one example out of hundreds and thousands of others of our boys who go out to proclaim this everlasting Gospel. The world ought to appreciate this fact! but they cannot understand why it is that the men who are more deeply interested in this work, who devote most of their time to it, should enjoy the spirit of their ministry and work. But the truth is manifest in the good life they lead, and the fruits of the ministry are good to behold.
In the stake where I preside we have a great many young men who go out to proclaim the Gospel, and when they go away I notice the class of young men they are; and when they return, I witness again the wonderful transformation that has come over them. They are intelligent, clean, sweet, honorable young people, and a credit to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I would that all of us could be judged by the standard manifest in the return of the elder who has been out proclaiming this everlasting Gospel in the world. We need not be ashamed of them, or of their ministry, or of their work, because they add glory to the cause of God in the earth.
My father, in teaching me, was anxious, of course, that I should do honor and credit to my family name and do what is right and proper,, and honorable, and straightforward in life. He desired me to occupy, possibly, some prominent place before my fellow men; but the greatest end to which he felt that any of us could aspire was to be a consistent an honorable, and an upright Latter- day Saint. In this achievement there is scope, he felt, for people to hold up their heads with' credit before all men.
I feel, my brethren and sisters, that this missionary labor in the world is a glorious experience for our young people. I have noted what a wonderful influence it has, not only upon him who goes away, but faith is increased in the household from which he goes. They look forward with wonderful pleasure to the letters they 'receive from their boy, and to the testimony which he bears, the experiences that he has in the world, and the blessings of the Lord that come unto him. A miracle happens in his own life, when he goes out to preach the Gospel; while faith is increased in the hearts of his father and mother, his brothers and his sisters, and they all rejoice in a testimony of this work. Only a few days ago, I had a man call on me. He is a member of the Church. He is a good man of the world, but he "doesn't do much" in the Church, though an honorable and a splendid man. His boy was called on a mission, had faith enough to go and went, and the parents rejoiced as did every one of the household. There was purity, virtue, and the spirit of the Gospel with them, and they rejoiced that a young man from that household was worthy to go out and preach the Gospel. Every once in a while, this father comes to me with a letter that he receives from this boy, and he thinks that his son is one of the most wonderful men in the world, because he has a testimony of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, and is living such a good life in the world. It brings joy and happiness to the Latter-day Saints to have young people go out and preach this Gospel. I feel that there ought to be a missionary spirit in the hearts of the people—that where fathers have boys who can go out and offer their services unto the Lord our God to teach His word unto the nations of the earth, they ought to rejoice. No father's hand or voice ought ever to be raised against the going forth of their sons, whenever they have an opportunity to go out and preach this gospel, because there is no greater joy or happiness can come to your children than to have them obtain a knowledge that Jesus is the Christ, and that the work that we are engaged in is the work of the Lord, our God. We should strengthen this missionary spirit in our midst.
I remember being in one of the cities of the United States, in a long, crowded thoroughfare, when I saw two boys hurrying along with the rest of the crowd, and I picked them out. I did not know why, particularly, but in looking at them, there was something different about them from the people surrounding, and I made up my mind that they were Latter-day Saint missionaries. I had never seen them before, but I walked up to them, introduced myself, and asked them if they were from Utah, and lo and behold, the answer revealed that they were boys out proclaiming the Gospel. Something about these boys appealed to me, and I believed in my soul that they were Latter-day Saints. The thing that impressed me was that there was a purity about them that was different. There was an ambition, a hope, and something written in their countenances that impressed me as being different from their surroundings. I rejoice that our boys have this purity, and that they can go out into the world conscious that they are clean, and sweet, and pure from the sins of the world.
Now that is the boy who preaches the Gospel in the world; it ought to be equally true of our boys and girls here at home. We ought to be examples to the whole world, in regard to these things, and this missionary spirit ought to be prevalent here at home. Oh what happiness comes to the boy who goes out as a missionary to preach this gospel! He will endure the rebuffs and the scoffs of the world bravely, to be a minister of the Lord Jesus Christ, testifying of this work and the things the Lord has done for this people. I feel that we ought to exercise some of this missionary spirit at home. I believe that our home boys and girls should also enjoy the fruits that come to those who are engaged abroad in the work of the Lord, for there is ample field for them to act as missionaries here at home. There is not a settlement in our land but what there is need to labor among the people and to teach the Gospel unto them. Right here at home we have abundance of material, and any number of men filled with the spirit of missionary work, and yet we have scores of people who belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and many other people who are not members of this Church, who would be glad of an opportunity to hear this Gospel and to whom they could preach. We could do much more of this work right here at home. I have oftentimes thought that there is room for wonderful improvement among our people in the matter of preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ at home, particularly to those people who are weak in the faith, who do not comprehend fully the glory and the goodness of this work. We ought to go out of our way to try to build them up, and bless them, and do good unto them. I wish that our missionaries, when they come home, could do a little more of this work among their companions who have not the same light and understanding that they have—that they would go out among those who perhaps have made some mistakes in life, and who are not living up to what they should, and try to bring them back to a realization of the truth, and to activity and resolution in their religious life and duties. I have sometimes used this expression to our people; we go out into the world to preach the Gospel, and we have the doors slammed in our faces, many and many a time, and after awhile we get some of these people to accept our tracts. We labor with them as we ought to labor with them, and we spend time and means to bring them into the Church, and when we have done that, we feel that we have done a wonderful work, and we have. We do not ask so much about these people, as to their life in the past, as long as they will repent of their sins and renew themselves in the waters of baptism that they may receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. Yet I feel that many missionaries come home and feel that their missionary work is ended, and there is no opportunity to labor further; but I - say unto you that there are hundreds and thousands right here in the wards and stakes of Zion who need laboring with, and if our missionaries would exercise the same spirit of love and charity and kindness, with them as with people in the world, they would do a wonderful work. One of the difficulties about these matters is this, that we are so apt to see mistakes in the people with whom we are familiar, so much so that we cannot see much virtue in them; but I believe that if we would work with the Spirit of Christ, right among our own people here at home, that we might garner many precious souls into the work of the Lord. We are so apt to see the mistakes of our neighbors that we cannot imagine there is any good in them, and we make up our minds that they have gone to the bad; but seldom will one find any one who will not be susceptible to the influence of some good spirit that may work with them. I have had many young men tell me that they have never been labored with in the spirit of kindness, and that their mistakes have been magnified; what they need is some good man to put his arm around them and try to lead them back into a better way. I feel that in this work there is great room for the returned missionaries to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ to their neighbors. All of us who hold the Priesthood of the Lord Jesus Christ should exercise it for the building up of the kingdom of God, and the dissemination of His word. I want to tell you that if it were my boy who thus needed to be brought back into the right way, I would be thankful to the man who would go out of his way to exercise that kind of a spirit to build him up, and to make him feel anew the spirit of the Gospel. I believe there is no kind of work in Zion of more importance than that. We ought to exercise charity, and be willing to put forth our efforts for one another, and especially to such as are in need of an awakening. I feel that we ought to do this among the Latter-day Saints at home, and try to magnify the cause of Christ here, so that we may have more of these boys imbued with this spirit, and thus testify to all mankind that the fruits of the Gospel of Jesus Christ are good. God bless you. Amen.
(President of Granite Stake.)
I pray, my brethren and sisters, that the Spirit of the Lord may direct my utterance this afternoon. I have been interested in what has been said in all the sessions of the conference, and in the remarks of our mission presidents this afternoon. It brings to my mind the thought that the fruits of "Mormonism" are good, particularly to those who are laboring in the ministry, devoting their time to the work of the Lord. I have often remarked that no greater blessing could come to a young man than to be called on a mission to proclaim the truth to the nations of the earth. If he does not do much good to other people, at least he makes a man of himself, and returns full of dignity, grace and testimony of the work of the Lord.
I was traveling in the southern part of the state a few years ago, with a man who was an atheist, a good man, but without faith in the work of the Lord. He formerly belonged to this Church, and had witnessed the grace and the goodness of it; but he had fallen into darkness, and the light within him had become very dark indeed. We were traveling together on the same train, and with us was a young man who had just returned from a mission, who was on the way to his little home settlement. We entered into conversation with him, and found him a splendid sample of youth and manhood, clean, and pure in his habits. It seemed like his whole soul was full of sunshine and good cheer. He reported to us his missionary experiences, his call, and how gladly he had accepted it, and yet with what fear he went into the world, fearful of his lack of knowledge of the world and of what would happen in his case; but he had faith, and he went, believing in the Lord Jesus Christ, in the divinity of the mission of the Prophet Joseph Smith, and that this is the work of the Lord. He bore that testimony with faith and courage, in the face of the opposition of the world. He told us of his ups and downs, of the doors that had been closed in his face, of many evil things that had been said about him and his companions, the work, and the people living in these valleys of the mountains. Further, he related some of the pleasures that he enjoyed in his ministry, when proclaiming these things, and told of the witness he had of the Spirit of the Lord. In common with nearly all of our young men who have been out proclaiming this Gospel, he testified that the most pleasant time in his life was out in his missionary field. My friend was much entertained in the remarks which this young man had to make. He had known of other young men returning from missions, and had witnessed similar development evidenced in them. Quite a concourse of people was at the station to receive this young man, and the tears of joy and happiness witnessed in his behalf, in that settlement, had quite an effect upon my friend. After the train went on, he turned to me and said:
"I don't know what there is about this faith of yours that brings about this wonderful result. I have a boy about the age of the young man who has just left us, and I would be glad to have him go out into the world as a missionary, if he could only come back with the same spirit, energy, life and beauty that this boy manifests on his return, because truly something wonderful has happened in his life. If my boy could go without his having to accept your faith, and get the education that these your missionary boys receive, I would rather have him do it than to have him take the same length of time in the best college in the land." Again he said, "I don't know what there is about your religion that brings this result, and yet I witness the result."
I tried to explain to him what there is in it that brings this result; but, of course, he would not accept my reasoning, because his darkness was so great, owing to lack of faith in this work. I knew him. He was a man of the world. I rejoiced that the fruits of this missionary work were so manifest. It is one example out of hundreds and thousands of others of our boys who go out to proclaim this everlasting Gospel. The world ought to appreciate this fact! but they cannot understand why it is that the men who are more deeply interested in this work, who devote most of their time to it, should enjoy the spirit of their ministry and work. But the truth is manifest in the good life they lead, and the fruits of the ministry are good to behold.
In the stake where I preside we have a great many young men who go out to proclaim the Gospel, and when they go away I notice the class of young men they are; and when they return, I witness again the wonderful transformation that has come over them. They are intelligent, clean, sweet, honorable young people, and a credit to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I would that all of us could be judged by the standard manifest in the return of the elder who has been out proclaiming this everlasting Gospel in the world. We need not be ashamed of them, or of their ministry, or of their work, because they add glory to the cause of God in the earth.
My father, in teaching me, was anxious, of course, that I should do honor and credit to my family name and do what is right and proper,, and honorable, and straightforward in life. He desired me to occupy, possibly, some prominent place before my fellow men; but the greatest end to which he felt that any of us could aspire was to be a consistent an honorable, and an upright Latter- day Saint. In this achievement there is scope, he felt, for people to hold up their heads with' credit before all men.
I feel, my brethren and sisters, that this missionary labor in the world is a glorious experience for our young people. I have noted what a wonderful influence it has, not only upon him who goes away, but faith is increased in the household from which he goes. They look forward with wonderful pleasure to the letters they 'receive from their boy, and to the testimony which he bears, the experiences that he has in the world, and the blessings of the Lord that come unto him. A miracle happens in his own life, when he goes out to preach the Gospel; while faith is increased in the hearts of his father and mother, his brothers and his sisters, and they all rejoice in a testimony of this work. Only a few days ago, I had a man call on me. He is a member of the Church. He is a good man of the world, but he "doesn't do much" in the Church, though an honorable and a splendid man. His boy was called on a mission, had faith enough to go and went, and the parents rejoiced as did every one of the household. There was purity, virtue, and the spirit of the Gospel with them, and they rejoiced that a young man from that household was worthy to go out and preach the Gospel. Every once in a while, this father comes to me with a letter that he receives from this boy, and he thinks that his son is one of the most wonderful men in the world, because he has a testimony of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, and is living such a good life in the world. It brings joy and happiness to the Latter-day Saints to have young people go out and preach this Gospel. I feel that there ought to be a missionary spirit in the hearts of the people—that where fathers have boys who can go out and offer their services unto the Lord our God to teach His word unto the nations of the earth, they ought to rejoice. No father's hand or voice ought ever to be raised against the going forth of their sons, whenever they have an opportunity to go out and preach this gospel, because there is no greater joy or happiness can come to your children than to have them obtain a knowledge that Jesus is the Christ, and that the work that we are engaged in is the work of the Lord, our God. We should strengthen this missionary spirit in our midst.
I remember being in one of the cities of the United States, in a long, crowded thoroughfare, when I saw two boys hurrying along with the rest of the crowd, and I picked them out. I did not know why, particularly, but in looking at them, there was something different about them from the people surrounding, and I made up my mind that they were Latter-day Saint missionaries. I had never seen them before, but I walked up to them, introduced myself, and asked them if they were from Utah, and lo and behold, the answer revealed that they were boys out proclaiming the Gospel. Something about these boys appealed to me, and I believed in my soul that they were Latter-day Saints. The thing that impressed me was that there was a purity about them that was different. There was an ambition, a hope, and something written in their countenances that impressed me as being different from their surroundings. I rejoice that our boys have this purity, and that they can go out into the world conscious that they are clean, and sweet, and pure from the sins of the world.
Now that is the boy who preaches the Gospel in the world; it ought to be equally true of our boys and girls here at home. We ought to be examples to the whole world, in regard to these things, and this missionary spirit ought to be prevalent here at home. Oh what happiness comes to the boy who goes out as a missionary to preach this gospel! He will endure the rebuffs and the scoffs of the world bravely, to be a minister of the Lord Jesus Christ, testifying of this work and the things the Lord has done for this people. I feel that we ought to exercise some of this missionary spirit at home. I believe that our home boys and girls should also enjoy the fruits that come to those who are engaged abroad in the work of the Lord, for there is ample field for them to act as missionaries here at home. There is not a settlement in our land but what there is need to labor among the people and to teach the Gospel unto them. Right here at home we have abundance of material, and any number of men filled with the spirit of missionary work, and yet we have scores of people who belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and many other people who are not members of this Church, who would be glad of an opportunity to hear this Gospel and to whom they could preach. We could do much more of this work right here at home. I have oftentimes thought that there is room for wonderful improvement among our people in the matter of preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ at home, particularly to those people who are weak in the faith, who do not comprehend fully the glory and the goodness of this work. We ought to go out of our way to try to build them up, and bless them, and do good unto them. I wish that our missionaries, when they come home, could do a little more of this work among their companions who have not the same light and understanding that they have—that they would go out among those who perhaps have made some mistakes in life, and who are not living up to what they should, and try to bring them back to a realization of the truth, and to activity and resolution in their religious life and duties. I have sometimes used this expression to our people; we go out into the world to preach the Gospel, and we have the doors slammed in our faces, many and many a time, and after awhile we get some of these people to accept our tracts. We labor with them as we ought to labor with them, and we spend time and means to bring them into the Church, and when we have done that, we feel that we have done a wonderful work, and we have. We do not ask so much about these people, as to their life in the past, as long as they will repent of their sins and renew themselves in the waters of baptism that they may receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. Yet I feel that many missionaries come home and feel that their missionary work is ended, and there is no opportunity to labor further; but I - say unto you that there are hundreds and thousands right here in the wards and stakes of Zion who need laboring with, and if our missionaries would exercise the same spirit of love and charity and kindness, with them as with people in the world, they would do a wonderful work. One of the difficulties about these matters is this, that we are so apt to see mistakes in the people with whom we are familiar, so much so that we cannot see much virtue in them; but I believe that if we would work with the Spirit of Christ, right among our own people here at home, that we might garner many precious souls into the work of the Lord. We are so apt to see the mistakes of our neighbors that we cannot imagine there is any good in them, and we make up our minds that they have gone to the bad; but seldom will one find any one who will not be susceptible to the influence of some good spirit that may work with them. I have had many young men tell me that they have never been labored with in the spirit of kindness, and that their mistakes have been magnified; what they need is some good man to put his arm around them and try to lead them back into a better way. I feel that in this work there is great room for the returned missionaries to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ to their neighbors. All of us who hold the Priesthood of the Lord Jesus Christ should exercise it for the building up of the kingdom of God, and the dissemination of His word. I want to tell you that if it were my boy who thus needed to be brought back into the right way, I would be thankful to the man who would go out of his way to exercise that kind of a spirit to build him up, and to make him feel anew the spirit of the Gospel. I believe there is no kind of work in Zion of more importance than that. We ought to exercise charity, and be willing to put forth our efforts for one another, and especially to such as are in need of an awakening. I feel that we ought to do this among the Latter-day Saints at home, and try to magnify the cause of Christ here, so that we may have more of these boys imbued with this spirit, and thus testify to all mankind that the fruits of the Gospel of Jesus Christ are good. God bless you. Amen.
ELDER SAMUEL O. BENNION.
(President of Central States Mission.)
I have listened with interest to the remarks of the brethren who have preceded me, and I trust that the few moments I stand here, I may enjoy the same spirit that directed their words.
These brethren have alluded to the interest that some people are taking in our religion, who are not of our faith, and it reminded me of the remark of the Savior when He said, "And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations: and then shall the end come." There is no question but that honorable men and women of the earth will, sooner or later, according to their day and time, listen to the teachings of the elders of Israel, for the gospel they teach is the "gospel of the kingdom" that was preached by the Savior. It is destined to attract the attention of the world, and they will listen respectfully to the proclamation made by elders of the "Mormon" Church.
The world understands "Mormonism" better today than ever before. When men take a stand of opposition now, and criticize the acts of the "Mormon" people, it usually happens that their antagonism makes friends for us. We need not be afraid, for the Lord Almighty is the author of what is called "Mormonism." He stands behind it because He revealed it unto the children of men through the Prophet Joseph Smith, and it will resound through this earth, until every man and woman under heaven shall have a chance to receive or reject this gospel of the Savior of the world.
The Lord revealed unto the Prophet Joseph Smith this principle, that no man can be saved in ignorance, and that, before men should stand before the judgment bar of God, every man or woman, either in this world or after departing, will have the privilege of understanding the gospel of the Redeemer, so that they may be able to accept or reject it. I listened to a sermon, delivered a short time ago by a noted divine of the Presbyterian church. He took for his subject the "Country Church." He stated that in company with some companions in the ministry, he had been holding a conference, and in that conference the subject of the country church was considered, and they deliberated upon the best methods to reach the people in the country. He said they were sadly neglected. They are a fine class of people, men and women who are producers, able to pay their debts and to support a minister, and who would do so if they had the chance. But he criticised their ministers this way: he said they preferred to live in the cities. When a certain district in the country wanted to have religious services, they sent to the city for one of the ministers to come down there and hold service with them on the selected Sunday. He said that a woman living in the country might just as well send to town for a dress, or a man living in the country might just as well send for a suit of clothes already made up, and take chances on the fit. He said the ministers in the church must mingle with the people, labor with them, live with them, and thus create an interest among them. He declared that the Church in the world that is growing fastest is the "Mormon" Church, there is no church that equals it. He further said, they had preachers generally that appealed to men, and that their missionaries visited the country districts frequently, and their churches were filled wherever they went.
My brethren and sisters, I cite you this for the reason, it is evidence that the world is taking notice of "Mormonism," and taking notice of the labors of the Elders of Israel out in the world, and the growth of the "Mormon" people. This gentleman did not understand that the Elders have within their hearts and within their minds a knowledge that God lives and that Jesus is the Christ, and that "Mormonism" is the Gospel of the Redeemer by which man may be saved in the presence of Almighty God. Moses, in speaking to ancient Israel, said, "The secret things belong unto the Lord, our God; but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law." The Lord revealed unto the Prophet Joseph Smith the true condition of affairs as they existed in the religious world. He told him that he should not join any of the denominations extant at that time, that they had a form of godliness but they denied the power thereof, that while they honored God with their lips their hearts were far from Him. Joseph Smith was God's authorized agent in restoring the gospel to mankind. When we go out into the world, and preach in the country churches that have been neglected by the ministers of the world, we gather the honest hearted men and women everywhere that the gospel message reaches. The Savior said, "My sheep hear my voice, and a stranger they will not follow, and they come unto me." So when the Elders go into country districts, and upon the streets of cities, and wherever they may have the opportunity to preach, men and women of the character named by the Savior thus hear His message, and a stranger they will not follow. It is not to be wondered at that people of the world are beginning to take notice of "Mormonism." We are making friends in every land and clime in this world today; we are becoming better known.
I had a conversation a short time ago with a gentleman who lives in Pueblo, Colorado, in President Herrick's mission field. He is president of one of the great banks in that country. In speaking of the apostate to whom Brother Herrick referred, he said, "We know the Mormon people, and we know that writer wants to organize us into some kind of a club to fight you people, but," said he, "we know the Mormon people too well; and he received no encouragement there." I say to our brethren, we need not be afraid to go on missions, if we live our religion. When men are called to go into the nations of the earth to- preach the gospel they should cheerfully respond. The Lord will open up the way for them to go into the world, and successfully proclaim the message that the Father and the Son delivered to the Prophet Joseph Smith. They can fearlessly declare that God lives, that He has a body, that He is able to speak; to see; to hear; to walk and talk that He is in very deed the true and living God. There are people in this world who profess Christianity, thousands of them, who are teaching today that God has not a body, that He is a spirit without body, parts or passions. The Lord has revealed the truth about Himself unto ancient and latter-day Israel. This important truth has been given unto us as a weapon to overcome the error which the adversary has disseminated, and gives every one a chance to use the free agency that God has given unto His children.
I am sure that there are many people in the world who love the truth. There is faith in the earth, and since the days of the Prophet Joseph Smith faith has increased. In support of this statement I will relate an incident that happened a short time ago. A certain jury that had been sitting in a case, and were to decide whether a man was to' be hanged or not, before they rendered their decision, they went into their room and there those twelve men knelt down and prayed unto the Father that they might render a true and a just decision. I say that I believe faith is increasing in the world, and that many men and women will yet join the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, because of that faith. They will go down into the waters of baptism as soon as they are converted. The duty of preaching the gospel unto the children of men is ours as long as the Lord permits us to live on the earth, and remain faithful unto Him.
The statement recorded by Moses in the twenty-ninth chapter and twenty-ninth verse of Deuteronomy is correct. We know that it is wrong for us to use intoxicating drinks; it is wrong for us to defraud; or to commit sin of any kind. If we observe that which the Lord has revealed unto us, we will not err, we will respond better to the will of the Master. The Lord has sent His servants in the earth; it is just the same as though He had Himself laid hands upon the heads of those who preside in this Church. When the Lord called Edward Partridge into the ministry as a bishop in the Church, He said (36th section of the Doctrine and Covenants): "I will lay my hand upon your head by my servant Sidney Rigdon." There was an ensample. This work that the Lord revealed unto the Prophet Joseph Smith will stand, and the principles thereof are given to aid in accomplishing His work. The men and the women who go forth and preach the principles of the gospel, at home or abroad, are assisting the Lord. We have a work to perform for the Lord each day.
It ought never to be said of any man in the Church, that he ever raised his voice against the bishop, or against any of the presiding officers of the Church In the days when Israel demanded a king and said: "We want to be like these other people who live in the land; we want a king, we demand of you a king,” the Prophet Samuel was troubled, and he knelt down and prayed unto the Lord and asked what he should do. And the Lord said unto him: "They have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not reign over them." The Lord has revealed many things unto us. We hear them in our homes, in our conferences, in our Sabbath day meetings and elsewhere, and we ought to be familiar with them. The Lord has given unto us much knowledge, and therein is power that we might be able to withstand the attacks of the adversary, though those attacks be as numerous as the microbes that have been alluded to by other speakers.
I pray that the Lord will bless us, latter-day Israel, that we may have faith to overcome our weaknesses, and that we may be true men at home or abroad, and live as the Lord requires us, that no man nor set of men may justly condemn us. The Lord bless you. Amen.
The choir sang the hymn:
Master, the tempest is raging!
The billows are tossing high!
The sky is o'ershadowed with blackness,
No shelter or help is nigh.
(President of Central States Mission.)
I have listened with interest to the remarks of the brethren who have preceded me, and I trust that the few moments I stand here, I may enjoy the same spirit that directed their words.
These brethren have alluded to the interest that some people are taking in our religion, who are not of our faith, and it reminded me of the remark of the Savior when He said, "And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations: and then shall the end come." There is no question but that honorable men and women of the earth will, sooner or later, according to their day and time, listen to the teachings of the elders of Israel, for the gospel they teach is the "gospel of the kingdom" that was preached by the Savior. It is destined to attract the attention of the world, and they will listen respectfully to the proclamation made by elders of the "Mormon" Church.
The world understands "Mormonism" better today than ever before. When men take a stand of opposition now, and criticize the acts of the "Mormon" people, it usually happens that their antagonism makes friends for us. We need not be afraid, for the Lord Almighty is the author of what is called "Mormonism." He stands behind it because He revealed it unto the children of men through the Prophet Joseph Smith, and it will resound through this earth, until every man and woman under heaven shall have a chance to receive or reject this gospel of the Savior of the world.
The Lord revealed unto the Prophet Joseph Smith this principle, that no man can be saved in ignorance, and that, before men should stand before the judgment bar of God, every man or woman, either in this world or after departing, will have the privilege of understanding the gospel of the Redeemer, so that they may be able to accept or reject it. I listened to a sermon, delivered a short time ago by a noted divine of the Presbyterian church. He took for his subject the "Country Church." He stated that in company with some companions in the ministry, he had been holding a conference, and in that conference the subject of the country church was considered, and they deliberated upon the best methods to reach the people in the country. He said they were sadly neglected. They are a fine class of people, men and women who are producers, able to pay their debts and to support a minister, and who would do so if they had the chance. But he criticised their ministers this way: he said they preferred to live in the cities. When a certain district in the country wanted to have religious services, they sent to the city for one of the ministers to come down there and hold service with them on the selected Sunday. He said that a woman living in the country might just as well send to town for a dress, or a man living in the country might just as well send for a suit of clothes already made up, and take chances on the fit. He said the ministers in the church must mingle with the people, labor with them, live with them, and thus create an interest among them. He declared that the Church in the world that is growing fastest is the "Mormon" Church, there is no church that equals it. He further said, they had preachers generally that appealed to men, and that their missionaries visited the country districts frequently, and their churches were filled wherever they went.
My brethren and sisters, I cite you this for the reason, it is evidence that the world is taking notice of "Mormonism," and taking notice of the labors of the Elders of Israel out in the world, and the growth of the "Mormon" people. This gentleman did not understand that the Elders have within their hearts and within their minds a knowledge that God lives and that Jesus is the Christ, and that "Mormonism" is the Gospel of the Redeemer by which man may be saved in the presence of Almighty God. Moses, in speaking to ancient Israel, said, "The secret things belong unto the Lord, our God; but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law." The Lord revealed unto the Prophet Joseph Smith the true condition of affairs as they existed in the religious world. He told him that he should not join any of the denominations extant at that time, that they had a form of godliness but they denied the power thereof, that while they honored God with their lips their hearts were far from Him. Joseph Smith was God's authorized agent in restoring the gospel to mankind. When we go out into the world, and preach in the country churches that have been neglected by the ministers of the world, we gather the honest hearted men and women everywhere that the gospel message reaches. The Savior said, "My sheep hear my voice, and a stranger they will not follow, and they come unto me." So when the Elders go into country districts, and upon the streets of cities, and wherever they may have the opportunity to preach, men and women of the character named by the Savior thus hear His message, and a stranger they will not follow. It is not to be wondered at that people of the world are beginning to take notice of "Mormonism." We are making friends in every land and clime in this world today; we are becoming better known.
I had a conversation a short time ago with a gentleman who lives in Pueblo, Colorado, in President Herrick's mission field. He is president of one of the great banks in that country. In speaking of the apostate to whom Brother Herrick referred, he said, "We know the Mormon people, and we know that writer wants to organize us into some kind of a club to fight you people, but," said he, "we know the Mormon people too well; and he received no encouragement there." I say to our brethren, we need not be afraid to go on missions, if we live our religion. When men are called to go into the nations of the earth to- preach the gospel they should cheerfully respond. The Lord will open up the way for them to go into the world, and successfully proclaim the message that the Father and the Son delivered to the Prophet Joseph Smith. They can fearlessly declare that God lives, that He has a body, that He is able to speak; to see; to hear; to walk and talk that He is in very deed the true and living God. There are people in this world who profess Christianity, thousands of them, who are teaching today that God has not a body, that He is a spirit without body, parts or passions. The Lord has revealed the truth about Himself unto ancient and latter-day Israel. This important truth has been given unto us as a weapon to overcome the error which the adversary has disseminated, and gives every one a chance to use the free agency that God has given unto His children.
I am sure that there are many people in the world who love the truth. There is faith in the earth, and since the days of the Prophet Joseph Smith faith has increased. In support of this statement I will relate an incident that happened a short time ago. A certain jury that had been sitting in a case, and were to decide whether a man was to' be hanged or not, before they rendered their decision, they went into their room and there those twelve men knelt down and prayed unto the Father that they might render a true and a just decision. I say that I believe faith is increasing in the world, and that many men and women will yet join the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, because of that faith. They will go down into the waters of baptism as soon as they are converted. The duty of preaching the gospel unto the children of men is ours as long as the Lord permits us to live on the earth, and remain faithful unto Him.
The statement recorded by Moses in the twenty-ninth chapter and twenty-ninth verse of Deuteronomy is correct. We know that it is wrong for us to use intoxicating drinks; it is wrong for us to defraud; or to commit sin of any kind. If we observe that which the Lord has revealed unto us, we will not err, we will respond better to the will of the Master. The Lord has sent His servants in the earth; it is just the same as though He had Himself laid hands upon the heads of those who preside in this Church. When the Lord called Edward Partridge into the ministry as a bishop in the Church, He said (36th section of the Doctrine and Covenants): "I will lay my hand upon your head by my servant Sidney Rigdon." There was an ensample. This work that the Lord revealed unto the Prophet Joseph Smith will stand, and the principles thereof are given to aid in accomplishing His work. The men and the women who go forth and preach the principles of the gospel, at home or abroad, are assisting the Lord. We have a work to perform for the Lord each day.
It ought never to be said of any man in the Church, that he ever raised his voice against the bishop, or against any of the presiding officers of the Church In the days when Israel demanded a king and said: "We want to be like these other people who live in the land; we want a king, we demand of you a king,” the Prophet Samuel was troubled, and he knelt down and prayed unto the Lord and asked what he should do. And the Lord said unto him: "They have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not reign over them." The Lord has revealed many things unto us. We hear them in our homes, in our conferences, in our Sabbath day meetings and elsewhere, and we ought to be familiar with them. The Lord has given unto us much knowledge, and therein is power that we might be able to withstand the attacks of the adversary, though those attacks be as numerous as the microbes that have been alluded to by other speakers.
I pray that the Lord will bless us, latter-day Israel, that we may have faith to overcome our weaknesses, and that we may be true men at home or abroad, and live as the Lord requires us, that no man nor set of men may justly condemn us. The Lord bless you. Amen.
The choir sang the hymn:
Master, the tempest is raging!
The billows are tossing high!
The sky is o'ershadowed with blackness,
No shelter or help is nigh.
ELDER WILLIAM T. JACK.
(President of Cassia Stake.)
Truly “the song of the righteous is a prayer unto the Lord." I feel that we have been highly favored this afternoon in our services in this hall in listening to the sweet singing and musk that has been furnished by the Murray choir; indeed, the singing that has been furnished during the former sessions of this conference in the great Tabernacle; as well as here, has been an inspiration to all those who have attended I have rejoiced very much, my brethren and sisters, in the privilege that I have of attending this conference, listening to the testimonies and the instructions that we have received from the brethren. I rejoice very much in the testimony that we listened to. at the morning session of this conference, by President joseph F. Smith, the man who is the mouthpiece of the Lord unto us at the present time. I rejoiced in the testimony that he bore concerning himself. I have watched his life for more than fifty years, and he voiced my sentiments when he mentioned that period of his own life. I have looked upon him all my life as being a model of purity, as being the most absolutely just man that I have ever known. I have admired him for his sterling integrity, his great strength of character, his inspired mind, and for his ability to get, I believe, nearer to the Lord than any man I have been privileged to know in my life. I hope that those who comprise the membership of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints appreciate this man as does your humble servant, that we appreciate all our brethren who stand as leaders in Israel, and that we show our appreciation of them by acting upon and carrying out their precepts, and following their splendid example.
I rejoice very much in the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. My heart has been made glad this afternoon, in listening to. the stirring remarks of the previous speakers, brethren who are in the midst of the battle in this great work, mission presidents who are laboring in the field in the forefront of the fight for righteousness. It is safe for us to listen to their testimonies and to accept their counsels, because they are men of God, laboring for the gospel of righteousness, and they enjoy the inspiration of the Almighty. The gospel will bless us at home, the same as it has done for many of us in the mission field, if we will only apply ourselves in the same diligent manner. The reason why some of us do not feel as good, perhaps, as those who have been out in the mission field as messengers of salvation, is due to the fact that we are not as active at home as we were when we were abroad. If Ave will continue missionary work, take upon ourselves the duties and responsibilities of disseminating the gospel at home, we will enjoy the missionary spirit in our lives, and the Lord will bless us and inspire our minds, will strengthen our memories, and cause us to expand in our intellect and feelings, and increase in wisdom, and in understanding of His divine will and purposes, so that we will not be at a stand-still at home, as, I am sorry to say, some of our brethren are who have returned from active missionary life.
We have heard this afternoon of the field there is for missionary work here at home. How true that is, and yet some of our brethren who were active in the world fail to appreciate this fact, and are not as active at home as they might be. I remember a young man to whom I listened as he bore his testimony after returning, and in one of his remarks he said he was thankful that his preaching days were over. I wonder if there are many who feel the same way after returning home, thankful that their missionary days are over? It has been said by one of old that the "race is not to the swift nor the battle to the strong, but to him that endureth faithful to the end." We may run swiftly, and do an exceptionally splendid work for two or more years, as our missionaries do; but if, when we come home, we forget the Lord, fall back into the ways of the world, and give way to weaknesses that some are addicted to before they go into the missionary field, we will not enjoy the Spirit of the Lord at home.
I believe, my brethren and sisters, that it is our duty, as Latter-day Saints, that we should kneel down in our homes morning and night, and pray to the Lord to prosper His work upon the earth. I thought today while sitting here that, in a sense, the Lord cannot prosper this work unless we will take hold of the duties and responsibilities that rest upon us as consistent members of the Church, as faithful men and women. This Church cannot be better than its membership. When speaking with men in the world that say the "Mormon" people are all right, that they find no fault with the rank and file of the "Mormon" Church, but complain against leading authorities of the Church, I feel in my soul to wish that all the members of this Church were nearer to coming up to the standard of those men who stand at the head of the quorums of the priesthood. There is plenty of room, it seems to me, my brethren and sisters, for us to make an improvement in our lives as members of the Church. There is a great responsibility resting upon every one of us. It seems to me there is no other church in the world that has to meet the responsibility of the action of the humblest member of that church to the extent that is true of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. When there is one member of our Church, in the communities in which we live, that goes astray, or brings upon himself reproach, he does not suffer the contumely alone, but the stigma is cast upon all members of the Church who reside in that locality, and some even blame the whole membership of the "Mormon" Church, and claim that it is the fruits of "Mormonism." While this is not a proper view to take, it is the view that many in the world take, and I presume that, to some extent, they are justified in that view, because we hold up a higher standard than does any other religious organization in the world.
We claim that our Church has been organized by divine direction, that the Lord Himself has been instrumental in bringing forth this work, that is known in the world as "Mormonism," and that He has revealed the glorious principles of truth that we have accepted as our rule of faith and our guide. We claim that we are constantly receiving revelations from the Almighty, that we are guided day by day by those revelations, and that we have in our midst prophets, apostles, and inspired men. Now, you can see readily how much better we ought to be than the people of the world; it is quite natural for them to look for more from us than from people who are not able to make such professions. It would be a victory for the adversary if he could induce the Latter-day Saints to forget their high calling and come down to the standard of their fellow men in the world; the enemy of righteousness would then have accomplished his purpose. It is his design to impede the progress of this work. He cannot do it, as far as the majority of this people are concerned. I feel sure it is impossible for him to overcome the high authorities of the "Mormon" Church, because of the purity of their lives and the devotion that they manifest to this work of the Almighty. I believe it is not possible for the adversary to come into this congregation, nor any other congregation of the Latter-day Saints, and successfully combat this work. That is not his plan of operation; his plan is to influence the individual members of the Church, some of us with discontent, some with fault finding, some with a failure to pay tithing, some with neglect of one duty and some with another, until we lose the spirit of the work and forget our high calling and destiny.
Now I feel that, as members of the Church of Christ, we ought to examine ourselves, each one of us, and find out where we and our families stand, see that our boys and girls are being taught in the fear and nurture of the Lord, and that they are being preserved from those evils that are extant in this age of the world. I believe with all my heart that we are living in the hour of God's judgments, "and that the adversary is spreading before our young people those temptations that, if he succeeds, will lead them away from Christ and from His work. I feel that we cannot be too careful, circumspect, and conscientious before our families, to preserve our integrity and fidelity, and make every possible effort that our children may grow up around our firesides, free from allurements and infatuation that would cause them to fall. They should be made to feel in their souls that their father and' mother are honest, and that there must be something in this work, something that has induced them to willingly make sacrifices, and that they do make them cheerfully for the gospel's sake.
I pray that the Lord will bless us, that the spirit of this conference may be taken to our homes and may sink into our hearts, and that we may realize the great obligations that rest upon us as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I trust that we will constitute ourselves missionaries at home, first with our own households and then with the families of those that are around us, our friends and associates. We find, in the stake in which I have the pleasure to live, that there are thousands of good, honest men and women coming in from the eastern states, and from other parts of the country, casting their lots with us in the. new lands that are being opened up for homes, and I find that there is the best field for missionary work, perhaps as great as can be found anywhere in the world.
We have a great many men in the Church who have the spirit of the gospel with them, but they are never prepared, financially, to go out into the world and preach the gospel. They are willing to go if they had the means, but they never get the means to enable them to respond to a call to go abroad. Now we are going to get around this fall, up in Cassia stake of Zion, and we are going to call a hundred or more of just such men, and give them a mission in that stake, give them some books and tracts, and send them forth among the people to preach the gospel. In this manner, I believe the people will be benefited, and our brethren who engage in that work will be benefited, and good results will come to the great work that we are engaged in.
I rejoice in the testimony of Jesus. I know that the gospel is true, and I know that it will save all those who shall endure faithful unto the end. I hope that we will remember the duties and responsibilities that rest upon us, and that we will do our full duty as members of the Church of Christ, which I ask in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
(President of Cassia Stake.)
Truly “the song of the righteous is a prayer unto the Lord." I feel that we have been highly favored this afternoon in our services in this hall in listening to the sweet singing and musk that has been furnished by the Murray choir; indeed, the singing that has been furnished during the former sessions of this conference in the great Tabernacle; as well as here, has been an inspiration to all those who have attended I have rejoiced very much, my brethren and sisters, in the privilege that I have of attending this conference, listening to the testimonies and the instructions that we have received from the brethren. I rejoice very much in the testimony that we listened to. at the morning session of this conference, by President joseph F. Smith, the man who is the mouthpiece of the Lord unto us at the present time. I rejoiced in the testimony that he bore concerning himself. I have watched his life for more than fifty years, and he voiced my sentiments when he mentioned that period of his own life. I have looked upon him all my life as being a model of purity, as being the most absolutely just man that I have ever known. I have admired him for his sterling integrity, his great strength of character, his inspired mind, and for his ability to get, I believe, nearer to the Lord than any man I have been privileged to know in my life. I hope that those who comprise the membership of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints appreciate this man as does your humble servant, that we appreciate all our brethren who stand as leaders in Israel, and that we show our appreciation of them by acting upon and carrying out their precepts, and following their splendid example.
I rejoice very much in the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. My heart has been made glad this afternoon, in listening to. the stirring remarks of the previous speakers, brethren who are in the midst of the battle in this great work, mission presidents who are laboring in the field in the forefront of the fight for righteousness. It is safe for us to listen to their testimonies and to accept their counsels, because they are men of God, laboring for the gospel of righteousness, and they enjoy the inspiration of the Almighty. The gospel will bless us at home, the same as it has done for many of us in the mission field, if we will only apply ourselves in the same diligent manner. The reason why some of us do not feel as good, perhaps, as those who have been out in the mission field as messengers of salvation, is due to the fact that we are not as active at home as we were when we were abroad. If Ave will continue missionary work, take upon ourselves the duties and responsibilities of disseminating the gospel at home, we will enjoy the missionary spirit in our lives, and the Lord will bless us and inspire our minds, will strengthen our memories, and cause us to expand in our intellect and feelings, and increase in wisdom, and in understanding of His divine will and purposes, so that we will not be at a stand-still at home, as, I am sorry to say, some of our brethren are who have returned from active missionary life.
We have heard this afternoon of the field there is for missionary work here at home. How true that is, and yet some of our brethren who were active in the world fail to appreciate this fact, and are not as active at home as they might be. I remember a young man to whom I listened as he bore his testimony after returning, and in one of his remarks he said he was thankful that his preaching days were over. I wonder if there are many who feel the same way after returning home, thankful that their missionary days are over? It has been said by one of old that the "race is not to the swift nor the battle to the strong, but to him that endureth faithful to the end." We may run swiftly, and do an exceptionally splendid work for two or more years, as our missionaries do; but if, when we come home, we forget the Lord, fall back into the ways of the world, and give way to weaknesses that some are addicted to before they go into the missionary field, we will not enjoy the Spirit of the Lord at home.
I believe, my brethren and sisters, that it is our duty, as Latter-day Saints, that we should kneel down in our homes morning and night, and pray to the Lord to prosper His work upon the earth. I thought today while sitting here that, in a sense, the Lord cannot prosper this work unless we will take hold of the duties and responsibilities that rest upon us as consistent members of the Church, as faithful men and women. This Church cannot be better than its membership. When speaking with men in the world that say the "Mormon" people are all right, that they find no fault with the rank and file of the "Mormon" Church, but complain against leading authorities of the Church, I feel in my soul to wish that all the members of this Church were nearer to coming up to the standard of those men who stand at the head of the quorums of the priesthood. There is plenty of room, it seems to me, my brethren and sisters, for us to make an improvement in our lives as members of the Church. There is a great responsibility resting upon every one of us. It seems to me there is no other church in the world that has to meet the responsibility of the action of the humblest member of that church to the extent that is true of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. When there is one member of our Church, in the communities in which we live, that goes astray, or brings upon himself reproach, he does not suffer the contumely alone, but the stigma is cast upon all members of the Church who reside in that locality, and some even blame the whole membership of the "Mormon" Church, and claim that it is the fruits of "Mormonism." While this is not a proper view to take, it is the view that many in the world take, and I presume that, to some extent, they are justified in that view, because we hold up a higher standard than does any other religious organization in the world.
We claim that our Church has been organized by divine direction, that the Lord Himself has been instrumental in bringing forth this work, that is known in the world as "Mormonism," and that He has revealed the glorious principles of truth that we have accepted as our rule of faith and our guide. We claim that we are constantly receiving revelations from the Almighty, that we are guided day by day by those revelations, and that we have in our midst prophets, apostles, and inspired men. Now, you can see readily how much better we ought to be than the people of the world; it is quite natural for them to look for more from us than from people who are not able to make such professions. It would be a victory for the adversary if he could induce the Latter-day Saints to forget their high calling and come down to the standard of their fellow men in the world; the enemy of righteousness would then have accomplished his purpose. It is his design to impede the progress of this work. He cannot do it, as far as the majority of this people are concerned. I feel sure it is impossible for him to overcome the high authorities of the "Mormon" Church, because of the purity of their lives and the devotion that they manifest to this work of the Almighty. I believe it is not possible for the adversary to come into this congregation, nor any other congregation of the Latter-day Saints, and successfully combat this work. That is not his plan of operation; his plan is to influence the individual members of the Church, some of us with discontent, some with fault finding, some with a failure to pay tithing, some with neglect of one duty and some with another, until we lose the spirit of the work and forget our high calling and destiny.
Now I feel that, as members of the Church of Christ, we ought to examine ourselves, each one of us, and find out where we and our families stand, see that our boys and girls are being taught in the fear and nurture of the Lord, and that they are being preserved from those evils that are extant in this age of the world. I believe with all my heart that we are living in the hour of God's judgments, "and that the adversary is spreading before our young people those temptations that, if he succeeds, will lead them away from Christ and from His work. I feel that we cannot be too careful, circumspect, and conscientious before our families, to preserve our integrity and fidelity, and make every possible effort that our children may grow up around our firesides, free from allurements and infatuation that would cause them to fall. They should be made to feel in their souls that their father and' mother are honest, and that there must be something in this work, something that has induced them to willingly make sacrifices, and that they do make them cheerfully for the gospel's sake.
I pray that the Lord will bless us, that the spirit of this conference may be taken to our homes and may sink into our hearts, and that we may realize the great obligations that rest upon us as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I trust that we will constitute ourselves missionaries at home, first with our own households and then with the families of those that are around us, our friends and associates. We find, in the stake in which I have the pleasure to live, that there are thousands of good, honest men and women coming in from the eastern states, and from other parts of the country, casting their lots with us in the. new lands that are being opened up for homes, and I find that there is the best field for missionary work, perhaps as great as can be found anywhere in the world.
We have a great many men in the Church who have the spirit of the gospel with them, but they are never prepared, financially, to go out into the world and preach the gospel. They are willing to go if they had the means, but they never get the means to enable them to respond to a call to go abroad. Now we are going to get around this fall, up in Cassia stake of Zion, and we are going to call a hundred or more of just such men, and give them a mission in that stake, give them some books and tracts, and send them forth among the people to preach the gospel. In this manner, I believe the people will be benefited, and our brethren who engage in that work will be benefited, and good results will come to the great work that we are engaged in.
I rejoice in the testimony of Jesus. I know that the gospel is true, and I know that it will save all those who shall endure faithful unto the end. I hope that we will remember the duties and responsibilities that rest upon us, and that we will do our full duty as members of the Church of Christ, which I ask in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
ELDER GEORGE ALBERT SMITH.
Admonition to sustain the Church authorities, and do the will of God.
We will now present the general authorities of the Church, and we desire that each one of you here will vote as you feel that you ought to vote. In voting for the general authorities of the Church, we exercise the individual privilege that we have to sustain them, and, if we think there is any good reason why they should not be sustained, it is our privilege to vote against them.
I feel to say to the Latter-day Saints today that, as far as I am concerned, this conference has been profitable to the, and I hope that we may all go home with this feeling. I believe it will be profitable for us to examine ourselves and see wherein we may make improvement in our lives, that we may continue to enjoy the blessings of the Lord, and that we may indeed increase within us the measure of power of the Spirit of God. You may fall, and I may fall by the wayside, but, as sure as the sun shines, this is the work of Jehovah, and He will communicate a knowledge of it, by the power of His Spirit, to the hearts of the children of men.
Let us obey those who are in authority over us, and sustain them not alone by word of mouth, but by acts and efforts; through this obedience we may know every moment that Jesus is the Redeemer of the world, and that there is placed within our reach His gospel for the uplift and salvation of the human family.
Let each one of us who are here today examine ourselves, find wherein we are short of what our Father in heaven would have us be, repent of our sins and turn unto Him with full purpose of heart. I promise you, in the name of the Lord, if we will do this that this conference will have been productive of good for us as long as we remain upon the earth.
May the Lord add His blessing. May peace, joy and comfort be in the hearts of the Latter-day Saints. May the gospel of our Lord find its way into the hearts of the children of men, that they may be touched by its purity, and by the evident divinity of the work that the Lord has established for their salvation, that they may understand the desire of our Father, and may be saved. May we put our shoulder to the wheel, each and all of us, and help to carry this work to a successful fruition, that in the end of our lives there may come unto all of us that welcome plaudit, "Well done, thou faithful servant." This is my prayer in the.name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Bryant S. Hinckley presented the names of the General Authorities of the Church, and officers of General Boards of auxiliary organizations, and they were severally sustained in the positions named, by unanimous vote of the congregation.
The choir sang the anthem, "Damascus."
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Mark Austin.
Admonition to sustain the Church authorities, and do the will of God.
We will now present the general authorities of the Church, and we desire that each one of you here will vote as you feel that you ought to vote. In voting for the general authorities of the Church, we exercise the individual privilege that we have to sustain them, and, if we think there is any good reason why they should not be sustained, it is our privilege to vote against them.
I feel to say to the Latter-day Saints today that, as far as I am concerned, this conference has been profitable to the, and I hope that we may all go home with this feeling. I believe it will be profitable for us to examine ourselves and see wherein we may make improvement in our lives, that we may continue to enjoy the blessings of the Lord, and that we may indeed increase within us the measure of power of the Spirit of God. You may fall, and I may fall by the wayside, but, as sure as the sun shines, this is the work of Jehovah, and He will communicate a knowledge of it, by the power of His Spirit, to the hearts of the children of men.
Let us obey those who are in authority over us, and sustain them not alone by word of mouth, but by acts and efforts; through this obedience we may know every moment that Jesus is the Redeemer of the world, and that there is placed within our reach His gospel for the uplift and salvation of the human family.
Let each one of us who are here today examine ourselves, find wherein we are short of what our Father in heaven would have us be, repent of our sins and turn unto Him with full purpose of heart. I promise you, in the name of the Lord, if we will do this that this conference will have been productive of good for us as long as we remain upon the earth.
May the Lord add His blessing. May peace, joy and comfort be in the hearts of the Latter-day Saints. May the gospel of our Lord find its way into the hearts of the children of men, that they may be touched by its purity, and by the evident divinity of the work that the Lord has established for their salvation, that they may understand the desire of our Father, and may be saved. May we put our shoulder to the wheel, each and all of us, and help to carry this work to a successful fruition, that in the end of our lives there may come unto all of us that welcome plaudit, "Well done, thou faithful servant." This is my prayer in the.name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Elder Bryant S. Hinckley presented the names of the General Authorities of the Church, and officers of General Boards of auxiliary organizations, and they were severally sustained in the positions named, by unanimous vote of the congregation.
The choir sang the anthem, "Damascus."
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Mark Austin.
OUTDOOR MEETING.
Thousands of people gathered on the Temple grounds, unable to obtain admission to the Tabernacle or Assembly Hall, and an outdoor meeting was held for their benefit, at 2 p. m., near the Bureau of Information building. The services were presided over by Elder Benjamin Goddard. Music was furnished by Prof. Wm. C. Clive's orchestra, and Elder Evan Arthur led the singing.
The congregation sang the hymn:
We thank Thee, O God, for a Prophet,
To guide us in these latter days;
We thank Thee for sending the Gospel
To lighten our minds with its rays.
Prayer was offered by Elder Wm. H. Smart.
The congregation sang the hymn, "America."
Thousands of people gathered on the Temple grounds, unable to obtain admission to the Tabernacle or Assembly Hall, and an outdoor meeting was held for their benefit, at 2 p. m., near the Bureau of Information building. The services were presided over by Elder Benjamin Goddard. Music was furnished by Prof. Wm. C. Clive's orchestra, and Elder Evan Arthur led the singing.
The congregation sang the hymn:
We thank Thee, O God, for a Prophet,
To guide us in these latter days;
We thank Thee for sending the Gospel
To lighten our minds with its rays.
Prayer was offered by Elder Wm. H. Smart.
The congregation sang the hymn, "America."
ELDER BENJAMIN GODDARD.
(Of Bureau of Information.)
My brethren, sisters and friends, we all rejoice and thank God for the privilege of meeting in General Conference, and we cannot fail to notice, from the increased attendance at each succeeding conference, that "Zion is growing." For many years past, it has been impossible to accommodate the visitors in the buildings on Temple block during the sessions, and when the weather is as auspicious as on this occasion, the large crowd assembled on the outside cannot all hear the speakers in an open-air meeting.
We are glad to greet you in this meeting, and regret that we cannot provide seats for all present. We observe that in the congregation we have representatives from many countries, and from the islands of the sea. Elders who nave labored in New Zealand will remember how patiently the Saints in that far-off land would remain at such meetings as these, seated upon the ground or standing for eight and nine hours at a time.
However, we do not intend to weary you at this session, but we trust that all who have come to worship may be blessed in this gathering. I commend unto you again the thought that "Zion is growing." It now appears that the time will come when the Temple block will not hold the assembled Saints at conference time. Our buildings are already too small, and the words of our hymn are applicable to this feature of our work, as well as to the spreading of the Saints into the different localities where they dwell.
We often sing
Give us room that we may dwell,
Zion's children cry aloud;
See their numbers how they swell!
How they gather like a cloud!
Zion, now arise and shine!
Lo, thy light from heaven is come!
These that crowd from far are thine;
Give thy sons and daughters room.
We feel that God will respond to this plea, for the Spirit that has caused Israel to gather together has emanated from Him.
May the blessings invoked upon this congregation by President Smart be realized. May our hearts indeed be receptive, and may our souls be blessed by the truths that may be given unto us.
The brethren who will speak, come before you in all humility, and with no other desire than to serve God, and respond to the call made of them. It depends largely upon us how much blessing we receive from the Lord at this meeting. We rely upon the promise "Blessed are they who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled." May the Spirit of the Lord satisfy the cravings of our hearts, in the name of Jesus. Amen.
(Of Bureau of Information.)
My brethren, sisters and friends, we all rejoice and thank God for the privilege of meeting in General Conference, and we cannot fail to notice, from the increased attendance at each succeeding conference, that "Zion is growing." For many years past, it has been impossible to accommodate the visitors in the buildings on Temple block during the sessions, and when the weather is as auspicious as on this occasion, the large crowd assembled on the outside cannot all hear the speakers in an open-air meeting.
We are glad to greet you in this meeting, and regret that we cannot provide seats for all present. We observe that in the congregation we have representatives from many countries, and from the islands of the sea. Elders who nave labored in New Zealand will remember how patiently the Saints in that far-off land would remain at such meetings as these, seated upon the ground or standing for eight and nine hours at a time.
However, we do not intend to weary you at this session, but we trust that all who have come to worship may be blessed in this gathering. I commend unto you again the thought that "Zion is growing." It now appears that the time will come when the Temple block will not hold the assembled Saints at conference time. Our buildings are already too small, and the words of our hymn are applicable to this feature of our work, as well as to the spreading of the Saints into the different localities where they dwell.
We often sing
Give us room that we may dwell,
Zion's children cry aloud;
See their numbers how they swell!
How they gather like a cloud!
Zion, now arise and shine!
Lo, thy light from heaven is come!
These that crowd from far are thine;
Give thy sons and daughters room.
We feel that God will respond to this plea, for the Spirit that has caused Israel to gather together has emanated from Him.
May the blessings invoked upon this congregation by President Smart be realized. May our hearts indeed be receptive, and may our souls be blessed by the truths that may be given unto us.
The brethren who will speak, come before you in all humility, and with no other desire than to serve God, and respond to the call made of them. It depends largely upon us how much blessing we receive from the Lord at this meeting. We rely upon the promise "Blessed are they who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled." May the Spirit of the Lord satisfy the cravings of our hearts, in the name of Jesus. Amen.
ELDER REY L. PRATT.
(President of the Mexican Mission.)
My brethren and sisters, I sincerely desire an interest in your faith and prayers, and in your sympathy, that I may be able to say something upon this occasion that will be beneficial.
In the little experience that I have had in the preaching of the gospel in the world, I have learned this one lesson better than any other, that man of his own strength is not capable to teach his fellowman the things of God.
I rejoice in this privilege, and it is to me indeed a pleasure to see so many of my brethren and sisters congregated together on this spot to partake of the good spirit that has been poured out upon the people during our conference. I am thankful for the gospel, and I am thankful that I am a partaker of its blessings; and that I have been counted worthy to spread the gospel message in the world.
We read in the Scriptures that John saw that in the last day an angel should fly through the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto those who dwell upon the earth, to every people, every nation, every kindred and every tongue. We also find that the Savior commissioned His apostles, after His resurrection, to take this same message and preach it unto every creature, saying that those who obeyed it, those who put it into practice, should be saved. It has been my privilege to be engaged in this work during the past five years, and it does me good to know that the gospel is being preached throughout the world, and that thousands are receiving its message. I know, with Paul, that it is the power of God unto salvation, and I know that it is the only plan by which man can be redeemed.
The Scriptures that I have cited teaches that the gospel is not alone unto one people, not alone unto those who are in a state of enlightened civilization. The gospel is unto every creature, and it is for the purpose of saving all mankind and bringing them to a knowledge of the truth, and saving them in the presence of our Father in heaven. It is for the purpose of teaching mankind faith in God, that true God whom to know is life eternal. It is for the teaching of mankind that they cannot be saved in His presence in their sins. If men are wicked, they must repent, or they cannot be brought into that state of salvation that is prepared for those only who will accept the truth. It is a mistaken idea to believe that men can be saved in the highest degree of glory in any man ner of sin. Men must be pure.
I rejoiced in the remarks of our beloved Apostle McKay yesterday, when he taught so faithfully the duties of those who receive the gospel. I tell you, my brethren and sisters, that if there are men in this congregation who are addicted to the habit of drinking, before they can be saved in the presence of our Father in heaven, they must repent of that evil; and I say the same to any who may be guilty of taking advantage of their brethren. They must repent or they cannot be saved. And I say the same to young people who, perchance, are addicted to any evils that exist in the world today, they must become clean. They must emulate the great example that was set us by our Savior, and be free, and clean, and pure from everything that is evil. Men may say that it is impossible for us to attain this in mortal life. I had the privilege of traveling with a learned Greek in Mexico, away down near the Isthmus of Tehauntapeck, and I had an opportunity to explain to him some of the principles of our gospel. He is a man that speaks about ten different languages, and has traveled this globe over, and he says that he has investigated most creeds, and he believes it utterly impossible for men in this mortal sphere to attain to that condition of perfection. He was particularly emphatic in the statement that he believed that the people among whom I am called to labor, the Mexicans, the Lamanites, descendants of Father Lehi, who reside on this continent, are incapable in their nature of receiving and putting into practice these principles. But, I testify to you, my brethren and sisters, that the gospel is for the salvation of every man who will avail himself of it, and it makes no difference unto the Lord the color of a man's skin, or the nation to which he belongs. When the gospel message is presented to him if he will accept it, he has the power to cast out of himself every evil that he may have inherited, or that he may have acquired, and though his sins be as scarlet, he can be washed pure and white as wool by the blood of our Savior, through obedience to the principles of the gospel. I testify to you, because I know whereof I speak, that although the people among whom I labor have been brought low, in the providences of the Lord, and have been in the dregs of degradation, sin and crime, I have seen them washed clean, and made pure, and many of them are today the equals of any men and women that live on the earth in purity, and in goodness of life. There is no other power under the sun that could have done this for them except the gospel of our Savior, and His redeeming grace.
It is a grand mission, my brethren and sisters, to carry this message into the world, and I have received more joy, more satisfaction, and more consolation in my labors among those who know not the truth, than I have in any other duty, or privilege, or pleasure that I have enjoyed in my life. I say to the young and the middle-aged, and the able-bodied, that there are millions yet who have not heard the gospel, millions who are seeking for the truth, millions who are in error because they do not know any better, and what a blessed privilege it is to carry the truth that we have received, and redeem those who are in such a condition! Woe unto us, I say, woe unto me if I do not preach the gospel, for freely I have received, and it should be our desire, and it is our duty to give freely. Not only preach it in the world, but live a consistent, a clean, and a pure life at home or abroad, that those who are not of us may see our good works, and be led to glorify our Father in heaven because of them.
My brethren and sisters, I love this work. I am glad to have this privilege of speaking to you today and bearing my testimony that I know that the gospel is true, that I know it will never be taken from this world again until this world is redeemed. My prayer is that the blessings of the Lord may be poured out upon this people, that they may continue to grow in numbers and in good works, and that the gospel may continue to be carried unto all the world until the prophecy of the Savior is fulfilled, when He said that this gospel of the kingdom should be preached in all the world as a witness before the end should come, a witness that men have the privilege of accepting the gospel, which is the power of God unto salvation, and that none may present themselves before our Father in heaven on the grand judgment day and be able to say, "Lord, I had not the privilege in my mortal life of hearing those principles."
May God grant that we may have the spirit of this work upon us. Particularly I appeal to the young men. Pray for it, my brethren, the desire to carry the gospel unto the world; pray for the privilege. Avail yourselves of every opportunity to acquire knowledge, and the Lord will prepare you and will grant you this grand favor; and He will fill your hearts with joy such as you have not yet felt, if you do so. May this be our happy lot; and may the Lord bless you all, I ask in the name of Jesus. Amen.
(President of the Mexican Mission.)
My brethren and sisters, I sincerely desire an interest in your faith and prayers, and in your sympathy, that I may be able to say something upon this occasion that will be beneficial.
In the little experience that I have had in the preaching of the gospel in the world, I have learned this one lesson better than any other, that man of his own strength is not capable to teach his fellowman the things of God.
I rejoice in this privilege, and it is to me indeed a pleasure to see so many of my brethren and sisters congregated together on this spot to partake of the good spirit that has been poured out upon the people during our conference. I am thankful for the gospel, and I am thankful that I am a partaker of its blessings; and that I have been counted worthy to spread the gospel message in the world.
We read in the Scriptures that John saw that in the last day an angel should fly through the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto those who dwell upon the earth, to every people, every nation, every kindred and every tongue. We also find that the Savior commissioned His apostles, after His resurrection, to take this same message and preach it unto every creature, saying that those who obeyed it, those who put it into practice, should be saved. It has been my privilege to be engaged in this work during the past five years, and it does me good to know that the gospel is being preached throughout the world, and that thousands are receiving its message. I know, with Paul, that it is the power of God unto salvation, and I know that it is the only plan by which man can be redeemed.
The Scriptures that I have cited teaches that the gospel is not alone unto one people, not alone unto those who are in a state of enlightened civilization. The gospel is unto every creature, and it is for the purpose of saving all mankind and bringing them to a knowledge of the truth, and saving them in the presence of our Father in heaven. It is for the purpose of teaching mankind faith in God, that true God whom to know is life eternal. It is for the teaching of mankind that they cannot be saved in His presence in their sins. If men are wicked, they must repent, or they cannot be brought into that state of salvation that is prepared for those only who will accept the truth. It is a mistaken idea to believe that men can be saved in the highest degree of glory in any man ner of sin. Men must be pure.
I rejoiced in the remarks of our beloved Apostle McKay yesterday, when he taught so faithfully the duties of those who receive the gospel. I tell you, my brethren and sisters, that if there are men in this congregation who are addicted to the habit of drinking, before they can be saved in the presence of our Father in heaven, they must repent of that evil; and I say the same to any who may be guilty of taking advantage of their brethren. They must repent or they cannot be saved. And I say the same to young people who, perchance, are addicted to any evils that exist in the world today, they must become clean. They must emulate the great example that was set us by our Savior, and be free, and clean, and pure from everything that is evil. Men may say that it is impossible for us to attain this in mortal life. I had the privilege of traveling with a learned Greek in Mexico, away down near the Isthmus of Tehauntapeck, and I had an opportunity to explain to him some of the principles of our gospel. He is a man that speaks about ten different languages, and has traveled this globe over, and he says that he has investigated most creeds, and he believes it utterly impossible for men in this mortal sphere to attain to that condition of perfection. He was particularly emphatic in the statement that he believed that the people among whom I am called to labor, the Mexicans, the Lamanites, descendants of Father Lehi, who reside on this continent, are incapable in their nature of receiving and putting into practice these principles. But, I testify to you, my brethren and sisters, that the gospel is for the salvation of every man who will avail himself of it, and it makes no difference unto the Lord the color of a man's skin, or the nation to which he belongs. When the gospel message is presented to him if he will accept it, he has the power to cast out of himself every evil that he may have inherited, or that he may have acquired, and though his sins be as scarlet, he can be washed pure and white as wool by the blood of our Savior, through obedience to the principles of the gospel. I testify to you, because I know whereof I speak, that although the people among whom I labor have been brought low, in the providences of the Lord, and have been in the dregs of degradation, sin and crime, I have seen them washed clean, and made pure, and many of them are today the equals of any men and women that live on the earth in purity, and in goodness of life. There is no other power under the sun that could have done this for them except the gospel of our Savior, and His redeeming grace.
It is a grand mission, my brethren and sisters, to carry this message into the world, and I have received more joy, more satisfaction, and more consolation in my labors among those who know not the truth, than I have in any other duty, or privilege, or pleasure that I have enjoyed in my life. I say to the young and the middle-aged, and the able-bodied, that there are millions yet who have not heard the gospel, millions who are seeking for the truth, millions who are in error because they do not know any better, and what a blessed privilege it is to carry the truth that we have received, and redeem those who are in such a condition! Woe unto us, I say, woe unto me if I do not preach the gospel, for freely I have received, and it should be our desire, and it is our duty to give freely. Not only preach it in the world, but live a consistent, a clean, and a pure life at home or abroad, that those who are not of us may see our good works, and be led to glorify our Father in heaven because of them.
My brethren and sisters, I love this work. I am glad to have this privilege of speaking to you today and bearing my testimony that I know that the gospel is true, that I know it will never be taken from this world again until this world is redeemed. My prayer is that the blessings of the Lord may be poured out upon this people, that they may continue to grow in numbers and in good works, and that the gospel may continue to be carried unto all the world until the prophecy of the Savior is fulfilled, when He said that this gospel of the kingdom should be preached in all the world as a witness before the end should come, a witness that men have the privilege of accepting the gospel, which is the power of God unto salvation, and that none may present themselves before our Father in heaven on the grand judgment day and be able to say, "Lord, I had not the privilege in my mortal life of hearing those principles."
May God grant that we may have the spirit of this work upon us. Particularly I appeal to the young men. Pray for it, my brethren, the desire to carry the gospel unto the world; pray for the privilege. Avail yourselves of every opportunity to acquire knowledge, and the Lord will prepare you and will grant you this grand favor; and He will fill your hearts with joy such as you have not yet felt, if you do so. May this be our happy lot; and may the Lord bless you all, I ask in the name of Jesus. Amen.
ELDER JOSEPH ECKERSLEY.
(Of the Presidency of Wayne Stake.)
I rejoice exceedingly in the spirit that has been manifest in the proclamation of the gospel by the servants of the Lord during this conference. As we meet this afternoon, in this overflow meeting of the conference, under the canopy of heaven, and shadowed by the temple of the living God, I am reminded of the prophetic words of Isaiah when he said that, "it shall come to pass in the last days the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be established in the tops of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills, and all nations shall flow unto it, and many shall say, Come let us go up to the Mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob, where we will learn of His ways and walk in His paths, for the law shall go forth of Zion and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem." The object of our Heavenly Father in gathering together His people from the various nations of the earth has been to teach them in His ways. It is true that in the nations where they were born, there is opportunity, for a few of them at least, to learn something of the ways of the Lord.
I am reminded of the remarks of Elder Goddard at the commencement of this meeting, that there are gathered here people from many nations, and we are a few out of the many that heard the glad tidings of great joy that were proclaimed in our fatherland. The question has occurred to me, while sitting here this afternoon, whether the Latter-day Saints, generally, who have gathered up to Zion, are as faithful, earnest and devoted in the performance of their religious duties as when they received the light and the truth in the old countries? In the prophecy that I have quoted, we are reminded by Isaiah that the object of gathering was that the people should be taught in the ways of the Lord. In order that we may be properly taught, it is necessary to have authorized teachers; and this leads me to the thought that no man, as stated by Elder Pratt, is competent, of his own wisdom, of his own understanding and learning, to declare the things of God. In contemplating the remarks of Elder McKay yesterday, with regard to the Latter-day Saints being a peculiar people, I am reminded that we are peculiar in this particular, that, unlike all other "orthodox" Christians, we believe that men must be called of God to preach the gospel and officiate in the ordinances thereof. It was declared by the Apostle of old, "How shall they hear without a preacher, and how shall he preach except he be sent?" I draw your attention to the fact that the Son of God, the Redeemer of the world, came not unto mankind claiming any authority of Himself, save that which was given to Him of His Father. He proclaimed, "My doctrine is not mine, but His that sent me, and if any man will do the will of the Father, he shall know of the doctrine whether it be of God or whether I speak of Myself." Surely, if any living being had a right to claim authority for himself, it was the One who purchased the world by the shedding of His own blood; but He recognized that eternal principle of authority. He knew because He was present in the grand councils of heaven before this earth was created, when the plan of salvation was formulated. He understood that He had been chosen of the Father, and that council, to be the Redeemer of the world. He glorified in the privilege of coming to earth to perform His mission, but He gave the glory, thanksgiving, and credit unto God the Father, whose will He had come to do.
The Apostles did not call themselves to the ministry. They did not assume to preach the gospel to the children of Judea before they were called. No, they were attending to their duties, their labors and various avocations of life when the Savior went to the sea shore, and while some of them had their nets in the sea, in the very act of catching fish, the Son of God called them to be fishers of men, and thus He selected them from that and other avocations of life. He told them that they had not chosen themselves to be ministers of the gospel, but He had called them, and "as the Father has sent me, even so, send I you." He gave them the commission to go abroad and preach the gospel; and, being called by the proper authority and power, we find that wherever they went signs followed their ministry, and the seal of heaven was put upon their labors. After the ministry of the Savior had closed, after He had made the great atonement and sacrifice, and after His resurrection, when all power was given unto Him in heaven and in earth, and He came to reason, counsel, and advise with His disciples, and to teach them concerning the future, in His last instructions He commanded them to go into all the world and preach the gospel to' every creature, saying, they that believed on Him, and were baptized with the baptism that He had instituted, should be saved, and they who believed not should be damned. Hence, we see that the Apostles of Jesus Christ were called by divine authority. They received their commission before His death and resurrection, and later, at His last appearance, He gave them power and authority to go into all the world.
I have not the disposition to refer to the subject of the apostasy that followed the ministry of the first apostles of Jesus Christ, but I desire to draw the attention of the Latter-day Saints, and my friends who may not be of us who are present here this afternoon, that through all the ages of darkness, and the ages of reformation, since the advent of the Lord Jesus Christ and the Apostles, until the coming of the Prophet Joseph Smith, no man assumed to say that he had received a visitation from God. No man assumed to say that he had been directly sent of God to preach the gospel, as Jesus proclaimed He was sent, as the apostles proclaimed they were sent, or as any of the other prophets anciently declared they received their commission of God. True it is that there have been many good and noble ones, men who have devoted their lives, men who have sacrificed their time and all they possessed for the progress of the truths that they believed in. I think of the early reformers, of Luther, Knox, Calvin, Wesley and all the army of noble men whom God raised up to prepare the way for the coming of greater and better things, paving the way, so to speak, through those dark ages, that conditions might be favorable for the restoration of His Gospel and Holy Priesthood, and yet these men did not assume, as I say, to have been called of God.
I think of the words of Charles Wesley, who was led, in thinking of the apostolic dispensation, to utter these words, a sentiment of his brother John and of the early reformers:
"O, what an age of golden days,
O, what a choice, peculiar race,
Washed in the Lamb's atoning blood,
Anointed kings and priests to God."
What a glorious vision he had of that early dispensation of gospel gifts, and privileges and blessings. And then looking around in the world about him, summing up the faith of all the various religious sects, he says,
"Where shall I wander now to find
Successors they have left behind?
The faithful, whom we seek in vain,
Are 'minished from the sons of men."
And then, in an exhortation to the Christians of that age, he says,
"Ye differing sects who all declare
'Lo, here is Christ,' or 'Christ is there,'
Your stronger proofs divinely give
And show me where true Christians live."
Yes, if Charles Wesley had lived in these days, we might have thought he was a Latter-day Saint. At heart, he was a saint of God, but the fulness of light and truth had not then come, though these reformers had a glimpse of it. They had their place in the great work of human redemption, and God will remember them, as He will remember every soul for the good that they do in 'this life. It was left for Joseph Smith, the boy who sought the Lord in the woods, to receive the fulness of authority and power, and the principles of life and truth that should save mankind.
We may, in our skeptical minds, object to the manner and method in which God revealed the truth in the last age, but if there were time, we would show that the way the Lord has worked among the children of men has always been taken exception to by the worldly intelligent, learned, prudent and wise. As the heavens are high above the earth, so are the ways of the Lord higher than the ways of man, and so are His thoughts more profound and deep. We have reason to rejoice and be exceeding glad that God in these last days has again spoken, through His instrument and prophet, Joseph Smith.
My testimony to you, because of the experience that I have had, is that no man is qualified to teach the truth unless he be sent of God. He may attempt to teach the truth, may seek to preach the gospel, but the seal and power of God will not and cannot accompany his testimony and his words. The Lord has called men to proclaim His word, by divine authority, and I am sure that, as we have listened to the words of inspiration that have fallen from the lips of the Elders during this conference, our hearts have rejoiced greatly in the God of our salvation.
I desire to say just one word by way of admonition, counsel and exhortation, to the Latter-day Saints that are present here this afternoon. Let us go to our homes with a renewed desire to practice the counsels that are given to us at our conferences, and for that matter, that are given to us every time we meet and listen to the servants of God. Let us be assured that they will never lead us astray, that God is at the helm, that this is His work, that He is inspiring His servants, and that this work will increase and grow, until it fills the whole earth. I rejoice in the beautiful principle that was touched upon by Elder Pratt. The day is hastening on, brethren and sisters, when every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is the Redeemer of the world, to the glory of God the Father.
I rejoice in the comprehensiveness of the gospel of Jesus Christ, in its saving power; and I rejoice in the principle that every soul will be judged according to their own works. I thank God for these precious principles, that every man and woman who desires salvation may be saved. "Come unto Christ all ye that are weary and heavy laden, and you shall have rest." Go unto the Master, ye that are burdened and weary with the cares and trials of life, or even with your sins. Go unto God and confess your faults. Hearken unto the voice of the men whom God has raised up, to whom He has given divine authority, and you shall know that God lives, that Jesus is Christ, the Redeemer of the world, that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God, entrusted with power and authority to minister in His name and to delegate that authority to others. As a result of his ministry, and the authority delegated to the servants whom God has called, this gospel has been carried to the various nations of the earth; and this afternoon, in this beautiful space, we have the privilege of worshiping God according to the dictates of our conscience.
My brethren and sisters, may God bless us and give us a desire in our hearts to live those principles that we received in our fatherland. May we seek earnestly for the faith that was once delivered to the saints. •May we believe with all our hearts in the gospel of gifts and blessings, the gospel of power and of redeeming grace. I thank God that I can bear testimony to these things, that God has in these last days spoken from heaven, has given divine authority to men, not only to preach His gospel, but to administer in the ordinances thereof, ordinances that bring spiritual and temporal life and salvation. When you look upon me and see the ravages that disease wrought upon me, you look upon a monument of God's saving power and mercy. I bear testimony that God lives, that all the world sooner or later will know this truth and believe it, for every knee shall yet bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is the Christ, to the glory of the Father.
May we go home with renewed desires to serve the Lord, to give our life, in His service, and we will have joy in time and glory in eternity. May God grant it, through Jesus Christ. Amen.
Prof. Wm. C. Give rendered a violin solo, a beautiful arrangement of the old melody, "Home, sweet home."
(Of the Presidency of Wayne Stake.)
I rejoice exceedingly in the spirit that has been manifest in the proclamation of the gospel by the servants of the Lord during this conference. As we meet this afternoon, in this overflow meeting of the conference, under the canopy of heaven, and shadowed by the temple of the living God, I am reminded of the prophetic words of Isaiah when he said that, "it shall come to pass in the last days the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be established in the tops of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills, and all nations shall flow unto it, and many shall say, Come let us go up to the Mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob, where we will learn of His ways and walk in His paths, for the law shall go forth of Zion and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem." The object of our Heavenly Father in gathering together His people from the various nations of the earth has been to teach them in His ways. It is true that in the nations where they were born, there is opportunity, for a few of them at least, to learn something of the ways of the Lord.
I am reminded of the remarks of Elder Goddard at the commencement of this meeting, that there are gathered here people from many nations, and we are a few out of the many that heard the glad tidings of great joy that were proclaimed in our fatherland. The question has occurred to me, while sitting here this afternoon, whether the Latter-day Saints, generally, who have gathered up to Zion, are as faithful, earnest and devoted in the performance of their religious duties as when they received the light and the truth in the old countries? In the prophecy that I have quoted, we are reminded by Isaiah that the object of gathering was that the people should be taught in the ways of the Lord. In order that we may be properly taught, it is necessary to have authorized teachers; and this leads me to the thought that no man, as stated by Elder Pratt, is competent, of his own wisdom, of his own understanding and learning, to declare the things of God. In contemplating the remarks of Elder McKay yesterday, with regard to the Latter-day Saints being a peculiar people, I am reminded that we are peculiar in this particular, that, unlike all other "orthodox" Christians, we believe that men must be called of God to preach the gospel and officiate in the ordinances thereof. It was declared by the Apostle of old, "How shall they hear without a preacher, and how shall he preach except he be sent?" I draw your attention to the fact that the Son of God, the Redeemer of the world, came not unto mankind claiming any authority of Himself, save that which was given to Him of His Father. He proclaimed, "My doctrine is not mine, but His that sent me, and if any man will do the will of the Father, he shall know of the doctrine whether it be of God or whether I speak of Myself." Surely, if any living being had a right to claim authority for himself, it was the One who purchased the world by the shedding of His own blood; but He recognized that eternal principle of authority. He knew because He was present in the grand councils of heaven before this earth was created, when the plan of salvation was formulated. He understood that He had been chosen of the Father, and that council, to be the Redeemer of the world. He glorified in the privilege of coming to earth to perform His mission, but He gave the glory, thanksgiving, and credit unto God the Father, whose will He had come to do.
The Apostles did not call themselves to the ministry. They did not assume to preach the gospel to the children of Judea before they were called. No, they were attending to their duties, their labors and various avocations of life when the Savior went to the sea shore, and while some of them had their nets in the sea, in the very act of catching fish, the Son of God called them to be fishers of men, and thus He selected them from that and other avocations of life. He told them that they had not chosen themselves to be ministers of the gospel, but He had called them, and "as the Father has sent me, even so, send I you." He gave them the commission to go abroad and preach the gospel; and, being called by the proper authority and power, we find that wherever they went signs followed their ministry, and the seal of heaven was put upon their labors. After the ministry of the Savior had closed, after He had made the great atonement and sacrifice, and after His resurrection, when all power was given unto Him in heaven and in earth, and He came to reason, counsel, and advise with His disciples, and to teach them concerning the future, in His last instructions He commanded them to go into all the world and preach the gospel to' every creature, saying, they that believed on Him, and were baptized with the baptism that He had instituted, should be saved, and they who believed not should be damned. Hence, we see that the Apostles of Jesus Christ were called by divine authority. They received their commission before His death and resurrection, and later, at His last appearance, He gave them power and authority to go into all the world.
I have not the disposition to refer to the subject of the apostasy that followed the ministry of the first apostles of Jesus Christ, but I desire to draw the attention of the Latter-day Saints, and my friends who may not be of us who are present here this afternoon, that through all the ages of darkness, and the ages of reformation, since the advent of the Lord Jesus Christ and the Apostles, until the coming of the Prophet Joseph Smith, no man assumed to say that he had received a visitation from God. No man assumed to say that he had been directly sent of God to preach the gospel, as Jesus proclaimed He was sent, as the apostles proclaimed they were sent, or as any of the other prophets anciently declared they received their commission of God. True it is that there have been many good and noble ones, men who have devoted their lives, men who have sacrificed their time and all they possessed for the progress of the truths that they believed in. I think of the early reformers, of Luther, Knox, Calvin, Wesley and all the army of noble men whom God raised up to prepare the way for the coming of greater and better things, paving the way, so to speak, through those dark ages, that conditions might be favorable for the restoration of His Gospel and Holy Priesthood, and yet these men did not assume, as I say, to have been called of God.
I think of the words of Charles Wesley, who was led, in thinking of the apostolic dispensation, to utter these words, a sentiment of his brother John and of the early reformers:
"O, what an age of golden days,
O, what a choice, peculiar race,
Washed in the Lamb's atoning blood,
Anointed kings and priests to God."
What a glorious vision he had of that early dispensation of gospel gifts, and privileges and blessings. And then looking around in the world about him, summing up the faith of all the various religious sects, he says,
"Where shall I wander now to find
Successors they have left behind?
The faithful, whom we seek in vain,
Are 'minished from the sons of men."
And then, in an exhortation to the Christians of that age, he says,
"Ye differing sects who all declare
'Lo, here is Christ,' or 'Christ is there,'
Your stronger proofs divinely give
And show me where true Christians live."
Yes, if Charles Wesley had lived in these days, we might have thought he was a Latter-day Saint. At heart, he was a saint of God, but the fulness of light and truth had not then come, though these reformers had a glimpse of it. They had their place in the great work of human redemption, and God will remember them, as He will remember every soul for the good that they do in 'this life. It was left for Joseph Smith, the boy who sought the Lord in the woods, to receive the fulness of authority and power, and the principles of life and truth that should save mankind.
We may, in our skeptical minds, object to the manner and method in which God revealed the truth in the last age, but if there were time, we would show that the way the Lord has worked among the children of men has always been taken exception to by the worldly intelligent, learned, prudent and wise. As the heavens are high above the earth, so are the ways of the Lord higher than the ways of man, and so are His thoughts more profound and deep. We have reason to rejoice and be exceeding glad that God in these last days has again spoken, through His instrument and prophet, Joseph Smith.
My testimony to you, because of the experience that I have had, is that no man is qualified to teach the truth unless he be sent of God. He may attempt to teach the truth, may seek to preach the gospel, but the seal and power of God will not and cannot accompany his testimony and his words. The Lord has called men to proclaim His word, by divine authority, and I am sure that, as we have listened to the words of inspiration that have fallen from the lips of the Elders during this conference, our hearts have rejoiced greatly in the God of our salvation.
I desire to say just one word by way of admonition, counsel and exhortation, to the Latter-day Saints that are present here this afternoon. Let us go to our homes with a renewed desire to practice the counsels that are given to us at our conferences, and for that matter, that are given to us every time we meet and listen to the servants of God. Let us be assured that they will never lead us astray, that God is at the helm, that this is His work, that He is inspiring His servants, and that this work will increase and grow, until it fills the whole earth. I rejoice in the beautiful principle that was touched upon by Elder Pratt. The day is hastening on, brethren and sisters, when every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is the Redeemer of the world, to the glory of God the Father.
I rejoice in the comprehensiveness of the gospel of Jesus Christ, in its saving power; and I rejoice in the principle that every soul will be judged according to their own works. I thank God for these precious principles, that every man and woman who desires salvation may be saved. "Come unto Christ all ye that are weary and heavy laden, and you shall have rest." Go unto the Master, ye that are burdened and weary with the cares and trials of life, or even with your sins. Go unto God and confess your faults. Hearken unto the voice of the men whom God has raised up, to whom He has given divine authority, and you shall know that God lives, that Jesus is Christ, the Redeemer of the world, that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God, entrusted with power and authority to minister in His name and to delegate that authority to others. As a result of his ministry, and the authority delegated to the servants whom God has called, this gospel has been carried to the various nations of the earth; and this afternoon, in this beautiful space, we have the privilege of worshiping God according to the dictates of our conscience.
My brethren and sisters, may God bless us and give us a desire in our hearts to live those principles that we received in our fatherland. May we seek earnestly for the faith that was once delivered to the saints. •May we believe with all our hearts in the gospel of gifts and blessings, the gospel of power and of redeeming grace. I thank God that I can bear testimony to these things, that God has in these last days spoken from heaven, has given divine authority to men, not only to preach His gospel, but to administer in the ordinances thereof, ordinances that bring spiritual and temporal life and salvation. When you look upon me and see the ravages that disease wrought upon me, you look upon a monument of God's saving power and mercy. I bear testimony that God lives, that all the world sooner or later will know this truth and believe it, for every knee shall yet bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is the Christ, to the glory of the Father.
May we go home with renewed desires to serve the Lord, to give our life, in His service, and we will have joy in time and glory in eternity. May God grant it, through Jesus Christ. Amen.
Prof. Wm. C. Give rendered a violin solo, a beautiful arrangement of the old melody, "Home, sweet home."
ELDER JOSEPH R. SHEPHERD.
(President of Bear Lake Stake.)
To speak in the open air, my brethren and sisters, is. a new experience for me. I therefore pray that the Lord will sustain me, that I may be able to be heard by this large congregation. I have rejoiced exceedingly in the testimonies of my brethren who have spoken here this afternoon, as well as in the proceedings at the regular meetings of our conference.
One of the testimonies, it seems to me, of the divinity of the work in which we are engaged, can be witnessed upon this block when the semi-annual conferences of the Church are held. Where in the world will you find such a general response to the call of any other church for a gathering of its members as you will see upon these grounds at each conference? From all parts of this country the Saints gather to hear the word of the Lord. I doubt if such a sight as this can be witnessed anywhere in the world, tens of thousands gathered from various parts of the United States, from Canada, from Mexico, and from islands of the sea, to hear the servants of the Lord. When we witness the conduct of these people who gather to these conferences, we also have another witness that they are engaged in the work of the Lord, for the test can be applied, according to the words of our Master, "By their fruits ye shall know them," and thus we may see that the people gathered at this conference, belong to the Church of Christ. We cannot gather grapes of thorns nor figs of thistles. When we wish to judge a system, we must judge it by that which it produces. We must judge it by that which is manifested by the people, by their acts, by the lives of all those that belong to the organization or system, and we invite the world to thus investigate "Mormonism." We invite the world to compare the results of "Mormonism" with the results of any other system of religion that has been promulgated on the earth in these latter days. We are willing, with all of our weaknesses, to submit to that test. We acknowledge that we have failings, we know that many of us can improve in our lives, and yet, with all of this, we know that, as a result of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and the organization which He has established in this day, that there has been gathered from the nations the best people upon the face of the earth. And this is as it should be. We should be as a light set upon a hill, whose light cannot be hid; and if we are not better than the world, then we have failed in performing that which God designed that we should do.
As I came to this conference, I came with a full car-load of brethren and sisters from our little town, and attached to the train was a car that had been set aside for those who wished to indulge in smoking tobacco. I am proud to say that that car was empty all the way along, and that not one of our brethren took advantage of it for that purpose. This is one of the fruits of Mormonism. We have some among us who use tobacco, but take the people as a rule, they are living godly lives, they are striving to redeem themselves and their families, and further than that to redeem the world.
I want to impress upon you, my brethren and sisters, the necessity of our living good lives in accordance with the principles of our religion. "By their fruits shall ye know them." I believe that the truths of "Mormonism" are having more effect in the world, and with' those with whom we associate by reason of the every-day conduct of the Saints than by their preaching. I believe that by setting good examples, by living righteous and pure lives, that we are making the greater impression upon those with whom we associate. Therefore, how necessary it is that every Latter-day Saint, male and female, old and young, should realize that wherever they go, and under whatever circumstances they may be placed, their lives should be such as to command respect, and be a silent witness and testimony to the world that their good life is a result of the teaching of that system of religion commonly called "Mormonism”.
I have talked with many people who have come from different parts of the nation, business men, tourists, and others, and I say to you it is my opinion that the pure lives, the excellent example that is set by the Latter-day Saints as a people, is doing more to break down the prejudice of the world at large, and is doing more in commanding respect, than any other thing that we can do. Again I say that is as it should be. We cannot expect to gather good fruit from a corrupt tree, neither will we get corrupt fruit from a good tree. These are the words of our Savior, and they are true. That is the test that will be applied, and, as I said in the beginning of my remarks, with all of our weaknesses, we are willing that this test shall be applied to the Latter-day Saints, as compared with other religious organizations.
I presume that you will find no larger percentage of people who own their own homes, or who are independent so far as means are concerned, than among the Latter-day Saints. I presume you will find no people where education is valued higher than it is among the Latter-day Saints, where the arts and sciences are encouraged more; nor a people purer in their habits and lives. I doubt whether you can find upon the face of the earth a people among whom. there are so few who indulge in the intoxicating drink habit, and in the use of tobacco. All of these things are evidence that the source from which the people get their instruction is pure, and logically, we must infer that the source, the Church, is of God, because its teachings are uplifting, elevating, and are producing in this western country a people who can stand up and look the whole world in the face, and are not ashamed of their religion.
I repeat, this is as it should be. I wish to impress upon every man, woman, and child claiming to be Latter-day Saints, the necessity of living pure and circumspect lives, because wherever you go you are either supporting, encouraging, and working for the benefit of this Church, or else you are pulling it down—one or the other. Your conduct in life will either add to the dignity of the Church or else bring reproach upon it. How pleasant it is to go into communities where the greater number of that community do not belong to the Church, but who speak well of some individuals in that community who are Latter-day Saints. On the other hand, how discouraging it is if our young men, or older men, who may be working or traveling among those who are not of our faith, conduct themselves so as to bring reproach upon the Church. Let us live, my brethren and sisters, so that, whether we be at home or abroad, we always are witnesses for the kingdom of God, and are always seeking to build up the kingdom.
We do not have to go upon missions to perform missionary work, we can be missionaries at home. We can be missionaries in our traveling, wherever we may be. The gatherings at these conferences are a testimony to the people that there is something behind' this work that is above the wisdom of man, and thinking people must come to the conclusion that it is supported by a divine power. How pleasant it is to see upon these grounds so many people who are not using tobacco. Wherever in the world can you find such a large concourse of people as are attending this conference and see so few who are smoking tobacco? You cannot find it, you may go anywhere you please. Now this is a testimony that the work of the Lord is reforming the people. We have been gathered, as has been stated, from all parts of the world. " We have been brought here to learn of God's ways, and we are learning of God's ways, and we are setting an example to the world. May God help us to let our light so shine that those who see our good works may be led to glorify our Father who is in heaven, and give credit to that organization which God has established in these last days for bringing about the redemption of mankind, is my prayer, in the name of Jesus. Amen.
(President of Bear Lake Stake.)
To speak in the open air, my brethren and sisters, is. a new experience for me. I therefore pray that the Lord will sustain me, that I may be able to be heard by this large congregation. I have rejoiced exceedingly in the testimonies of my brethren who have spoken here this afternoon, as well as in the proceedings at the regular meetings of our conference.
One of the testimonies, it seems to me, of the divinity of the work in which we are engaged, can be witnessed upon this block when the semi-annual conferences of the Church are held. Where in the world will you find such a general response to the call of any other church for a gathering of its members as you will see upon these grounds at each conference? From all parts of this country the Saints gather to hear the word of the Lord. I doubt if such a sight as this can be witnessed anywhere in the world, tens of thousands gathered from various parts of the United States, from Canada, from Mexico, and from islands of the sea, to hear the servants of the Lord. When we witness the conduct of these people who gather to these conferences, we also have another witness that they are engaged in the work of the Lord, for the test can be applied, according to the words of our Master, "By their fruits ye shall know them," and thus we may see that the people gathered at this conference, belong to the Church of Christ. We cannot gather grapes of thorns nor figs of thistles. When we wish to judge a system, we must judge it by that which it produces. We must judge it by that which is manifested by the people, by their acts, by the lives of all those that belong to the organization or system, and we invite the world to thus investigate "Mormonism." We invite the world to compare the results of "Mormonism" with the results of any other system of religion that has been promulgated on the earth in these latter days. We are willing, with all of our weaknesses, to submit to that test. We acknowledge that we have failings, we know that many of us can improve in our lives, and yet, with all of this, we know that, as a result of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and the organization which He has established in this day, that there has been gathered from the nations the best people upon the face of the earth. And this is as it should be. We should be as a light set upon a hill, whose light cannot be hid; and if we are not better than the world, then we have failed in performing that which God designed that we should do.
As I came to this conference, I came with a full car-load of brethren and sisters from our little town, and attached to the train was a car that had been set aside for those who wished to indulge in smoking tobacco. I am proud to say that that car was empty all the way along, and that not one of our brethren took advantage of it for that purpose. This is one of the fruits of Mormonism. We have some among us who use tobacco, but take the people as a rule, they are living godly lives, they are striving to redeem themselves and their families, and further than that to redeem the world.
I want to impress upon you, my brethren and sisters, the necessity of our living good lives in accordance with the principles of our religion. "By their fruits shall ye know them." I believe that the truths of "Mormonism" are having more effect in the world, and with' those with whom we associate by reason of the every-day conduct of the Saints than by their preaching. I believe that by setting good examples, by living righteous and pure lives, that we are making the greater impression upon those with whom we associate. Therefore, how necessary it is that every Latter-day Saint, male and female, old and young, should realize that wherever they go, and under whatever circumstances they may be placed, their lives should be such as to command respect, and be a silent witness and testimony to the world that their good life is a result of the teaching of that system of religion commonly called "Mormonism”.
I have talked with many people who have come from different parts of the nation, business men, tourists, and others, and I say to you it is my opinion that the pure lives, the excellent example that is set by the Latter-day Saints as a people, is doing more to break down the prejudice of the world at large, and is doing more in commanding respect, than any other thing that we can do. Again I say that is as it should be. We cannot expect to gather good fruit from a corrupt tree, neither will we get corrupt fruit from a good tree. These are the words of our Savior, and they are true. That is the test that will be applied, and, as I said in the beginning of my remarks, with all of our weaknesses, we are willing that this test shall be applied to the Latter-day Saints, as compared with other religious organizations.
I presume that you will find no larger percentage of people who own their own homes, or who are independent so far as means are concerned, than among the Latter-day Saints. I presume you will find no people where education is valued higher than it is among the Latter-day Saints, where the arts and sciences are encouraged more; nor a people purer in their habits and lives. I doubt whether you can find upon the face of the earth a people among whom. there are so few who indulge in the intoxicating drink habit, and in the use of tobacco. All of these things are evidence that the source from which the people get their instruction is pure, and logically, we must infer that the source, the Church, is of God, because its teachings are uplifting, elevating, and are producing in this western country a people who can stand up and look the whole world in the face, and are not ashamed of their religion.
I repeat, this is as it should be. I wish to impress upon every man, woman, and child claiming to be Latter-day Saints, the necessity of living pure and circumspect lives, because wherever you go you are either supporting, encouraging, and working for the benefit of this Church, or else you are pulling it down—one or the other. Your conduct in life will either add to the dignity of the Church or else bring reproach upon it. How pleasant it is to go into communities where the greater number of that community do not belong to the Church, but who speak well of some individuals in that community who are Latter-day Saints. On the other hand, how discouraging it is if our young men, or older men, who may be working or traveling among those who are not of our faith, conduct themselves so as to bring reproach upon the Church. Let us live, my brethren and sisters, so that, whether we be at home or abroad, we always are witnesses for the kingdom of God, and are always seeking to build up the kingdom.
We do not have to go upon missions to perform missionary work, we can be missionaries at home. We can be missionaries in our traveling, wherever we may be. The gatherings at these conferences are a testimony to the people that there is something behind' this work that is above the wisdom of man, and thinking people must come to the conclusion that it is supported by a divine power. How pleasant it is to see upon these grounds so many people who are not using tobacco. Wherever in the world can you find such a large concourse of people as are attending this conference and see so few who are smoking tobacco? You cannot find it, you may go anywhere you please. Now this is a testimony that the work of the Lord is reforming the people. We have been gathered, as has been stated, from all parts of the world. " We have been brought here to learn of God's ways, and we are learning of God's ways, and we are setting an example to the world. May God help us to let our light so shine that those who see our good works may be led to glorify our Father who is in heaven, and give credit to that organization which God has established in these last days for bringing about the redemption of mankind, is my prayer, in the name of Jesus. Amen.
ELDER MOSES W. TAYLOR.
(President of Summit Stake.)
The last time that I had an experience of this kind was in the Southern States. It was in a place where many had not seen a negro. That may be a surprise to some of you people. A committee of citizens had invited a noted negro preacher to come out into the mountains of North Carolina and preach; and they had engaged the Methodist church. But when we went to the church to hear this great negro preacher, he did not come. Then the committee came to the Eiders and said, "You will have to take his place.". We said to them, "We are in a Methodist church, and the Methodist minister is here. Go to him and have him preach." They went to him, and he said, "No, sir, I will not preach after you have asked the Mormon Elders. I will not do it ;" and he took his hat and went home. Then they came to us; and we said that inasmuch as this was his church, we had rather go out under the trees and preach. So they invited the congregation out under the trees, and we delivered our talk. I think the Lord sometimes opens the way for the Elders that they do not always have to hunt up congregations.
Another time, when I was down in Tennessee, we had been through the country and made appointments for meetings. A man by the name of Turner had given us the privilege of preaching in the church at Bethel, at 11 a. m. The night before we had stayed a mile or two from the meeting house, and desired to get to the church at 9 o'clock for Sunday School, but when we started out, and were going through the woods in the morning, "it seemed to me as if I heard a voice saying, "Don't go to that Sunday School," and I stopped. My partner had stopped and said to me, "Brother Taylor, the strongest impression that has ever come over me in my life has come to me that we must not go to that Sunday School." So we agreed that we would stay there. We stayed in the woods, and about the time for meeting, went down to the meeting house, and found all the shutters closed: There wasn't any Sunday School. There had been none held, and we wondered what was the matter, but when we went to go, a man rushed up and said, "Do you know, when Squire Turner was entering the meeting house this morning, Squire Hawkins struck him in the face and knocked him to the ground because he had allowed you the use of the church, and Squire Turner and his friends, about thirty in number, and Hawkins and his friends about thirty in number, all had a free fight. Now," he said, "You men had better get right out of here just as quick as you can, because Squire Hawkins' men are gathered at his house, and Squire Turner's men are gathered at his house, and if they come here you will be killed." I thought, "Well, it will be a mighty good thing to get out." My companion, who was a little bit of a man, rose up in his dignity, and he said, "No siree, we are out here to preach the gospel, and we are going to preach it to you folks right here under the trees, and if you will stay here, we will talk to you. I thought, "Well now, we are in for it," but I got up along side of him just as bravely as I knew how. We got our hymn books and opened them up, and were just going to sing when a young lady came rushing through the trees and said, "Gentlemen, I am a daughter of Squire Turner. He is the man that gave you the privilege of the church, and he is your friend. Now, he is so enraged and so insulted with the fact that he has been struck, that he is gathering his friends, and just the minute you start to sing and commence meeting, they will start out and hunt up the other crowd and some will be killed." My companion said, "We are not here to get our friends into trouble, and we will go away." We started to walk down the road; and the same man came up and said, "Don't go that way, that is where Squire Hawkins lives. Go out this way." But my companion said, "We know somebody down here, where we can get a dinner, so that is where we are going,” and we walked on. We came to a large mansion, and on the lawn there were about forty men. Instead of going on the other side of the street, we kept on that side, and, wanting to be polite, I walked up to the fence and said, "Good morning gentlemen; this is a beautiful day." Not one spoke back to me but looked around on the lawn like they were hunting for four leaf clovers, and I said to my companion, "If they won't speak to us, we have done our part," and we walked along. The next day we were passing by a hedge nearly as high as this wall, [Temple block,] and we heard two men talking. One of them was saying to the other, "Have you read the paper this morning? Well, there is a Mormon giant come into our community, and his name is Taylor. He challenged forty men to fight him yesterday, and they were all afraid of him." Now, I believe, you know, that the Lord sometimes "magnifies us in the eyes of the people."
We had appointed a meeting for the next day, Friday, and the minister of that place decided that he would hold meetings all day, (our meeting hour was four o'clock). He commenced at 10 o'clock with a prayer meeting, and went right on through the day. We went to hear his services, and a multitude of people gathered. About 3 :30 I remembered that I had left my Bible home, at, the place we stayed the night before. I got up and went out of the meeting. Outside of the meeting house there was a pole fence, and some large trees on the other side of it. Under these trees was a crowd of men, and among them was the man that I had stayed with, so I climbed over the fence and went over toward him, and all the men separated. I went down between two lines of men, and said to him, "Eph, I forgot my Bible, and left it at your house; give me the key, because our meeting is going to start." He never said a word, but started off and climbed the fence, and I went after him. When he got into the lane and was going home, I said, "Eph, you haven't answered me yet, you have closed up like a clam." "Well," he says, "I was so mad I couldn't speak. Just before you came out of that meeting house those men had got a bucket of tar and a pillow full of feathers, and had said they were going to tar and feather you and your companion, and I had just said to them, the whole crowd of you darsn't lay your hands on that man Taylor, and if any one of you lay your hands on that man Church, I will grind you to powder."
Now, the next day, we went to the place where the minister had deserted the meeting house, left the people without a preacher and they called upon us to talk to the people, I have the Yankee habit of whittling and, after the close of the meeting, I was over by the stove with a stick whittling. When nearly all the people had gone out, a big fellow about six feet tall and weighing about two hundred and fifty pounds, said, "We want a sign: we want a sign: and then just as soon as you give us a sign, there are forty of us want to join your church." He addressed himself to me. I was whittling away, and said to him, "All right. How would you like to be struck dead?" He said, "Not that, not that, not that,” and backed out of the house as fast as he could, and all his crowd with him. As we were going to dinner that day, he followed us up, and came shivering and shaking, and said, "Mr. Taylor, I do not want you to think I am your enemy. I want you to think I am your friend."
While Brother Shepherd was speaking to us just now, there was a story came to my mind. The circumstance happened in the stake which Brother Shepherd comes from, and made a great impression upon my mind. President Budge, who used to be the president of that stake, told me the story. There is a man up there named Wright. He was in one of the wards, and took it upon himself, one day when the bishop wanted to present something for the benefit of the people, to oppose that move. It didn't suit Brother Wright, and so he got up in the meeting and opposed it with all his heart. He got so anxious about it, and got himself so worked up and so mad, that he marched out of the meeting house; but, as he was going out, just as he opened the door, he saw a man standing there, who had been peeking, looking in through the crack. This man shut the door and said, "You've done just the right thing, you've done just the right thing." Brother Wright looked at him, and said, "Did you say I did the right thing? Then I must be wrong, because you have never been right—you have been wrong in everything that has happened in this community since I have been here, and because you say I am right I know I am wrong." So Brother Wright turned round and went back and said, "Bishop, I know I am wrong. Brother so-and-so met me outside the door and said I was right, and I want to apologize because now I know I am wrong."
I presume you have all been reading the inscriptions on the monuments. My father was with the Prophet and Hyrum Smith in Carthage Jail, and he. was wounded in several places, and stood upon exactly the same spot as the Prophet stood when he was killed. When he was lying down and the doctor came in with a pocket knife, and was cutting the bullets out of him, he wanted to know where the Higbees and the apostates were who had brought about the martyrdom. He wanted to swear out warrants against them. The impression has always come to me that there is no man or set of men since the days of the Prophet Joseph Smith, that have raised their hands against the Prophet of the living God and have prospered in the land—not one, and their names will go down to oblivion, while those who stand up for and sustain the prophet of the living God will live forever, and their names will be perpetuated here on earth.
Now, once in a while I hear someone say about the Prophet Joseph F. Smith, that they do not agree with him, and at the same time extol the prophets who have passed away. I want to testify to you today that one living prophet is worth more than a grave-yard full of dead ones. I testify to you that I want to sustain the living prophet, whoever he is. Of course, in sustaining him, you sustain the others, but you cannot sustain the dead prophets and not sustain the living. That is absolutely impossible. I do not want to see the Latter-day Saints get led away by every fad and fancy. I say to you that the men of this nation, a good many of them, are striving right now to knock the cornerstone from under this government. They are following a whole lot of fads and fancies, and if the Latter-day Saints live like they should be living, and sustain the Constitution of the United States, they may soon be called up on to govern; but if they follow every fad and fancy, and do not keep on solid ground, they will never be able to rule. Good men and good women cannot help but be rulers in the land in this world, and in the world to come. But, when you follow the vices in the world down you go.
I had an experience in Nevada recently. I was at a great big ranch, and on that ranch the foreman was a big man. I happened to be there negotiating for the purchase of it, and of course was a kind of an honored guest, and sat up near the head of the table. We had a man there that pretended to be an apostate, and rather boasted about it; and one morning he commenced to talk about what foolery it was for us to drink water. When the Chinaman waiter came and said, "A little more water?" This man said, "Why don't you drink coffee and tea? I do not object to you not drinking liquor or smoking tobacco, but it is nonsense not to drink coffee and tea." There happened to be a young man there, a grandson of Erastus Snow, a great big healthy fellow weighing over two hundred pounds. He was out there surveying for the Ranch Company; and so I said to him, "Now, Mr. Snow and I are the only ones here drinking water, there are thirty or forty men around this table, all the rest of you drinking coffee and tea. We are willing to stand up and take an examination, physical, intellectual, or any other way against the whole crowd." The foreman of the ranch said to them, "He has got the dead cinch on you." When Brother Snow and I were alone I told him how I appreciated his conduct, for he was adopting the virtues of the men among whom he labored, but none of their vices.
The next day the apostate took another tack. He said, "It's all nonsense for your elders to go into the world to preach the gospel, and cat the food of the poor people." So I said to him, "Now, you have become a comparatively wealthy man, but you would have been living in Denmark and working for thirty cents a day if it hadn't been for the gospel. When the elders came to your father and mother they said this, 'We have a certificate from the prophet of the living God that says that every man, woman, or child that provides for the comfort of these Elders, shall be blessed of the Lord.' Now, I want to testify to you today, and I want you to agree with it, that the Latter-day Saints have been blessed of the Lord, and the people out in the world who have entertained them, have been blessed of the Lord." And he said, "Well, I guess that's true."
Now, I say to the Latter-day Saints, you need have no fear to send your boys on a mission, and you need not be anxious to send them fifty dollars or seventy-five dollars a month either. I heartily agree with President Smith on that question. I have traveled without purse or script and got just as good treatment without it as I could possibly get with it. It may be necessary to send some money, but do not send too much. I had the opportunity of presiding for a short time over a mission, and I tell you that those who live nearest the gospel in that respect are the best Elders, and those most likely to make a failure are the boys that get too much money.
Now, may the peace and blessing of heaven be with us, I ask in the name of Jesus. Amen.
The congregation sang the hymn:
Do what is right; the 'day-dawn is breaking.
Hailing a future of freedom and light;
Angels above us are silent notes taking
Of every action; do what is right.
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Tamihani Te Awe Awe.
(President of Summit Stake.)
The last time that I had an experience of this kind was in the Southern States. It was in a place where many had not seen a negro. That may be a surprise to some of you people. A committee of citizens had invited a noted negro preacher to come out into the mountains of North Carolina and preach; and they had engaged the Methodist church. But when we went to the church to hear this great negro preacher, he did not come. Then the committee came to the Eiders and said, "You will have to take his place.". We said to them, "We are in a Methodist church, and the Methodist minister is here. Go to him and have him preach." They went to him, and he said, "No, sir, I will not preach after you have asked the Mormon Elders. I will not do it ;" and he took his hat and went home. Then they came to us; and we said that inasmuch as this was his church, we had rather go out under the trees and preach. So they invited the congregation out under the trees, and we delivered our talk. I think the Lord sometimes opens the way for the Elders that they do not always have to hunt up congregations.
Another time, when I was down in Tennessee, we had been through the country and made appointments for meetings. A man by the name of Turner had given us the privilege of preaching in the church at Bethel, at 11 a. m. The night before we had stayed a mile or two from the meeting house, and desired to get to the church at 9 o'clock for Sunday School, but when we started out, and were going through the woods in the morning, "it seemed to me as if I heard a voice saying, "Don't go to that Sunday School," and I stopped. My partner had stopped and said to me, "Brother Taylor, the strongest impression that has ever come over me in my life has come to me that we must not go to that Sunday School." So we agreed that we would stay there. We stayed in the woods, and about the time for meeting, went down to the meeting house, and found all the shutters closed: There wasn't any Sunday School. There had been none held, and we wondered what was the matter, but when we went to go, a man rushed up and said, "Do you know, when Squire Turner was entering the meeting house this morning, Squire Hawkins struck him in the face and knocked him to the ground because he had allowed you the use of the church, and Squire Turner and his friends, about thirty in number, and Hawkins and his friends about thirty in number, all had a free fight. Now," he said, "You men had better get right out of here just as quick as you can, because Squire Hawkins' men are gathered at his house, and Squire Turner's men are gathered at his house, and if they come here you will be killed." I thought, "Well, it will be a mighty good thing to get out." My companion, who was a little bit of a man, rose up in his dignity, and he said, "No siree, we are out here to preach the gospel, and we are going to preach it to you folks right here under the trees, and if you will stay here, we will talk to you. I thought, "Well now, we are in for it," but I got up along side of him just as bravely as I knew how. We got our hymn books and opened them up, and were just going to sing when a young lady came rushing through the trees and said, "Gentlemen, I am a daughter of Squire Turner. He is the man that gave you the privilege of the church, and he is your friend. Now, he is so enraged and so insulted with the fact that he has been struck, that he is gathering his friends, and just the minute you start to sing and commence meeting, they will start out and hunt up the other crowd and some will be killed." My companion said, "We are not here to get our friends into trouble, and we will go away." We started to walk down the road; and the same man came up and said, "Don't go that way, that is where Squire Hawkins lives. Go out this way." But my companion said, "We know somebody down here, where we can get a dinner, so that is where we are going,” and we walked on. We came to a large mansion, and on the lawn there were about forty men. Instead of going on the other side of the street, we kept on that side, and, wanting to be polite, I walked up to the fence and said, "Good morning gentlemen; this is a beautiful day." Not one spoke back to me but looked around on the lawn like they were hunting for four leaf clovers, and I said to my companion, "If they won't speak to us, we have done our part," and we walked along. The next day we were passing by a hedge nearly as high as this wall, [Temple block,] and we heard two men talking. One of them was saying to the other, "Have you read the paper this morning? Well, there is a Mormon giant come into our community, and his name is Taylor. He challenged forty men to fight him yesterday, and they were all afraid of him." Now, I believe, you know, that the Lord sometimes "magnifies us in the eyes of the people."
We had appointed a meeting for the next day, Friday, and the minister of that place decided that he would hold meetings all day, (our meeting hour was four o'clock). He commenced at 10 o'clock with a prayer meeting, and went right on through the day. We went to hear his services, and a multitude of people gathered. About 3 :30 I remembered that I had left my Bible home, at, the place we stayed the night before. I got up and went out of the meeting. Outside of the meeting house there was a pole fence, and some large trees on the other side of it. Under these trees was a crowd of men, and among them was the man that I had stayed with, so I climbed over the fence and went over toward him, and all the men separated. I went down between two lines of men, and said to him, "Eph, I forgot my Bible, and left it at your house; give me the key, because our meeting is going to start." He never said a word, but started off and climbed the fence, and I went after him. When he got into the lane and was going home, I said, "Eph, you haven't answered me yet, you have closed up like a clam." "Well," he says, "I was so mad I couldn't speak. Just before you came out of that meeting house those men had got a bucket of tar and a pillow full of feathers, and had said they were going to tar and feather you and your companion, and I had just said to them, the whole crowd of you darsn't lay your hands on that man Taylor, and if any one of you lay your hands on that man Church, I will grind you to powder."
Now, the next day, we went to the place where the minister had deserted the meeting house, left the people without a preacher and they called upon us to talk to the people, I have the Yankee habit of whittling and, after the close of the meeting, I was over by the stove with a stick whittling. When nearly all the people had gone out, a big fellow about six feet tall and weighing about two hundred and fifty pounds, said, "We want a sign: we want a sign: and then just as soon as you give us a sign, there are forty of us want to join your church." He addressed himself to me. I was whittling away, and said to him, "All right. How would you like to be struck dead?" He said, "Not that, not that, not that,” and backed out of the house as fast as he could, and all his crowd with him. As we were going to dinner that day, he followed us up, and came shivering and shaking, and said, "Mr. Taylor, I do not want you to think I am your enemy. I want you to think I am your friend."
While Brother Shepherd was speaking to us just now, there was a story came to my mind. The circumstance happened in the stake which Brother Shepherd comes from, and made a great impression upon my mind. President Budge, who used to be the president of that stake, told me the story. There is a man up there named Wright. He was in one of the wards, and took it upon himself, one day when the bishop wanted to present something for the benefit of the people, to oppose that move. It didn't suit Brother Wright, and so he got up in the meeting and opposed it with all his heart. He got so anxious about it, and got himself so worked up and so mad, that he marched out of the meeting house; but, as he was going out, just as he opened the door, he saw a man standing there, who had been peeking, looking in through the crack. This man shut the door and said, "You've done just the right thing, you've done just the right thing." Brother Wright looked at him, and said, "Did you say I did the right thing? Then I must be wrong, because you have never been right—you have been wrong in everything that has happened in this community since I have been here, and because you say I am right I know I am wrong." So Brother Wright turned round and went back and said, "Bishop, I know I am wrong. Brother so-and-so met me outside the door and said I was right, and I want to apologize because now I know I am wrong."
I presume you have all been reading the inscriptions on the monuments. My father was with the Prophet and Hyrum Smith in Carthage Jail, and he. was wounded in several places, and stood upon exactly the same spot as the Prophet stood when he was killed. When he was lying down and the doctor came in with a pocket knife, and was cutting the bullets out of him, he wanted to know where the Higbees and the apostates were who had brought about the martyrdom. He wanted to swear out warrants against them. The impression has always come to me that there is no man or set of men since the days of the Prophet Joseph Smith, that have raised their hands against the Prophet of the living God and have prospered in the land—not one, and their names will go down to oblivion, while those who stand up for and sustain the prophet of the living God will live forever, and their names will be perpetuated here on earth.
Now, once in a while I hear someone say about the Prophet Joseph F. Smith, that they do not agree with him, and at the same time extol the prophets who have passed away. I want to testify to you today that one living prophet is worth more than a grave-yard full of dead ones. I testify to you that I want to sustain the living prophet, whoever he is. Of course, in sustaining him, you sustain the others, but you cannot sustain the dead prophets and not sustain the living. That is absolutely impossible. I do not want to see the Latter-day Saints get led away by every fad and fancy. I say to you that the men of this nation, a good many of them, are striving right now to knock the cornerstone from under this government. They are following a whole lot of fads and fancies, and if the Latter-day Saints live like they should be living, and sustain the Constitution of the United States, they may soon be called up on to govern; but if they follow every fad and fancy, and do not keep on solid ground, they will never be able to rule. Good men and good women cannot help but be rulers in the land in this world, and in the world to come. But, when you follow the vices in the world down you go.
I had an experience in Nevada recently. I was at a great big ranch, and on that ranch the foreman was a big man. I happened to be there negotiating for the purchase of it, and of course was a kind of an honored guest, and sat up near the head of the table. We had a man there that pretended to be an apostate, and rather boasted about it; and one morning he commenced to talk about what foolery it was for us to drink water. When the Chinaman waiter came and said, "A little more water?" This man said, "Why don't you drink coffee and tea? I do not object to you not drinking liquor or smoking tobacco, but it is nonsense not to drink coffee and tea." There happened to be a young man there, a grandson of Erastus Snow, a great big healthy fellow weighing over two hundred pounds. He was out there surveying for the Ranch Company; and so I said to him, "Now, Mr. Snow and I are the only ones here drinking water, there are thirty or forty men around this table, all the rest of you drinking coffee and tea. We are willing to stand up and take an examination, physical, intellectual, or any other way against the whole crowd." The foreman of the ranch said to them, "He has got the dead cinch on you." When Brother Snow and I were alone I told him how I appreciated his conduct, for he was adopting the virtues of the men among whom he labored, but none of their vices.
The next day the apostate took another tack. He said, "It's all nonsense for your elders to go into the world to preach the gospel, and cat the food of the poor people." So I said to him, "Now, you have become a comparatively wealthy man, but you would have been living in Denmark and working for thirty cents a day if it hadn't been for the gospel. When the elders came to your father and mother they said this, 'We have a certificate from the prophet of the living God that says that every man, woman, or child that provides for the comfort of these Elders, shall be blessed of the Lord.' Now, I want to testify to you today, and I want you to agree with it, that the Latter-day Saints have been blessed of the Lord, and the people out in the world who have entertained them, have been blessed of the Lord." And he said, "Well, I guess that's true."
Now, I say to the Latter-day Saints, you need have no fear to send your boys on a mission, and you need not be anxious to send them fifty dollars or seventy-five dollars a month either. I heartily agree with President Smith on that question. I have traveled without purse or script and got just as good treatment without it as I could possibly get with it. It may be necessary to send some money, but do not send too much. I had the opportunity of presiding for a short time over a mission, and I tell you that those who live nearest the gospel in that respect are the best Elders, and those most likely to make a failure are the boys that get too much money.
Now, may the peace and blessing of heaven be with us, I ask in the name of Jesus. Amen.
The congregation sang the hymn:
Do what is right; the 'day-dawn is breaking.
Hailing a future of freedom and light;
Angels above us are silent notes taking
Of every action; do what is right.
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Tamihani Te Awe Awe.
CLOSING SESSION.
In the Tabernacle, at 2 p. m.
President Joseph F. Smith called the meeting to order.
The choir sang the Temple anthem, "Hosannah," composed by Prof. Evan Stephens.
Prayer was offered by Patriarch Joseph E. Taylor.
The choir sang the anthem, "Restoration of the Gospel."
In the Tabernacle, at 2 p. m.
President Joseph F. Smith called the meeting to order.
The choir sang the Temple anthem, "Hosannah," composed by Prof. Evan Stephens.
Prayer was offered by Patriarch Joseph E. Taylor.
The choir sang the anthem, "Restoration of the Gospel."
ELDER JOSEPH F. SMITH, JR.
Latter-day visions and revelations. — The sublime doctrine of salvation for the dead.—Temple work an important part of God's great plan of salvation.—Organization of genealogical societies- inspired by the Lord.—Vicarious work for the dead a serious responsibility.
We have listened during the various sessions of this conference to the preaching of the gospel in power and plainness, in such a manner that it must appeal to the souls of all the Latter-day Saints. With you, my brethren and sisters, I have rejoiced in these principles which have been presented for our edification, and that we might be strengthened in the faith and live more nearly our religion which has been revealed to us from heaven in these latter days —the dispensation of the fulness of times. We have been taught faith in our Lord and Redeemer, and in the Father of us all; the necessity of repentance from sin; baptism by immersion for the remission of sin; and the reception of the Holy Ghost through the laying on of the hands of the Elders of Israel. We have been taught the doctrine of the atonement; the universal resurrection of the dead, and the exaltation of the righteous in the celestial kingdom of our Father. We have been instructed in our duties as members of the Church and as officers therein, by men holding authority, who have spoken as they were moved upon by the Holy Ghost, and who have not spoken as the Scribes and Pharisees, for the words which have been uttered here have been true. It seems to me they should appeal not only to the Latter-day Saints, but to all the honest in heart who may hear them.
One of the things that is difficult for me to understand is why men will harden their hearts, and close their eyes against the truth when it is spoken in such plainness and power, accompanied by the Spirit of the Lord. We know these things are true, and that Joseph Smith was called and sent into the world to establish again the kingdom of God in righteousness, that the gospel of repentance might be preached in all the world, among all nations, kindreds, tongues and peoples, that those who believe and repent might come out of Babylon and be redeemed from their sins. I rejoice, as my brethren have rejoiced and as the Saints have rejoiced, in this knowledge of the truth.
There is one phase of this great subject of salvation that appeals to me, that I desire to speak of, briefly, this afternoon. It has already been alluded to in part. It is our duty to save the world. That is our mission, in so far as they will listen unto us and receive our testimony. All those who reject the testimony of the Elders of Israel will be held responsible, and will have to give an accounting for their stewardship, just as we will give an accounting of our stewardship as Elders and teachers of the people.)
Early in the year 1836, after the completion of the Kirtland Temple, the leading brethren of the Church assembled from time to time in that building in solemn assembly, to be instructed in their duties and to learn the Ways of the Lord. On these occasions preceding, at the time, and following the dedication of that house, the Spirit of the Lord was poured out upon them in power; the heavens were opened; many of them saw visions; angels appeared to them, and they were instructed. Principles were revealed that had been kept hid from the world, and on one occasion, on the 21st day of January, while they were thus assembled, wonderful heavenly manifestations were given, and the Prophet tells us what he saw. Said he:
The heavens were opened upon us, and I beheld the celestial kingdom of God, and the glory thereof, whether in the body or out I cannot tell. I saw the transcendent beauty of the gate through which the heirs of that kingdom will enter, which was like unto circling flames of fire; also the blazing throne of God, whereon was seated the Father and the Son. I saw the beautiful streets of that kingdom which had the appearance of being paved with gold. I .saw fathers Adam and Abraham, and my father and mother, my brother, Alvin, that has long since slept, and marveled how it was that he had obtained an inheritance in that kingdom, seeing that he had departed this life before the Lord had set His hand to gather Israel a second time, and had not been baptized for the remission of his sins. Thus came the voice of the Lord unto me, saying—All who have died without a knowledge of this gospel, who would have received it if they had been permitted to tarry, shall be heirs of the celestial kingdom of God; also all that shall die henceforth without a knowledge of it, who would have received it with all their hearts, shall be heirs of that kingdom, for I, the Lord, will judge all men, according to their works, according to the desires of their hearts. And I also beheld all children who die before they arrived at years of accountability, are saved in the celestial kingdom of heaven.
This was a glorious revelation of truth, not understood in the world previous to the receiving of this vision. And the Prophet saw that which was yet future, as well as what was already past, for he beheld his brother Alvin, who died before the gospel was restored; he saw his father and his mother taking part in the glory of the celestial kingdom, yet his brother Alvin had not been baptized for the remission of his sins. The Lord says that we cannot enter there without baptism for the remission of our sins. Little children are redeemed, of course, for they are without sin and receive salvation through the atonement of Christ, which was made in their behalf as well as in behalf of all people. His father and mother were still living in the flesh, so he saw that which was yet future. Alvin died before he had the opportunity of receiving a remission of his sins. At the time of his fatal sickness the bringing forth of this work had merely commenced. He approved of it and encouraged his younger brother to continue in the labor which the Lord had given him to do; but he did not enter that celestial kingdom until after the gospel was restored to the earth in its fulness. And then the Lord taught the people, through His servant the Prophet, the means by which those who would have received the truth, but were denied the privilege, might receive it and enter into this kingdom. We who have received it have the right and the power, which has been delegated unto us, to go into the house of the Lord and there be baptized in behalf of our dead, that they also might receive salvation in common with us, and this was done for Alvin Smith. It has been done for thousands and tens of thousands of true, faithful souls who were denied the privilege of receiving the truth in the flesh, but afterwards received it and had a remission of their sins, after repenting of them, and received the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost by proxy, according to the vicarious work that the Lord has delegated unto us and commanded us to perform in behalf of the dead.
All who would have received the truth will enter into that kingdom, those who have lived in the ages past, when the gospel and the authority were not on the earth, as well as those who received it here. All, even down to the end of time, shall receive salvation who will repent of their sins and come unto the Lord with a desire to keep His commandments and serve Him and obey Him in all things. They are heirs of the celestial kingdom. Therefore, as we have heard this afternoon in the singing of the choir, the Lord has prepared the temples so- that the Latter-day Saints can go to them, not only to receive ordinances in their own behalf, but that they might also perform these same ordinances in behalf of their dead, that they might be redeemed from their sins, for they cannot personally receive baptism and the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost now, because those ordinances belong- to this mortal life. They have passed into the life beyond, therefore it is necessary that some one perform this work for them by proxy. This is not strange. Some people scoff at the idea and say that it is impossible for one man to act in behalf of another, and yet they accept Christ as the Redeemer of the world and they say that He came into the world and took upon Him our sins, that we might be redeemed. He having power to do that for all of us, surely He has a right to say to us that we shall have power, in a lesser degree, to perform ordinances in behalf of others') And so He has done.
Now, all who will listen to the truth and receive it shall become members of the Church of the First Born, and shall enter into the celestial kingdom. Those who reject it after it has been preached to them will not have this privilege, as we have already heard at this conference. Children are redeemed because they are without sin. /Those who die without law will be redeemed, because they will be judged without law, but all who have received law and who have known the truth in a degree will be judged according to the truth that they have known, and if they have not lived up to that which they have known, or which they have been taught or had the privilege of receiving, then they cannot enter into this celestial kingdom. It is, however, our duty to save the world, the dead as well as the living. We are saving the living who will repent by preaching the gospel among the nations and gathering out the children of Israel, the honest in heart. We are saving the dead by going into the house of the Lord and performing these ceremonies—baptism, the laying on of hands, confirmation, and such other things as the Lord requires at our hands, in their behalf} But we are going to save even those who reject the truth, those who have been blinded by the craftiness of men, those who have received the truth in part, for not all who have entered into the kingdom of God shall enter into the celestial kingdom, for they will be judged, each one according to his works. If we have not kept the law of that kingdom; if we have not been true to the covenants we have made with the Lord, then we will not receive the fulness of glory in His kingdom, and thus the scriptures tell us that those who are not admitted into the celestial kingdom, but into the terrestrial are those who died without law, and also they who are the spirits of men kept in prison, whom the Son visited and preached the gospel unto them, that they might be judged according" to men in the flesh.
These are they who are honorable men of the earth, who were blinded by the craftiness of men. These are they who received of His glory but not of His fulness. These are they who received of the presence of the Son but not of the fulness of the Father, wherefore they are bodies terrestrial and not bodies celestial, and differ in glory as the moon differs from the sun.
Following this remarkable vision and revelation of truth in the Kirtland Temple just a little more than two months, other visions were received, they were the manifestations of holy messengers in that same house. Among them came Elijah the Prophet, who laid his hands upon the head of Joseph Smith and upon the head of Oliver Cowdery, his fellow servant, and conferred upon them the keys which he held of the turning of the hearts of the children to their fathers, and from that time forth the spirit of Elijah's work, the planting in the hearts of the children the promises made to the fathers, was poured out upon the people. Not only the Latter-day Saints, but upon the honorable people of this land and of Great Britain and other nations of Europe. The Kirtland Temple was not a complete structure as we build Temples today. No provision was made in it for the salvation of the dead. When it was built this glorious gospel of salvation for the dead was not understood, but in that building these principles were revealed, and when the Lord called upon the people later to build another temple to His name, he commanded them to build in it a baptismal font and make it a structure, where the salvation of those who had gone to the great beyond might be brought about. The font was prepared in it, and the people went into it and were baptized in behalf of their dead.
In the year 1844, the year of the martyrdom, a number of men met together in Boston, Massachusetts, and organized themselves into a society for the purpose of gathering up the records of the dead, filing them away and preserving them. The following year, 1845, their organization was incorporated, and is known today as the New England Historical and Genealogical Society. From this time the spirit spread among the people until today similar societies can be found in great numbers of the states of the American Union, in most of the countries of Great Britain, in some of the larger cities on the continent of Europe, in Scandinavia, in Germany, where the hearts of the children, since the restoration of those keys, have turned towards their parents. The people are searching among the records of the dead, gathering them out, compiling them, publishing them, and making it possible that the Latter-day Saints may obtain them, go to the house of the Lord and perform these ordinances —these saving principles in behalf of their dead.
This is a great responsibility that rests upon us, for the Prophet says it is the burden of the scriptures, and if we fail to do it in behalf of our dead we do it at the peril of our own salvation. We cannot be saved without them, and they cannot be saved without us, that is the faithful, because there must be a welding, a joining together of the generations from the days of Adam to the end of time. Families will be joined and linked together, parents to children, children to parents, one generation to another, until we shall be joined together in one great grand family with our father Adam at the head, where the Lord placed him. So we cannot be saved and exalted in the kingdom of God unless we have .within our hearts the desire to do this work and perform it. so far as it is within our power on behalf of our. dead. This is the responsibility and the duty that rests upon the Latter-day Saints, and the Lord will hold us responsible, and we will not be found guiltless of the blood of our generation and of our relatives who were true and faithful to the truth so far as they knew it, unless we do something in their behalf. This is a glorious doctrine, one of the grand principles of truth revealed through the Prophet Joseph Smith. We should take advantage of our opportunities and prove ourselves worthy and acceptable in the sight of the Lord, that we might receive this exaltation for ourselves, and there rejoice in the kingdom of God with our relatives and friends in this grand reunion and assemblage of the Saints of the Church of the First Born, who have kept themselves free and unspotted from the sins of the world.
The Lord bless us and grant that we may have the desire in our hearts to magnify our calling and to serve Him in faithfulness in all these things, is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Brother David Rees, and the choir, rendered the sacred song, "Hosannah."
Latter-day visions and revelations. — The sublime doctrine of salvation for the dead.—Temple work an important part of God's great plan of salvation.—Organization of genealogical societies- inspired by the Lord.—Vicarious work for the dead a serious responsibility.
We have listened during the various sessions of this conference to the preaching of the gospel in power and plainness, in such a manner that it must appeal to the souls of all the Latter-day Saints. With you, my brethren and sisters, I have rejoiced in these principles which have been presented for our edification, and that we might be strengthened in the faith and live more nearly our religion which has been revealed to us from heaven in these latter days —the dispensation of the fulness of times. We have been taught faith in our Lord and Redeemer, and in the Father of us all; the necessity of repentance from sin; baptism by immersion for the remission of sin; and the reception of the Holy Ghost through the laying on of the hands of the Elders of Israel. We have been taught the doctrine of the atonement; the universal resurrection of the dead, and the exaltation of the righteous in the celestial kingdom of our Father. We have been instructed in our duties as members of the Church and as officers therein, by men holding authority, who have spoken as they were moved upon by the Holy Ghost, and who have not spoken as the Scribes and Pharisees, for the words which have been uttered here have been true. It seems to me they should appeal not only to the Latter-day Saints, but to all the honest in heart who may hear them.
One of the things that is difficult for me to understand is why men will harden their hearts, and close their eyes against the truth when it is spoken in such plainness and power, accompanied by the Spirit of the Lord. We know these things are true, and that Joseph Smith was called and sent into the world to establish again the kingdom of God in righteousness, that the gospel of repentance might be preached in all the world, among all nations, kindreds, tongues and peoples, that those who believe and repent might come out of Babylon and be redeemed from their sins. I rejoice, as my brethren have rejoiced and as the Saints have rejoiced, in this knowledge of the truth.
There is one phase of this great subject of salvation that appeals to me, that I desire to speak of, briefly, this afternoon. It has already been alluded to in part. It is our duty to save the world. That is our mission, in so far as they will listen unto us and receive our testimony. All those who reject the testimony of the Elders of Israel will be held responsible, and will have to give an accounting for their stewardship, just as we will give an accounting of our stewardship as Elders and teachers of the people.)
Early in the year 1836, after the completion of the Kirtland Temple, the leading brethren of the Church assembled from time to time in that building in solemn assembly, to be instructed in their duties and to learn the Ways of the Lord. On these occasions preceding, at the time, and following the dedication of that house, the Spirit of the Lord was poured out upon them in power; the heavens were opened; many of them saw visions; angels appeared to them, and they were instructed. Principles were revealed that had been kept hid from the world, and on one occasion, on the 21st day of January, while they were thus assembled, wonderful heavenly manifestations were given, and the Prophet tells us what he saw. Said he:
The heavens were opened upon us, and I beheld the celestial kingdom of God, and the glory thereof, whether in the body or out I cannot tell. I saw the transcendent beauty of the gate through which the heirs of that kingdom will enter, which was like unto circling flames of fire; also the blazing throne of God, whereon was seated the Father and the Son. I saw the beautiful streets of that kingdom which had the appearance of being paved with gold. I .saw fathers Adam and Abraham, and my father and mother, my brother, Alvin, that has long since slept, and marveled how it was that he had obtained an inheritance in that kingdom, seeing that he had departed this life before the Lord had set His hand to gather Israel a second time, and had not been baptized for the remission of his sins. Thus came the voice of the Lord unto me, saying—All who have died without a knowledge of this gospel, who would have received it if they had been permitted to tarry, shall be heirs of the celestial kingdom of God; also all that shall die henceforth without a knowledge of it, who would have received it with all their hearts, shall be heirs of that kingdom, for I, the Lord, will judge all men, according to their works, according to the desires of their hearts. And I also beheld all children who die before they arrived at years of accountability, are saved in the celestial kingdom of heaven.
This was a glorious revelation of truth, not understood in the world previous to the receiving of this vision. And the Prophet saw that which was yet future, as well as what was already past, for he beheld his brother Alvin, who died before the gospel was restored; he saw his father and his mother taking part in the glory of the celestial kingdom, yet his brother Alvin had not been baptized for the remission of his sins. The Lord says that we cannot enter there without baptism for the remission of our sins. Little children are redeemed, of course, for they are without sin and receive salvation through the atonement of Christ, which was made in their behalf as well as in behalf of all people. His father and mother were still living in the flesh, so he saw that which was yet future. Alvin died before he had the opportunity of receiving a remission of his sins. At the time of his fatal sickness the bringing forth of this work had merely commenced. He approved of it and encouraged his younger brother to continue in the labor which the Lord had given him to do; but he did not enter that celestial kingdom until after the gospel was restored to the earth in its fulness. And then the Lord taught the people, through His servant the Prophet, the means by which those who would have received the truth, but were denied the privilege, might receive it and enter into this kingdom. We who have received it have the right and the power, which has been delegated unto us, to go into the house of the Lord and there be baptized in behalf of our dead, that they also might receive salvation in common with us, and this was done for Alvin Smith. It has been done for thousands and tens of thousands of true, faithful souls who were denied the privilege of receiving the truth in the flesh, but afterwards received it and had a remission of their sins, after repenting of them, and received the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost by proxy, according to the vicarious work that the Lord has delegated unto us and commanded us to perform in behalf of the dead.
All who would have received the truth will enter into that kingdom, those who have lived in the ages past, when the gospel and the authority were not on the earth, as well as those who received it here. All, even down to the end of time, shall receive salvation who will repent of their sins and come unto the Lord with a desire to keep His commandments and serve Him and obey Him in all things. They are heirs of the celestial kingdom. Therefore, as we have heard this afternoon in the singing of the choir, the Lord has prepared the temples so- that the Latter-day Saints can go to them, not only to receive ordinances in their own behalf, but that they might also perform these same ordinances in behalf of their dead, that they might be redeemed from their sins, for they cannot personally receive baptism and the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost now, because those ordinances belong- to this mortal life. They have passed into the life beyond, therefore it is necessary that some one perform this work for them by proxy. This is not strange. Some people scoff at the idea and say that it is impossible for one man to act in behalf of another, and yet they accept Christ as the Redeemer of the world and they say that He came into the world and took upon Him our sins, that we might be redeemed. He having power to do that for all of us, surely He has a right to say to us that we shall have power, in a lesser degree, to perform ordinances in behalf of others') And so He has done.
Now, all who will listen to the truth and receive it shall become members of the Church of the First Born, and shall enter into the celestial kingdom. Those who reject it after it has been preached to them will not have this privilege, as we have already heard at this conference. Children are redeemed because they are without sin. /Those who die without law will be redeemed, because they will be judged without law, but all who have received law and who have known the truth in a degree will be judged according to the truth that they have known, and if they have not lived up to that which they have known, or which they have been taught or had the privilege of receiving, then they cannot enter into this celestial kingdom. It is, however, our duty to save the world, the dead as well as the living. We are saving the living who will repent by preaching the gospel among the nations and gathering out the children of Israel, the honest in heart. We are saving the dead by going into the house of the Lord and performing these ceremonies—baptism, the laying on of hands, confirmation, and such other things as the Lord requires at our hands, in their behalf} But we are going to save even those who reject the truth, those who have been blinded by the craftiness of men, those who have received the truth in part, for not all who have entered into the kingdom of God shall enter into the celestial kingdom, for they will be judged, each one according to his works. If we have not kept the law of that kingdom; if we have not been true to the covenants we have made with the Lord, then we will not receive the fulness of glory in His kingdom, and thus the scriptures tell us that those who are not admitted into the celestial kingdom, but into the terrestrial are those who died without law, and also they who are the spirits of men kept in prison, whom the Son visited and preached the gospel unto them, that they might be judged according" to men in the flesh.
These are they who are honorable men of the earth, who were blinded by the craftiness of men. These are they who received of His glory but not of His fulness. These are they who received of the presence of the Son but not of the fulness of the Father, wherefore they are bodies terrestrial and not bodies celestial, and differ in glory as the moon differs from the sun.
Following this remarkable vision and revelation of truth in the Kirtland Temple just a little more than two months, other visions were received, they were the manifestations of holy messengers in that same house. Among them came Elijah the Prophet, who laid his hands upon the head of Joseph Smith and upon the head of Oliver Cowdery, his fellow servant, and conferred upon them the keys which he held of the turning of the hearts of the children to their fathers, and from that time forth the spirit of Elijah's work, the planting in the hearts of the children the promises made to the fathers, was poured out upon the people. Not only the Latter-day Saints, but upon the honorable people of this land and of Great Britain and other nations of Europe. The Kirtland Temple was not a complete structure as we build Temples today. No provision was made in it for the salvation of the dead. When it was built this glorious gospel of salvation for the dead was not understood, but in that building these principles were revealed, and when the Lord called upon the people later to build another temple to His name, he commanded them to build in it a baptismal font and make it a structure, where the salvation of those who had gone to the great beyond might be brought about. The font was prepared in it, and the people went into it and were baptized in behalf of their dead.
In the year 1844, the year of the martyrdom, a number of men met together in Boston, Massachusetts, and organized themselves into a society for the purpose of gathering up the records of the dead, filing them away and preserving them. The following year, 1845, their organization was incorporated, and is known today as the New England Historical and Genealogical Society. From this time the spirit spread among the people until today similar societies can be found in great numbers of the states of the American Union, in most of the countries of Great Britain, in some of the larger cities on the continent of Europe, in Scandinavia, in Germany, where the hearts of the children, since the restoration of those keys, have turned towards their parents. The people are searching among the records of the dead, gathering them out, compiling them, publishing them, and making it possible that the Latter-day Saints may obtain them, go to the house of the Lord and perform these ordinances —these saving principles in behalf of their dead.
This is a great responsibility that rests upon us, for the Prophet says it is the burden of the scriptures, and if we fail to do it in behalf of our dead we do it at the peril of our own salvation. We cannot be saved without them, and they cannot be saved without us, that is the faithful, because there must be a welding, a joining together of the generations from the days of Adam to the end of time. Families will be joined and linked together, parents to children, children to parents, one generation to another, until we shall be joined together in one great grand family with our father Adam at the head, where the Lord placed him. So we cannot be saved and exalted in the kingdom of God unless we have .within our hearts the desire to do this work and perform it. so far as it is within our power on behalf of our. dead. This is the responsibility and the duty that rests upon the Latter-day Saints, and the Lord will hold us responsible, and we will not be found guiltless of the blood of our generation and of our relatives who were true and faithful to the truth so far as they knew it, unless we do something in their behalf. This is a glorious doctrine, one of the grand principles of truth revealed through the Prophet Joseph Smith. We should take advantage of our opportunities and prove ourselves worthy and acceptable in the sight of the Lord, that we might receive this exaltation for ourselves, and there rejoice in the kingdom of God with our relatives and friends in this grand reunion and assemblage of the Saints of the Church of the First Born, who have kept themselves free and unspotted from the sins of the world.
The Lord bless us and grant that we may have the desire in our hearts to magnify our calling and to serve Him in faithfulness in all these things, is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Brother David Rees, and the choir, rendered the sacred song, "Hosannah."
PRESIDENT SEYMOUR B. YOUNG
(Of First Council of Seventy.)
My brethren and sisters, Charles Dickens wrote, "If you would understand the feelings of your fellow man, try to put yourself in his place." I realize the responsibility resting upon the brethren who arise to speak to this vast congregation, and I can say today, of a truth, that I have been greatly edified' and instructed by the remarks of my brethren during the sessions of this great conference. Nothing of greater interest has transpired during our meetings than the salient points expressed by each speaker on the subjects by them handled. The address on the life of the Pioneer, Orson Pratt, reminded the people of the labors of that great man, especially those who have been somewhat conversant with his life and history and his devout and unceasing toil for his fellow man. We were reminded of his charming personality, and of his devoted friendship to all who had the pleasure of his acquaintance and friendship. This afternoon we have been interested very much in the subject of the temples of our God, and the work that has been done in these great edifices for the benefit of the living as well as the dead. In the dedication of the Kirtland Temple the Prophet Joseph gave utterance to this beautiful prayer, a portion of which I will read, found in the 109th section of the Book of Covenants:
Thanks be to Thy name, O Lord God of Israel, who keepeth covenant and showeth mercy unto Thy servants who walk uprightly before Thee, with all their hearts; Thou who hast commanded Thy servants to build a house to Thy name in this place [Kirtland]. And now Thou beholdest, O Lord, that Thy servants have done according to Thy commandment. * * * For Thou knowest that we < have done this work through great tribulation; and out of our poverty we have given of our substance, to build a house to Thy name, that the Son of Man might have a place to manifest Himself to His people.
The following afternoon, Sidney Rigdon was called upon to speak, and given a portion of the time of the dedicatorial services. In his utterance of a great sermon—for I believe that he was under the inspiration of the Spirit of the Lord, for that was in the day of his fellowship with the Church and with the Prophet Joseph—he said:
In times that have passed and up to the present day the Christian churches of all the civilized world have builded places of worship, houses where they have met together, and churches to accommodate the people in their religious services, and one church has been dedicated to the name of Paul. Another church has been dedicated to the name of Peter, and another to the name of James and John, and so through the catalogue of names of holy men, of prophets and apostles that have spoken under the influence of the Spirit of the Lord, and so have hallowed their names and the memory thereof to future generations, and their names have been used, and the buildings of the churches have been dedicated to these prophets and apostles, and their names inscribed upon the lintel of the doorway. It has fallen to the lot of a people who have received revelation through their prophet today, and who have been organized by the power of the Lord into quorums of the Priesthood, the despised people called Latter-day Saints they are the first to build a house of worship, and place upon it the name of Jesus Christ and devote it and dedicate it to Him, and by the power and testimony that has rested upon the congregations of this people in these assemblages we know that it has been accepted by Him.
The Lord chose a boy, if you please, as we were told yesterday. Joseph Smith was only a boy when the Lord called him, when appeared unto him the Father and the Son. They sent before them their messenger, the Holy Ghost, to rest upon the boy to drive away from him the evil influences that were struggling to overcome him, and prepare him by the endowment of this holy power to receive the visitation of the Father and the Son. This was not the first record that we have of a like visit ushered in by a like presence. You remember what Luke says in regard to the birth of the Savior of the world, in the most ideal language that was ever used. No one of the evangelists comes near to him in the expression of the truth of that event as it occurred. The Angel Gabriel came to Mary and he said to her, "Hail, thou that art highly favored above women!" And she knew not what to make of the salutation and then the angel continued and said, "The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest"—who is the highest? God the Eternal Father—"the power of the Highest shall o'ershadow thee; therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God."
So we know that the Lord can prepare the least of His servants or handmaidens for the labors and for the ministry that He places upon them. We have another very glorious example of the Lord calling a small boy, much younger than the Prophet Joseph when he received the visitation of the Father and the Son. I allude now to the Prophet Samuel. Samuel was given to his mother Hannah. She was the wife of Elkanah, a High Priest, and she was childless, and her sorrow knew no bounds. She sought the Lord in her home in her private chamber, and she also went to the temple and prayed upon the steps of the temple, without the door of the temple, and one day as she was praying for relief from her reproach in Israel, because she was barren, Eli in a heartless manner said to her—Eli, by the way, was the High Priest of the temple—he said to her, "How long wilt thou be drunken? put away thy wine from thee." And she said to him, "I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but have poured out my soul before the Lord." When Eli heard this his heart softened and he said to Hannah, "Go in peace; and the God of Israel grant thee thy petition." We are told that she vowed in her heart and covenanted before the Lord that day that if He gave her a son she would devote him to the work in the temple of the Lord all his days. Sure enough, the Lord answered her prayer and gave her a son, and when he was of very tender years she brought him to the temple, and he made his abode there with the High Priest Eli, and slept near him in the temple. And one night a voice said "Samuel!" And the boy arose quickly and went over to Eli, and said to him, "Here am I; for thou calledst me." "I called not," said Eli. Samuel returned to his couch again, and the voice came again to him, "Samuel!" And he arose again and went to Eli, but Eli said "I called not, my son." But after the third time, said Eli to him. "It shall be, if he call thee, that thou shalt say, Speak, Lord; for thy servant heareth." So when the voice came again calling Samuel the boy answered accordingly, and the Lord gave him a commission, a command to call Eli to account for the wickedness of his sons. There are very many examples, very man)' records, but these are salient points that I think of now that will bear us out in the testimony that we give of the divine mission of the Prophet Joseph Smith. Although he was called to the ministry when a mere boy, how well he filled that ministry and mission given to him by the Son of God. How eagerly he gave the strength of his young manhood, as he matured in years and grew in knowledge, and as the Lord revealed unto Him, line upon line, and precept upon precept, of how and when, and the proper way to minister in the Gospel ordinances; and at the completion of the temple he gave this wonderful prayer, a portion of which I have read. About six days after, the following, revelation was given to Joseph the Seer and to Oliver Cowdery:
The veil was taken from our minds, and the eyes of our understanding were opened.
We saw the Lord standing upon the breastwork of the pulpit before us, and under His feet was a paved work of pure gold in color like amber.
His eyes were as a flame of fire, the hair of His head was white like the pure snow, His countenance shone above the brightness of the sun, and His voice was as the sound of the rushing of great waters, even the voice of Jehovah, saying:
I am the first and the last, I am He who liveth, I am He who was slain, I am your advocate with the Father.
Behold, your sins are forgiven you, you are clean before me, therefore lift up your heads and rejoice.
Let the hearts of your brethren rejoice, and let the hearts of all my people rejoice, who have, with their might, built this house to my name. * * *
And the fame of this, house shall spread to foreign lands, and this is the beginning of the blessing which shall be poured out upon the heads of my people. Even so. Amen.
After this vision closed, the heavens were again opened unto us, and Moses appeared before us, and committed unto us the keys of the gathering of Israel from the four parts of the earth, and the leading of the Ten Tribes from the land of the north.
After this, Elias appeared, and committed the dispensation of the Gospel of Abraham, saying, that in us, and our seed, all generations after us should be blessed.
After this vision had closed, another great and glorious vision burst upon us, for Elijah the Prophet, who was taken to heaven without tasting death, stood before us, and said:
Behold, the time has fully come, which was spoken of by the mouth of Malachi, testifying that he (Elijah) should be sent before the great and dreadful day of the Lord come.
To turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the children to the fathers, lest the whole earth be smitten with a curse.
You have heard from Elder Joseph F. Smith, Jr., this afternoon in regard to the principle of baptism for the dead. This was the covenant that was established by the visit of Elijah, in fulfillment of the promise made to the Prophet Joseph when the Angel Moroni first visited him, and informed him concerning the plates, the record from which the Book of Mormon was translated. This work has been going on since that day, sometimes interrupted by force of circumstances, in the times that the people were gathering from their homes in the east to this land in the great western desert. As soon as the labors could be again perfected and a temple could be built, the labor and the work has gone faithfully forward, and many hundreds of thousands of our dead kindred have received, or will receive the benefit of the ordinances performed for them in these holy houses which the Lord has permitted us and assisted us to build. Every one of them, all four temples in this country, have been dedicated to the name of the Lord God of Israel, and He has accepted of that dedication and allowed His name to be placed upon them, every one of those holy edifices.
My brethren and sisters, I must not take more of your time. May the Lord bless you and increase upon you the desire to keep every commandment that He has given unto you, that you may have joy and rejoicing all the days of your lives, and be fitted and prepared to associate with those for whom we have labored here in the flesh, for the redemption of our kindred, as we shall meet them again if we are faithful and true.
May this be our happy portion in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
(Of First Council of Seventy.)
My brethren and sisters, Charles Dickens wrote, "If you would understand the feelings of your fellow man, try to put yourself in his place." I realize the responsibility resting upon the brethren who arise to speak to this vast congregation, and I can say today, of a truth, that I have been greatly edified' and instructed by the remarks of my brethren during the sessions of this great conference. Nothing of greater interest has transpired during our meetings than the salient points expressed by each speaker on the subjects by them handled. The address on the life of the Pioneer, Orson Pratt, reminded the people of the labors of that great man, especially those who have been somewhat conversant with his life and history and his devout and unceasing toil for his fellow man. We were reminded of his charming personality, and of his devoted friendship to all who had the pleasure of his acquaintance and friendship. This afternoon we have been interested very much in the subject of the temples of our God, and the work that has been done in these great edifices for the benefit of the living as well as the dead. In the dedication of the Kirtland Temple the Prophet Joseph gave utterance to this beautiful prayer, a portion of which I will read, found in the 109th section of the Book of Covenants:
Thanks be to Thy name, O Lord God of Israel, who keepeth covenant and showeth mercy unto Thy servants who walk uprightly before Thee, with all their hearts; Thou who hast commanded Thy servants to build a house to Thy name in this place [Kirtland]. And now Thou beholdest, O Lord, that Thy servants have done according to Thy commandment. * * * For Thou knowest that we < have done this work through great tribulation; and out of our poverty we have given of our substance, to build a house to Thy name, that the Son of Man might have a place to manifest Himself to His people.
The following afternoon, Sidney Rigdon was called upon to speak, and given a portion of the time of the dedicatorial services. In his utterance of a great sermon—for I believe that he was under the inspiration of the Spirit of the Lord, for that was in the day of his fellowship with the Church and with the Prophet Joseph—he said:
In times that have passed and up to the present day the Christian churches of all the civilized world have builded places of worship, houses where they have met together, and churches to accommodate the people in their religious services, and one church has been dedicated to the name of Paul. Another church has been dedicated to the name of Peter, and another to the name of James and John, and so through the catalogue of names of holy men, of prophets and apostles that have spoken under the influence of the Spirit of the Lord, and so have hallowed their names and the memory thereof to future generations, and their names have been used, and the buildings of the churches have been dedicated to these prophets and apostles, and their names inscribed upon the lintel of the doorway. It has fallen to the lot of a people who have received revelation through their prophet today, and who have been organized by the power of the Lord into quorums of the Priesthood, the despised people called Latter-day Saints they are the first to build a house of worship, and place upon it the name of Jesus Christ and devote it and dedicate it to Him, and by the power and testimony that has rested upon the congregations of this people in these assemblages we know that it has been accepted by Him.
The Lord chose a boy, if you please, as we were told yesterday. Joseph Smith was only a boy when the Lord called him, when appeared unto him the Father and the Son. They sent before them their messenger, the Holy Ghost, to rest upon the boy to drive away from him the evil influences that were struggling to overcome him, and prepare him by the endowment of this holy power to receive the visitation of the Father and the Son. This was not the first record that we have of a like visit ushered in by a like presence. You remember what Luke says in regard to the birth of the Savior of the world, in the most ideal language that was ever used. No one of the evangelists comes near to him in the expression of the truth of that event as it occurred. The Angel Gabriel came to Mary and he said to her, "Hail, thou that art highly favored above women!" And she knew not what to make of the salutation and then the angel continued and said, "The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest"—who is the highest? God the Eternal Father—"the power of the Highest shall o'ershadow thee; therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God."
So we know that the Lord can prepare the least of His servants or handmaidens for the labors and for the ministry that He places upon them. We have another very glorious example of the Lord calling a small boy, much younger than the Prophet Joseph when he received the visitation of the Father and the Son. I allude now to the Prophet Samuel. Samuel was given to his mother Hannah. She was the wife of Elkanah, a High Priest, and she was childless, and her sorrow knew no bounds. She sought the Lord in her home in her private chamber, and she also went to the temple and prayed upon the steps of the temple, without the door of the temple, and one day as she was praying for relief from her reproach in Israel, because she was barren, Eli in a heartless manner said to her—Eli, by the way, was the High Priest of the temple—he said to her, "How long wilt thou be drunken? put away thy wine from thee." And she said to him, "I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but have poured out my soul before the Lord." When Eli heard this his heart softened and he said to Hannah, "Go in peace; and the God of Israel grant thee thy petition." We are told that she vowed in her heart and covenanted before the Lord that day that if He gave her a son she would devote him to the work in the temple of the Lord all his days. Sure enough, the Lord answered her prayer and gave her a son, and when he was of very tender years she brought him to the temple, and he made his abode there with the High Priest Eli, and slept near him in the temple. And one night a voice said "Samuel!" And the boy arose quickly and went over to Eli, and said to him, "Here am I; for thou calledst me." "I called not," said Eli. Samuel returned to his couch again, and the voice came again to him, "Samuel!" And he arose again and went to Eli, but Eli said "I called not, my son." But after the third time, said Eli to him. "It shall be, if he call thee, that thou shalt say, Speak, Lord; for thy servant heareth." So when the voice came again calling Samuel the boy answered accordingly, and the Lord gave him a commission, a command to call Eli to account for the wickedness of his sons. There are very many examples, very man)' records, but these are salient points that I think of now that will bear us out in the testimony that we give of the divine mission of the Prophet Joseph Smith. Although he was called to the ministry when a mere boy, how well he filled that ministry and mission given to him by the Son of God. How eagerly he gave the strength of his young manhood, as he matured in years and grew in knowledge, and as the Lord revealed unto Him, line upon line, and precept upon precept, of how and when, and the proper way to minister in the Gospel ordinances; and at the completion of the temple he gave this wonderful prayer, a portion of which I have read. About six days after, the following, revelation was given to Joseph the Seer and to Oliver Cowdery:
The veil was taken from our minds, and the eyes of our understanding were opened.
We saw the Lord standing upon the breastwork of the pulpit before us, and under His feet was a paved work of pure gold in color like amber.
His eyes were as a flame of fire, the hair of His head was white like the pure snow, His countenance shone above the brightness of the sun, and His voice was as the sound of the rushing of great waters, even the voice of Jehovah, saying:
I am the first and the last, I am He who liveth, I am He who was slain, I am your advocate with the Father.
Behold, your sins are forgiven you, you are clean before me, therefore lift up your heads and rejoice.
Let the hearts of your brethren rejoice, and let the hearts of all my people rejoice, who have, with their might, built this house to my name. * * *
And the fame of this, house shall spread to foreign lands, and this is the beginning of the blessing which shall be poured out upon the heads of my people. Even so. Amen.
After this vision closed, the heavens were again opened unto us, and Moses appeared before us, and committed unto us the keys of the gathering of Israel from the four parts of the earth, and the leading of the Ten Tribes from the land of the north.
After this, Elias appeared, and committed the dispensation of the Gospel of Abraham, saying, that in us, and our seed, all generations after us should be blessed.
After this vision had closed, another great and glorious vision burst upon us, for Elijah the Prophet, who was taken to heaven without tasting death, stood before us, and said:
Behold, the time has fully come, which was spoken of by the mouth of Malachi, testifying that he (Elijah) should be sent before the great and dreadful day of the Lord come.
To turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the children to the fathers, lest the whole earth be smitten with a curse.
You have heard from Elder Joseph F. Smith, Jr., this afternoon in regard to the principle of baptism for the dead. This was the covenant that was established by the visit of Elijah, in fulfillment of the promise made to the Prophet Joseph when the Angel Moroni first visited him, and informed him concerning the plates, the record from which the Book of Mormon was translated. This work has been going on since that day, sometimes interrupted by force of circumstances, in the times that the people were gathering from their homes in the east to this land in the great western desert. As soon as the labors could be again perfected and a temple could be built, the labor and the work has gone faithfully forward, and many hundreds of thousands of our dead kindred have received, or will receive the benefit of the ordinances performed for them in these holy houses which the Lord has permitted us and assisted us to build. Every one of them, all four temples in this country, have been dedicated to the name of the Lord God of Israel, and He has accepted of that dedication and allowed His name to be placed upon them, every one of those holy edifices.
My brethren and sisters, I must not take more of your time. May the Lord bless you and increase upon you the desire to keep every commandment that He has given unto you, that you may have joy and rejoicing all the days of your lives, and be fitted and prepared to associate with those for whom we have labored here in the flesh, for the redemption of our kindred, as we shall meet them again if we are faithful and true.
May this be our happy portion in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
PATRIARCH JOHN SMITH.
My brethren and sisters, I was in hopes that this task would pass by, as I have often said, preaching is not my forte.
I have listened attentively to all which has been said during the conference, and I can endorse everything which we have heard. I realize that the Spirit of the Lord has been here during this conference, and has actuated those who have spoken to us. I trust that which we have heard will sink deep into the hearts of the people who have heard it, that we may all profit thereby.
I ask God, the Eternal Father, to let His blessings rest upon all Israel and guide all of us in the true path, pour out His Spirit in rich abundance upon all who bear rule in His Church; that He may especially bless those who are called to preside, the First Presidency of the Church, the quorum of the Apostles and their- associates.
I trust that the Latter-day Saints may remember what they have heard during this conference, that they may go forward in the path of righteousness. I bear testimony of the goodness of the Father unto His people, and pray that we all may walk in the true path and be qualified for every duty, filling the mission whereunto our Father has called us, that we may be worthy of His blessings, is my prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen.
My brethren and sisters, I was in hopes that this task would pass by, as I have often said, preaching is not my forte.
I have listened attentively to all which has been said during the conference, and I can endorse everything which we have heard. I realize that the Spirit of the Lord has been here during this conference, and has actuated those who have spoken to us. I trust that which we have heard will sink deep into the hearts of the people who have heard it, that we may all profit thereby.
I ask God, the Eternal Father, to let His blessings rest upon all Israel and guide all of us in the true path, pour out His Spirit in rich abundance upon all who bear rule in His Church; that He may especially bless those who are called to preside, the First Presidency of the Church, the quorum of the Apostles and their- associates.
I trust that the Latter-day Saints may remember what they have heard during this conference, that they may go forward in the path of righteousness. I bear testimony of the goodness of the Father unto His people, and pray that we all may walk in the true path and be qualified for every duty, filling the mission whereunto our Father has called us, that we may be worthy of His blessings, is my prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen.
AUTHORITIES SUSTAINED.
Elder Heber J. Grant presented the General Authorities of the Church, to be voted upon by the assembly, as follows:
Joseph F. Smith, as Prophet, Seer and Revelator and President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Anthon H. Lund, as First Counselor in the First Presidency.
John Henry Smith, as Second Counselor in the First Presidency.
Francis M. Lyman, as President of the Twelve Apostles.
As members of the Council of Twelve Apostles: Francis M. Lyman, Heber J. Grant, Rudger Clawson, Reed Smoot, Hyrum M. Smith, George Albert Smith, Charles W. Penrose, George F. Richards, Orson F. Whitney, David O. McKay, Anthony W. Ivins and Joseph F. .Smith, Jr.
John Smith, as Presiding Patriarch of the Church.
The Counselors in the First Presidency and the Twelve Apostles and the Presiding Patriarch, as Prophets, Seers and Revelators.
First Seven Presidents of Seventies; Seymour B. Young, Brigham H. Roberts, Jonathan G. Kimball, Rulon S. Wells, Joseph W. McMurrin, Charles H. Hart and Levi Edgar Young.
Charles W. Nibley, as Presiding Bishop, with Orrin P. Miller and David A. Smith as his first and second Counselors.
Joseph F. Smith, as Trustee-in- Trust for the body of religious worshipers known as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Anthon H. Lund, as Church Historian and General Church Recorder.
Andrew Jenson, Brigham H. Roberts, Joseph F. Smith, Jr., and August W. Lund, Assistant Historians.
As members of the General Church Board of Education: Joseph F. Smith, Willard Young, Anthon H. Lund, George H. Brimhall, Rudger Clawson, Charles W. Penrose, Horace H. Cummings, Orson F. Whitney, and Francis M. Lyman.
Arthur Winter, Secretary and Treasurer to the General Church Board of Education.
Horace H. Cummings, General Superintendent of Church Schools.
Board of examiners for Church schools: Horace H. Cummings, chairman; George H. Brimhall, James H. Linford and Willard Young.
Auditing committee, William W. Riter, Henry H. Rolapp, John C. Cutler, Heber Scowcroft and Jos. S. Wells.
Tabernacle choir: Evan Stephens, conductor; Horace S. Ensign, assistant conductor; John J. McClellan, organist; Edward P. Kimball and Tracy Y. Cannon, assistant organists; George C. Smith, secretary and treasurer; Noel S. Pratt, librarian; and all the members.
General board of Relief Society: Emmeline B. Wells, president; Clarissa S. Williams, first counselor; Julina L. Smith, second counselor; Olive D. Christensen, secretary; Amy B. Lyman, assistant secretary; Emma A. Empey, treasurer. Members of the board: Sarah J. Cannon, Romania B. Penrose, Susan Grant, Emily S. Richards, Julia P. M. Farnsworth, Phoebe Y. Beatie, Ida S. Dusenberry, Carrie S. Thomas, Alice M. Home, Priscilia P. Jennings, Elizabeth S. Wilcox, Rebecca N. Nibley, Elizabeth C. McCune, Susa Young Gates, Edna May Davis, Sarah McLelland and Elizabeth C. Crismon.
General board of Deseret Sunday School Union: Joseph F. Smith, superintendent; David O. McKay, first assistant superintendent; Stephen L. Richards, second assistant superintendent; George D. Pyper, secretary; John F. Bennett, treasurer. Members of the board: Joseph F. Smith, David O. McKay, Stephen L. Richards, Levi W. Richards, Francis M. Lyman, Heber J. Grant; Hugh J. Cannon, Andrew Kimball, James W. Ure, John. F. Bennett, John M. Mills, William D. Owen, Seymour B. Young, George D. Pyper, Henry Peterson, Anthon H. Lund, George M. Cannon, James E. Talmage, Horace Cummings, Josiah Burrows, William A. Morton, Horace S. Ensign, Henry H. Rolapp, Harold G. Reynolds, John Henry Smith, Charles B. Felt, George H. Wallace, Howard R. Driggs, Robert Lindsay McGhie, Sylvester D. Bradford, Nathan T. Porter and Milton Bennion.
General board Young Men's Mutual Improvement Association: Joseph F. Smith, general superintendent; Heber J. Grant, assistant superintendent; Brigham H. Roberts, assistant superintendent; Moroni Snow, general secretary; Aids: Francis M. Lyman, John Henry Smith, J. Golden Kimball, Junius F. Wells, Rodney C. Badger, George H. Brimhall, Edward H. Anderson, Douglas M. Todd, Thomas Hull, Nephi L. Morris, Willard Done, LeRoi C. Snow, Frank Y. Taylor, Rudger Clawson, Rulon S. Wells, Joseph W. McMurrin, Reed Smoot, Bryant S. Hinckley, Moses W. Taylor, B. F. Grant, Hyrum M. Smith, Joseph F. Smith, Jr., O. C. Beebe, Lewis T. Cannon, Benjamin Goddard, Geo. Albert Smith, Thomas A. Clawson, Lyman R. Martineau, Charles H. Hart, John A. Widtsoe, James H. Anderson, Anthony W. Ivins, Oscar A. Kirkham, Anthon H. Lund, Geo, F. Richards, Nephi Anderson, John H. Taylor.
General board Young Ladies' Mutual Improvement Association: Martha H. Tingey, president; Ruth May Fox, first counselor; Mae Taylor Nystrom, second counselor; Joan M. Campbell, secretary; Alice K. Smith, treasurer; Alice C. Tuddenham, musical director; Mattie Read Evans, organist; Elizabeth T. Sardoni, assistant organist. Aids: Adella W. Eardley, Sarah Eddington, Agnes S. Campbell, Ann M. Cannon, May Booth Talmage, Emma Goddard, Rose W. Bennett, Julia M. Brixen, Augusta W. Grant, Mary A. Freeze, Estelle N. Caldwell, Emily C. Adams, Mary E. Connelly, Elen Wallace, Lucy W. Smith, Jane B. Anderson, Letitia Teasdale, Edith R. Lovesy, Laura Bennion, Rachel Grant Taylor.
Members of the General board of Primary Associations: Louie B. Felt, president: May Anderson, first counselor; Clara W. Beebe; second counselor; Frances Thomassen, secretary; Ida B. Smith, librarian; Isabelle S. Ross, physical director; Ann Nebeker, assistant physical director; Emma Ramsey Morris, chorister; Ivy Allen, organist. Honorary members of the board: Lillie T. Freeze, Josephine R. West and Aurelia S. Rogers. Advisors to the board: Hyrum M. Smith and George F. Richards. Aids: L. L. Greene Richards, Camilla C. Cobb, Eliza S. Bennion, Edna Harker Thomas, Alice L. Howarth, Emma Romney, Rebecca Nibley Whitney, Zina Y. Card, Amy Lyman, Laura Foster, Edith Hunter, Erma Bitner.
General board of Religion Classes: Anthon H. Lund, superintendent; Rudger Clawson, first assistant superintendent; Hyrum M. Smith, second assistant superintendent; J. D. Cummings, secretary. Members of the board: Anthon H. Lund, Rudger Clawson, Hyrum M. Smith, Horace H. Cummings, Rulon S. Wells, Joseph W. McMurrin, John Henry Evans, William A. Morton, Joseph J. Cannon, George Albert Smith, Charles W. Penrose, Orson F. Whitney, James E. King, George F. Richards, John Henry Smith, Heber J. Grant, Anthony W. Ivins, George H. Brimhall, Joseph F. Smith, Jr., P. J. Jenson, and Willard Young.
General board of the Genealogical Society of Utah: Anthon H. Lund, president; Charles W. Pentose, vice president; Joseph F. Smith, Jr., secretary and treasurer; Joseph Christenson, librarian; Anthony W. Ivins, D. M. McAllister and Heber J. Grant.
Duncan M. McAllister, as clerk of the conference.
Each and all of those named were duly sustained in the positions designated, by unanimous vote of the Conference.
Elder Heber J. Grant presented the General Authorities of the Church, to be voted upon by the assembly, as follows:
Joseph F. Smith, as Prophet, Seer and Revelator and President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Anthon H. Lund, as First Counselor in the First Presidency.
John Henry Smith, as Second Counselor in the First Presidency.
Francis M. Lyman, as President of the Twelve Apostles.
As members of the Council of Twelve Apostles: Francis M. Lyman, Heber J. Grant, Rudger Clawson, Reed Smoot, Hyrum M. Smith, George Albert Smith, Charles W. Penrose, George F. Richards, Orson F. Whitney, David O. McKay, Anthony W. Ivins and Joseph F. .Smith, Jr.
John Smith, as Presiding Patriarch of the Church.
The Counselors in the First Presidency and the Twelve Apostles and the Presiding Patriarch, as Prophets, Seers and Revelators.
First Seven Presidents of Seventies; Seymour B. Young, Brigham H. Roberts, Jonathan G. Kimball, Rulon S. Wells, Joseph W. McMurrin, Charles H. Hart and Levi Edgar Young.
Charles W. Nibley, as Presiding Bishop, with Orrin P. Miller and David A. Smith as his first and second Counselors.
Joseph F. Smith, as Trustee-in- Trust for the body of religious worshipers known as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Anthon H. Lund, as Church Historian and General Church Recorder.
Andrew Jenson, Brigham H. Roberts, Joseph F. Smith, Jr., and August W. Lund, Assistant Historians.
As members of the General Church Board of Education: Joseph F. Smith, Willard Young, Anthon H. Lund, George H. Brimhall, Rudger Clawson, Charles W. Penrose, Horace H. Cummings, Orson F. Whitney, and Francis M. Lyman.
Arthur Winter, Secretary and Treasurer to the General Church Board of Education.
Horace H. Cummings, General Superintendent of Church Schools.
Board of examiners for Church schools: Horace H. Cummings, chairman; George H. Brimhall, James H. Linford and Willard Young.
Auditing committee, William W. Riter, Henry H. Rolapp, John C. Cutler, Heber Scowcroft and Jos. S. Wells.
Tabernacle choir: Evan Stephens, conductor; Horace S. Ensign, assistant conductor; John J. McClellan, organist; Edward P. Kimball and Tracy Y. Cannon, assistant organists; George C. Smith, secretary and treasurer; Noel S. Pratt, librarian; and all the members.
General board of Relief Society: Emmeline B. Wells, president; Clarissa S. Williams, first counselor; Julina L. Smith, second counselor; Olive D. Christensen, secretary; Amy B. Lyman, assistant secretary; Emma A. Empey, treasurer. Members of the board: Sarah J. Cannon, Romania B. Penrose, Susan Grant, Emily S. Richards, Julia P. M. Farnsworth, Phoebe Y. Beatie, Ida S. Dusenberry, Carrie S. Thomas, Alice M. Home, Priscilia P. Jennings, Elizabeth S. Wilcox, Rebecca N. Nibley, Elizabeth C. McCune, Susa Young Gates, Edna May Davis, Sarah McLelland and Elizabeth C. Crismon.
General board of Deseret Sunday School Union: Joseph F. Smith, superintendent; David O. McKay, first assistant superintendent; Stephen L. Richards, second assistant superintendent; George D. Pyper, secretary; John F. Bennett, treasurer. Members of the board: Joseph F. Smith, David O. McKay, Stephen L. Richards, Levi W. Richards, Francis M. Lyman, Heber J. Grant; Hugh J. Cannon, Andrew Kimball, James W. Ure, John. F. Bennett, John M. Mills, William D. Owen, Seymour B. Young, George D. Pyper, Henry Peterson, Anthon H. Lund, George M. Cannon, James E. Talmage, Horace Cummings, Josiah Burrows, William A. Morton, Horace S. Ensign, Henry H. Rolapp, Harold G. Reynolds, John Henry Smith, Charles B. Felt, George H. Wallace, Howard R. Driggs, Robert Lindsay McGhie, Sylvester D. Bradford, Nathan T. Porter and Milton Bennion.
General board Young Men's Mutual Improvement Association: Joseph F. Smith, general superintendent; Heber J. Grant, assistant superintendent; Brigham H. Roberts, assistant superintendent; Moroni Snow, general secretary; Aids: Francis M. Lyman, John Henry Smith, J. Golden Kimball, Junius F. Wells, Rodney C. Badger, George H. Brimhall, Edward H. Anderson, Douglas M. Todd, Thomas Hull, Nephi L. Morris, Willard Done, LeRoi C. Snow, Frank Y. Taylor, Rudger Clawson, Rulon S. Wells, Joseph W. McMurrin, Reed Smoot, Bryant S. Hinckley, Moses W. Taylor, B. F. Grant, Hyrum M. Smith, Joseph F. Smith, Jr., O. C. Beebe, Lewis T. Cannon, Benjamin Goddard, Geo. Albert Smith, Thomas A. Clawson, Lyman R. Martineau, Charles H. Hart, John A. Widtsoe, James H. Anderson, Anthony W. Ivins, Oscar A. Kirkham, Anthon H. Lund, Geo, F. Richards, Nephi Anderson, John H. Taylor.
General board Young Ladies' Mutual Improvement Association: Martha H. Tingey, president; Ruth May Fox, first counselor; Mae Taylor Nystrom, second counselor; Joan M. Campbell, secretary; Alice K. Smith, treasurer; Alice C. Tuddenham, musical director; Mattie Read Evans, organist; Elizabeth T. Sardoni, assistant organist. Aids: Adella W. Eardley, Sarah Eddington, Agnes S. Campbell, Ann M. Cannon, May Booth Talmage, Emma Goddard, Rose W. Bennett, Julia M. Brixen, Augusta W. Grant, Mary A. Freeze, Estelle N. Caldwell, Emily C. Adams, Mary E. Connelly, Elen Wallace, Lucy W. Smith, Jane B. Anderson, Letitia Teasdale, Edith R. Lovesy, Laura Bennion, Rachel Grant Taylor.
Members of the General board of Primary Associations: Louie B. Felt, president: May Anderson, first counselor; Clara W. Beebe; second counselor; Frances Thomassen, secretary; Ida B. Smith, librarian; Isabelle S. Ross, physical director; Ann Nebeker, assistant physical director; Emma Ramsey Morris, chorister; Ivy Allen, organist. Honorary members of the board: Lillie T. Freeze, Josephine R. West and Aurelia S. Rogers. Advisors to the board: Hyrum M. Smith and George F. Richards. Aids: L. L. Greene Richards, Camilla C. Cobb, Eliza S. Bennion, Edna Harker Thomas, Alice L. Howarth, Emma Romney, Rebecca Nibley Whitney, Zina Y. Card, Amy Lyman, Laura Foster, Edith Hunter, Erma Bitner.
General board of Religion Classes: Anthon H. Lund, superintendent; Rudger Clawson, first assistant superintendent; Hyrum M. Smith, second assistant superintendent; J. D. Cummings, secretary. Members of the board: Anthon H. Lund, Rudger Clawson, Hyrum M. Smith, Horace H. Cummings, Rulon S. Wells, Joseph W. McMurrin, John Henry Evans, William A. Morton, Joseph J. Cannon, George Albert Smith, Charles W. Penrose, Orson F. Whitney, James E. King, George F. Richards, John Henry Smith, Heber J. Grant, Anthony W. Ivins, George H. Brimhall, Joseph F. Smith, Jr., P. J. Jenson, and Willard Young.
General board of the Genealogical Society of Utah: Anthon H. Lund, president; Charles W. Pentose, vice president; Joseph F. Smith, Jr., secretary and treasurer; Joseph Christenson, librarian; Anthony W. Ivins, D. M. McAllister and Heber J. Grant.
Duncan M. McAllister, as clerk of the conference.
Each and all of those named were duly sustained in the positions designated, by unanimous vote of the Conference.
PRESIDENT JOSEPH F. SMITH.
CLOSING REMARKS.
Saints advised to live in unity, and keep out of debt.—Statement concerning expenditure of tithing. — Reasons for the Church assisting in building Hotel Utah.—Voluntary obligation assumed by members to sustain Church authorities.—Blessings invoked upon Priesthood and People, and the Nation.—Mobocratic spirit a national menace.
If there are any two individuals in this congregation, or who may have attended this conference, who have any ill-feeling in their hearts toward each other, or toward any one else, I hope they will go home, and that any or all others to whom the thought applies, will go home from here and be reconciled to each other, and become good neighbors and abide in good fellowship in the Church. If there is any one here who is in debt I would advise that when he goes home, and when I go home, too, that we will begin with a determination that we will pay our debts and meet all of our obligations just as quickly as the Lord will enable us to do it. If there is any one here intending to go into debt for speculation, and especially if he is intending to borrow money to buy mining stock and other scaley or uncertain things, I would advise him to hesitate, pray over it, and carefully consider it before he obligates himself by borrowing money and going into debt. In other words, keep out of debt if you can. Pay your debts as soon as you can. That means me as well as any one else.
If there is any one in the congregation who has been negligent in observing the law of tithing, I hope he will go home from this conference with a new awakening in his soul to keep this obligation that rests upon us as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, that there may be plenty in the storehouse of the Lord to meet all the necessities of the Church in a financial way. We feed the poor, and we maintain our temples, we assist our missionaries to return from their missions, we sustain our Church schools, which are numerous, and expensive, and we are doing every other thing that we feel is wise and proper for us to do, with the means we have for the building up of Zion. We have succeeded in purchasing, as far as we could,, the property that was offered for sale surrounding this temple block, with the express intent to keep it from going into the hands of persons who would make an improper use of it. It has cost us a great deal, for generally when people realize that the Church wants or needs to get anything they have for sale they want to get all out of it they possibly can. I am sorry to say that, but I suppose it is human nature for some people to do so. We have been under the necessity of improving some of this vacant land which we have purchased, and that has cost money, but now, instead of it being unoccupied, unimproved, a source of expense to the Church, we have built upon it and now it pays for itself, or meets its own obligations and helps the Church just a little.
We have helped to build one of the most magnificent hotels that exists on the continent of America, or in the old continent either. I am told that it is equal to any in the world, in its facilities for convenience and comfort for its guests, for sanitation, for its situation, and architectural beauty, and in many other ways. Well, some of our people have thought that we were extravagant. I would like you to turn to the book of Doctrine and Covenants and read the commandment of the Lord to the Prophet Joseph Smith in the city of Nauvoo.[1] The people were requested to contribute of their means to take stock in this building, and they and their children after them, from generation to generation, should have, an inheritance in that building; for it was intended for the beauty of the city, for the glory of that stake of Zion, and to accommodate the stranger from afar who came to contemplate the doctrines of the Church and the work of the Lord.
We are not responsible for the character of men who come here and are entertained in the hotel. We did not make or form their character, neither are we responsible for their conduct. Men who come here to this city from the world are generally men of the world, men accustomed to the habits of the world. Now, I hoped, and I prayed, and I voted and did ill I could in the hope that the 'good people of this city would vote it "dry," so that we would not be compelled to allow a saloon or bar to be operated in the Hotel Utah. If you had voted it "dry," we would not have had any bar there. It would not have been necessary, because the people that come here would have to put up with the law, and with the conditions in the city, but it "went wet," and therefore the people that visit us want something to "wet up" with once in a while, and unless it is provided for them they will go somewhere else, and instead of beholding and viewing the beauties of Zion they will go where they will see everything that is not beautiful, and be associated with that which is not good, instead of being where they can see the best side of everything.
The building itself has been built by a company called the Utah Hotel Company. Not one of them is a hotel keeper. They know nothing about the science of hostelries, or of keeping a hostelry or managing a hotel, so they rented it. They have rented it to another company called the "Hotel Operating Company," an operating company which has been formed with a capital of some $300,000.00, I believe, and j they have rented the building and are responsible for the running of the hotel. They are paying those who built it, that is the "Utah Hotel Company," the interest on their money as it falls due, and also interest on the bonds that have been issued for the purpose of obtaining the money necessary to put it in commission. Now, we do not want the Latter-day Saints to go off and condemn Joseph F. Smith or Anthon H. Lund or John Henry Smith, or anybody else, because there is a bar in the Hotel Utah. We are not responsible for it. We do not go and drink there. We invite you to keep out of the bar and not go there to drink; you don't have to; therefore we advise you on general principles to observe and keep the Word of Wisdom, both in the "Hotel Utah" and in your own homes, and wherever you travel. Keep the Word of wisdom, which is the word of the Lord to His people. I could say more perhaps, but I think I have said all I need to on that score.
Now, my brethren and sisters, I want to thank you on behalf of myself and counselors, the Council of the Apostles, the Seventies, the Patriarch, and the Presiding Bishopric, who are the general authorities, for the unanimity that has been manifested here by the uplifted hands of this vast congregation, with reference to the matters that have been presented to you. I understand this as an evidence of good will, of faith and of fellowship on the part of this vast congregation to all the authorities, both general and local, or auxiliary, that have been presented before you, and that you will all abide the pledge you have given to the Lord and to one another by the uplifted hand, that you all mean to uphold and sustain these officers in all these various organizations, from first to last, that you will not backbite them, that you will not find fault with them without a cause, that you will not try to injure their influence or hinder their progress, or interfere with their legitimate work but that on the contrary you will do everything you can to help them, to benefit them, bless them, and encourage them in the good work in which they are engaged.
Now, may the Lord God Almighty bless and preserve His servants from evil works, from all error and mistakes. Oh, that the Lord God will guide His people and not leave them to the guidance of man. I testify to you that no man has ever led the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in the sense that by his own wisdom and intelligence, and by his personal power and influence he did it. I maintain and testify to you that it has been the power of God that has guided this people, the present moment. No man of himself is responsible for it. Therefore I pray that the Lord may bless His servants; that they may do nothing contrary to His will; that they may do nothing injurious to His work; that they may not lay any block or obstacle in the way of the progress of the kingdom of God; that they may do nothing to grieve or hurt the feelings of the faithful children of the Father throughout all the Church. And I pray God to bless every organization of the Holy Priesthood that was revealed through the Prophet Joseph Smith, from the deacon to the apostle, each in its place, and each man in his place, and that the Lord may help each one to perform his duty, whether that duty may be great or small.
I pray God to bless the teachers, the men that are called by the bishops and sent out among the Latter-day Saints to teach them the principles of right living, principles of the Gospel, the principles of unity, of harmony, of righteousness and of equality and justice, the principle of love and kindness between husband and wife, between parents and children, between neighbors, and in every way to teach the people righteousness, faith in God in Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Spirit which proceeds, from the Father and the Son, and bears witness of them to the children of men; faith in the Prophet Joseph Smith and in the divinity of his mission faith in the intent and purpose and power of God to carry out His purposes and designs among the children of men, and faith in the destiny of God's work, in the destiny of His people, that we may not wander from the Prophet Joseph down to away nor be misled into error and doubt by those who are cunning and crafty, and who lay in wait to deceive and mislead the people of God, from their righteous ways.
I pray God to bless all our auxiliary organizations, from the first to the last, that they may do their duty, that they may not sit idly down and neglect to work. The idler is not in favor before the Lord, and he that is idle is in danger of temptation, and of falling into the power of the adversary. We are only safe when we are doing, when we are at work, when we are in earnest, when we are engaged in the discharge of our duty, and when this condition exists with us we are safe, for then we are in the hands of God and not in the hand of the adversary.
O God, bless the Holy Priesthood, the noble men, pure men, just men, men of honor, men of integrity, men who have gathered out, many of them, from the nations of the earth for the love of the gospel; and many of them have been born under the covenant of the Holy Priesthood, and I pray God to bless you, my brethren, with an abundance of His goodness, of His mercy and loving kindness, that you may prosper in the land, that you may be indeed truly His servants.
I pray you and I pray God to help you, fathers and mothers, to teach your children the principles and precepts of the gospel of Jesus Christ, that they will grow up without sin unto salvation. I pray that God will help you to rear your children in the love of truth, in the love of virtue, free from the contaminating vices of the world, free from defilement, from drunkenness, from the use of tobacco, from strong drinks and narcotics, and vices of every description; that you will teach them to be pure in their lives—in their habits, that they may be holy temples in which the Spirit of the living God may well and find congenial habitation, It is your duty to do it, and it is my duty; it is the duty of every man living to teach his family these things, and bring them up in the way they should go.
May the Lord bless our Presiding Bishopric, on whom rests so much responsibility of gathering and assisting in keeping the records, receiving and disbursing the tithes of the people for every purpose for which it is appropriated towards the building up of Zion, the building of temples and school houses, the compensation of teachers in our schools, the care of the poor, and the paying of other expenses. O, may the Lord bless our Bishopric that they may be fathers and not masters, that they may be tender in their hearts towards God's poor, and wise and prudent with reference to the "poor devils" who would impose upon them and upon the Church if they could. May the Lord bless them with wisdom, knowledge and understanding, that they may not be deceived, that they may not yield to any kind of evil temptation, but that they may be true and faithful before God, that they will be able to give a faithful account of their stewardship before all the people of the Church, and when necessary before the people of the world, but more especially before the great Judge of the quick and the dead, for it is to Him that we will eventually have to answer for every work and every word that we have done and said in this life; for every man will be rewarded according to his works, whether they be good or evil.
The Lord God bless Israel, not only all Israel but the honest in heart in all the world. The Lord bless the executive of this great nation, the man that stands at the head, together with his cabinet that they also may be men of wisdom and of sound judgment, that they may be able to devise ways of peace and good will on earth, that there may be peace everywhere, that war may cease, that strife, contention and oppression of every description may be checked and subdued by the wisdom of the great statesmen and capable and honest judges of our country.
One of the greatest menaces to our country is that of the combination of men into irresponsible, reckless mobs, wild with prejudice, hatred and fanaticism, led by men of ambition, or passion, or hatred. There is no other thing in the world that I can conceive of so absolutely obnoxious to God and good men as a combination of men and women filled with the spirit of mobocracy. When men combine together to stop or shut off the food supply from the mouth of the honest laborer, to starve the man that is willing to work, and the wife and the children who are dependent upon him, because he is not willing to join a mob, is one of the most infamous perils and menaces to the people of our country today. I do not care who they are, or what name they go by. They are a menace to the peace of the world, and I hope and pray that President William H. Taft, and his cabinet, and the Congress of the United States, will be able to devise means and measures by which the constitutional laws of this government will be executed for the protection of the lives, the liberty and happiness of all its people, against mobocracy of every kind or description, whether it be in the form of soulless corporations, monopolies or other combinations, it matters not to me. Let the strong hand of the government put a stop to anything that is tyrannical and unjust, to anarchy and all else calculated to sow the seeds of destruction, poverty and ruin upon our land.
Now I must quit so you can catch the train. The Lord bless all Israel. The Lord bless our government and make it great, and help those who are at the helm to increase its greatness, that it may be sustained on the principles of eternal justice, righteousness and truth.
I pray God to bless our choir, not only this choir, but all the other good choirs of the Latter-day Saints, and especially this on this occasion when it is about to start from here to visit New York and to sing for the world. I pray that the Lord will give them success, help them to win honor and laurels for the people of Utah, for the singers of Zion, and especially for the great Salt Lake Tabernacle Choir. The Lord bless Brother Stephens at their head, and Brother McClellan and those assisting them, that they may be true to their trust, honorable and faithful, and carry with them the virtues and honor that men cannot bestow, and can only exist in the souls of the righteous.
The choir sang the anthem, "God is our refuge and strength."
Benediction was pronounced by Bishop Charles W. Nibley.
Conference adjourned for six months.
Prof. Evan Stephens conducted the singing of the choir and congregation at all the conference meetings in the Tabernacle, and Prof. John J. McClellan played the accompaniments, interludes, etc., on the great organ, assisted by Edward P. Kimball and Tracy Y. Cannon.
The stenographic reports of the discourses were taken by Elders Franklin W. Otterstrom, Frederick E. Barker, and Fred G. Barker.
The discourses delivered in the Tabernacle, reported by Elder Otterstrom, were transcribed by Mrs. John Meibos.
Duncan M. McAllister,
Clerk of Conference.
[1] See Doctrine and Covenants Section 124:22-24.
"Let my servant George, and my servant Lyman and my servant John Snyder and others build a house unto my name, such an one as my servant Joseph shall show unto them, upon the place which I shall show unto them also. And it shall be a house for boarding, 'a house that strangers may come from afar to lodge therein, therefore let it be a good house, worthy of all acceptation, that the weary traveler may find health and safety while he shall contemplate -the word of the Lord," etc.
"This house shall be a healthy habitation," etc., etc., and again:
"And let the name of that house be called Nauvoo House, and let it be a delightful habitation for man, and a resting place for the weary traveler," etc. (v. 60) And like the corner stone of Zion "Which shall be polished with that refinement which is after the similitude of a palace." (verse 2, sec 124).
CLOSING REMARKS.
Saints advised to live in unity, and keep out of debt.—Statement concerning expenditure of tithing. — Reasons for the Church assisting in building Hotel Utah.—Voluntary obligation assumed by members to sustain Church authorities.—Blessings invoked upon Priesthood and People, and the Nation.—Mobocratic spirit a national menace.
If there are any two individuals in this congregation, or who may have attended this conference, who have any ill-feeling in their hearts toward each other, or toward any one else, I hope they will go home, and that any or all others to whom the thought applies, will go home from here and be reconciled to each other, and become good neighbors and abide in good fellowship in the Church. If there is any one here who is in debt I would advise that when he goes home, and when I go home, too, that we will begin with a determination that we will pay our debts and meet all of our obligations just as quickly as the Lord will enable us to do it. If there is any one here intending to go into debt for speculation, and especially if he is intending to borrow money to buy mining stock and other scaley or uncertain things, I would advise him to hesitate, pray over it, and carefully consider it before he obligates himself by borrowing money and going into debt. In other words, keep out of debt if you can. Pay your debts as soon as you can. That means me as well as any one else.
If there is any one in the congregation who has been negligent in observing the law of tithing, I hope he will go home from this conference with a new awakening in his soul to keep this obligation that rests upon us as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, that there may be plenty in the storehouse of the Lord to meet all the necessities of the Church in a financial way. We feed the poor, and we maintain our temples, we assist our missionaries to return from their missions, we sustain our Church schools, which are numerous, and expensive, and we are doing every other thing that we feel is wise and proper for us to do, with the means we have for the building up of Zion. We have succeeded in purchasing, as far as we could,, the property that was offered for sale surrounding this temple block, with the express intent to keep it from going into the hands of persons who would make an improper use of it. It has cost us a great deal, for generally when people realize that the Church wants or needs to get anything they have for sale they want to get all out of it they possibly can. I am sorry to say that, but I suppose it is human nature for some people to do so. We have been under the necessity of improving some of this vacant land which we have purchased, and that has cost money, but now, instead of it being unoccupied, unimproved, a source of expense to the Church, we have built upon it and now it pays for itself, or meets its own obligations and helps the Church just a little.
We have helped to build one of the most magnificent hotels that exists on the continent of America, or in the old continent either. I am told that it is equal to any in the world, in its facilities for convenience and comfort for its guests, for sanitation, for its situation, and architectural beauty, and in many other ways. Well, some of our people have thought that we were extravagant. I would like you to turn to the book of Doctrine and Covenants and read the commandment of the Lord to the Prophet Joseph Smith in the city of Nauvoo.[1] The people were requested to contribute of their means to take stock in this building, and they and their children after them, from generation to generation, should have, an inheritance in that building; for it was intended for the beauty of the city, for the glory of that stake of Zion, and to accommodate the stranger from afar who came to contemplate the doctrines of the Church and the work of the Lord.
We are not responsible for the character of men who come here and are entertained in the hotel. We did not make or form their character, neither are we responsible for their conduct. Men who come here to this city from the world are generally men of the world, men accustomed to the habits of the world. Now, I hoped, and I prayed, and I voted and did ill I could in the hope that the 'good people of this city would vote it "dry," so that we would not be compelled to allow a saloon or bar to be operated in the Hotel Utah. If you had voted it "dry," we would not have had any bar there. It would not have been necessary, because the people that come here would have to put up with the law, and with the conditions in the city, but it "went wet," and therefore the people that visit us want something to "wet up" with once in a while, and unless it is provided for them they will go somewhere else, and instead of beholding and viewing the beauties of Zion they will go where they will see everything that is not beautiful, and be associated with that which is not good, instead of being where they can see the best side of everything.
The building itself has been built by a company called the Utah Hotel Company. Not one of them is a hotel keeper. They know nothing about the science of hostelries, or of keeping a hostelry or managing a hotel, so they rented it. They have rented it to another company called the "Hotel Operating Company," an operating company which has been formed with a capital of some $300,000.00, I believe, and j they have rented the building and are responsible for the running of the hotel. They are paying those who built it, that is the "Utah Hotel Company," the interest on their money as it falls due, and also interest on the bonds that have been issued for the purpose of obtaining the money necessary to put it in commission. Now, we do not want the Latter-day Saints to go off and condemn Joseph F. Smith or Anthon H. Lund or John Henry Smith, or anybody else, because there is a bar in the Hotel Utah. We are not responsible for it. We do not go and drink there. We invite you to keep out of the bar and not go there to drink; you don't have to; therefore we advise you on general principles to observe and keep the Word of Wisdom, both in the "Hotel Utah" and in your own homes, and wherever you travel. Keep the Word of wisdom, which is the word of the Lord to His people. I could say more perhaps, but I think I have said all I need to on that score.
Now, my brethren and sisters, I want to thank you on behalf of myself and counselors, the Council of the Apostles, the Seventies, the Patriarch, and the Presiding Bishopric, who are the general authorities, for the unanimity that has been manifested here by the uplifted hands of this vast congregation, with reference to the matters that have been presented to you. I understand this as an evidence of good will, of faith and of fellowship on the part of this vast congregation to all the authorities, both general and local, or auxiliary, that have been presented before you, and that you will all abide the pledge you have given to the Lord and to one another by the uplifted hand, that you all mean to uphold and sustain these officers in all these various organizations, from first to last, that you will not backbite them, that you will not find fault with them without a cause, that you will not try to injure their influence or hinder their progress, or interfere with their legitimate work but that on the contrary you will do everything you can to help them, to benefit them, bless them, and encourage them in the good work in which they are engaged.
Now, may the Lord God Almighty bless and preserve His servants from evil works, from all error and mistakes. Oh, that the Lord God will guide His people and not leave them to the guidance of man. I testify to you that no man has ever led the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in the sense that by his own wisdom and intelligence, and by his personal power and influence he did it. I maintain and testify to you that it has been the power of God that has guided this people, the present moment. No man of himself is responsible for it. Therefore I pray that the Lord may bless His servants; that they may do nothing contrary to His will; that they may do nothing injurious to His work; that they may not lay any block or obstacle in the way of the progress of the kingdom of God; that they may do nothing to grieve or hurt the feelings of the faithful children of the Father throughout all the Church. And I pray God to bless every organization of the Holy Priesthood that was revealed through the Prophet Joseph Smith, from the deacon to the apostle, each in its place, and each man in his place, and that the Lord may help each one to perform his duty, whether that duty may be great or small.
I pray God to bless the teachers, the men that are called by the bishops and sent out among the Latter-day Saints to teach them the principles of right living, principles of the Gospel, the principles of unity, of harmony, of righteousness and of equality and justice, the principle of love and kindness between husband and wife, between parents and children, between neighbors, and in every way to teach the people righteousness, faith in God in Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Spirit which proceeds, from the Father and the Son, and bears witness of them to the children of men; faith in the Prophet Joseph Smith and in the divinity of his mission faith in the intent and purpose and power of God to carry out His purposes and designs among the children of men, and faith in the destiny of God's work, in the destiny of His people, that we may not wander from the Prophet Joseph down to away nor be misled into error and doubt by those who are cunning and crafty, and who lay in wait to deceive and mislead the people of God, from their righteous ways.
I pray God to bless all our auxiliary organizations, from the first to the last, that they may do their duty, that they may not sit idly down and neglect to work. The idler is not in favor before the Lord, and he that is idle is in danger of temptation, and of falling into the power of the adversary. We are only safe when we are doing, when we are at work, when we are in earnest, when we are engaged in the discharge of our duty, and when this condition exists with us we are safe, for then we are in the hands of God and not in the hand of the adversary.
O God, bless the Holy Priesthood, the noble men, pure men, just men, men of honor, men of integrity, men who have gathered out, many of them, from the nations of the earth for the love of the gospel; and many of them have been born under the covenant of the Holy Priesthood, and I pray God to bless you, my brethren, with an abundance of His goodness, of His mercy and loving kindness, that you may prosper in the land, that you may be indeed truly His servants.
I pray you and I pray God to help you, fathers and mothers, to teach your children the principles and precepts of the gospel of Jesus Christ, that they will grow up without sin unto salvation. I pray that God will help you to rear your children in the love of truth, in the love of virtue, free from the contaminating vices of the world, free from defilement, from drunkenness, from the use of tobacco, from strong drinks and narcotics, and vices of every description; that you will teach them to be pure in their lives—in their habits, that they may be holy temples in which the Spirit of the living God may well and find congenial habitation, It is your duty to do it, and it is my duty; it is the duty of every man living to teach his family these things, and bring them up in the way they should go.
May the Lord bless our Presiding Bishopric, on whom rests so much responsibility of gathering and assisting in keeping the records, receiving and disbursing the tithes of the people for every purpose for which it is appropriated towards the building up of Zion, the building of temples and school houses, the compensation of teachers in our schools, the care of the poor, and the paying of other expenses. O, may the Lord bless our Bishopric that they may be fathers and not masters, that they may be tender in their hearts towards God's poor, and wise and prudent with reference to the "poor devils" who would impose upon them and upon the Church if they could. May the Lord bless them with wisdom, knowledge and understanding, that they may not be deceived, that they may not yield to any kind of evil temptation, but that they may be true and faithful before God, that they will be able to give a faithful account of their stewardship before all the people of the Church, and when necessary before the people of the world, but more especially before the great Judge of the quick and the dead, for it is to Him that we will eventually have to answer for every work and every word that we have done and said in this life; for every man will be rewarded according to his works, whether they be good or evil.
The Lord God bless Israel, not only all Israel but the honest in heart in all the world. The Lord bless the executive of this great nation, the man that stands at the head, together with his cabinet that they also may be men of wisdom and of sound judgment, that they may be able to devise ways of peace and good will on earth, that there may be peace everywhere, that war may cease, that strife, contention and oppression of every description may be checked and subdued by the wisdom of the great statesmen and capable and honest judges of our country.
One of the greatest menaces to our country is that of the combination of men into irresponsible, reckless mobs, wild with prejudice, hatred and fanaticism, led by men of ambition, or passion, or hatred. There is no other thing in the world that I can conceive of so absolutely obnoxious to God and good men as a combination of men and women filled with the spirit of mobocracy. When men combine together to stop or shut off the food supply from the mouth of the honest laborer, to starve the man that is willing to work, and the wife and the children who are dependent upon him, because he is not willing to join a mob, is one of the most infamous perils and menaces to the people of our country today. I do not care who they are, or what name they go by. They are a menace to the peace of the world, and I hope and pray that President William H. Taft, and his cabinet, and the Congress of the United States, will be able to devise means and measures by which the constitutional laws of this government will be executed for the protection of the lives, the liberty and happiness of all its people, against mobocracy of every kind or description, whether it be in the form of soulless corporations, monopolies or other combinations, it matters not to me. Let the strong hand of the government put a stop to anything that is tyrannical and unjust, to anarchy and all else calculated to sow the seeds of destruction, poverty and ruin upon our land.
Now I must quit so you can catch the train. The Lord bless all Israel. The Lord bless our government and make it great, and help those who are at the helm to increase its greatness, that it may be sustained on the principles of eternal justice, righteousness and truth.
I pray God to bless our choir, not only this choir, but all the other good choirs of the Latter-day Saints, and especially this on this occasion when it is about to start from here to visit New York and to sing for the world. I pray that the Lord will give them success, help them to win honor and laurels for the people of Utah, for the singers of Zion, and especially for the great Salt Lake Tabernacle Choir. The Lord bless Brother Stephens at their head, and Brother McClellan and those assisting them, that they may be true to their trust, honorable and faithful, and carry with them the virtues and honor that men cannot bestow, and can only exist in the souls of the righteous.
The choir sang the anthem, "God is our refuge and strength."
Benediction was pronounced by Bishop Charles W. Nibley.
Conference adjourned for six months.
Prof. Evan Stephens conducted the singing of the choir and congregation at all the conference meetings in the Tabernacle, and Prof. John J. McClellan played the accompaniments, interludes, etc., on the great organ, assisted by Edward P. Kimball and Tracy Y. Cannon.
The stenographic reports of the discourses were taken by Elders Franklin W. Otterstrom, Frederick E. Barker, and Fred G. Barker.
The discourses delivered in the Tabernacle, reported by Elder Otterstrom, were transcribed by Mrs. John Meibos.
Duncan M. McAllister,
Clerk of Conference.
[1] See Doctrine and Covenants Section 124:22-24.
"Let my servant George, and my servant Lyman and my servant John Snyder and others build a house unto my name, such an one as my servant Joseph shall show unto them, upon the place which I shall show unto them also. And it shall be a house for boarding, 'a house that strangers may come from afar to lodge therein, therefore let it be a good house, worthy of all acceptation, that the weary traveler may find health and safety while he shall contemplate -the word of the Lord," etc.
"This house shall be a healthy habitation," etc., etc., and again:
"And let the name of that house be called Nauvoo House, and let it be a delightful habitation for man, and a resting place for the weary traveler," etc. (v. 60) And like the corner stone of Zion "Which shall be polished with that refinement which is after the similitude of a palace." (verse 2, sec 124).