October 1912
Eighty-second Annual Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. (1912). Report of Discourses. Salt Lake City: The Deseret News.
EIGHTY-THIRD SEMI-ANNUAL CONFERENCE OF THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS
FIRST DAY
PRESIDENT JOSEPH F. SMITH
Constant need for God's help
PRESIDENT ANTHON H. LUND
Modern Scripture as important as the ancient
AFTERNOON SESSION
ELDER CHARLES H. HART
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
ELDER JOSEPH W. M'MURRIN
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
ELDER RULON S. WELLS
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
ELDER J. GOLDEN KIMBALL
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
SECOND DAY
ELDER BRIGHAM H. ROBERTS
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
PRESIDENT SEYMOUR B. YOUNG
(President of First Council of Seventy.)
ELDER LEVI EDGAR YOUNG
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
PRESIDENT JOSEPH F. SMITH
Divine guidance needed in all human affairs
AFTERNOON SESSION
PRESIDENT FRANCIS M. LYMAN
Splendid accomplishments of "Mormons" in Mexico
ELDER HEBER J. GRANT
The true Latter-day Saint an exemplar of every virtue
ELDER REED SMOOT
Great influence of music in religious and secular affairs
ELDER HYRUM M. SMITH
Principles of salvation plainly declared in scriptures
THIRD DAY
PREST. CHARLES W. PENROSE
The Holy Spirit a Revelator
ELDER ORSON F. WHITNEY
Continuous Revelation
OVERFLOW MEETING
ELDER LEWIS ANDERSON
(President of South Sanpete Stake.)
ELDER JOSEPH E. ROBINSON
(President of California Mission.)
ELDER BEN E. RICH
(President of Eastern States Mission.)
ELDER ANDREW KIMBALL
(President of St. Joseph Stake.)
ELDER JOSEPH FIELDING SMITH
Prophecies fulfilled in Saints locating in the Rocky Mountain region
SECOND OVERFLOW MEETING
ELDER DAVID H. CANNON
(President of St. George Temple.)
ELDER CHARLES A. CALLIS
(President of Southern States Mission.)
ELDER GERMAN E. ELLSWORTH
(President of Northern States Mission.)
ELDER SAMUEL O. BENNION
(President of Central States Mission.)
ELDER ANTHONY W. IVINS
Signs of present times foretold by the Savior
OUTDOOR MEETING
ELDER BENJAMIN GODDARD
(Supt. Bureau of Information.)
ELDER MELVIN J. BALLARD
(President Northwestern States Mission.)
ELDER WILLIAM M'LACHLAN
(President of Pioneer Stake.)
ELDER ANDREW JENSON
(Late President of Scandinavian Mission.)
ELDER JOHN L. HERRICK
(President of Western States Mission.)
CLOSING SESSION
ELDER GEORGE ALBERT SMITH
"Get the Spirit of God, and Keep It."
PATRIARCH HYRUM G. SMITH
Young people admonished to shun existing evils
PRESIDENT JOSEPH F. SMITH
ELDER DAVID O. M’KAY
Strength of the Church is individual testimony
ELDER JOSEPH FIELDING SMITH
John Taylor's hymn a loving tribute to the martyrs
ELDER JAMES E. TALMAGE
True liberty and its spurious imitations
AUTHORITIES SUSTAINED
PRESIDENT JOSEPH F. SMITH
Counsel to men and women holding responsible positions
EIGHTY-THIRD SEMI-ANNUAL CONFERENCE OF THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS
FIRST DAY
PRESIDENT JOSEPH F. SMITH
Constant need for God's help
PRESIDENT ANTHON H. LUND
Modern Scripture as important as the ancient
AFTERNOON SESSION
ELDER CHARLES H. HART
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
ELDER JOSEPH W. M'MURRIN
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
ELDER RULON S. WELLS
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
ELDER J. GOLDEN KIMBALL
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
SECOND DAY
ELDER BRIGHAM H. ROBERTS
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
PRESIDENT SEYMOUR B. YOUNG
(President of First Council of Seventy.)
ELDER LEVI EDGAR YOUNG
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
PRESIDENT JOSEPH F. SMITH
Divine guidance needed in all human affairs
AFTERNOON SESSION
PRESIDENT FRANCIS M. LYMAN
Splendid accomplishments of "Mormons" in Mexico
ELDER HEBER J. GRANT
The true Latter-day Saint an exemplar of every virtue
ELDER REED SMOOT
Great influence of music in religious and secular affairs
ELDER HYRUM M. SMITH
Principles of salvation plainly declared in scriptures
THIRD DAY
PREST. CHARLES W. PENROSE
The Holy Spirit a Revelator
ELDER ORSON F. WHITNEY
Continuous Revelation
OVERFLOW MEETING
ELDER LEWIS ANDERSON
(President of South Sanpete Stake.)
ELDER JOSEPH E. ROBINSON
(President of California Mission.)
ELDER BEN E. RICH
(President of Eastern States Mission.)
ELDER ANDREW KIMBALL
(President of St. Joseph Stake.)
ELDER JOSEPH FIELDING SMITH
Prophecies fulfilled in Saints locating in the Rocky Mountain region
SECOND OVERFLOW MEETING
ELDER DAVID H. CANNON
(President of St. George Temple.)
ELDER CHARLES A. CALLIS
(President of Southern States Mission.)
ELDER GERMAN E. ELLSWORTH
(President of Northern States Mission.)
ELDER SAMUEL O. BENNION
(President of Central States Mission.)
ELDER ANTHONY W. IVINS
Signs of present times foretold by the Savior
OUTDOOR MEETING
ELDER BENJAMIN GODDARD
(Supt. Bureau of Information.)
ELDER MELVIN J. BALLARD
(President Northwestern States Mission.)
ELDER WILLIAM M'LACHLAN
(President of Pioneer Stake.)
ELDER ANDREW JENSON
(Late President of Scandinavian Mission.)
ELDER JOHN L. HERRICK
(President of Western States Mission.)
CLOSING SESSION
ELDER GEORGE ALBERT SMITH
"Get the Spirit of God, and Keep It."
PATRIARCH HYRUM G. SMITH
Young people admonished to shun existing evils
PRESIDENT JOSEPH F. SMITH
ELDER DAVID O. M’KAY
Strength of the Church is individual testimony
ELDER JOSEPH FIELDING SMITH
John Taylor's hymn a loving tribute to the martyrs
ELDER JAMES E. TALMAGE
True liberty and its spurious imitations
AUTHORITIES SUSTAINED
PRESIDENT JOSEPH F. SMITH
Counsel to men and women holding responsible positions
EIGHTY-THIRD SEMI-ANNUAL CONFERENCE OF THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS
FIRST DAY.
The Eighty-third 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, October 4, 1912, President Joseph F. Smith presiding.
AUTHORITIES PRESENT.
There were present of the First Presidency, Joseph F. Smith, Anthon H. Lund, and Charles W. Penrose; of the Council of the Twelve Apostles, Francis M Lyman, Heber J. Grant, Reed Smoot, Hyrum M. Smith. George Albert Smith, Orson F. Whitney, David O. McKay, Anthony W. Ivins, Joseph F. Smith, Jr., and James E. Talmage; of the first Council of Seventy, Seymour B. Young, J. Golden Kimball, Rulon S. Wells, Joseph W. McMurrin and Charles H. Hart; (Brigham H. Roberts and Levi Edgar Young were 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 with their Counselors, Presidents of missions, 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 congregation singing 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!
The opening prayer was offered by Elder Charles A. Callis.
The congregation sang 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!
FIRST DAY.
The Eighty-third 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, October 4, 1912, President Joseph F. Smith presiding.
AUTHORITIES PRESENT.
There were present of the First Presidency, Joseph F. Smith, Anthon H. Lund, and Charles W. Penrose; of the Council of the Twelve Apostles, Francis M Lyman, Heber J. Grant, Reed Smoot, Hyrum M. Smith. George Albert Smith, Orson F. Whitney, David O. McKay, Anthony W. Ivins, Joseph F. Smith, Jr., and James E. Talmage; of the first Council of Seventy, Seymour B. Young, J. Golden Kimball, Rulon S. Wells, Joseph W. McMurrin and Charles H. Hart; (Brigham H. Roberts and Levi Edgar Young were 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 with their Counselors, Presidents of missions, 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 congregation singing 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!
The opening prayer was offered by Elder Charles A. Callis.
The congregation sang 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!
PRESIDENT JOSEPH F. SMITH.
OPENING ADDRESS.
Constant need for God's help.—Many people learning truth about "Mormonism."— Sad plight of Saints who colonized in Mexico.—Wisdom and generosity of national authorities eulogized.— Saints should patiently acknowledge over-ruling providence in adversity.—Glorious mission of peace indicated for United States.—The Ten Commandments, and the Gospel, eternal.— Duty of Saints to sustain United States Constitution.
I feel very dependent this morning upon the presence of the Good Spirit. I do not feel either physically or mentally able to perform the duties which are required of me without the assistance of the Spirit of the Lord. I do not know that any man is able to carry on the work of the Lord which may be required at his hand, independently of the Lord, or without the promptings and inspiration of the Spirit which comes from the Father of Light, with whom there is no variableness nor shadow of turning. I think it is the duty of all men. especially those connected with the Church of Jesus Christ, to live humbly before God, and to be prayerful and submissive to the law of the Lord. If we succeed in standing faithful before Him, however strong we may feel within ourselves, or capable to bear the burdens and responsibilities that may rest upon us, the time will come, however much we may have been disinclined to acknowledge it before, when we will be compelled to acknowledge the hand of God in our success. We will not be able to accomplish it alone.
I feel very grateful this morning for the privilege that I enjoy of being present at this opening session of the eighty-third semi-annual conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which comparatively only a few years ago was organized under the laws of the state of New York by six individuals, and but very few besides them had become acquainted with the new revelation and embraced it. And from that small beginning we look today out upon this manifestation of the mercy and blessing of the Lord, and the work that was begun by those six first members of the Church, under the inspiration given to that boy whom the world holds in derision and in unbelief, to a very large extent, but whose mission and the results of whose labors are becoming more widely and better known, and more clearly understood by the intelligent men and women of the world to whom this message has been sent.
I am often impressed, while attempting to speak to the Latter-day Saints, with the impotency of man and his utter dependence upon the Lord in the accomplishment of that which has been done in the interest of the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ in the latter day. I look out over the world today and I comprehend that there are tens and hundreds of thousands of the best men and women in the world, the most intelligent, thoughtful, independent of character, from almost all lands, who have come to a knowledge of the divinity of the mission of Joseph Smith, and acknowledged it, and many in their hearts, while openly they dare not come out against the prejudices of the world to acknowledge their conviction. And hundreds of thousands of men and women who are sufficiently independent in their character, and who are sufficiently intelligent as to give a reason for the hope that is within them, have come forth and have identified themselves, with all that they possess in the world, with the great latter-day work, the foundations of which were laid by God Almighty through the instrumentality of Joseph Smith, the Prophet. And today our country is beginning to see or to obtain a slight glimmer of the true character of the work that Joseph Smith was instrumental in establishing upon the earth, and many of the great and good and intelligent people of the world are beginning to acknowledge that there is some good that can "come out of Nazareth," so. to speak.
I feel thankful for the prosperity that has attended the labors of the people of these intermountain valleys during the present season, that the Lord has given us an abundant harvest, the season has been a fruitful one—so fruitful indeed that there is considerable waste of the rich products of the vines and of the trees, there being so much that many people seem to be unable to take care of the fruits of their orchards and their fields. I hope sincerely in the midst of this prosperity, the people of the Church will not forget the Lord in the first fruits of all their increase that their barns may continue to be filled with plenty and, figuratively speaking, that their "presses may burst out with new wine." I hope that we will not forget the Lord in the day of prosperity, that we will not be unmindful of the gifts and blessings bestowed by the hand of the liberal and bounteous giver of every good and perfect gift, for while the earth is fruitful, while the elements are healthful and propitious and all things are favorable and contribute to our prosperity and happiness, we should always be mindful of the fact that it is in consequence of the overruling, merciful providence of the Father of us all. It is essential that Latter-day Saints should be willing to acknowledge cheerfully the hand" of the Lord in all things. I realize that there are many things in which it is difficult for us to see or discern the hand of the Lord—when we are afflicted, when we are troubled, when we may be molested and disturbed in our pursuits, we may feel sometimes,—many of us do,—I presume, that it is extremely hard to discern and to acknowledge the hand of the Lord in it.
We have had some very sad experiences of late,—a large number of our colonists in Mexico have had serious cause for the exercise of faith, patience, forbearance, hope and charity this year; and many of them, I have no doubt, have found it difficult under circumstances which prevail around them to see how the hand of the Lord could ever be made manifest for their good. They have been robbed, plundered and driven from their homes, their rights have been denied them, their property taken away from them, the safety of their wives and daughters jeopardized and their lives threatened, and at last they found it necessary to abandon their homes and possessions, and come away from that land of riot and murder, brigandage and robbery in order that they might escape at least with their lives; and quite a few have not been fortunate enough to get away with their lives, but have fallen by the hands of marauders and assassins.
The Latter-day Saints who colonized in Chihuahua went to Mexico not by chance. I have said it many times before, and I repeat it again. They went there with the consent and approval of the presiding authorities of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, under conditions that made it proper, advantageous and beneficial to them to go there. They have suffered a great deal at the hands of degraded, unprincipled men. Many of the race unquestionably have good hearts and will manifest their goodness when under the influence of good men and of favorable surroundings, but too often only when it may appear to them to be to their interest to do so, but they are by no means an elevated race of people; and I think we have sufficient evidence to prove the fact that the Almighty, who is the Father of all men and who overrules the destinies of all the nations of the earth, has for some time been ready to permit a scourge and perhaps devastation and ruin to come upon that people until the remnant of them shall be taught a lesson that may help to elevate them a little in the scale of human and national intelligence.
Many of us, perhaps, have not worried much about the condition of our people in Mexico, but it has been a constant source of anxiety to me and to my brethren of the Presidency and the Twelve. We have felt deeply the troubles that have come upon our people there, and we have regretted exceedingly the necessity they have seen to move away from their homes (many of which are equal to some of the best homes that we possess in this land) and from their lands, their fields, their orchards, their flocks and herds, to escape the indignities that were heaped upon them by brigands, renegades, marauders and plunderers. Some of our people and many others have stood ready to condemn the authorities of our nation for not interfering with the treatment they have received and that other American citizens have received at the hands of the Mexican people. But I feel thankful a higher wisdom has dictated the course of the executive authorities of our nation, by which they have kept their hands clean from the shedding of blood, and our sons, our brothers and perhaps our fathers from being drawn into a protracted war with Mexico, which might last for years, and cost untold blood and treasure, even if the whole power of the United States should be brought to bear to quell the disturbances there and to bring peace to the land. It is a mountainous country, and much of it a desert land, brigands and marauders might infest those mountains for years, in spite of all that armies could do to ferret them out, and while that condition should exist, neither life nor property of decent people would be safe in the land. I am glad that the authorities of our government have seen it wise to let them slay themselves, if they are determined to slay and destroy. I think it is fortunate that our people have escaped from the land with their families and we wish it to be understood that their mission there is, at least for the time being, at an end, and that they may feel themselves at liberty, not only to abandon the country if they choose to do so, but to go elsewhere, where conditions will favor their endeavors to make new homes and establish themselves in a civilized land, where life is protected and where the possession of property is safe, and where they can dwell in peace and be happy.
I cannot refrain from expressing my sincere gratitude to our national authorities for the generous kindness they have shown to American citizens who have suffered so much on account of the deplorable conditions existing in Northern Mexico; by appropriating large sums of money for their relief. Every good citizen will hail with pleasure this act of kindness on the part of our government. And none more so than the citizens of Utah and adjoining states, where so many of the kindred and fellow citizens of the Mexican exiles reside.
It is of course necessary for our people who have been driven away from there to secure every right that they possibly can for the recovery of their properties which they may have been or may be deprived of. Whether the time will come in the near or distant future that our people may go back to the land that they have bought and paid for, to the homes that they have built and beautified, to the fields that they have subdued and cultivated, and to their orchards and rightful possessions,—whether the time will come or not within the near future or even the distant future, I am not prepared to say. But I would guess that the time will come when that land will be overspread by more intelligent people than inhabit it now, and when there will be a stable government established there, which will be able to guarantee the protection of the rights of the citizens of the land. I believe that time will come whether it may be attained by friendly intervention or otherwise. I believe that the government of the United States will eventually, if need be, take a hand in bringing to pass peace and reconciliation and good government in that land, not by means of war and bloodshed, but by more conciliatory measures, that of being a peacemaker and powerful advisor for good to that poor, degraded people. I do not anticipate peace to be restored there for years to come unless peace can be brought to pass by the intervention of some friendly hand and greater wisdom than the people themselves possess.
Now in relation to these matters I want to say that our hearts have been touched, our sympathies have been drawn out towards our people of Mexico. We have prayed for them, we have thought of them day and night, and now we feel to say to them that they are at liberty to make homes wherever they can find suitable locations among their own people and in their own nation, where they have or will have at least an assurance of protection and of civil liberty. Yet we would like them not to lose or to neglect any chance or opportunity to avail themselves of all the rights that belong to them, to be realized hereafter when the time of proper adjustment and righteous judgment shall come to them. I could not advise our people to go back to Mexico under existing circumstances. Indeed, I would advise them not to go back, if I should give advice at all to them, but we wish our brethren to feel at liberty to do just what they feel in their hearts will be for their best good. It is the privilege of every individual in this Church to enjoy the spirit of revelation from God Almighty sufficient to guide him in the performance of his duty, and in the doing of that which will be overruled for his best good, and we hope that our brethren will continue to live in possession of this spirit, by which they may be directed in the right path to do the right thing for themselves, then families and their interest, and not be drawn into doing anything that would result in their injury, or the injury of their cause.
Recurring again to the condition of our people of whom I have been speaking, it is hard for them to see why Providence will permit or has permitted conditions to arise that have placed them in the position that they are in. On somewhat parallel lines our people might go back in memory to Ohio and to Missouri and to Illinois, and recall incidents and conditions that existed in those early days by which our people were harassed, mobbed, persecuted, hated and driven away from their possessions both in Ohio, Missouri and in Illinois. It was hard for our people in those times, and under the conditions that then existed, to see where God in His providence designed good for His people in permitting these Conditions to exist. But who today will dispute the fact that, although we were compelled to leave Ohio, Missouri and Illinois against our will, our wishes, our interests temporally, as was supposed,—it was for our ultimate good? Which of us will now contend that the overruling providence which brought us to this place was a mistake ? None of us! When we look back to it we see clearly, beyond any possible doubt, that the hand of God was in it. And while it was necessary for us to be moved from our footholds on the soil that our fathers had obtained from the government of the United States, and from old settlers, and while we were compelled to do it against our supposed interests—we now see it has resulted in the greatest blessing possible to us and the Church.
What would we have done in Ohio? What room was there for growth and development for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Caldwell County or in Jackson County or in Clay County, Missouri? Where was the chance for this Church to spread abroad, grow and obtain a foothold in the earth, as we possess it today. in the state of Illinois ? A populous state, her lands occupied by older inhabitants who were uncongenial and unfriendly. They had no faith in our good intentions, nor in the divinity of our cause. They feared us because the Saints were progressive. The spirit of growth, development and of advancement characterized the life and labors and existence of communities of Latter-day Saints, as it has with our people in Mexico.
In Mexico within a few miles, at the most, of some of the most progressive and beautiful settlements and towns that can be found in our land, which have grown up in a few years by the industry and perseverance of the Latter-day Saints, are old Spanish towns that have existed for hundreds of years that would be unfit for civilized people to dwell in. And these contrasts have been brought to the attention of those degraded people; it has been pointed out to them: "See how these Americans prosper in your land! See how they build mansions! How they build colleges I How they have improved! How they have prospered! And look at your little hovels that you and your fathers have lived in for ages! We want to get rid of these Americans."
That was the spirit of the exhortation given by one of their commanding officers to the rebels, which inspired them to hatred and to plunder. I will venture the prediction that if our good people from Mexico will only maintain the spirit of the Gospel, and will seek to see and observe, in the midst of the clouds that overshadow them today, and acknowledge the hand of God in that which has occurred, by and by. if not now, they will see it. They will see that the Lord Almighty has delivered them perhaps from death, and perhaps from something that would be worse than death, if they had been permitted to remain. I do not know. Do not be discouraged. You have friends here, and friends everywhere. You have proven your worth, your intelligence, that you are men and women of high standing among men. You have been patient and forbearing; and when you have had to suffer indignities, you have taken it patiently; when you have been smitten you' have not smitten again; when your brethren have been shot down in cold blood you have restrained your passion, you have withheld your wrath, and you have exercised your patience and have been willing to leave these things in the hands of God. Who could do this but men of the highest type in the world?
Who could do it except he was inspired by the spirit of the meek and lowly Son of God, who said to the world: "If a man smite you on the one cheek, turn to him the other also," and "return good for evil" Exercise patience, forbearance, longsuffering, forgiveness, for they who would wrong you "know not what they do," any more than those who cried, "Crucify Him and let His blood be upon us and our children."
These miserable people are moved by greed and jealousy, and the spirit of their leaders who are apparently steeped with hatred and envy toward a people that can prosper in a land that will doubtless lie dead and unimproved for centuries to come, as it has in the past, if no one goes there to improve it and to develop it other than the wretched people who inhabit it today. We are not here to shed blood. God has not required of us to take up arms against mankind to defend ourselves by the bayonet or the cannon or the sword. He has given us a chance to get up like gentlemen and come away from the scene of strife, and hypocrisy to where we can find peace and freedom. That is far better than to have the stain of blood upon our hands. We do not want their blood on our hands, nor do we want our blood shed by them. We are not obliged to stay among them, and I hope that wisdom and the spirit of "peace on earth good will to men" will pervade the councils of our nation; that by and by, perchance, an opportunity may open up by which intervention, not by arms, not by war, but by overtures of peace and good will to those people, that they may be brought to a realization of the dreadful conditions they are bringing upon themselves and upon their country. We do not want war. We do not want to see our nation go to war. We would like to see it the arbiter of peace for all nations. We would like to see the government of the United States true to the Constitution, an instrument inspired by the spirit of wisdom from God. We want to see the benignity, the honor, the glory and the good name and the mighty influence for peace of this nation extended abroad, not only over Ha-. waii and the Philippines, but. over the islands of the sea east and west of us. We want to see the power, the influence for good, for elevating mankind, and for the establishment of righteous principles spread out over these poor helpless peoples of the world, establishing peace, good will and intelligence among them, that they may grow to be equal, if possible, to the enlightened nations of the world.
I always thought it was a mistake when one of our administrations turned down the overtures of Hawaii to be annexed to and become a part of the United States. And I admired the wisdom of another administration which admitted them to territorial rights and privileges under the protection of our government.
I think it is our duty to cultivate peace, and to ameHorate the condition of the Filipinos, Hawaiians, Haytians and Cubans, and. elsewhere in the world. I believe the time will come when the arm of peace of this nation will be extended to the distracted little southern republics, where a rebellion arises almost every year against their constituted authorities. I hope to see the day when the counsels of peace and good will from this powerful nation will be so recognized by the people of this continent all the way to the south of us, and by the inhabitants of the islands that border upon our coasts, both east and west, that peace and good will and elevation may be brought to pass and established among them through the instrumentality of an enlightened people. And I hope with all my soul that the members of the Church of Tesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will be loyal in their very hearts and souls, to the principles of the Constitution of our country. From them we have derived the liberty that we enjoy. They have been the means of guaranteeing to the foreigner that has come within our gates, and to the native born, and to all the citizens of this country, the freedom and liberty that we possess. We cannot go back upon such principles as these. We may go back upon those who fail to execute the law as they should. We may be dissatisfied with the decision of judges, and may desire to have them removed out of their places. But the law provides ways and means for all these things to be (lone under the Constitution of our country, and it is better for us to abide the evils that we have than to fly to greater evils that we know not what the results will be. All we have to do if an officer is not executing the duties of his office righteously is to impeach him or wait till his term of office is out, and then shelve him in the lawful way. The people have the power to leave him out and put a better man in his place, and that is strictly in accordance with the commandments of God contained in the book of Doctrine and Covenants. "Wherefore honest men, and wise men should be sought for diligently and good men and wise men ye should observe to uphold," in positions of honor and of trust, that they may execute righteousness and prove themselves worthy of the confidence and patronage of the people who elevate them to positions.
I believe with all my soul in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and in the law of God, and I do not think any honest and intelligent man or woman could help but believe in the justice, the righteousness and the purity of the laws tliat God wrote upon the tablets of stone. These principles that I propose to read to you are the foundation and basic principles of the Constitution of our country, and are eternal, enduring forevermore, and cannot be changed or ignored with impunity:
"And God spake all these words, saying, I am the Lord thy God which hath brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me."
That is what it means now, and what it meant to the Latter-day Saints and what the Latter-day Saints understood it to mean when they embraced the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
"Thou shalt have no other gods before Me." He is the Father of our spirits, the Father of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who is our God; and -we shall not have any other before Him.
"Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth."
"Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them nor serve them, for I, the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me, and showing mercy unto them that love me and keep my commandments."
Infidels will say to you: "How unjust, how unmerciful, how un- Godlike it is to visit the iniquities of the parents upon the children to the third and fourth generations of them that hate God." How do you see it ? This way; and it is strictly in accordance with God's law. The infidel will impart infidelity to his children if he can. The whoremonger will not raise a pure, righteous posterity. He will impart seeds of disease and misery, if not of death and destruction, upon his offspring, which will continue upon his children and descend to his children's children to the third and fourth generation. It is perfectly natural that the children should inherit from their fathers, and if they sow the seeds of corruption, crime and loathsome disease, their children will reap the fruits thereof.' Not in accordance with God's wishes for His wish is that men will not sin and therefore will not transmit the consequences of their sin to their children, but that they will keep His commandments, and be free from sin and from entailing the effects of sin upon their offspring; but inasmuch as men will not hearken unto the Lord, but will become a law unto themselves, and will commit sin they will justly reap the consequences of their own iniquity, and will naturally impart its fruits to their children to the third and fourth generation. The laws of nature are the laws of God, who is just; it is not God that inflicts these penalties, they are the effects of disobedience to His law. The results of men's own acts follow them.
"Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh His name in vain."
This is an eternal principle; it is not one that we may obey today and disobey tomorrow, or that we may espouse today as a part of our faith, and abandon tomorrow with impunity. It is a principle that is inherent in the plan of life and salvation, for the regeneration of man- - kind.
"Six days shalt thou labor and do all thy work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God, and in it thou shalt not do any work, thou nor thy son nor thy (laughter nor thy man-servant, nor thy maid-servant, nor thy cattle," etc.
That is: "Thou shalt honor the Sabath day and keep it holy." Do we do it? Is it necessary to do it? It is absolutely necessary to do so in order that we may be in harmony with God's law and commandments; and whenever we transgress that law or that commandment we are guilty of transgressing the law of God. And what will be the result, if we continue? Our children will follow in our footsteps; they will dishonor the command of God to keep one day holy in seven; and will lose the spirit of obedience to the laws of God and His requirements, just as the father will lose it if he continues to violate the commandments.
"Honor thy father and thy mother, that thy days may be long in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee."
When will we ever outgrow that command?. When can we set it aside? When shall we reach the time that we can dishonor our father and mother? Never! It is an eternal principle, and I am sorry to say—not sorry for the Japs and for the Chinese, these heathen nations, as we have been in the habit of calling them—r am not sorry for them but for the comparison with them Those heathen nations set the civilized Christian world an example in the honor they bestow upon their parents, and yet this Christian people and nation and all the Chnstian nations of the earth, who have the word of the Lord, and the counsels of the Son of God for their guidance, are not leadmg out m setting an example of obedience, as they should, to this great commandment of the Lord. "Honor thy father and thy mother that thy days may be long in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.
Again, "Thou shalt not kill. That is a command of God. It is irrevocable unless He revokes it; you and I can't revoke it; we must not transgress it; it is binding upon us. We should not take away the life we cannot restore or give back. It is an eternal, unchangeable law.
"Thou shalt not commit adultery." Just as unchangeable, just as eternal, for the adulterer hath no place in the kingdom of God, nor can he attain to an exaltation there.
"Thou shalt not steal."
"Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor."
"Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maid-servant, nor his ox, nor anything that is thy neighbor's."
"Thou shalt not covet." We may say we are thankful that the Lord has blessed our neighbor above that which He has blessed us. We may be thankful that the Lord has given to our neighbor greater wisdom and ability to honestly gather to himself. But we should not covet it. We should not be envious, because we are commanded not to be.
Now, these are the commandments of God, the principles contained in these commandments of the great Eternal are the principles that underly the Constitution of our country and all just laws. Joseph Smith, the prophet, was inspired to affirm and ratify this truth, and he further predicted that the time would come, when the Constitution of our country would hang as it were by a thread, and that the Latter-day. Saints above all other people in the world would come to the rescue of that great and glorious palladium of our liberty. We cannot brook the thought of it being torn into shreds, or destroyed, or trampled under foot and ignored by men. We cannot tolerate the sentiment, at one time expressed, by a man, high in authority in the nation. He said: "The Constitution be damned; the popular sentiment of the people is the constitution!" That is the sentiment of anarchism that has spread to a certain extent, and is spreading over "the land of liberty and home of the brave." We do not tolerate it. Latter-day Saints cannot tolerate such a spirit as this. It is anarchy. It means destruction. It is the spirit of mobocracy, and the Lord knows we have suffered enough from mobocracy, and we do not want any more of it. Our people from Mexico are suffering from the effects of that same spirit. We do not want any more of it, and we cannot afford to yield to that spirit or contribute to it in the least degree. We should stand with a front like flint against every spirit or species of contempt or disrespect for the Constitution of our country and the constitutional laws of our land.
Faith in God is an irrevocable principle, just as much as "thou shalt not kill;" "thou shalt not steal ;" "thou shalt not commit adultery." Repentance of sin is an eternal principle and is as essential in its place and is as much an integrant part of the gospel of Jesus Christ as is: "Thou shalt not kill," or "Thou shalt have no other gods before Me."
Baptism for the remission of sin by one having authority is an eternal principle, for God devised it, and commanded it, and Christ Himself was not above obeying it: He had to obey it in order to fulfil the law of righteousness.
And then the rites of the Priesthood of the Church as the Lord has revealed them, and the principles that underlv the organization of the Church of Jesus Christ are irrevocable, unchanging and unchangeable. We talk of the "Everlasting Gospel of Jesus Christ," which "is the power of God unto salvation," and these principles in and of themselves are eternal principles and will last while life or thought or being lasts or immortality endures.
My brethren and sisters, let us obey the Gospel; let us keep the commandments of God. If we will obey the Truth the Truth will make us free. How free? Free from sin, free from the results of transgressing the law, which is sin, for sin is transgression of the law of God; free from transmitting loathsome diseases; free from every immoral act, and the consequences therefor. Free from bloodshed, and from deceit and hypocrisy. It will make us honest, and devoted to that which is good, to that which we believe and know to be right.
I am for the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and I am willing to leave all other things to the mercy and kindness of the Father to be supplied as He may feel disposed. God bless you is my prayer. Amen.
A quartet, "Ye have come again, sweet days of pleasure," a selection from an operatic composition by Prof. Evan Stephens, was rendered by Josie Hinckley, Aura Rogers, Lorus Pratt, and Dr. W. S. Holdaway.
OPENING ADDRESS.
Constant need for God's help.—Many people learning truth about "Mormonism."— Sad plight of Saints who colonized in Mexico.—Wisdom and generosity of national authorities eulogized.— Saints should patiently acknowledge over-ruling providence in adversity.—Glorious mission of peace indicated for United States.—The Ten Commandments, and the Gospel, eternal.— Duty of Saints to sustain United States Constitution.
I feel very dependent this morning upon the presence of the Good Spirit. I do not feel either physically or mentally able to perform the duties which are required of me without the assistance of the Spirit of the Lord. I do not know that any man is able to carry on the work of the Lord which may be required at his hand, independently of the Lord, or without the promptings and inspiration of the Spirit which comes from the Father of Light, with whom there is no variableness nor shadow of turning. I think it is the duty of all men. especially those connected with the Church of Jesus Christ, to live humbly before God, and to be prayerful and submissive to the law of the Lord. If we succeed in standing faithful before Him, however strong we may feel within ourselves, or capable to bear the burdens and responsibilities that may rest upon us, the time will come, however much we may have been disinclined to acknowledge it before, when we will be compelled to acknowledge the hand of God in our success. We will not be able to accomplish it alone.
I feel very grateful this morning for the privilege that I enjoy of being present at this opening session of the eighty-third semi-annual conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which comparatively only a few years ago was organized under the laws of the state of New York by six individuals, and but very few besides them had become acquainted with the new revelation and embraced it. And from that small beginning we look today out upon this manifestation of the mercy and blessing of the Lord, and the work that was begun by those six first members of the Church, under the inspiration given to that boy whom the world holds in derision and in unbelief, to a very large extent, but whose mission and the results of whose labors are becoming more widely and better known, and more clearly understood by the intelligent men and women of the world to whom this message has been sent.
I am often impressed, while attempting to speak to the Latter-day Saints, with the impotency of man and his utter dependence upon the Lord in the accomplishment of that which has been done in the interest of the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ in the latter day. I look out over the world today and I comprehend that there are tens and hundreds of thousands of the best men and women in the world, the most intelligent, thoughtful, independent of character, from almost all lands, who have come to a knowledge of the divinity of the mission of Joseph Smith, and acknowledged it, and many in their hearts, while openly they dare not come out against the prejudices of the world to acknowledge their conviction. And hundreds of thousands of men and women who are sufficiently independent in their character, and who are sufficiently intelligent as to give a reason for the hope that is within them, have come forth and have identified themselves, with all that they possess in the world, with the great latter-day work, the foundations of which were laid by God Almighty through the instrumentality of Joseph Smith, the Prophet. And today our country is beginning to see or to obtain a slight glimmer of the true character of the work that Joseph Smith was instrumental in establishing upon the earth, and many of the great and good and intelligent people of the world are beginning to acknowledge that there is some good that can "come out of Nazareth," so. to speak.
I feel thankful for the prosperity that has attended the labors of the people of these intermountain valleys during the present season, that the Lord has given us an abundant harvest, the season has been a fruitful one—so fruitful indeed that there is considerable waste of the rich products of the vines and of the trees, there being so much that many people seem to be unable to take care of the fruits of their orchards and their fields. I hope sincerely in the midst of this prosperity, the people of the Church will not forget the Lord in the first fruits of all their increase that their barns may continue to be filled with plenty and, figuratively speaking, that their "presses may burst out with new wine." I hope that we will not forget the Lord in the day of prosperity, that we will not be unmindful of the gifts and blessings bestowed by the hand of the liberal and bounteous giver of every good and perfect gift, for while the earth is fruitful, while the elements are healthful and propitious and all things are favorable and contribute to our prosperity and happiness, we should always be mindful of the fact that it is in consequence of the overruling, merciful providence of the Father of us all. It is essential that Latter-day Saints should be willing to acknowledge cheerfully the hand" of the Lord in all things. I realize that there are many things in which it is difficult for us to see or discern the hand of the Lord—when we are afflicted, when we are troubled, when we may be molested and disturbed in our pursuits, we may feel sometimes,—many of us do,—I presume, that it is extremely hard to discern and to acknowledge the hand of the Lord in it.
We have had some very sad experiences of late,—a large number of our colonists in Mexico have had serious cause for the exercise of faith, patience, forbearance, hope and charity this year; and many of them, I have no doubt, have found it difficult under circumstances which prevail around them to see how the hand of the Lord could ever be made manifest for their good. They have been robbed, plundered and driven from their homes, their rights have been denied them, their property taken away from them, the safety of their wives and daughters jeopardized and their lives threatened, and at last they found it necessary to abandon their homes and possessions, and come away from that land of riot and murder, brigandage and robbery in order that they might escape at least with their lives; and quite a few have not been fortunate enough to get away with their lives, but have fallen by the hands of marauders and assassins.
The Latter-day Saints who colonized in Chihuahua went to Mexico not by chance. I have said it many times before, and I repeat it again. They went there with the consent and approval of the presiding authorities of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, under conditions that made it proper, advantageous and beneficial to them to go there. They have suffered a great deal at the hands of degraded, unprincipled men. Many of the race unquestionably have good hearts and will manifest their goodness when under the influence of good men and of favorable surroundings, but too often only when it may appear to them to be to their interest to do so, but they are by no means an elevated race of people; and I think we have sufficient evidence to prove the fact that the Almighty, who is the Father of all men and who overrules the destinies of all the nations of the earth, has for some time been ready to permit a scourge and perhaps devastation and ruin to come upon that people until the remnant of them shall be taught a lesson that may help to elevate them a little in the scale of human and national intelligence.
Many of us, perhaps, have not worried much about the condition of our people in Mexico, but it has been a constant source of anxiety to me and to my brethren of the Presidency and the Twelve. We have felt deeply the troubles that have come upon our people there, and we have regretted exceedingly the necessity they have seen to move away from their homes (many of which are equal to some of the best homes that we possess in this land) and from their lands, their fields, their orchards, their flocks and herds, to escape the indignities that were heaped upon them by brigands, renegades, marauders and plunderers. Some of our people and many others have stood ready to condemn the authorities of our nation for not interfering with the treatment they have received and that other American citizens have received at the hands of the Mexican people. But I feel thankful a higher wisdom has dictated the course of the executive authorities of our nation, by which they have kept their hands clean from the shedding of blood, and our sons, our brothers and perhaps our fathers from being drawn into a protracted war with Mexico, which might last for years, and cost untold blood and treasure, even if the whole power of the United States should be brought to bear to quell the disturbances there and to bring peace to the land. It is a mountainous country, and much of it a desert land, brigands and marauders might infest those mountains for years, in spite of all that armies could do to ferret them out, and while that condition should exist, neither life nor property of decent people would be safe in the land. I am glad that the authorities of our government have seen it wise to let them slay themselves, if they are determined to slay and destroy. I think it is fortunate that our people have escaped from the land with their families and we wish it to be understood that their mission there is, at least for the time being, at an end, and that they may feel themselves at liberty, not only to abandon the country if they choose to do so, but to go elsewhere, where conditions will favor their endeavors to make new homes and establish themselves in a civilized land, where life is protected and where the possession of property is safe, and where they can dwell in peace and be happy.
I cannot refrain from expressing my sincere gratitude to our national authorities for the generous kindness they have shown to American citizens who have suffered so much on account of the deplorable conditions existing in Northern Mexico; by appropriating large sums of money for their relief. Every good citizen will hail with pleasure this act of kindness on the part of our government. And none more so than the citizens of Utah and adjoining states, where so many of the kindred and fellow citizens of the Mexican exiles reside.
It is of course necessary for our people who have been driven away from there to secure every right that they possibly can for the recovery of their properties which they may have been or may be deprived of. Whether the time will come in the near or distant future that our people may go back to the land that they have bought and paid for, to the homes that they have built and beautified, to the fields that they have subdued and cultivated, and to their orchards and rightful possessions,—whether the time will come or not within the near future or even the distant future, I am not prepared to say. But I would guess that the time will come when that land will be overspread by more intelligent people than inhabit it now, and when there will be a stable government established there, which will be able to guarantee the protection of the rights of the citizens of the land. I believe that time will come whether it may be attained by friendly intervention or otherwise. I believe that the government of the United States will eventually, if need be, take a hand in bringing to pass peace and reconciliation and good government in that land, not by means of war and bloodshed, but by more conciliatory measures, that of being a peacemaker and powerful advisor for good to that poor, degraded people. I do not anticipate peace to be restored there for years to come unless peace can be brought to pass by the intervention of some friendly hand and greater wisdom than the people themselves possess.
Now in relation to these matters I want to say that our hearts have been touched, our sympathies have been drawn out towards our people of Mexico. We have prayed for them, we have thought of them day and night, and now we feel to say to them that they are at liberty to make homes wherever they can find suitable locations among their own people and in their own nation, where they have or will have at least an assurance of protection and of civil liberty. Yet we would like them not to lose or to neglect any chance or opportunity to avail themselves of all the rights that belong to them, to be realized hereafter when the time of proper adjustment and righteous judgment shall come to them. I could not advise our people to go back to Mexico under existing circumstances. Indeed, I would advise them not to go back, if I should give advice at all to them, but we wish our brethren to feel at liberty to do just what they feel in their hearts will be for their best good. It is the privilege of every individual in this Church to enjoy the spirit of revelation from God Almighty sufficient to guide him in the performance of his duty, and in the doing of that which will be overruled for his best good, and we hope that our brethren will continue to live in possession of this spirit, by which they may be directed in the right path to do the right thing for themselves, then families and their interest, and not be drawn into doing anything that would result in their injury, or the injury of their cause.
Recurring again to the condition of our people of whom I have been speaking, it is hard for them to see why Providence will permit or has permitted conditions to arise that have placed them in the position that they are in. On somewhat parallel lines our people might go back in memory to Ohio and to Missouri and to Illinois, and recall incidents and conditions that existed in those early days by which our people were harassed, mobbed, persecuted, hated and driven away from their possessions both in Ohio, Missouri and in Illinois. It was hard for our people in those times, and under the conditions that then existed, to see where God in His providence designed good for His people in permitting these Conditions to exist. But who today will dispute the fact that, although we were compelled to leave Ohio, Missouri and Illinois against our will, our wishes, our interests temporally, as was supposed,—it was for our ultimate good? Which of us will now contend that the overruling providence which brought us to this place was a mistake ? None of us! When we look back to it we see clearly, beyond any possible doubt, that the hand of God was in it. And while it was necessary for us to be moved from our footholds on the soil that our fathers had obtained from the government of the United States, and from old settlers, and while we were compelled to do it against our supposed interests—we now see it has resulted in the greatest blessing possible to us and the Church.
What would we have done in Ohio? What room was there for growth and development for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Caldwell County or in Jackson County or in Clay County, Missouri? Where was the chance for this Church to spread abroad, grow and obtain a foothold in the earth, as we possess it today. in the state of Illinois ? A populous state, her lands occupied by older inhabitants who were uncongenial and unfriendly. They had no faith in our good intentions, nor in the divinity of our cause. They feared us because the Saints were progressive. The spirit of growth, development and of advancement characterized the life and labors and existence of communities of Latter-day Saints, as it has with our people in Mexico.
In Mexico within a few miles, at the most, of some of the most progressive and beautiful settlements and towns that can be found in our land, which have grown up in a few years by the industry and perseverance of the Latter-day Saints, are old Spanish towns that have existed for hundreds of years that would be unfit for civilized people to dwell in. And these contrasts have been brought to the attention of those degraded people; it has been pointed out to them: "See how these Americans prosper in your land! See how they build mansions! How they build colleges I How they have improved! How they have prospered! And look at your little hovels that you and your fathers have lived in for ages! We want to get rid of these Americans."
That was the spirit of the exhortation given by one of their commanding officers to the rebels, which inspired them to hatred and to plunder. I will venture the prediction that if our good people from Mexico will only maintain the spirit of the Gospel, and will seek to see and observe, in the midst of the clouds that overshadow them today, and acknowledge the hand of God in that which has occurred, by and by. if not now, they will see it. They will see that the Lord Almighty has delivered them perhaps from death, and perhaps from something that would be worse than death, if they had been permitted to remain. I do not know. Do not be discouraged. You have friends here, and friends everywhere. You have proven your worth, your intelligence, that you are men and women of high standing among men. You have been patient and forbearing; and when you have had to suffer indignities, you have taken it patiently; when you have been smitten you' have not smitten again; when your brethren have been shot down in cold blood you have restrained your passion, you have withheld your wrath, and you have exercised your patience and have been willing to leave these things in the hands of God. Who could do this but men of the highest type in the world?
Who could do it except he was inspired by the spirit of the meek and lowly Son of God, who said to the world: "If a man smite you on the one cheek, turn to him the other also," and "return good for evil" Exercise patience, forbearance, longsuffering, forgiveness, for they who would wrong you "know not what they do," any more than those who cried, "Crucify Him and let His blood be upon us and our children."
These miserable people are moved by greed and jealousy, and the spirit of their leaders who are apparently steeped with hatred and envy toward a people that can prosper in a land that will doubtless lie dead and unimproved for centuries to come, as it has in the past, if no one goes there to improve it and to develop it other than the wretched people who inhabit it today. We are not here to shed blood. God has not required of us to take up arms against mankind to defend ourselves by the bayonet or the cannon or the sword. He has given us a chance to get up like gentlemen and come away from the scene of strife, and hypocrisy to where we can find peace and freedom. That is far better than to have the stain of blood upon our hands. We do not want their blood on our hands, nor do we want our blood shed by them. We are not obliged to stay among them, and I hope that wisdom and the spirit of "peace on earth good will to men" will pervade the councils of our nation; that by and by, perchance, an opportunity may open up by which intervention, not by arms, not by war, but by overtures of peace and good will to those people, that they may be brought to a realization of the dreadful conditions they are bringing upon themselves and upon their country. We do not want war. We do not want to see our nation go to war. We would like to see it the arbiter of peace for all nations. We would like to see the government of the United States true to the Constitution, an instrument inspired by the spirit of wisdom from God. We want to see the benignity, the honor, the glory and the good name and the mighty influence for peace of this nation extended abroad, not only over Ha-. waii and the Philippines, but. over the islands of the sea east and west of us. We want to see the power, the influence for good, for elevating mankind, and for the establishment of righteous principles spread out over these poor helpless peoples of the world, establishing peace, good will and intelligence among them, that they may grow to be equal, if possible, to the enlightened nations of the world.
I always thought it was a mistake when one of our administrations turned down the overtures of Hawaii to be annexed to and become a part of the United States. And I admired the wisdom of another administration which admitted them to territorial rights and privileges under the protection of our government.
I think it is our duty to cultivate peace, and to ameHorate the condition of the Filipinos, Hawaiians, Haytians and Cubans, and. elsewhere in the world. I believe the time will come when the arm of peace of this nation will be extended to the distracted little southern republics, where a rebellion arises almost every year against their constituted authorities. I hope to see the day when the counsels of peace and good will from this powerful nation will be so recognized by the people of this continent all the way to the south of us, and by the inhabitants of the islands that border upon our coasts, both east and west, that peace and good will and elevation may be brought to pass and established among them through the instrumentality of an enlightened people. And I hope with all my soul that the members of the Church of Tesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will be loyal in their very hearts and souls, to the principles of the Constitution of our country. From them we have derived the liberty that we enjoy. They have been the means of guaranteeing to the foreigner that has come within our gates, and to the native born, and to all the citizens of this country, the freedom and liberty that we possess. We cannot go back upon such principles as these. We may go back upon those who fail to execute the law as they should. We may be dissatisfied with the decision of judges, and may desire to have them removed out of their places. But the law provides ways and means for all these things to be (lone under the Constitution of our country, and it is better for us to abide the evils that we have than to fly to greater evils that we know not what the results will be. All we have to do if an officer is not executing the duties of his office righteously is to impeach him or wait till his term of office is out, and then shelve him in the lawful way. The people have the power to leave him out and put a better man in his place, and that is strictly in accordance with the commandments of God contained in the book of Doctrine and Covenants. "Wherefore honest men, and wise men should be sought for diligently and good men and wise men ye should observe to uphold," in positions of honor and of trust, that they may execute righteousness and prove themselves worthy of the confidence and patronage of the people who elevate them to positions.
I believe with all my soul in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and in the law of God, and I do not think any honest and intelligent man or woman could help but believe in the justice, the righteousness and the purity of the laws tliat God wrote upon the tablets of stone. These principles that I propose to read to you are the foundation and basic principles of the Constitution of our country, and are eternal, enduring forevermore, and cannot be changed or ignored with impunity:
"And God spake all these words, saying, I am the Lord thy God which hath brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me."
That is what it means now, and what it meant to the Latter-day Saints and what the Latter-day Saints understood it to mean when they embraced the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
"Thou shalt have no other gods before Me." He is the Father of our spirits, the Father of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who is our God; and -we shall not have any other before Him.
"Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth."
"Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them nor serve them, for I, the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me, and showing mercy unto them that love me and keep my commandments."
Infidels will say to you: "How unjust, how unmerciful, how un- Godlike it is to visit the iniquities of the parents upon the children to the third and fourth generations of them that hate God." How do you see it ? This way; and it is strictly in accordance with God's law. The infidel will impart infidelity to his children if he can. The whoremonger will not raise a pure, righteous posterity. He will impart seeds of disease and misery, if not of death and destruction, upon his offspring, which will continue upon his children and descend to his children's children to the third and fourth generation. It is perfectly natural that the children should inherit from their fathers, and if they sow the seeds of corruption, crime and loathsome disease, their children will reap the fruits thereof.' Not in accordance with God's wishes for His wish is that men will not sin and therefore will not transmit the consequences of their sin to their children, but that they will keep His commandments, and be free from sin and from entailing the effects of sin upon their offspring; but inasmuch as men will not hearken unto the Lord, but will become a law unto themselves, and will commit sin they will justly reap the consequences of their own iniquity, and will naturally impart its fruits to their children to the third and fourth generation. The laws of nature are the laws of God, who is just; it is not God that inflicts these penalties, they are the effects of disobedience to His law. The results of men's own acts follow them.
"Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh His name in vain."
This is an eternal principle; it is not one that we may obey today and disobey tomorrow, or that we may espouse today as a part of our faith, and abandon tomorrow with impunity. It is a principle that is inherent in the plan of life and salvation, for the regeneration of man- - kind.
"Six days shalt thou labor and do all thy work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God, and in it thou shalt not do any work, thou nor thy son nor thy (laughter nor thy man-servant, nor thy maid-servant, nor thy cattle," etc.
That is: "Thou shalt honor the Sabath day and keep it holy." Do we do it? Is it necessary to do it? It is absolutely necessary to do so in order that we may be in harmony with God's law and commandments; and whenever we transgress that law or that commandment we are guilty of transgressing the law of God. And what will be the result, if we continue? Our children will follow in our footsteps; they will dishonor the command of God to keep one day holy in seven; and will lose the spirit of obedience to the laws of God and His requirements, just as the father will lose it if he continues to violate the commandments.
"Honor thy father and thy mother, that thy days may be long in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee."
When will we ever outgrow that command?. When can we set it aside? When shall we reach the time that we can dishonor our father and mother? Never! It is an eternal principle, and I am sorry to say—not sorry for the Japs and for the Chinese, these heathen nations, as we have been in the habit of calling them—r am not sorry for them but for the comparison with them Those heathen nations set the civilized Christian world an example in the honor they bestow upon their parents, and yet this Christian people and nation and all the Chnstian nations of the earth, who have the word of the Lord, and the counsels of the Son of God for their guidance, are not leadmg out m setting an example of obedience, as they should, to this great commandment of the Lord. "Honor thy father and thy mother that thy days may be long in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.
Again, "Thou shalt not kill. That is a command of God. It is irrevocable unless He revokes it; you and I can't revoke it; we must not transgress it; it is binding upon us. We should not take away the life we cannot restore or give back. It is an eternal, unchangeable law.
"Thou shalt not commit adultery." Just as unchangeable, just as eternal, for the adulterer hath no place in the kingdom of God, nor can he attain to an exaltation there.
"Thou shalt not steal."
"Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor."
"Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maid-servant, nor his ox, nor anything that is thy neighbor's."
"Thou shalt not covet." We may say we are thankful that the Lord has blessed our neighbor above that which He has blessed us. We may be thankful that the Lord has given to our neighbor greater wisdom and ability to honestly gather to himself. But we should not covet it. We should not be envious, because we are commanded not to be.
Now, these are the commandments of God, the principles contained in these commandments of the great Eternal are the principles that underly the Constitution of our country and all just laws. Joseph Smith, the prophet, was inspired to affirm and ratify this truth, and he further predicted that the time would come, when the Constitution of our country would hang as it were by a thread, and that the Latter-day. Saints above all other people in the world would come to the rescue of that great and glorious palladium of our liberty. We cannot brook the thought of it being torn into shreds, or destroyed, or trampled under foot and ignored by men. We cannot tolerate the sentiment, at one time expressed, by a man, high in authority in the nation. He said: "The Constitution be damned; the popular sentiment of the people is the constitution!" That is the sentiment of anarchism that has spread to a certain extent, and is spreading over "the land of liberty and home of the brave." We do not tolerate it. Latter-day Saints cannot tolerate such a spirit as this. It is anarchy. It means destruction. It is the spirit of mobocracy, and the Lord knows we have suffered enough from mobocracy, and we do not want any more of it. Our people from Mexico are suffering from the effects of that same spirit. We do not want any more of it, and we cannot afford to yield to that spirit or contribute to it in the least degree. We should stand with a front like flint against every spirit or species of contempt or disrespect for the Constitution of our country and the constitutional laws of our land.
Faith in God is an irrevocable principle, just as much as "thou shalt not kill;" "thou shalt not steal ;" "thou shalt not commit adultery." Repentance of sin is an eternal principle and is as essential in its place and is as much an integrant part of the gospel of Jesus Christ as is: "Thou shalt not kill," or "Thou shalt have no other gods before Me."
Baptism for the remission of sin by one having authority is an eternal principle, for God devised it, and commanded it, and Christ Himself was not above obeying it: He had to obey it in order to fulfil the law of righteousness.
And then the rites of the Priesthood of the Church as the Lord has revealed them, and the principles that underlv the organization of the Church of Jesus Christ are irrevocable, unchanging and unchangeable. We talk of the "Everlasting Gospel of Jesus Christ," which "is the power of God unto salvation," and these principles in and of themselves are eternal principles and will last while life or thought or being lasts or immortality endures.
My brethren and sisters, let us obey the Gospel; let us keep the commandments of God. If we will obey the Truth the Truth will make us free. How free? Free from sin, free from the results of transgressing the law, which is sin, for sin is transgression of the law of God; free from transmitting loathsome diseases; free from every immoral act, and the consequences therefor. Free from bloodshed, and from deceit and hypocrisy. It will make us honest, and devoted to that which is good, to that which we believe and know to be right.
I am for the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and I am willing to leave all other things to the mercy and kindness of the Father to be supplied as He may feel disposed. God bless you is my prayer. Amen.
A quartet, "Ye have come again, sweet days of pleasure," a selection from an operatic composition by Prof. Evan Stephens, was rendered by Josie Hinckley, Aura Rogers, Lorus Pratt, and Dr. W. S. Holdaway.
PRESIDENT ANTHON H. LUND.
The Bible a book of inspired writings, though imperfectly translated—Modern Scripture as important as the ancient— Changes in national affairs should be carefully considered.
I have listened with much interest to the able discourse that has been delivered by our President. I hope that every one in the house heard him, for I know, and the Latter-day Saints know, that he has given us correct principles and the word of the Lord.
When he read the Ten Commandments I thought that here we have a law given several thousand years ago, which I do not think any one can improve, and which is today as important and necessary to be obeyed, and as fitting to all the conditions of man as when the Lord first wrote them on stone tablets with His own finger. He gave them to Moses, who has been called His first pen. It is true that we have very few writings from the ages before the time of Moses, and yet we have reason to believe there were books written even before the flood, for in the days of the Apostles, Jude quoted the prophecy of Enoch, from which we infer that the writings of Enoch were extant in his day, and I have no doubt that Abraham and Moses had access to the writings of Enoch.
We believe in this book (the Bible) from which the President read the law of God. It is a collection of sacred books written by men of God in different ages under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost. In studying the history of the people of God and reading these sacred books we find prophecies recorded in them which are shown by succeeding writers to have been fulfilled. The Bible contains prophecies clear to the end of the New Testament, and history proves that some of those extending beyond the time of the Apostles have also come to pass. Events foretold by the Son of God when He was upon the earth have taken place, even when it seemed very improbable that this could be the case. When He sat on the Mount of Olives and looked upon Jerusalem, and beheld the glittering roof of the magnificent temple, the pride of the Jews, He was prompted to say that not one stone should be left upon another of that beautiful structure; a prophecy that must have sounded strange to those who listened to Him, because it was so solidly, so strongly built. Rocks of immense dimensions were laid in the foundations, and placed in the walls; but Jerusalem, refusing to listen to the word of God through His Son, suffered all that He predicted. Not a stone was left upon stone of the temple. The ground even was ploughed so that the Jews should not know the exact place where the temple had stood. These prophecies uttered by men at different times and having been fulfilled, prove the inspiration of those who uttered them, and prove that this book, the Bible, contains the word of God, and hence it should be read and studied and meditated upon now as it has been in ages past. The tendency to look upon it as having been written in ages of ignorance, and therefore not adapted to our time, should not be entertained by us. The word of the Lord is there.
It is true that we have made a modification in our articles of faith, saying that we believe the Bible to contain the word of God in so far as it is translated correctly. Some have thought that that would be an excuse for us to refuse certain parts and to accept others. Now, I will say for the Latter-day Saints that they believe in the Bible as strongly as those who claim that every word, and every point of punctuation, were placed there by inspiration. The latter opinion cannot hold. We have very many versions of the scripture, and some statements in one version may be nearly opposite in meaning in another. If we had the original manuscript of the Bible, we might say that we believe that the Bible contains, from lid to lid, the word of God; but knowing that the book has come down to us through the course of many centuries, has been translated and retranslated, written and re-written, and knowing that no human work is perfect, we admit that errors have crept into it, though such errors may have been, unintentional. For instance, in the Danish Bible and in the Douy version we are told that the world was framed by the word of God, that from invisible things visible things might be made — something that conforms to the theory of certain philosophers of our age, while the Swedish and German versions say that by the word of God the world came forth out of nothing. In one Bible that remarkable passage of Paul, I Corinthians 15:29, reads: "Why are they then baptized for the dead," and in another: "Why are they then baptized over the dead." You can take the different translations and you will find them varying. If we then say that we believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly, and that errors have crept into it, we are only expressing the same idea as some eminent theologians have done. When I was in England I read what Bishop Ellicot said on this matter. He stated that in the Epistle to the Galatians, which contains one hundred and forty-nine verses, he would like to make two hundred and fifty-two corrections, because he held they were incorrect, inexact and insufficient or obscure. Now, this was an eminent divine. Bishop of Gloucester, in England, who held this view. Going over the Book of Matthew another reverend gentleman says that he could point out seventy mistakes. I do not know whether these men could do this or not. I am not seeking for mistakes in the scriptures, but I want to show that we Latter-day Saints, in believing and upholding the articles of faith formulated by the Prophet Joseph in regard to the Bible, hold consistent views. But let me say to you that the Lord has kept His hand over this inspired volume so that it has come down to us in such a form and shape that it is still His word and a guide to us, and we would like our people to study it.
It is necessary to have the written word of the Lord. When Lehi left Jerusalem it appeared to him to be of the greatest importance to have the writings of the prophets and holy men who had written before he left Jerusalem, and he sent his sons back to Jerusalem, to obtain some of these sacred writings. Through the bravery of Nephi they were obtained, and were taken with them on their journey to this land. In the Book of Mormon we have a corroborative proof of how correctly the Bible has come down to us. Nephi was very much delighted with the prophecies of Isaiah; he read and copied several chapters of them on his small plates, and they have come down to us and are found in the Book of Mormon, and we find very little difference between his copies and our present Bible making the Book of Mormon, as Brother Roberts expressed it in his "New Witness for God," a new witness for the truth of the Bible. In its simple, plain language it gives unto us the word of God. Remember that it was translated in the years between 1827 and 1830, before the Church was organized, before there could have been any thought in the young man Joseph's mind concerning the greatness of the work that he was called upon to be an instrument in the hand of the Lord to introduce into the world, and still we find recorded in that book the statement that the time would come when the people of God should gather from all nations to this land. What a plain prophecy! And we have seen it and other prophecies in that book fulfilled. Our elders have gone to the different nations and without even preaching the gathering, the spirit of gathering has come upon the people, and the words in the second book of Nephi have been verified and the gathering has taken place.
We have the Book of Doctrine and Covenants containing the revelations of the Lord in our day. We want our people also to study this work and make themselves familiar with the word of the Lord contained in it. While in many sections perhaps instructions given were local, yet in most cases these instructions are just as valuable to us and good for us to follow, as they were for those to whom they were given. Also in this book we can point to quite a number of prophecies that have already been fulfilled, especially the early revelations. The fulfilment of these is the more striking when we consider how little Joseph of himself could know of what would take place. The prophecies uttered in that book have come by inspiration, and those that have not been fulfilled will be fulfilled.
In all ages when the Lord has established a dispensation, His word through His servants to the people has been the law to them, and when they rejected it they did so to their own hurt. When Noah preached to the antediluvians he could perhaps not point to scriptures to prove his teaching, but he had the word of God direct to himself, and he told the people of the calamity that awaited the nations except they repented. They chose not to repent and the judgment came upon them. And so we could bring up examples clear down through the ages. When we read the beautiful prophecies of Jeremiah we would think that the people who had him in their midst would have honored him, but because he showed them the errors of their ways, told them the course their government ought to take to secure national safety, they cast him into prison. Had they listened to his words I don't think he would have written his book of Lamentations, but they brought the foretold calamities upon themselves by refusing to obey and listen to the words of an inspired prophet in their midst.
I want to say that there is a great restlessness among the people, both of this nation and others, and there is a desire for a change in governmental methods. Now, while there may be reforms needed and the people want such inaugurated, it is well to take time and reflect upon the measures that are proposed. Look at the history of France. How oppressed the masses of the people were! They wanted a change, but the change they effected was a leap in the dark. We know what misery it brought upon that nation. While, on the other hand, good, staid old England gradually brought about the reforms that the people wanted, and they are progressing in that safe way. So I want to say that although there is so much restlessness, and so many hope that a change will be for the better, it will be well for all people, and especially the Latter-day Saints, to well consider any measure that is proposed to them, and weigh it well before they adopt it, that they may be sure it will be a change for the better. May the Lord bless you all, I ask in the name of Jesus. Amen.
The 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.
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Ben E. Rich.
Conference adjourned until 2 p. m.
The Bible a book of inspired writings, though imperfectly translated—Modern Scripture as important as the ancient— Changes in national affairs should be carefully considered.
I have listened with much interest to the able discourse that has been delivered by our President. I hope that every one in the house heard him, for I know, and the Latter-day Saints know, that he has given us correct principles and the word of the Lord.
When he read the Ten Commandments I thought that here we have a law given several thousand years ago, which I do not think any one can improve, and which is today as important and necessary to be obeyed, and as fitting to all the conditions of man as when the Lord first wrote them on stone tablets with His own finger. He gave them to Moses, who has been called His first pen. It is true that we have very few writings from the ages before the time of Moses, and yet we have reason to believe there were books written even before the flood, for in the days of the Apostles, Jude quoted the prophecy of Enoch, from which we infer that the writings of Enoch were extant in his day, and I have no doubt that Abraham and Moses had access to the writings of Enoch.
We believe in this book (the Bible) from which the President read the law of God. It is a collection of sacred books written by men of God in different ages under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost. In studying the history of the people of God and reading these sacred books we find prophecies recorded in them which are shown by succeeding writers to have been fulfilled. The Bible contains prophecies clear to the end of the New Testament, and history proves that some of those extending beyond the time of the Apostles have also come to pass. Events foretold by the Son of God when He was upon the earth have taken place, even when it seemed very improbable that this could be the case. When He sat on the Mount of Olives and looked upon Jerusalem, and beheld the glittering roof of the magnificent temple, the pride of the Jews, He was prompted to say that not one stone should be left upon another of that beautiful structure; a prophecy that must have sounded strange to those who listened to Him, because it was so solidly, so strongly built. Rocks of immense dimensions were laid in the foundations, and placed in the walls; but Jerusalem, refusing to listen to the word of God through His Son, suffered all that He predicted. Not a stone was left upon stone of the temple. The ground even was ploughed so that the Jews should not know the exact place where the temple had stood. These prophecies uttered by men at different times and having been fulfilled, prove the inspiration of those who uttered them, and prove that this book, the Bible, contains the word of God, and hence it should be read and studied and meditated upon now as it has been in ages past. The tendency to look upon it as having been written in ages of ignorance, and therefore not adapted to our time, should not be entertained by us. The word of the Lord is there.
It is true that we have made a modification in our articles of faith, saying that we believe the Bible to contain the word of God in so far as it is translated correctly. Some have thought that that would be an excuse for us to refuse certain parts and to accept others. Now, I will say for the Latter-day Saints that they believe in the Bible as strongly as those who claim that every word, and every point of punctuation, were placed there by inspiration. The latter opinion cannot hold. We have very many versions of the scripture, and some statements in one version may be nearly opposite in meaning in another. If we had the original manuscript of the Bible, we might say that we believe that the Bible contains, from lid to lid, the word of God; but knowing that the book has come down to us through the course of many centuries, has been translated and retranslated, written and re-written, and knowing that no human work is perfect, we admit that errors have crept into it, though such errors may have been, unintentional. For instance, in the Danish Bible and in the Douy version we are told that the world was framed by the word of God, that from invisible things visible things might be made — something that conforms to the theory of certain philosophers of our age, while the Swedish and German versions say that by the word of God the world came forth out of nothing. In one Bible that remarkable passage of Paul, I Corinthians 15:29, reads: "Why are they then baptized for the dead," and in another: "Why are they then baptized over the dead." You can take the different translations and you will find them varying. If we then say that we believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly, and that errors have crept into it, we are only expressing the same idea as some eminent theologians have done. When I was in England I read what Bishop Ellicot said on this matter. He stated that in the Epistle to the Galatians, which contains one hundred and forty-nine verses, he would like to make two hundred and fifty-two corrections, because he held they were incorrect, inexact and insufficient or obscure. Now, this was an eminent divine. Bishop of Gloucester, in England, who held this view. Going over the Book of Matthew another reverend gentleman says that he could point out seventy mistakes. I do not know whether these men could do this or not. I am not seeking for mistakes in the scriptures, but I want to show that we Latter-day Saints, in believing and upholding the articles of faith formulated by the Prophet Joseph in regard to the Bible, hold consistent views. But let me say to you that the Lord has kept His hand over this inspired volume so that it has come down to us in such a form and shape that it is still His word and a guide to us, and we would like our people to study it.
It is necessary to have the written word of the Lord. When Lehi left Jerusalem it appeared to him to be of the greatest importance to have the writings of the prophets and holy men who had written before he left Jerusalem, and he sent his sons back to Jerusalem, to obtain some of these sacred writings. Through the bravery of Nephi they were obtained, and were taken with them on their journey to this land. In the Book of Mormon we have a corroborative proof of how correctly the Bible has come down to us. Nephi was very much delighted with the prophecies of Isaiah; he read and copied several chapters of them on his small plates, and they have come down to us and are found in the Book of Mormon, and we find very little difference between his copies and our present Bible making the Book of Mormon, as Brother Roberts expressed it in his "New Witness for God," a new witness for the truth of the Bible. In its simple, plain language it gives unto us the word of God. Remember that it was translated in the years between 1827 and 1830, before the Church was organized, before there could have been any thought in the young man Joseph's mind concerning the greatness of the work that he was called upon to be an instrument in the hand of the Lord to introduce into the world, and still we find recorded in that book the statement that the time would come when the people of God should gather from all nations to this land. What a plain prophecy! And we have seen it and other prophecies in that book fulfilled. Our elders have gone to the different nations and without even preaching the gathering, the spirit of gathering has come upon the people, and the words in the second book of Nephi have been verified and the gathering has taken place.
We have the Book of Doctrine and Covenants containing the revelations of the Lord in our day. We want our people also to study this work and make themselves familiar with the word of the Lord contained in it. While in many sections perhaps instructions given were local, yet in most cases these instructions are just as valuable to us and good for us to follow, as they were for those to whom they were given. Also in this book we can point to quite a number of prophecies that have already been fulfilled, especially the early revelations. The fulfilment of these is the more striking when we consider how little Joseph of himself could know of what would take place. The prophecies uttered in that book have come by inspiration, and those that have not been fulfilled will be fulfilled.
In all ages when the Lord has established a dispensation, His word through His servants to the people has been the law to them, and when they rejected it they did so to their own hurt. When Noah preached to the antediluvians he could perhaps not point to scriptures to prove his teaching, but he had the word of God direct to himself, and he told the people of the calamity that awaited the nations except they repented. They chose not to repent and the judgment came upon them. And so we could bring up examples clear down through the ages. When we read the beautiful prophecies of Jeremiah we would think that the people who had him in their midst would have honored him, but because he showed them the errors of their ways, told them the course their government ought to take to secure national safety, they cast him into prison. Had they listened to his words I don't think he would have written his book of Lamentations, but they brought the foretold calamities upon themselves by refusing to obey and listen to the words of an inspired prophet in their midst.
I want to say that there is a great restlessness among the people, both of this nation and others, and there is a desire for a change in governmental methods. Now, while there may be reforms needed and the people want such inaugurated, it is well to take time and reflect upon the measures that are proposed. Look at the history of France. How oppressed the masses of the people were! They wanted a change, but the change they effected was a leap in the dark. We know what misery it brought upon that nation. While, on the other hand, good, staid old England gradually brought about the reforms that the people wanted, and they are progressing in that safe way. So I want to say that although there is so much restlessness, and so many hope that a change will be for the better, it will be well for all people, and especially the Latter-day Saints, to well consider any measure that is proposed to them, and weigh it well before they adopt it, that they may be sure it will be a change for the better. May the Lord bless you all, I ask in the name of Jesus. Amen.
The 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.
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Ben E. Rich.
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 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.
Prayer was offered by Elder Joseph E. Robinson.
The 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.
Conference was resumed at 2 p. m.
President Joseph F. Smith called the meeting to order.
The 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.
Prayer was offered by Elder Joseph E. Robinson.
The 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.
ELDER CHARLES H. HART.
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
I feel very much, my brethren and sisters, the need of your sustaining faith and the blessings of the Lord, to the end that our time may be occupied profitably during the time that I may stand before you this afternoon.
I thought, while President Smith was talking, of an Expressive remark in the Doctrine and Covenants, a revelation given to the Prophet Joseph Smith: "Remember, the worth of souls is great in the sight of God ;" and it occurred to me that this truth is interwoven with the very fabric of "Mormonism," that it is one of the corner stones of the Gospel, that it is a part of the very genius of so-called "Mormonism." For many years the thought was prevalent that man was created for the principal purpose of giving praise to His Maker, that the purpose of the Lord in the creation of man was that he might render praise unto His Maker. While that is a very pleasing and profitable occupation for mankind, yet we are given to understand in modern revelation, through the Prophet Joseph Smith, that praise and prayer are not the chief purposes in the creation of man. We are told, by the Lord: "Behold, this is my work and my glory, to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man." We learn in modern revelation of the dignity of the human soul, of its immortality; also that intelligence, an attribute of spirit, "was not created, neither indeed can be," to use the language as recorded in the ninety-third section of the Doctrine and Covenants. We learn that we are the spiritual children of God the Eternal Father. Jesus makes this plain in His answer to Mary, who was first at the sepulchre, when He said, "Touch Me not for I have not yet ascended to My Father, but go to My brethren and say unto them, I ascend unto My Father and your Father, to My God and your God." He proclaims there, the Master does, the brotherhood of man and the fatherhood of God; that we are the children, the 'spiritual children of our Heavenly Father, just as He was the spiritual Son of the Eternal Father. We are told in Psalms that He was the first-born of every creature, meaning, of course, the first-born spiritually, because it would not be true that He was the first-born in the flesh of all the children of our Father, or of all creatures. As He was the spiritual Son of the Eternal Father, so are we the spiritual children of the Eternal Father. We had a birth before coming to this earth-life. Element is now added to spirit, and we are told that "spirit and element inseparably connected receiveth a fulness of joy," and this is one of the purposes of our earth-life, that we might have joy. "Adam fell that man might be, and man is that he might have joy," and that he might eventually have immortality and eternal life. There was no lack of appreciation in the value of human life or in the value of a human soul in that the Savior was permitted, as a part of the divine program, to lay down His life for the redemption of mankind. Some — not of our church and who have not partaken of the light of modern revelation— discuss the question of whether that divine sacrifice might have been dispensed with, and whether it might not have been so ordered by the Father that the earth life of the Son would not have to be sacrificed. But it was necessary to have the Son lay down His life for the redemption of mankind, to bring about a restoration from the fall that came through Adam. There is significance in the expression of the Savior, "And I, if I am lifted up from the earth will draw all men unto me." It was necessary, no doubt, that He should suffer just as intensely as He did suffer, that His agony should be such that He sweat great drops of blood. That was an unusual occurrence. There are only a few recorded instances in the annals of history of men so suffering that they actually sweat blood; but there are a few such instances in addition to that of the Savior where that phenomenon has occurred — men actually sweating blood. Those who hold that it might have been possible, that it might have been just as well for some other program to have been carried out for the redemption of mankind, fail to recognize the fact that God is a God of law and justice. They think because the Father is all-powerful, having the element of omnipotence, that therefore at His will He could have dispensed with the necessity of an atonement; but we must take into account the fact that the Lord is a Lord of justice, of order and of law, as well as a God of mercy, and that mercy can not rob justice. It is necessary to recognize the harmonies in the attributes of deity. It was by reason of these harmonies existing in the attributes of Deity that it became necessary for the atonement to be made. We realize, as I said a moment ago, how men If were drawn to the Savior by reason of that sacrifice, just as the people have been drawn to the Prophet Joseph Smith, and to the testimony for which his blood was shed. It was through no lack of appreciation of the value of life that the Prophet Joseph laid down his life, but it was a necessary and an important event in the development and growth of this work that he should seal his testimony with his blood. He did it cheerfully, and drew men unto him and unto his testimony by that act. The reason for the introduction of the gospel in this dispensation was because of the love the Father has for His children, the fact that their souls are very precious in His sight. The organization, teachings and doctrines of the Church, are to the end that these precious souls, these sparks of divinity, may be brought up aright and saved.
The auxiliary organizations and the various efforts put forth through them recognize the great worth of souls. Our missionaries realize the truth of the revelation to the Prophet Joseph, that "if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people and bring save it be one soul unto Me, how great shall be your joy with Him in the kingdom of our leather." If such great joy come by bringing one person only unto Christ, how much greater will be the joy where many souls are brought unto Him. Recognizing the truth of that principle, we are spending each year in our foreign missionary work hundreds of thousands of dollars,—I believe it runs into the millions, counting the value of the time of these two thousand or more missionaries who are abroad proclaiming the truth.
Our Church school system and our work in the temples, recognize the great worth of the human soul, the necessity for its growth, and its progress along right lines. When you consider what it has meant in the Church to convert but one single soul, when we consider the life's work of some of these single converts to the Church, and the great stream of posterity that is ever widening as the years come and go, to be traced to one of those single converts, we realize then how very precious to mankind is a human soul, and how important it is for him to be taught the gospel—faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, repentance from evil, turning away from all sin and entering the Church by baptism and the laying on of hands by one who has authority, that his sins may be wiped out, and that he may become a member of God's Church. I feel, my brethren and sisters, that this work of salvation both at home and abroad is a work that is worthy of the best efforts of all of us. Our temple work, I might add, is based upon the same great truth that the soul is of great worth. Although the person has departed this life, this temple work recognizes the glorious truth that there will be a resurrection, a reuniting of the spirit with the body, and an opportunity given for repentance hereafter.
May the Lord bless us, my brethren and sisters, and enable use to be zealous in this work of saving souls; may we realize the truth of the revelation to the Prophet that souls are of great worth in the sight of God. and that the thing which will be of most worth unto us will be to declare repentance unto this generation that we may bring souls unto Christ that we may have rest with them in the kingdom of our Father. I pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
I feel very much, my brethren and sisters, the need of your sustaining faith and the blessings of the Lord, to the end that our time may be occupied profitably during the time that I may stand before you this afternoon.
I thought, while President Smith was talking, of an Expressive remark in the Doctrine and Covenants, a revelation given to the Prophet Joseph Smith: "Remember, the worth of souls is great in the sight of God ;" and it occurred to me that this truth is interwoven with the very fabric of "Mormonism," that it is one of the corner stones of the Gospel, that it is a part of the very genius of so-called "Mormonism." For many years the thought was prevalent that man was created for the principal purpose of giving praise to His Maker, that the purpose of the Lord in the creation of man was that he might render praise unto His Maker. While that is a very pleasing and profitable occupation for mankind, yet we are given to understand in modern revelation, through the Prophet Joseph Smith, that praise and prayer are not the chief purposes in the creation of man. We are told, by the Lord: "Behold, this is my work and my glory, to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man." We learn in modern revelation of the dignity of the human soul, of its immortality; also that intelligence, an attribute of spirit, "was not created, neither indeed can be," to use the language as recorded in the ninety-third section of the Doctrine and Covenants. We learn that we are the spiritual children of God the Eternal Father. Jesus makes this plain in His answer to Mary, who was first at the sepulchre, when He said, "Touch Me not for I have not yet ascended to My Father, but go to My brethren and say unto them, I ascend unto My Father and your Father, to My God and your God." He proclaims there, the Master does, the brotherhood of man and the fatherhood of God; that we are the children, the 'spiritual children of our Heavenly Father, just as He was the spiritual Son of the Eternal Father. We are told in Psalms that He was the first-born of every creature, meaning, of course, the first-born spiritually, because it would not be true that He was the first-born in the flesh of all the children of our Father, or of all creatures. As He was the spiritual Son of the Eternal Father, so are we the spiritual children of the Eternal Father. We had a birth before coming to this earth-life. Element is now added to spirit, and we are told that "spirit and element inseparably connected receiveth a fulness of joy," and this is one of the purposes of our earth-life, that we might have joy. "Adam fell that man might be, and man is that he might have joy," and that he might eventually have immortality and eternal life. There was no lack of appreciation in the value of human life or in the value of a human soul in that the Savior was permitted, as a part of the divine program, to lay down His life for the redemption of mankind. Some — not of our church and who have not partaken of the light of modern revelation— discuss the question of whether that divine sacrifice might have been dispensed with, and whether it might not have been so ordered by the Father that the earth life of the Son would not have to be sacrificed. But it was necessary to have the Son lay down His life for the redemption of mankind, to bring about a restoration from the fall that came through Adam. There is significance in the expression of the Savior, "And I, if I am lifted up from the earth will draw all men unto me." It was necessary, no doubt, that He should suffer just as intensely as He did suffer, that His agony should be such that He sweat great drops of blood. That was an unusual occurrence. There are only a few recorded instances in the annals of history of men so suffering that they actually sweat blood; but there are a few such instances in addition to that of the Savior where that phenomenon has occurred — men actually sweating blood. Those who hold that it might have been possible, that it might have been just as well for some other program to have been carried out for the redemption of mankind, fail to recognize the fact that God is a God of law and justice. They think because the Father is all-powerful, having the element of omnipotence, that therefore at His will He could have dispensed with the necessity of an atonement; but we must take into account the fact that the Lord is a Lord of justice, of order and of law, as well as a God of mercy, and that mercy can not rob justice. It is necessary to recognize the harmonies in the attributes of deity. It was by reason of these harmonies existing in the attributes of Deity that it became necessary for the atonement to be made. We realize, as I said a moment ago, how men If were drawn to the Savior by reason of that sacrifice, just as the people have been drawn to the Prophet Joseph Smith, and to the testimony for which his blood was shed. It was through no lack of appreciation of the value of life that the Prophet Joseph laid down his life, but it was a necessary and an important event in the development and growth of this work that he should seal his testimony with his blood. He did it cheerfully, and drew men unto him and unto his testimony by that act. The reason for the introduction of the gospel in this dispensation was because of the love the Father has for His children, the fact that their souls are very precious in His sight. The organization, teachings and doctrines of the Church, are to the end that these precious souls, these sparks of divinity, may be brought up aright and saved.
The auxiliary organizations and the various efforts put forth through them recognize the great worth of souls. Our missionaries realize the truth of the revelation to the Prophet Joseph, that "if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people and bring save it be one soul unto Me, how great shall be your joy with Him in the kingdom of our leather." If such great joy come by bringing one person only unto Christ, how much greater will be the joy where many souls are brought unto Him. Recognizing the truth of that principle, we are spending each year in our foreign missionary work hundreds of thousands of dollars,—I believe it runs into the millions, counting the value of the time of these two thousand or more missionaries who are abroad proclaiming the truth.
Our Church school system and our work in the temples, recognize the great worth of the human soul, the necessity for its growth, and its progress along right lines. When you consider what it has meant in the Church to convert but one single soul, when we consider the life's work of some of these single converts to the Church, and the great stream of posterity that is ever widening as the years come and go, to be traced to one of those single converts, we realize then how very precious to mankind is a human soul, and how important it is for him to be taught the gospel—faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, repentance from evil, turning away from all sin and entering the Church by baptism and the laying on of hands by one who has authority, that his sins may be wiped out, and that he may become a member of God's Church. I feel, my brethren and sisters, that this work of salvation both at home and abroad is a work that is worthy of the best efforts of all of us. Our temple work, I might add, is based upon the same great truth that the soul is of great worth. Although the person has departed this life, this temple work recognizes the glorious truth that there will be a resurrection, a reuniting of the spirit with the body, and an opportunity given for repentance hereafter.
May the Lord bless us, my brethren and sisters, and enable use to be zealous in this work of saving souls; may we realize the truth of the revelation to the Prophet that souls are of great worth in the sight of God. and that the thing which will be of most worth unto us will be to declare repentance unto this generation that we may bring souls unto Christ that we may have rest with them in the kingdom of our Father. I pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.
ELDER JOSEPH W. M'MURRIN.
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
My brethren and sisters: I suppose a good many of the people who are in this congregation this afternoon are somewhat surprised that members of the First Council of Seventy have been called upon to occupy this position at so early a stage in the proceedings of this conference. I am satisfied the brethren of that Council were sitting in comparative ease in their feelings—with no thought of being called to speak but expecting to hear from other brethren of the Presidency, and of the Council of the Apostles. Elders of the Church are never sure as to who will be called upon, and are supposed to be ready always to give a reason for the hope they have within them. I trust, my brethren and sisters, that I may be able, under the inspiration of the Spirit of the Lord, to speak such words as shall in a measure give a reason for the hope that I have, as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I certainly feel that it is a very great privilege and honor, as well as a great responsibility, to have the opportunity of bearing testimony concerning the things of God in a general conference of the Church. There are thousands and tens of thousands of men who by the light of the Holy Spirit have been converted to the doctrines of the gospel. Such men have loved those doctrines with all their strength, and have devoted their time and means for the upbuilding of the kingdom of God, have never had an opportunity of this sort.
It has been my privilege, during the months that have passed since our last general conference, to travel quite extensively in the various stakes of Zion. I have appreciated the opportunity of being in the companionship of the members of the Council of the Apostles and in the companionship of the members of the First Council of Seventy in these travels. I feel that I have been very greatly benefited by the counsels of my brethren, and by the example that they have constantly set before me. I have also been benefitted and blessed, in coming in contact with the people, and with the presiding brethren in the various stakes of Zion. My testimony is that there are a host of good and capable men occupying positions of responsibility in the Church of Christ. Whether one goes to the north or to the south, to the east or to the west, he finds men whose hearts are set upon the things of the kingdom of God, and who are bending their energies, and giving the very best there is in them, for the blessing of the people, and for the accomplishment of the work that God has set His hand to perform in this latter dispensation.
It is a very pleasing thing to know that the blessings of the Lord are resting in very rich abundance upon the people in a temporal way. Wherever I have been I have heard expressions of gratitude concerning the blessings that are coming to the people. They seem to be in a most prosperous condition. The earth has been blessed and is yielding of its strength in much abundance, for the sustenance of the people. The parched places, in a manner of speaking, have become in many localities springs of living water. "The desert places have been made glad," and happy and comfortable homes have been established over a wide extent of country, in fulfillment of the promises that have been made by our Father in heaven. Ancient prophets and prophets, who have lived and spoken in our own times have declared that just such blessings would characterize the latter days. We should all be very grateful that we are privileged to live in an age of inspiration, that under the providences and loving kindness of our Father in heaven, our hearts have been touched by the testimony of the Lord Jesus, and that we have been made, by the power and inspiration of God, to comprehend the truth, and to know that God our Father has indeed spoken, and that He has revealed as of old, that form oi doctrine that is able to make us wise unto salvation.
I hope, my brethren and sisters, that we are all anxious to recognize, and honor, and be guided by the inspiration of the Lord. The word and counsel of God will always be made manifest through the channels of the Holy Priesthood, for this is God's way of working among the people. God has raised up a ministry by sending holy beings who in their time as noted men upon the earth had been clothed with His power and authority. These holy angels have by the commandment of God conferred that authority upon men in this dispensation, and once more the Lord reveals His mind and His will to His chosen servants the Prophets, as He has always done, when He has had a ministry among men. The responsibility rests upon this people to hold up the hands of the servants of the Lord. The responsibility rests upon the people also to so order their lives that they can be in the companionship of the Spirit of the Lord, that they may be able to recognize the voice of the Good Shepherd as it is made manifest through the authority that God has established, that they may not be led away by the voice of strangers, but may be able always to discern the truth and to give their hearts to the truth, and their time and ability for the spreading of that truth among the children of men.
We are under obligation, my brethren and sisters, to make mankind acquainted with the marvelous things that have been revealed in this dispensation. One of the old apostles taught the people in his time that as a result of his calling necessity had been laid upon him, he did not feel that he had anything to glory in of himself as a man, but that very serious obligations had come to him, and that he was under necessity of making known the things of God that had been communicated to him. He declared that woe would be unto him if he did' not preach the gospel, and that same manner of obligation and necessity has come to the people of the Latter-day Saints. It was so taught by our Father in heaven to the Prophet Joseph Smith in the beginning. The great responsibility that the people are under is the preaching of the word of the Lord as it had been revealed, the carrying of glad tidings of great joy to the inhabitants of the earth. We have not been given authority simply that we may be honored of men, or that we may be exalted among men. We have been given authority that we may be made the servants of men, that we may be ready and willing to forget self, and to give our time and whatever ability God may have endowed us with, for the benefit and blessing and salvation of our fellow beings.
I represent, my brethren and sisters, one branch of the great organization of the Church, the Seventies of the Church of Christ. I feel that it is a very great honor indeed to be a representative of this body of men, for they have been spoken of in the revelations of the Lord as the ministry of the Lord, men specially called to be preachers of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I don't know how much time we give as Seventies to a contemplation of the responsibilities that pertain to our calling, as they are outlined, in the book of revelations, but if we will take that book and read the word of the Lord we will discover that God has said that our calling is different, in a sense", to the calling of other men who bear the authority of the Holy Priesthood. We are expected to be preachers of the gospel continually; there is no period of time when we can lay off this responsibility. There is no time when we can hold our peace, and when- we can refrain from delivering the testimony that has been communicated to us by the power of God. The Lord rather indicates in this revelation, the 124th Section of the book of Doctrine and Covenants, that other men may preach the gospel as they may have opportunity, but that this order of the Priesthood are expected to be in readiness at all times, and to be in the exercise of the authority conferred upon them constantly. I don't suppose that we can imagine that the Seventy are to be constantly away from home, or that they are always to be absent from their families. It is a part of the gospel plan that men shall give attention to their families, and shall provide for them. The gospel teaches that he who will not provide for his family is worse than an infidel, and has already denied the faith, so that we cannot come to the conclusion from the revelation that we are to be constantly away from home in foreign missionary service. It would be much more reasonable to decide that in addition to our missionary work abroad there must also be a missionary work at home. When we return from the missionary field we are not to feel that we can lay off the harness of the Holy Priesthood, or the responsibility that pertains to our calling, and the magnifying of that calling, but we should continue at home, as we may have opportunity, the same line of work to which we have given our attention in the missionary field.
We are very glad to say, as a council, that some of the presidencies in the stakes of Zion have been impressed during recent months, possibly for a little more than a year, with the advisability of exercising this great body of men in the preaching of the gospel here at home. We are very glad that this feeling has come to some of the stake presidents, and that they are planning for the use of this body of men in the preaching of the word of the Lord here at home in the stakes of Zion. There is a very great need for the preaching of the gospel, the first principles of the gospel, those principles that are necessary to the salvation of the human family, right here in our own midst. We have large numbers of young' people who, through their own neglect, in a measure, and then it may be possible that through the neglect of others who should teach them, they have not been made as fully acquainted with these important principles that are so necessary to the salvation of the human family as they ought to be. In my judgment there needs to be in the wards and stakes of Zion much more of the preaching of these doctrines than we have the privilege of listening to as a general thing. We are glad that large numbers of Seventies in one of the Salt Lake City stakes, two hundred of them, were recently called upon to take up a missionary labor, to go among the people who were indifferent, and there was a large number of such people, two or three thousand in one stake,—to labor with them in their homes to see if they could not be aroused to the necessity of doing their duty, the necessity of attending the meetings of the various wards, of- partaking of the sacrament of the Lord's Supper, the necessity of contributing of their means, through their tithings, for the building up of the work of God, the necessity of having prayers in the family, the necessity of having children connected with the Sabbath Schools and with other auxiliary organizations of the Church. These Seventies were not only occupied in the teaching of duty, and the teaching of principles of the gospel, to members of the Church who had grown somewhat indifferent and lukewarm, but they were also called to preach to a large number of people, three or four thousand souls, who were not members of the Church. I fear that we are not magnifying our responsibility as it ought to be magnified in regard to this matter. We go far off, and many men appear to be perfectly willing to go abroad in the nations as representatives of the Church in the preaching of the gospel, but we seem to forget, to a great extent, the people who are right here—our neighbors who surround us on every hand, who are not of us, who are not interested in our faith, who do not come to our places of worship, and who consequently do not hear anything of the importance of the work planted by the Lord God of heaven through the revelation of His truth in these latter times. I believe these presiding men, stake presidents and bishops, should be very much concerned about these people who have come up from the nations, who have cast their lot with us, yet are not of us, and who do not have understanding concerning our mission and the doctrines of the gospel that have been committed into our hands which we have been commanded to teach to all that live. Therefore I say I feel that it is a good work, indeed, to call upon these Seventies, because of the Lord indicating that they should be engaged in the ministry constantly, that they may he kept in the harness when at home just as they are kept in the harness when abroad. Seventies are not in the missions abroad as much as they ought to be. There is responsibility resting upon the presidents of quorums of Seventy to teach the members of their quorums that they should be anxious to magnify their office and calling, whether it be at home or abroad. They should be taught that it is not proper to seek for excuses when asked to do missionary service, but that men should feel, when they are desired for this service that they are sought after by the Lord of heaven. He it is who wants them to lift up their voices in the nations, and they should feel that it is a high honor indeed and a very great and blessed privilege to cry repentance among the people, and bear testimony to the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
There is no greater truth in this world known to man than the truth that God has revealed. It is at the foundation of the peace and happiness and joy of all mankind in this life, and at the foundation of their eternal salvation and happiness in the life that is to come. Blessed is the man honored of God in holding authority to preach the word of the Lord. Blessed is the man who is clothed upon with the power of the Holy Ghost, and who has been made to know in his own soul that God has spoken, that He has revealed eternal principles that, if accepted, will lead men in the way of salvation. Men should be proud to engage in so wonderful a work, particularly when they have the promise of the living God that He will be their father and their friend, that He will ever be at hand to give them succor, and strength, and understanding, and power to accomplish the work allotted to them, if they will give their hearts to Him, if they will give their time and their attention to a .study of the things that He has revealed. Men should be taught to honor and rejoice in this great responsibility. The Presidency of the Church should find in this army of men, when they seek after them, willing hearts, ready responses. Men should feel and say, "Yes, I am in the work of God; I have given myself to the accomplishment of the Lord's purposes; here I am; you can use me at home or abroad, wherever I am wanted, and I will be glad to do my part." That is our responsibility, and we recommend the Seventies of the Church of Christ to be in this manner of spirit, ready, willing, obedient, anxious to be laboring for the planting of the work of God. We suggest to presiding men that the Seventies cannot set themselves to work in the stakes of Zion in a regular missionary effort, but the stake presidents can use these men, and of course other men as they see fit in the accomplishment of this labor, and there will be souls given for the hire of men who engage in the preaching of the gospel at home. Let us carry the word of God to those who are not of us here, just as cheerfully, just as earnestly, with just as much energy as we carry it abroad, and we will discover, perchance, that our Father in heaven has been working upon the hearts of many people and has planted them in the Zion of God that they may hear the word of the Lord.
God help us to love the truth, and to be true to it forever, is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
The hymn, "Though deep'ning trials throng your way," was sung as a soprano solo by Sister Margaret Summerhays.
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
My brethren and sisters: I suppose a good many of the people who are in this congregation this afternoon are somewhat surprised that members of the First Council of Seventy have been called upon to occupy this position at so early a stage in the proceedings of this conference. I am satisfied the brethren of that Council were sitting in comparative ease in their feelings—with no thought of being called to speak but expecting to hear from other brethren of the Presidency, and of the Council of the Apostles. Elders of the Church are never sure as to who will be called upon, and are supposed to be ready always to give a reason for the hope they have within them. I trust, my brethren and sisters, that I may be able, under the inspiration of the Spirit of the Lord, to speak such words as shall in a measure give a reason for the hope that I have, as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I certainly feel that it is a very great privilege and honor, as well as a great responsibility, to have the opportunity of bearing testimony concerning the things of God in a general conference of the Church. There are thousands and tens of thousands of men who by the light of the Holy Spirit have been converted to the doctrines of the gospel. Such men have loved those doctrines with all their strength, and have devoted their time and means for the upbuilding of the kingdom of God, have never had an opportunity of this sort.
It has been my privilege, during the months that have passed since our last general conference, to travel quite extensively in the various stakes of Zion. I have appreciated the opportunity of being in the companionship of the members of the Council of the Apostles and in the companionship of the members of the First Council of Seventy in these travels. I feel that I have been very greatly benefited by the counsels of my brethren, and by the example that they have constantly set before me. I have also been benefitted and blessed, in coming in contact with the people, and with the presiding brethren in the various stakes of Zion. My testimony is that there are a host of good and capable men occupying positions of responsibility in the Church of Christ. Whether one goes to the north or to the south, to the east or to the west, he finds men whose hearts are set upon the things of the kingdom of God, and who are bending their energies, and giving the very best there is in them, for the blessing of the people, and for the accomplishment of the work that God has set His hand to perform in this latter dispensation.
It is a very pleasing thing to know that the blessings of the Lord are resting in very rich abundance upon the people in a temporal way. Wherever I have been I have heard expressions of gratitude concerning the blessings that are coming to the people. They seem to be in a most prosperous condition. The earth has been blessed and is yielding of its strength in much abundance, for the sustenance of the people. The parched places, in a manner of speaking, have become in many localities springs of living water. "The desert places have been made glad," and happy and comfortable homes have been established over a wide extent of country, in fulfillment of the promises that have been made by our Father in heaven. Ancient prophets and prophets, who have lived and spoken in our own times have declared that just such blessings would characterize the latter days. We should all be very grateful that we are privileged to live in an age of inspiration, that under the providences and loving kindness of our Father in heaven, our hearts have been touched by the testimony of the Lord Jesus, and that we have been made, by the power and inspiration of God, to comprehend the truth, and to know that God our Father has indeed spoken, and that He has revealed as of old, that form oi doctrine that is able to make us wise unto salvation.
I hope, my brethren and sisters, that we are all anxious to recognize, and honor, and be guided by the inspiration of the Lord. The word and counsel of God will always be made manifest through the channels of the Holy Priesthood, for this is God's way of working among the people. God has raised up a ministry by sending holy beings who in their time as noted men upon the earth had been clothed with His power and authority. These holy angels have by the commandment of God conferred that authority upon men in this dispensation, and once more the Lord reveals His mind and His will to His chosen servants the Prophets, as He has always done, when He has had a ministry among men. The responsibility rests upon this people to hold up the hands of the servants of the Lord. The responsibility rests upon the people also to so order their lives that they can be in the companionship of the Spirit of the Lord, that they may be able to recognize the voice of the Good Shepherd as it is made manifest through the authority that God has established, that they may not be led away by the voice of strangers, but may be able always to discern the truth and to give their hearts to the truth, and their time and ability for the spreading of that truth among the children of men.
We are under obligation, my brethren and sisters, to make mankind acquainted with the marvelous things that have been revealed in this dispensation. One of the old apostles taught the people in his time that as a result of his calling necessity had been laid upon him, he did not feel that he had anything to glory in of himself as a man, but that very serious obligations had come to him, and that he was under necessity of making known the things of God that had been communicated to him. He declared that woe would be unto him if he did' not preach the gospel, and that same manner of obligation and necessity has come to the people of the Latter-day Saints. It was so taught by our Father in heaven to the Prophet Joseph Smith in the beginning. The great responsibility that the people are under is the preaching of the word of the Lord as it had been revealed, the carrying of glad tidings of great joy to the inhabitants of the earth. We have not been given authority simply that we may be honored of men, or that we may be exalted among men. We have been given authority that we may be made the servants of men, that we may be ready and willing to forget self, and to give our time and whatever ability God may have endowed us with, for the benefit and blessing and salvation of our fellow beings.
I represent, my brethren and sisters, one branch of the great organization of the Church, the Seventies of the Church of Christ. I feel that it is a very great honor indeed to be a representative of this body of men, for they have been spoken of in the revelations of the Lord as the ministry of the Lord, men specially called to be preachers of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I don't know how much time we give as Seventies to a contemplation of the responsibilities that pertain to our calling, as they are outlined, in the book of revelations, but if we will take that book and read the word of the Lord we will discover that God has said that our calling is different, in a sense", to the calling of other men who bear the authority of the Holy Priesthood. We are expected to be preachers of the gospel continually; there is no period of time when we can lay off this responsibility. There is no time when we can hold our peace, and when- we can refrain from delivering the testimony that has been communicated to us by the power of God. The Lord rather indicates in this revelation, the 124th Section of the book of Doctrine and Covenants, that other men may preach the gospel as they may have opportunity, but that this order of the Priesthood are expected to be in readiness at all times, and to be in the exercise of the authority conferred upon them constantly. I don't suppose that we can imagine that the Seventy are to be constantly away from home, or that they are always to be absent from their families. It is a part of the gospel plan that men shall give attention to their families, and shall provide for them. The gospel teaches that he who will not provide for his family is worse than an infidel, and has already denied the faith, so that we cannot come to the conclusion from the revelation that we are to be constantly away from home in foreign missionary service. It would be much more reasonable to decide that in addition to our missionary work abroad there must also be a missionary work at home. When we return from the missionary field we are not to feel that we can lay off the harness of the Holy Priesthood, or the responsibility that pertains to our calling, and the magnifying of that calling, but we should continue at home, as we may have opportunity, the same line of work to which we have given our attention in the missionary field.
We are very glad to say, as a council, that some of the presidencies in the stakes of Zion have been impressed during recent months, possibly for a little more than a year, with the advisability of exercising this great body of men in the preaching of the gospel here at home. We are very glad that this feeling has come to some of the stake presidents, and that they are planning for the use of this body of men in the preaching of the word of the Lord here at home in the stakes of Zion. There is a very great need for the preaching of the gospel, the first principles of the gospel, those principles that are necessary to the salvation of the human family, right here in our own midst. We have large numbers of young' people who, through their own neglect, in a measure, and then it may be possible that through the neglect of others who should teach them, they have not been made as fully acquainted with these important principles that are so necessary to the salvation of the human family as they ought to be. In my judgment there needs to be in the wards and stakes of Zion much more of the preaching of these doctrines than we have the privilege of listening to as a general thing. We are glad that large numbers of Seventies in one of the Salt Lake City stakes, two hundred of them, were recently called upon to take up a missionary labor, to go among the people who were indifferent, and there was a large number of such people, two or three thousand in one stake,—to labor with them in their homes to see if they could not be aroused to the necessity of doing their duty, the necessity of attending the meetings of the various wards, of- partaking of the sacrament of the Lord's Supper, the necessity of contributing of their means, through their tithings, for the building up of the work of God, the necessity of having prayers in the family, the necessity of having children connected with the Sabbath Schools and with other auxiliary organizations of the Church. These Seventies were not only occupied in the teaching of duty, and the teaching of principles of the gospel, to members of the Church who had grown somewhat indifferent and lukewarm, but they were also called to preach to a large number of people, three or four thousand souls, who were not members of the Church. I fear that we are not magnifying our responsibility as it ought to be magnified in regard to this matter. We go far off, and many men appear to be perfectly willing to go abroad in the nations as representatives of the Church in the preaching of the gospel, but we seem to forget, to a great extent, the people who are right here—our neighbors who surround us on every hand, who are not of us, who are not interested in our faith, who do not come to our places of worship, and who consequently do not hear anything of the importance of the work planted by the Lord God of heaven through the revelation of His truth in these latter times. I believe these presiding men, stake presidents and bishops, should be very much concerned about these people who have come up from the nations, who have cast their lot with us, yet are not of us, and who do not have understanding concerning our mission and the doctrines of the gospel that have been committed into our hands which we have been commanded to teach to all that live. Therefore I say I feel that it is a good work, indeed, to call upon these Seventies, because of the Lord indicating that they should be engaged in the ministry constantly, that they may he kept in the harness when at home just as they are kept in the harness when abroad. Seventies are not in the missions abroad as much as they ought to be. There is responsibility resting upon the presidents of quorums of Seventy to teach the members of their quorums that they should be anxious to magnify their office and calling, whether it be at home or abroad. They should be taught that it is not proper to seek for excuses when asked to do missionary service, but that men should feel, when they are desired for this service that they are sought after by the Lord of heaven. He it is who wants them to lift up their voices in the nations, and they should feel that it is a high honor indeed and a very great and blessed privilege to cry repentance among the people, and bear testimony to the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
There is no greater truth in this world known to man than the truth that God has revealed. It is at the foundation of the peace and happiness and joy of all mankind in this life, and at the foundation of their eternal salvation and happiness in the life that is to come. Blessed is the man honored of God in holding authority to preach the word of the Lord. Blessed is the man who is clothed upon with the power of the Holy Ghost, and who has been made to know in his own soul that God has spoken, that He has revealed eternal principles that, if accepted, will lead men in the way of salvation. Men should be proud to engage in so wonderful a work, particularly when they have the promise of the living God that He will be their father and their friend, that He will ever be at hand to give them succor, and strength, and understanding, and power to accomplish the work allotted to them, if they will give their hearts to Him, if they will give their time and their attention to a .study of the things that He has revealed. Men should be taught to honor and rejoice in this great responsibility. The Presidency of the Church should find in this army of men, when they seek after them, willing hearts, ready responses. Men should feel and say, "Yes, I am in the work of God; I have given myself to the accomplishment of the Lord's purposes; here I am; you can use me at home or abroad, wherever I am wanted, and I will be glad to do my part." That is our responsibility, and we recommend the Seventies of the Church of Christ to be in this manner of spirit, ready, willing, obedient, anxious to be laboring for the planting of the work of God. We suggest to presiding men that the Seventies cannot set themselves to work in the stakes of Zion in a regular missionary effort, but the stake presidents can use these men, and of course other men as they see fit in the accomplishment of this labor, and there will be souls given for the hire of men who engage in the preaching of the gospel at home. Let us carry the word of God to those who are not of us here, just as cheerfully, just as earnestly, with just as much energy as we carry it abroad, and we will discover, perchance, that our Father in heaven has been working upon the hearts of many people and has planted them in the Zion of God that they may hear the word of the Lord.
God help us to love the truth, and to be true to it forever, is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
The hymn, "Though deep'ning trials throng your way," was sung as a soprano solo by Sister Margaret Summerhays.
ELDER RULON S. WELLS.
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
My brethren and sisters, when President Smith was addressing the congregation in this Tabernacle,, this morning, I felt a keen interest in the very much afflicted people of Mexico, and I thought, what a blessed privilege it is to live under the stars and stripes in our own beloved country. When I heard and saw, as it was pointed out and painted before us, the awful picture that prevails in that unfortunate country, I thought how happy are we who live under a government, the fundamental law of which was an inspiration unto the founders of this great country. I wonder to what extent the people of our own country appreciate the splendid blessings that we enjoy. To what extent do they appreciate our liberties?
We read in the Scriptures that the whole world lieth in sin, and under the bondage of sin, so, as President Smith pointed out, the true freedom that men and women ought to seek is to be free from the bondage of sin. I believe that there are a great many people who have very erroneous ideas regarding liberty and what is meant by freedom. There are some, no doubt, who think it means the privilege of doing anything they please, a class of people who object to having any restrictions placed upon them whatever. A person cannot be free who does not restrain himself, who does not live under wholesome restriction. Only those are really free who have a control over themselves, and who live in a community where a wholesome restraint is held upon the conduct of their fellow men. If a person felt, and acted accordingly, that he had the right to do whatever he pleases, no man's life would be secure, no one's property would be safe, and very few would have the privilege of pursuing happiness. I love the government of the United States for this fact, that it gives unto its citizens the greatest measure of freedom consistent with the rights of their fellow men, and consistent with right living.
Not very long ago I was visiting one of the stakes of Zion, and we heard of a number of our young men who were about to go out, or had just recently gone out on an irrigation project, to engage in building a ditch. These boys had been brought up under the wholesome restrictions of the gospel, but they were not of the metal that our boys usually are, for these boys, when they went out into this camp life and came in contact with others who were not of our faith, and not under those wholesome restrictions, were influenced by their conduct. These men whom they found in the camp were engaging in the playing of cards, drinking beer, smoking cigarettes, profaning the name of the Lord, and divers other things of this character; and when our boys went out there they were invited: "Come, take a cigarette; have a glass of beer." At first they did not yield to it; they had not been accustomed to habits of that kind. But after a while these others began to taunt them and said. "Oh, take a cigarette. Don't be afraid. You are afraid to say that your souls are your own. Why don't you be free like me?" That was the spirit of the occasion, and, after a while, these boys—weaklings that they were—yielded, and began to indulge in the same habits, because, forsooth, that a bully, with tobacco oozing out of his mouth, said, "Why don't you be free like me?" That was his conception of liberty—-a veritable slave to appetite, and did not know it. He thought he was free, but he was under the bondage of sin, yielding to an unwholesome appetite.
It has been pointed out, very truly, that the gospel, that the truth would make us free. The truth is the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. It has within it the power of God to save souls. It has the power to make us clean, to cleanse and purify our hearts, to rectify our habits, that we may not yield to those things that are harmful to the body; and, if we acquire the power to re- >-iist the bodily appetites, we also acquire the power to resist the tempter in whatever form he may come. We should acquire the power to resist sin, because only those are free who obtain this power, and the gospel has been revealed from heaven that men and women might be liberated from sin. We live in a land of liberty, and how I do rejoice and glory in it. But with all our boasted freedom this nation, in common with other nations of the world, is under the bondage of sin, and we think that we are free, but we are not free until we shall overcome sin, until we shall yield obedience to the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, until the truth will break the shackles of sin and make us free. That is the cry that goes out to the nations of the earth. Let them heed it and know this, that no man is free until he does overcome evil and yield obedience to the truth that has been revealed from heaven. I pray that the Lord will give unto us the power to overcome evil, that He will inspire us with a desire to overcome our own wrong habits, and teach us that we may take an active part in spreading a knowledge of this wholesome truth in all the world.
I endorse with all my soul the remarks of my brethren who have preceded me, and hope that we may engage in the saving of human souls, that our voices may be heard in defense of the truth and in the proclamation of the fact that God has spoken from heaven and restored, in the day and age in which we live, His everlasting gospel, the Only gospel that ever was proclaimed among the children of men that had within it the power of God unto salvation. This gospel lays hold upon the lives of the children of men. It teaches them to do those things that will cleanse and purify them and liberate them from this terrible bondage. It should incline the hearts of the children of men unto God. It teaches first and foremost faith in God. It teaches men and women to turn their hearts to Him, that they may derive wisdom and understanding and the inspiration of His Holy Spirit. It teaches men and women to put their trust in Him, and to acknowledge His hand in all things. "In nothing doth man offend God, or against none is His v.-rath kindled, save those who confess not His hand in all things, and obey not His commandments," not only in our prosperity but in our adversity; not only in our fortune but in our misfortune; not only in life but also in death. What would we be if there was no such thing as sorrow in this world ? What would men and women be in character? They would be unsympathetic; they would not love their fellow men; they would not have those fine traits of character, those noble qualities of heart and of mind, were it not for the fact of the trials they have to endure, the adversit}^ that they have to put up with, and the difficulties they have to encounter. We would not progress; we would not be progressive beings if it were so; but thank the Lord that His hand is in all these things. Those things which sometimes seem to be our greatest sorrows will be sanctified for our good, and often have the purpose in the wisdom of the Almighty of bringing us nearer to Him. The one thing for us always to remember is the Lord our God, and recognize His hand in all things, and if we will do that every misfortune, every difficulty that may come to us, every adversity that overtakes us, will be a blessing though it be in disguise, for nothing of our experiences in mortal life will be in vain; all will have its purpose and all will go to make up our character.
After all, the success of this life is not measured at the end of it by what we have, but rather by what we are, and that is what we want to remember. This gospel teaches us to repent of sin j,nd turn away from evil, to cleanse and purify our hearts. This gospel leads us to seek forgiveness of sin in the waters of baptism, that they may be washed away in the blood of the Lamb of God, that we may be approved of our Heavenly Father, and that we may be in a condition that His Holy Spirit may be conferred upon us through the laying on of the hands of His servants, duly appointed, duly authorized to act in His name. And this is the distinguishing feature of this gospel, that the ordinances thereof, that these performances are done by men who have been endowed with power from on high. This principle of faith is world-wide, is taught in every denomination that you can find throughout the land. Likewise is the principle of repentance; and although they may consider them in a different light from what we do, nevertheless in their general expression they believe in these principles. Many of them believe in baptism. They may not regard it as essential to salvation, but in a general way they will accept of that holy. ordinance as being a part of their faith. They, however, differ in this regard; it is the distinguishing feature of "Mormonism" that all these sacred ordinances must be performed by men who have been endowed with power from on high. These men perform the ordinances, not in their own power, not by their own volition, not by their own appointment, but because they have been called of God and endowed with His divine authority. Were it not for this distinguishing feature "Mormonism" would be no better than all the other 'isms of the world, but because of this it stands out as the work of God in contradistinction to all the other faiths of the world. That is not saying that there are not millions of good people in all the world; it is not saying that there may not be honest and. sincere souls in every denomination. It merely proclaims the truth that God has but one church upon the earth, and He has blessed and endowed that church with power from on high, and calls men to minister in His name, and that which they do by that divine appointment will be recognized of Him just the same as if He did it Himself. But when men call themselves to such holy and sacred callings, and perform these ordinances in their own authority and by their own appointment, they will not be recognized by our Heavenly Father, but only that shall be recognized which God Himself shall institute among the children of men.
We do not say these things boastfully, but we merely bear witness to them because it is the truth revealed from heaven. It is true that Joseph Smith was a prophet sent of God, and that holy angels administered unto him; that they have conferred upon him the right to act in the name of the Lord. He was the mouthpiece of God unto this generation. Through him the gospel has been restored in all of its primitive purity. Through him the Church of Christ has been established again among the children of men, and all men should know it, and our messengers should go out to proclaim it to the nations of the earth, and let every man and every woman proclaim it at home as well as abroad, whenever they are called to minister in the name of the Lord.
May the Lord help us to be faithful to these callings, and bear in mind that this gospel has the power to liberate us from sin and to make us free. I pray that we may eventually be saved in the kingdom of God, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
My brethren and sisters, when President Smith was addressing the congregation in this Tabernacle,, this morning, I felt a keen interest in the very much afflicted people of Mexico, and I thought, what a blessed privilege it is to live under the stars and stripes in our own beloved country. When I heard and saw, as it was pointed out and painted before us, the awful picture that prevails in that unfortunate country, I thought how happy are we who live under a government, the fundamental law of which was an inspiration unto the founders of this great country. I wonder to what extent the people of our own country appreciate the splendid blessings that we enjoy. To what extent do they appreciate our liberties?
We read in the Scriptures that the whole world lieth in sin, and under the bondage of sin, so, as President Smith pointed out, the true freedom that men and women ought to seek is to be free from the bondage of sin. I believe that there are a great many people who have very erroneous ideas regarding liberty and what is meant by freedom. There are some, no doubt, who think it means the privilege of doing anything they please, a class of people who object to having any restrictions placed upon them whatever. A person cannot be free who does not restrain himself, who does not live under wholesome restriction. Only those are really free who have a control over themselves, and who live in a community where a wholesome restraint is held upon the conduct of their fellow men. If a person felt, and acted accordingly, that he had the right to do whatever he pleases, no man's life would be secure, no one's property would be safe, and very few would have the privilege of pursuing happiness. I love the government of the United States for this fact, that it gives unto its citizens the greatest measure of freedom consistent with the rights of their fellow men, and consistent with right living.
Not very long ago I was visiting one of the stakes of Zion, and we heard of a number of our young men who were about to go out, or had just recently gone out on an irrigation project, to engage in building a ditch. These boys had been brought up under the wholesome restrictions of the gospel, but they were not of the metal that our boys usually are, for these boys, when they went out into this camp life and came in contact with others who were not of our faith, and not under those wholesome restrictions, were influenced by their conduct. These men whom they found in the camp were engaging in the playing of cards, drinking beer, smoking cigarettes, profaning the name of the Lord, and divers other things of this character; and when our boys went out there they were invited: "Come, take a cigarette; have a glass of beer." At first they did not yield to it; they had not been accustomed to habits of that kind. But after a while these others began to taunt them and said. "Oh, take a cigarette. Don't be afraid. You are afraid to say that your souls are your own. Why don't you be free like me?" That was the spirit of the occasion, and, after a while, these boys—weaklings that they were—yielded, and began to indulge in the same habits, because, forsooth, that a bully, with tobacco oozing out of his mouth, said, "Why don't you be free like me?" That was his conception of liberty—-a veritable slave to appetite, and did not know it. He thought he was free, but he was under the bondage of sin, yielding to an unwholesome appetite.
It has been pointed out, very truly, that the gospel, that the truth would make us free. The truth is the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. It has within it the power of God to save souls. It has the power to make us clean, to cleanse and purify our hearts, to rectify our habits, that we may not yield to those things that are harmful to the body; and, if we acquire the power to re- >-iist the bodily appetites, we also acquire the power to resist the tempter in whatever form he may come. We should acquire the power to resist sin, because only those are free who obtain this power, and the gospel has been revealed from heaven that men and women might be liberated from sin. We live in a land of liberty, and how I do rejoice and glory in it. But with all our boasted freedom this nation, in common with other nations of the world, is under the bondage of sin, and we think that we are free, but we are not free until we shall overcome sin, until we shall yield obedience to the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, until the truth will break the shackles of sin and make us free. That is the cry that goes out to the nations of the earth. Let them heed it and know this, that no man is free until he does overcome evil and yield obedience to the truth that has been revealed from heaven. I pray that the Lord will give unto us the power to overcome evil, that He will inspire us with a desire to overcome our own wrong habits, and teach us that we may take an active part in spreading a knowledge of this wholesome truth in all the world.
I endorse with all my soul the remarks of my brethren who have preceded me, and hope that we may engage in the saving of human souls, that our voices may be heard in defense of the truth and in the proclamation of the fact that God has spoken from heaven and restored, in the day and age in which we live, His everlasting gospel, the Only gospel that ever was proclaimed among the children of men that had within it the power of God unto salvation. This gospel lays hold upon the lives of the children of men. It teaches them to do those things that will cleanse and purify them and liberate them from this terrible bondage. It should incline the hearts of the children of men unto God. It teaches first and foremost faith in God. It teaches men and women to turn their hearts to Him, that they may derive wisdom and understanding and the inspiration of His Holy Spirit. It teaches men and women to put their trust in Him, and to acknowledge His hand in all things. "In nothing doth man offend God, or against none is His v.-rath kindled, save those who confess not His hand in all things, and obey not His commandments," not only in our prosperity but in our adversity; not only in our fortune but in our misfortune; not only in life but also in death. What would we be if there was no such thing as sorrow in this world ? What would men and women be in character? They would be unsympathetic; they would not love their fellow men; they would not have those fine traits of character, those noble qualities of heart and of mind, were it not for the fact of the trials they have to endure, the adversit}^ that they have to put up with, and the difficulties they have to encounter. We would not progress; we would not be progressive beings if it were so; but thank the Lord that His hand is in all these things. Those things which sometimes seem to be our greatest sorrows will be sanctified for our good, and often have the purpose in the wisdom of the Almighty of bringing us nearer to Him. The one thing for us always to remember is the Lord our God, and recognize His hand in all things, and if we will do that every misfortune, every difficulty that may come to us, every adversity that overtakes us, will be a blessing though it be in disguise, for nothing of our experiences in mortal life will be in vain; all will have its purpose and all will go to make up our character.
After all, the success of this life is not measured at the end of it by what we have, but rather by what we are, and that is what we want to remember. This gospel teaches us to repent of sin j,nd turn away from evil, to cleanse and purify our hearts. This gospel leads us to seek forgiveness of sin in the waters of baptism, that they may be washed away in the blood of the Lamb of God, that we may be approved of our Heavenly Father, and that we may be in a condition that His Holy Spirit may be conferred upon us through the laying on of the hands of His servants, duly appointed, duly authorized to act in His name. And this is the distinguishing feature of this gospel, that the ordinances thereof, that these performances are done by men who have been endowed with power from on high. This principle of faith is world-wide, is taught in every denomination that you can find throughout the land. Likewise is the principle of repentance; and although they may consider them in a different light from what we do, nevertheless in their general expression they believe in these principles. Many of them believe in baptism. They may not regard it as essential to salvation, but in a general way they will accept of that holy. ordinance as being a part of their faith. They, however, differ in this regard; it is the distinguishing feature of "Mormonism" that all these sacred ordinances must be performed by men who have been endowed with power from on high. These men perform the ordinances, not in their own power, not by their own volition, not by their own appointment, but because they have been called of God and endowed with His divine authority. Were it not for this distinguishing feature "Mormonism" would be no better than all the other 'isms of the world, but because of this it stands out as the work of God in contradistinction to all the other faiths of the world. That is not saying that there are not millions of good people in all the world; it is not saying that there may not be honest and. sincere souls in every denomination. It merely proclaims the truth that God has but one church upon the earth, and He has blessed and endowed that church with power from on high, and calls men to minister in His name, and that which they do by that divine appointment will be recognized of Him just the same as if He did it Himself. But when men call themselves to such holy and sacred callings, and perform these ordinances in their own authority and by their own appointment, they will not be recognized by our Heavenly Father, but only that shall be recognized which God Himself shall institute among the children of men.
We do not say these things boastfully, but we merely bear witness to them because it is the truth revealed from heaven. It is true that Joseph Smith was a prophet sent of God, and that holy angels administered unto him; that they have conferred upon him the right to act in the name of the Lord. He was the mouthpiece of God unto this generation. Through him the gospel has been restored in all of its primitive purity. Through him the Church of Christ has been established again among the children of men, and all men should know it, and our messengers should go out to proclaim it to the nations of the earth, and let every man and every woman proclaim it at home as well as abroad, whenever they are called to minister in the name of the Lord.
May the Lord help us to be faithful to these callings, and bear in mind that this gospel has the power to liberate us from sin and to make us free. I pray that we may eventually be saved in the kingdom of God, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
ELDER J. GOLDEN KIMBALL.
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
I will begin by reading a few words from, the Prophet Joseph Smith's sayings. He said: "I want the liberty of thinking and believing as I please. It feels so good not to be trammeled." I don't know whether I am able to make myself clear. Not long ago I had one of my friends—he was a good friend, too, president of a stake—he said: "Brother Kimball, you don't make yourself clear." Well, I don't know of any man on earth that ever did, so all people could understand aright. The Savior seemed unable, sometimes, to get His children to understand just what He meant, although He was very clear in the doctrine which He. preached. I know I have some friends who do not believe in the way I get at it, but I am not trying to please all of them, because that is absolutely an impossibility, so I have given it up. My temperament is such that I cannot say anything inspiring, or bubble with enthusiasm, and be clear, happy, or joyous, if I have to wear a restraining collar and cater to popular sentiments. I would like my preaching to have color, thrill. feel homelike, and revive old memories, and myself feel free as a colt in a pasture. Now, if I can't feel that way among the Latter-day Saints, where on earth can I go that I will feel free ?
For the past month or so, I have been reading political platforms, and promises, and pledges enough to last the people of these United States for a thousand years, if they are carried out. (Laughter.) I don't believe in making many promises or pledges, but when you do make them, and issue a platform, I say try and live up to it. I have a platform on which my feet are placed, and I hope they are planted on a rock foundation, so that when the storms come and trouble finds its way amongst us, that I can discern the difference between truth and error, between light and darkness. This is my platform: My faith is that God is the Father of all, and Christ is the Redeemer and Helper of all. I believe in Christ's religion as He taught it; and I discover that H'" doctrines never change. I further believe that Joseph Smith is a Prophet of God, and that this is the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, as revealed by the Savior and His authorized servants to the Prophet, Joseph Smith; that the Priesthood of God is the Constitution of the Church, and the present living prophets, and those associated with them, are true disciples of Christ, devoted to the interests of the people. I hope, brethren, you believe that this is my platform. I hope my long pilgrimage in this Church has impressed you that I am honest, earnest, and fervent in my convictions; that I have implicit and perfect confidence in God and in His Son Jesus Christ. God rises above men. We are like Him, but He is perfect and that is why 1 have faith in Him, knowing that I will be rewarded for all of my faithful labors, and for all of my mistakes I will have to be responsible.
Brethren and sisters, I have been thinking for quite a while about certain things, and I have been boiling it down, like my father used to boil down the sugar cane juice, until I have got it down to about what I want to say to you today. Jesus Christ found a certain class of people when He came on the earth, a class who were doing a great deal of mischief among the children of men. If I were to put up an appeal to the Lord for the present generation, I would say, "Give us MEN, men like our fathers, and women like our mothers, men and women who had faith in God, whose religion was love and sacrifice, and who were willing to lay down everything for God." They were men who were clean; who were pure; who were courageous, and who were not afraid to do right when they knew it was right. Now, that is the kind of men we. want. That is the kind of men we hope that our children will be. But, there is another class of men, I call them Half-Way Men; I pray God I may never be found among them. I would rather be dead than to be numbered among half-way men, persons who have plaster cast ex-. pressions on their faces, and are without hearts, without souls, without love and bigness. They are the hypocritical class, such as were found among men when Jesus was on the earth. They have the gall and nerve to want everything on earth as a reward for their assumed generosity. They call it alms-giving or helping the poor; some call it religion, but that is a misnomer. That kind of people are a spineless class, self-righteous, intolerant, and the cause of endless mischief. They never fight in the open. "They are demagogues and place hunters. They are perched upon every anthill, croaking out their stump speeches for this or for that man to hold office. They never give it a thought whether such a man will do good for the people or not." They are parasites who fed and fatten upon the people. "They want us to beat in the brush while they bag the game." Some of this is not original, but it is mighty good. (Laughter.) When it comes to self-sacrifice, fighting for the truth, they are like the dying man who was asked b}^ the minister, "Will you denounce the devil and all his workings?" The dying man looked up in a feeble and distressed way and said, "Please don't ask me to do that. I am going to a strange country, and I don't want to make any enemies." (Laughter.) "Rock-a-bye baby in the tree top" won't work out our problems. There is no use crying "All is well in Zion," because it is not true. The question is, who is for God and who is against Him? This puts me in mind of another story. In the midst of an election in Denver, a little girl sat in a church with her suffragette mother, listening to a minister who was preaching with much earnestness and emphatic gestures. When he had finished the little girl turned to her mother and asked: "Mother, was he for or against God?"
Now, we want to know who you are for. When we speak to the present generation we ask: Are we to be molded by our environment and tainted with the money devil, besmirched with graft and commercialism, swallowed up body and soul with political questions? Are we to be vanquished like the red men, forced to the wall and crushed into bent-backed humility and dull-eyed appreh'ension, and accept such a fate with grim stoicism and cease to try to avert our impending doom?
The "Mormon" people are a valuable heritage to the race. We have had physical vigor, which must be one of the foundations for the mental strength of any lasting race of people. Our lives have been ruled lay high impulses. There is only a generation or two between us and our pioneer fathers and mothers. It is physically impossible for this type of man to be produced in any other way than developing the possibilities of this splendidly endowed earth. Buckskin men are not developed indoors. We cannot evolve men like Washington, Boone, George Rogers, David Crockett, Joseph Smith the Prophet, Brigham Young, or the other pioneers, under the present environment and educational system. "We run our children through a course of, education covering from eight to twelve years, then they are turned loose and called educated."
Our children need to be taught the great problems of the day, the schools should be ringing with the hammer strokes of the world's work shops, the children will thus become trained citizens of the republic. Our citizens will hereafter be studying and battling as heroically for their civic and industrial liberties as their forefathers, the war patriots, battled for war ideals.
This generation has had too much ease, too much money, too much pleasure. They have lived upon milk and honey when they ought to have been fed on bread, cresses, and cold water, and slept in the mountains. I am sorry my children have not lived on the kind of food I was brought up on; then they would have more backbone. We should adopt a policy to stiffen their backbones, if necessary, feed them on "raw meat, cayenne pepper and green cactus diet." This world was not made just to hold people imbued with selfishness and unhappiness, with no ambition beyond eating, drinking and begetting. We ought to plan ahead, have some purpose, that is truly living. "Life means opportunity. I^ife means development. Life well spent means knowledge, growth, simplicity of life and complexity of thought."
"The day of the Laodicians is past, because they are lukewarm and neither cold nor hot," said the voice that spoke on the Isle of Patmos, "I will spue thee out of my mouth." "There are whole men whose mere bodies are in shameful service," because of the character of their employment they do not have freedom; they do not have liberty like the "Mormon" people do who as a rule, own, and work the soil, but are half-men, like the Laodicians, servile souls, and I sometimes feel they are an encumbrance to the earth.
Now, my brethren and sisters, with the help of the Lord, let us endeavor to uplift the present generation, that they may have breathed into them the spirit of their forefathers, that they may have courage to resist evil,live a better and cleaner life, find out what is right and then stay with it. Unless this generation will get the spirit of our forefathers, what can God do to preserve the Constitution? Unless the children of this nation rise up and get away from the bondage and serfdom of luxury, of ease, of comfort— you can't evolve true men with that kind of environment—it can't be done. That is the appeal I make to the present generation; I tell you, God can do nothing with a "half-way man." You never saw one of them in your life that gave evidence of a yellow streak in him that ever amounted to anything. I sent one of my sons to do a certain thing. He did not get what he went after, but he held up his colors and fought to a finish. There never has been a time in my life when I was so proud of my boy; he did not show the yellow streak. That is the way I feel towards the kingdom of God. I don't know of a man in all the world that I could sustain easier than he who has fought his way up these mountains and over the valleys, through hardships, sufferings and privations, like the President of this Church has. If any man on this earth has a right to his position today, and has earned it, he is the man; and there are others with him. I was conversing with a prominent stranger yesterday, and he told me he was prejudiced when he came here, and I said: "I wish you had known our leading men, I wish you had been acquainted with Brigham Young, and Heber C. Kimball, you would 'have liked them." He said, "Do you think so ?" I replied, "I know you would or else you are not a man like I am." (Laughter.)
I pray God to bless you, my brethren and sisters. I may be near the finish of my labor, but let it come and let come weal or woe, life or death, if God will give me His Spirit, and I retain the courage of my convictions, I will be true to God and defend the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day .Saints. The Lord bless you. Amen.
President Joseph F. Smith made announcements, including a notice that members of the Church attending Conference, who need lodgings, or board, could receive entertainment by applying to the committee acting under direction of the Presidents of Salt Lake City Stakes.
The 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.
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Melvin J. Ballard.
Conference adjourned until Saturday, Oct. 5th, at 10 a. m.
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
I will begin by reading a few words from, the Prophet Joseph Smith's sayings. He said: "I want the liberty of thinking and believing as I please. It feels so good not to be trammeled." I don't know whether I am able to make myself clear. Not long ago I had one of my friends—he was a good friend, too, president of a stake—he said: "Brother Kimball, you don't make yourself clear." Well, I don't know of any man on earth that ever did, so all people could understand aright. The Savior seemed unable, sometimes, to get His children to understand just what He meant, although He was very clear in the doctrine which He. preached. I know I have some friends who do not believe in the way I get at it, but I am not trying to please all of them, because that is absolutely an impossibility, so I have given it up. My temperament is such that I cannot say anything inspiring, or bubble with enthusiasm, and be clear, happy, or joyous, if I have to wear a restraining collar and cater to popular sentiments. I would like my preaching to have color, thrill. feel homelike, and revive old memories, and myself feel free as a colt in a pasture. Now, if I can't feel that way among the Latter-day Saints, where on earth can I go that I will feel free ?
For the past month or so, I have been reading political platforms, and promises, and pledges enough to last the people of these United States for a thousand years, if they are carried out. (Laughter.) I don't believe in making many promises or pledges, but when you do make them, and issue a platform, I say try and live up to it. I have a platform on which my feet are placed, and I hope they are planted on a rock foundation, so that when the storms come and trouble finds its way amongst us, that I can discern the difference between truth and error, between light and darkness. This is my platform: My faith is that God is the Father of all, and Christ is the Redeemer and Helper of all. I believe in Christ's religion as He taught it; and I discover that H'" doctrines never change. I further believe that Joseph Smith is a Prophet of God, and that this is the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, as revealed by the Savior and His authorized servants to the Prophet, Joseph Smith; that the Priesthood of God is the Constitution of the Church, and the present living prophets, and those associated with them, are true disciples of Christ, devoted to the interests of the people. I hope, brethren, you believe that this is my platform. I hope my long pilgrimage in this Church has impressed you that I am honest, earnest, and fervent in my convictions; that I have implicit and perfect confidence in God and in His Son Jesus Christ. God rises above men. We are like Him, but He is perfect and that is why 1 have faith in Him, knowing that I will be rewarded for all of my faithful labors, and for all of my mistakes I will have to be responsible.
Brethren and sisters, I have been thinking for quite a while about certain things, and I have been boiling it down, like my father used to boil down the sugar cane juice, until I have got it down to about what I want to say to you today. Jesus Christ found a certain class of people when He came on the earth, a class who were doing a great deal of mischief among the children of men. If I were to put up an appeal to the Lord for the present generation, I would say, "Give us MEN, men like our fathers, and women like our mothers, men and women who had faith in God, whose religion was love and sacrifice, and who were willing to lay down everything for God." They were men who were clean; who were pure; who were courageous, and who were not afraid to do right when they knew it was right. Now, that is the kind of men we. want. That is the kind of men we hope that our children will be. But, there is another class of men, I call them Half-Way Men; I pray God I may never be found among them. I would rather be dead than to be numbered among half-way men, persons who have plaster cast ex-. pressions on their faces, and are without hearts, without souls, without love and bigness. They are the hypocritical class, such as were found among men when Jesus was on the earth. They have the gall and nerve to want everything on earth as a reward for their assumed generosity. They call it alms-giving or helping the poor; some call it religion, but that is a misnomer. That kind of people are a spineless class, self-righteous, intolerant, and the cause of endless mischief. They never fight in the open. "They are demagogues and place hunters. They are perched upon every anthill, croaking out their stump speeches for this or for that man to hold office. They never give it a thought whether such a man will do good for the people or not." They are parasites who fed and fatten upon the people. "They want us to beat in the brush while they bag the game." Some of this is not original, but it is mighty good. (Laughter.) When it comes to self-sacrifice, fighting for the truth, they are like the dying man who was asked b}^ the minister, "Will you denounce the devil and all his workings?" The dying man looked up in a feeble and distressed way and said, "Please don't ask me to do that. I am going to a strange country, and I don't want to make any enemies." (Laughter.) "Rock-a-bye baby in the tree top" won't work out our problems. There is no use crying "All is well in Zion," because it is not true. The question is, who is for God and who is against Him? This puts me in mind of another story. In the midst of an election in Denver, a little girl sat in a church with her suffragette mother, listening to a minister who was preaching with much earnestness and emphatic gestures. When he had finished the little girl turned to her mother and asked: "Mother, was he for or against God?"
Now, we want to know who you are for. When we speak to the present generation we ask: Are we to be molded by our environment and tainted with the money devil, besmirched with graft and commercialism, swallowed up body and soul with political questions? Are we to be vanquished like the red men, forced to the wall and crushed into bent-backed humility and dull-eyed appreh'ension, and accept such a fate with grim stoicism and cease to try to avert our impending doom?
The "Mormon" people are a valuable heritage to the race. We have had physical vigor, which must be one of the foundations for the mental strength of any lasting race of people. Our lives have been ruled lay high impulses. There is only a generation or two between us and our pioneer fathers and mothers. It is physically impossible for this type of man to be produced in any other way than developing the possibilities of this splendidly endowed earth. Buckskin men are not developed indoors. We cannot evolve men like Washington, Boone, George Rogers, David Crockett, Joseph Smith the Prophet, Brigham Young, or the other pioneers, under the present environment and educational system. "We run our children through a course of, education covering from eight to twelve years, then they are turned loose and called educated."
Our children need to be taught the great problems of the day, the schools should be ringing with the hammer strokes of the world's work shops, the children will thus become trained citizens of the republic. Our citizens will hereafter be studying and battling as heroically for their civic and industrial liberties as their forefathers, the war patriots, battled for war ideals.
This generation has had too much ease, too much money, too much pleasure. They have lived upon milk and honey when they ought to have been fed on bread, cresses, and cold water, and slept in the mountains. I am sorry my children have not lived on the kind of food I was brought up on; then they would have more backbone. We should adopt a policy to stiffen their backbones, if necessary, feed them on "raw meat, cayenne pepper and green cactus diet." This world was not made just to hold people imbued with selfishness and unhappiness, with no ambition beyond eating, drinking and begetting. We ought to plan ahead, have some purpose, that is truly living. "Life means opportunity. I^ife means development. Life well spent means knowledge, growth, simplicity of life and complexity of thought."
"The day of the Laodicians is past, because they are lukewarm and neither cold nor hot," said the voice that spoke on the Isle of Patmos, "I will spue thee out of my mouth." "There are whole men whose mere bodies are in shameful service," because of the character of their employment they do not have freedom; they do not have liberty like the "Mormon" people do who as a rule, own, and work the soil, but are half-men, like the Laodicians, servile souls, and I sometimes feel they are an encumbrance to the earth.
Now, my brethren and sisters, with the help of the Lord, let us endeavor to uplift the present generation, that they may have breathed into them the spirit of their forefathers, that they may have courage to resist evil,live a better and cleaner life, find out what is right and then stay with it. Unless this generation will get the spirit of our forefathers, what can God do to preserve the Constitution? Unless the children of this nation rise up and get away from the bondage and serfdom of luxury, of ease, of comfort— you can't evolve true men with that kind of environment—it can't be done. That is the appeal I make to the present generation; I tell you, God can do nothing with a "half-way man." You never saw one of them in your life that gave evidence of a yellow streak in him that ever amounted to anything. I sent one of my sons to do a certain thing. He did not get what he went after, but he held up his colors and fought to a finish. There never has been a time in my life when I was so proud of my boy; he did not show the yellow streak. That is the way I feel towards the kingdom of God. I don't know of a man in all the world that I could sustain easier than he who has fought his way up these mountains and over the valleys, through hardships, sufferings and privations, like the President of this Church has. If any man on this earth has a right to his position today, and has earned it, he is the man; and there are others with him. I was conversing with a prominent stranger yesterday, and he told me he was prejudiced when he came here, and I said: "I wish you had known our leading men, I wish you had been acquainted with Brigham Young, and Heber C. Kimball, you would 'have liked them." He said, "Do you think so ?" I replied, "I know you would or else you are not a man like I am." (Laughter.)
I pray God to bless you, my brethren and sisters. I may be near the finish of my labor, but let it come and let come weal or woe, life or death, if God will give me His Spirit, and I retain the courage of my convictions, I will be true to God and defend the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day .Saints. The Lord bless you. Amen.
President Joseph F. Smith made announcements, including a notice that members of the Church attending Conference, who need lodgings, or board, could receive entertainment by applying to the committee acting under direction of the Presidents of Salt Lake City Stakes.
The 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.
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Melvin J. Ballard.
Conference adjourned until Saturday, Oct. 5th, at 10 a. m.
SECOND DAY.
In the Tabernacle, Saturday, October 5th, 10 a. m.
Conference was called to order by President Joseph F. Smith.
The 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 John L. Herrick.
The 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.
In the Tabernacle, Saturday, October 5th, 10 a. m.
Conference was called to order by President Joseph F. Smith.
The 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 John L. Herrick.
The 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.
ELDER BRIGHAM H. ROBERTS.
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
I wish I knew who it was that said, "In essentials let there be unity; in non-essentials, liberty; and in all things, charity." But if 1 ever knew who said it I cannot now remember who it was, and I don't know that it matters, because the beauty and truth of the utterance is self-evident. It is one of those things which the world has accepted into its literature as being true and sensible, and it matters little who said it since it does not require other authority than the thing itself to commend it to men.
Listening as I have at least in some of the meetings of this conference to the discourse of my brethren, I have felt to rejoice in a knowledge of the fact that so far as essentials, absolute and positive essentials, are concerned, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints stands on very firm and solid ground. We do know the things that concern the salvation of men. We know of God: not only of the fact of His being, but the kind of being He is, because He is fully revealed in the person and character of the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is God manifested in the flesh. He is the Son of God, and as He was and is, so too, is the Father. As He acted and taught so the Father would have acted and taught had He come among men. The Lord Jesus Christ is not only the express image of the Father's person, and the brightness of the Father's glory, as the scriptures declare, but also He is a complete revelation of God, of all that is divine. So that we know God through the revelation of Himself in the person of Jesus Christ; and that the Father and the Son and the spirit-personage known as the Holy Ghost, constitute the supreme godhead for us men, to whom we owe allegiance; to whom we submit our judgment and our will, for this alone is true worship. We know these divine personages also through their chief functions. The Father primarily is Creator. The Son primarily is the Revelator of God, and the Redeemer of men; and the Holy Spirit is God's witness of the Father and of the Son, and of all truth, the whole volume of it; the divine Witness for God to the souls of men. Whatever divisions and opposite opinions may exist in the world concerning the Godhead, the Latter-day Saints are so blessed that there is perfect and absolute unity with reference to this great central truth of the' Christian religion.
We are equally at one in relation to the great fact of human redemption; we know that we are redeemed from the consequences of Adam's transgression through the atonement of the Christ, without condition, so far as that mere fact is concerned, that is without condition on our part; for as in Adam all died, even so in the Christ will all be made alive. We are redeemed from the consequences of our individual sins and transgressions also by acceptance of the atonement of the Christ; and by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the gospel; and we know, from the revelations of God, without any doubt whatsoever, what those laws and ordinances are. We know that we must signify our acceptance of the atonement of the Christ by submitting to and performing the symbols of the atonement in our baptism; symbolizing therein the death and the resurrection of the Christ; and in confirmation by the laying on of hands we receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Being brought by that ordinance and a right disposition into complete fellowship with the Holy Ghost—to have Him for friend and guide and witness of the truth in our souls.
In order to keep in memory the covenants and obligations that we make, we repeat these symbols of the atonement in partaking of the holy sacrament; partaking of the broken bread in remembrance of the broken body of the Christ; partaking of the water or the wine in memory of the shed blood of the Christ, witnessing unto the Father that we will always remember Him, and keep His commandments that He has given us; in order that we might have all this crowned with the realization of that beautiful and splendid promise, that we shall have His Spirit always to be with us.
In all these matters there is absolute, and must continue to be absolute unity among the Saints. There can be no variation. There can be no alteration. .There can be no detraction from nor addition to these things. They are essential. We know also that these ordinances of the gospel are to be performed, and can only be performed properly by those who have received divine commission from God, who hold divine authority. God has made of His Church a depository of His truth, and has commissioned that Church with a divine authority to teach, in the power and demonstration of His Spirit, these essential truths to all the inhabitants of the earth, our mission extending to every nation and kindred and tongue and people under the whole heaven—a universal church with a universal mission. In these essential things we are united. We know also that in addition to this commission received of God to teach the truth, it is the mission of the Church to perfect the lives of those who receive the truth she teaches; and that through teaching, persuasion. patience, and long suffering. Such, in brief, is the mission of the Church of Christ; and we are united with reference to all these things. And not only are we united "in relation to these things—these essentials—but in relation to the moral law of the gospel, the ethics of the Church of Christ, and of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I think there exists no ground for division in relation to the law of righteousness. We know the law of righteousness— I had almost said, perfectly well; at least there is no ground for serious division among us in respect of what is truth, and justice, and righteousness, and morality in all things, and in all relations.
The Latter-day Saints are a blest people. There does exist—I was about to say there can exist, but I would rather say there does exist — perfect unity in relation to all these essentials; in regard to the faith we have received, in regard to the dispensation of the fulness of times which God has revealed in these days unto us. And so I rejoice in these blessings, and can look forward with perfect confidence that in all these great and essential things, touching the salvation of men, the Church of Christ will remain absolutely united. Belief in and acceptance of these things are essential to the unity and integrity and the very existence of the Church.
Now, when you contemplate that other division, the non-essentials, here you have a field wherein liberty should exist; wherein should exist tolerance: tolerance in our social relations and activities, in our commercial affairs, and in industrial pursuits; in the sphere of civil government. These things in which the judgment of men may be exercised, and where it is merely a question, perhaps, of policy, or of administration. If only we can infuse into this sphere of the non-essentials, where one man's judgment may be as good as another's, if in that field we can only bring in the principle of charity, and of tolerance and the recognition of the liberty of all men, it seems to me then we shall have good reason to believe that in this sphere of nonessentials, we shall get along quite as happily as we may in the field where we are united in reference to absolute essentials. I believe that we are entitled to take an optimistic view with reference to these matters that make up the sphere of non-essentials; and especially in relation to the sphere of civil government. There is a passage in the Book of Mormon that to me has been very instructive, and also very encouraging. I think I will read to you this passage, since some of you may possibly have missed it. It occurs in the Book of Mosiah, where there is described a transition from a monarchial form of government to a reign of judges, which in reality was a sort of republic, or rule by the people. The value of this passage that I shall read is in that it expresses confidence in the ability of the people to rule, to govern themselves; and this inspired man, Mosiah, calls upon them to exercise that duty, and to do it in the fear of God. In recommending the changes in the form of the Nephite government, he said:
"Therefore choose you by the voice of this people judges, that ye may be judged according to the laws which have been given you by our Fathers, which are correct, and which were given them by the hand of the Lord. Now, it is not common that the voice of the people desireth anything contrary to that which is right; but it is common for the lesser part of the people to desire that which is not right. Therefore this shall ye observe, and make it your law, to do your business by the voice of the people. And if the time comes that the voice of the people doth choose iniquity, then is the time that the judgments of God will come upon you, then is the time He will visit you with great 'destruction even as he hath hitherto visited this land. * * * And I command you to do these things in the fear of the Lord, and I command you to do these things, and that ye have no kings; that if this people commit sins and iniquities they shall be answered upon their own heads, for behold I say unto you, the sins of many people have been caused by the iniquities of their kings. Therefore their iniquities are answered upon the heads of their kings. And now I desire that this iniquity should be no more in this land, especially among this my people; but I desire that this land be a land of liberty, and every man may enjoy his rights and privileges alike, so long as the Lord sees fit that we may live and inherit the land, yea, even as long as any of our posterity remains upon the face of the land."
To my mind Joseph Smith, in bringing forth that principle through the Book of Mormon—the principle of personal, moral, responsibility to God for the government that obtains in free republics —has contributed one of the mightiest thoughts to the political life of the age in which he lived, that any man has brought forth in all the contributions that have been made to political thought in America. Patrick Henry's idea that men had an inherent right to rebel against insufferable tyranny is not equal to it. Jefferson's great doctrine of the Declaration of Independence, that all men are created equal, and that they are endowed with the inalienable rights of life and liberty and the pursuit of happiness, is not greater than this Book of Mormon doctrine. Webster's great contribution of "nationalism," viz., that this nation was an indestructible union of indestructible states, is not superior to it. And Lincoln's great thought, that the principle of the Declaration of Independence, that all men are of right free, must hold good as to the colored race as well as to the white race, does not surpass it. Because this great Book of Mormon thought is this: that while governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed, there goes with that the awful, moral responsibility, direct to God, of every man and woman participating as sovereigns in a free government, for the kind of government that obtains in such country. The great doctrine of direct, moral responsibility to God of a free people is indeed a soul-inspiring utterance, but it is also an awe-inspiring condition, and on its face bears evidence of the divine source whence it comes.
It was upon this principle of confidence in the ability of the people to govern themselves that the Lord inspired those whom we call the "fathers of our republic," the founders of the constitution—it was upon this great principle of belief in the ability in the people for self-government, that the corner stones of this republic were laid. Governments were announced in the Declaration of Independence to be the creatures of the people; and indeed it was further announced in the Declaration of Independence— and you must remember that the Declaration of Independence is the preface to the Constitution, the Constitution merely organized agencies for carrying out the principles of liberty announced in the document known as the Declaration of Independence—it is announced, I say, that if governments become destructive of the liberties and rights of the people, it is the right of the people to alter or even abolish them, and institute new forms that shall, in their judgment, tend better to preserve their rights and their liberties.
Upon this subject I desire to read to you one declaration of President Brigham Young, who had some reputation for constructive statesmanship and intelligent grasp of things. In this document before me I might possibly read to you things which in our present status might be regarded as somewhat startling, but I do not desire to do that. I would rather not bring confusion, but peace; and since I am a man of peace, and desire it with all my heart —that is, that peace which is consistent with human liberty, and the preservation of human rights. But dear as peace is to me, it is not so dear that I would purchase it at the sacrifice of human rights and human liberty. But I read to you that which I am sure we will all be in accord with. "The general constitution of our country," said Brigham Young, "is good; and a wholesome government could be founded upon it; for it was dictated by the invisible operations of the Almighty. God's purpose in raising up these men and inspiring them with daring sufficient to surmount every opposing power, was to prepare the way for the formation of a true republican government. They laid the foundation, but when others came to build upon it they reared a superstructure far short of their privileges, if they had walked uprightly as they should have, done. * * * * The signers of the Declaration of Independence and the framers of the Constitution were inspired from on high to do that work. But was that which was given to them perfect, not admitting of any addition whatever? No; for if men know anything they must know that the Almighty never yet found a man in mortality that was capable at the fir.st intimation, at the first impulse, to receive anything in a state of entire perfection. They laid the foundation, and it was for after generations to rear the superstructure upon it. It is a progressive and gradual work."
I think it is divine wisdom manifested in the Constitution of our country that provision is made for its amendment, from time to time, as experience and larger views and changing conditions may warrant. However, upon this subject of change in the Constitution, I believe that the conservative spirit should prevail; that care, and very great concern ought to be exercised with reference to change in the fundamental law of our government; but let us not think because we believe in the great truth that the Constitution of our country was the product of divine inspiration, that new conditions and a constantly changing status would not warrant, .from time to time, changes in the fundamental law of the land.
Now, in relation to all these matters, we are operating in the realm of the non-essentials, that is, the realm where human judgment may be exercised; and where men may not be able to come to absolute unity of understanding in relation to matters, and in that event, let us remember that it is the realm where liberty and tolerance prevail, and it is proper that charity also should abound.
I thank the Lord and the brethren for this opportunity of saying so much in relation to these questions that are occupying the attention of the people. I rejoice that in the great field of the things which are essential, that the Lord has spoken, and that there is ground for absolute unity existing among us; and I sincerely trust that for this other field, in the realm of non-essentials, there will be liberty, and tolerance; and in both—in the exercise and administration of both essentials and in the realm of liberty—the great principle of charity—which is the pure love of God—may abound.
In conclusion, my brethren and sisters, let me once more bear witness to you of the truth of the great latter day work, and proclaim once more my love and devotion for it. I love the gospel of Jesus Christ. I believe and accept it with all my heart. If it is possible for the consciousness of man to be awakened to a knowledge of the truth of a thing, then I know, as I know I live, that God lives; that Jesus is the Christ that men can form a companionship with the Holy Ghost; that forgiveness of sin is true; that the resurrection from the dead is a true doctrine; that the divinity of the "Church is beyond question: that the power of the Holy Priesthood is divine: and that man may hope for immortality and eternal life in the realms of freedom under the law of God. I testify to you that my soul has a witness that all these things are true, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
I wish I knew who it was that said, "In essentials let there be unity; in non-essentials, liberty; and in all things, charity." But if 1 ever knew who said it I cannot now remember who it was, and I don't know that it matters, because the beauty and truth of the utterance is self-evident. It is one of those things which the world has accepted into its literature as being true and sensible, and it matters little who said it since it does not require other authority than the thing itself to commend it to men.
Listening as I have at least in some of the meetings of this conference to the discourse of my brethren, I have felt to rejoice in a knowledge of the fact that so far as essentials, absolute and positive essentials, are concerned, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints stands on very firm and solid ground. We do know the things that concern the salvation of men. We know of God: not only of the fact of His being, but the kind of being He is, because He is fully revealed in the person and character of the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is God manifested in the flesh. He is the Son of God, and as He was and is, so too, is the Father. As He acted and taught so the Father would have acted and taught had He come among men. The Lord Jesus Christ is not only the express image of the Father's person, and the brightness of the Father's glory, as the scriptures declare, but also He is a complete revelation of God, of all that is divine. So that we know God through the revelation of Himself in the person of Jesus Christ; and that the Father and the Son and the spirit-personage known as the Holy Ghost, constitute the supreme godhead for us men, to whom we owe allegiance; to whom we submit our judgment and our will, for this alone is true worship. We know these divine personages also through their chief functions. The Father primarily is Creator. The Son primarily is the Revelator of God, and the Redeemer of men; and the Holy Spirit is God's witness of the Father and of the Son, and of all truth, the whole volume of it; the divine Witness for God to the souls of men. Whatever divisions and opposite opinions may exist in the world concerning the Godhead, the Latter-day Saints are so blessed that there is perfect and absolute unity with reference to this great central truth of the' Christian religion.
We are equally at one in relation to the great fact of human redemption; we know that we are redeemed from the consequences of Adam's transgression through the atonement of the Christ, without condition, so far as that mere fact is concerned, that is without condition on our part; for as in Adam all died, even so in the Christ will all be made alive. We are redeemed from the consequences of our individual sins and transgressions also by acceptance of the atonement of the Christ; and by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the gospel; and we know, from the revelations of God, without any doubt whatsoever, what those laws and ordinances are. We know that we must signify our acceptance of the atonement of the Christ by submitting to and performing the symbols of the atonement in our baptism; symbolizing therein the death and the resurrection of the Christ; and in confirmation by the laying on of hands we receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Being brought by that ordinance and a right disposition into complete fellowship with the Holy Ghost—to have Him for friend and guide and witness of the truth in our souls.
In order to keep in memory the covenants and obligations that we make, we repeat these symbols of the atonement in partaking of the holy sacrament; partaking of the broken bread in remembrance of the broken body of the Christ; partaking of the water or the wine in memory of the shed blood of the Christ, witnessing unto the Father that we will always remember Him, and keep His commandments that He has given us; in order that we might have all this crowned with the realization of that beautiful and splendid promise, that we shall have His Spirit always to be with us.
In all these matters there is absolute, and must continue to be absolute unity among the Saints. There can be no variation. There can be no alteration. .There can be no detraction from nor addition to these things. They are essential. We know also that these ordinances of the gospel are to be performed, and can only be performed properly by those who have received divine commission from God, who hold divine authority. God has made of His Church a depository of His truth, and has commissioned that Church with a divine authority to teach, in the power and demonstration of His Spirit, these essential truths to all the inhabitants of the earth, our mission extending to every nation and kindred and tongue and people under the whole heaven—a universal church with a universal mission. In these essential things we are united. We know also that in addition to this commission received of God to teach the truth, it is the mission of the Church to perfect the lives of those who receive the truth she teaches; and that through teaching, persuasion. patience, and long suffering. Such, in brief, is the mission of the Church of Christ; and we are united with reference to all these things. And not only are we united "in relation to these things—these essentials—but in relation to the moral law of the gospel, the ethics of the Church of Christ, and of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I think there exists no ground for division in relation to the law of righteousness. We know the law of righteousness— I had almost said, perfectly well; at least there is no ground for serious division among us in respect of what is truth, and justice, and righteousness, and morality in all things, and in all relations.
The Latter-day Saints are a blest people. There does exist—I was about to say there can exist, but I would rather say there does exist — perfect unity in relation to all these essentials; in regard to the faith we have received, in regard to the dispensation of the fulness of times which God has revealed in these days unto us. And so I rejoice in these blessings, and can look forward with perfect confidence that in all these great and essential things, touching the salvation of men, the Church of Christ will remain absolutely united. Belief in and acceptance of these things are essential to the unity and integrity and the very existence of the Church.
Now, when you contemplate that other division, the non-essentials, here you have a field wherein liberty should exist; wherein should exist tolerance: tolerance in our social relations and activities, in our commercial affairs, and in industrial pursuits; in the sphere of civil government. These things in which the judgment of men may be exercised, and where it is merely a question, perhaps, of policy, or of administration. If only we can infuse into this sphere of the non-essentials, where one man's judgment may be as good as another's, if in that field we can only bring in the principle of charity, and of tolerance and the recognition of the liberty of all men, it seems to me then we shall have good reason to believe that in this sphere of nonessentials, we shall get along quite as happily as we may in the field where we are united in reference to absolute essentials. I believe that we are entitled to take an optimistic view with reference to these matters that make up the sphere of non-essentials; and especially in relation to the sphere of civil government. There is a passage in the Book of Mormon that to me has been very instructive, and also very encouraging. I think I will read to you this passage, since some of you may possibly have missed it. It occurs in the Book of Mosiah, where there is described a transition from a monarchial form of government to a reign of judges, which in reality was a sort of republic, or rule by the people. The value of this passage that I shall read is in that it expresses confidence in the ability of the people to rule, to govern themselves; and this inspired man, Mosiah, calls upon them to exercise that duty, and to do it in the fear of God. In recommending the changes in the form of the Nephite government, he said:
"Therefore choose you by the voice of this people judges, that ye may be judged according to the laws which have been given you by our Fathers, which are correct, and which were given them by the hand of the Lord. Now, it is not common that the voice of the people desireth anything contrary to that which is right; but it is common for the lesser part of the people to desire that which is not right. Therefore this shall ye observe, and make it your law, to do your business by the voice of the people. And if the time comes that the voice of the people doth choose iniquity, then is the time that the judgments of God will come upon you, then is the time He will visit you with great 'destruction even as he hath hitherto visited this land. * * * And I command you to do these things in the fear of the Lord, and I command you to do these things, and that ye have no kings; that if this people commit sins and iniquities they shall be answered upon their own heads, for behold I say unto you, the sins of many people have been caused by the iniquities of their kings. Therefore their iniquities are answered upon the heads of their kings. And now I desire that this iniquity should be no more in this land, especially among this my people; but I desire that this land be a land of liberty, and every man may enjoy his rights and privileges alike, so long as the Lord sees fit that we may live and inherit the land, yea, even as long as any of our posterity remains upon the face of the land."
To my mind Joseph Smith, in bringing forth that principle through the Book of Mormon—the principle of personal, moral, responsibility to God for the government that obtains in free republics —has contributed one of the mightiest thoughts to the political life of the age in which he lived, that any man has brought forth in all the contributions that have been made to political thought in America. Patrick Henry's idea that men had an inherent right to rebel against insufferable tyranny is not equal to it. Jefferson's great doctrine of the Declaration of Independence, that all men are created equal, and that they are endowed with the inalienable rights of life and liberty and the pursuit of happiness, is not greater than this Book of Mormon doctrine. Webster's great contribution of "nationalism," viz., that this nation was an indestructible union of indestructible states, is not superior to it. And Lincoln's great thought, that the principle of the Declaration of Independence, that all men are of right free, must hold good as to the colored race as well as to the white race, does not surpass it. Because this great Book of Mormon thought is this: that while governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed, there goes with that the awful, moral responsibility, direct to God, of every man and woman participating as sovereigns in a free government, for the kind of government that obtains in such country. The great doctrine of direct, moral responsibility to God of a free people is indeed a soul-inspiring utterance, but it is also an awe-inspiring condition, and on its face bears evidence of the divine source whence it comes.
It was upon this principle of confidence in the ability of the people to govern themselves that the Lord inspired those whom we call the "fathers of our republic," the founders of the constitution—it was upon this great principle of belief in the ability in the people for self-government, that the corner stones of this republic were laid. Governments were announced in the Declaration of Independence to be the creatures of the people; and indeed it was further announced in the Declaration of Independence— and you must remember that the Declaration of Independence is the preface to the Constitution, the Constitution merely organized agencies for carrying out the principles of liberty announced in the document known as the Declaration of Independence—it is announced, I say, that if governments become destructive of the liberties and rights of the people, it is the right of the people to alter or even abolish them, and institute new forms that shall, in their judgment, tend better to preserve their rights and their liberties.
Upon this subject I desire to read to you one declaration of President Brigham Young, who had some reputation for constructive statesmanship and intelligent grasp of things. In this document before me I might possibly read to you things which in our present status might be regarded as somewhat startling, but I do not desire to do that. I would rather not bring confusion, but peace; and since I am a man of peace, and desire it with all my heart —that is, that peace which is consistent with human liberty, and the preservation of human rights. But dear as peace is to me, it is not so dear that I would purchase it at the sacrifice of human rights and human liberty. But I read to you that which I am sure we will all be in accord with. "The general constitution of our country," said Brigham Young, "is good; and a wholesome government could be founded upon it; for it was dictated by the invisible operations of the Almighty. God's purpose in raising up these men and inspiring them with daring sufficient to surmount every opposing power, was to prepare the way for the formation of a true republican government. They laid the foundation, but when others came to build upon it they reared a superstructure far short of their privileges, if they had walked uprightly as they should have, done. * * * * The signers of the Declaration of Independence and the framers of the Constitution were inspired from on high to do that work. But was that which was given to them perfect, not admitting of any addition whatever? No; for if men know anything they must know that the Almighty never yet found a man in mortality that was capable at the fir.st intimation, at the first impulse, to receive anything in a state of entire perfection. They laid the foundation, and it was for after generations to rear the superstructure upon it. It is a progressive and gradual work."
I think it is divine wisdom manifested in the Constitution of our country that provision is made for its amendment, from time to time, as experience and larger views and changing conditions may warrant. However, upon this subject of change in the Constitution, I believe that the conservative spirit should prevail; that care, and very great concern ought to be exercised with reference to change in the fundamental law of our government; but let us not think because we believe in the great truth that the Constitution of our country was the product of divine inspiration, that new conditions and a constantly changing status would not warrant, .from time to time, changes in the fundamental law of the land.
Now, in relation to all these matters, we are operating in the realm of the non-essentials, that is, the realm where human judgment may be exercised; and where men may not be able to come to absolute unity of understanding in relation to matters, and in that event, let us remember that it is the realm where liberty and tolerance prevail, and it is proper that charity also should abound.
I thank the Lord and the brethren for this opportunity of saying so much in relation to these questions that are occupying the attention of the people. I rejoice that in the great field of the things which are essential, that the Lord has spoken, and that there is ground for absolute unity existing among us; and I sincerely trust that for this other field, in the realm of non-essentials, there will be liberty, and tolerance; and in both—in the exercise and administration of both essentials and in the realm of liberty—the great principle of charity—which is the pure love of God—may abound.
In conclusion, my brethren and sisters, let me once more bear witness to you of the truth of the great latter day work, and proclaim once more my love and devotion for it. I love the gospel of Jesus Christ. I believe and accept it with all my heart. If it is possible for the consciousness of man to be awakened to a knowledge of the truth of a thing, then I know, as I know I live, that God lives; that Jesus is the Christ that men can form a companionship with the Holy Ghost; that forgiveness of sin is true; that the resurrection from the dead is a true doctrine; that the divinity of the "Church is beyond question: that the power of the Holy Priesthood is divine: and that man may hope for immortality and eternal life in the realms of freedom under the law of God. I testify to you that my soul has a witness that all these things are true, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
PRESIDENT SEYMOUR B. YOUNG
(President of First Council of Seventy.)
My brethren and sisters: Indeed I am deeply appreciative of the honor that I have in this privilege of addressing you for a few minutes this morning. I have listened with very much pleasure, and I hope some profit, to the remarks of my brethren, and especially the introductory remarks of our President at the beginning of this conference. A spirit of universal charity, of forbearance and brotherly love, has been characteristic of the speakers on this stand, and I take it that no better theme could be introduced, and that no better thought could be inspired by any other line of doctrine that could be taught.
For the past few days, before the beginning of this our semi-annual conference, I have had the pleasure of being associated with the International Irrigation Congress, meeting with men who seem to be deeply interested in the welfare of these great communities of our western country. The Irrigation Congress brought to this city some very choice men, representatives from about thirty states of the Union, also from Canada, from Old Mexico, from some of the southern republics, and from far distant Japan. These gentlemen were unanimous in expressing their views in regard to the great benefits already attained, and that will be consummated in the future, through irrigation of the arid west, and through the reclamation services in which our great government is taking so prominent a part for the benefit of settlers upon the arid lands of this once desert country. All of those gentlemen that I heard express themselves were in one accord in stating their sincere regard, and appreciation, for the welcome extended to them by the people of our beautiful city, and especially commending the authorities of the "Mormon" church for the splendid reception in this great building, on the first day and the first session of the congress.
The National Irrigation Ode, composed by Prof. J. J. McClellan, and that was rendered here by the excellent band of singers and musicians accompanying; the splendid performance of the choir, under Professor Stephens, all were regarded as efforts that were very fine indeed, arid received from the members of the congress, and from visitors generally, high encomiums, and praise unstinted. I heard one gentleman say, who was a representative from California, "When I listened to the organ recital that was tendered to us by Professor McClellan and heard that touching part in the Pilgrim's Song of Hope, the vox humana, so like to a human voice, it brought tears to my eyes," said he; and many more testified to the pleasure they had.
Sixty-five years ago, the first Anglo-Saxon people introduced irrigation here on this very spot. The "Mormon" pioneers, under Brigham Young, our great pioneer President, started the scheme of irrigation. It was necessary before a plow could be made to enter the soil that the water be turned on to the ground to permeate its hard, encrusted surface, that had been undisturbed for centuries. When the water was thus turned on to the parched, arid soil, then it was possible for the plow-share to penetrate and to turn the furrow, that the seeds might find covering as they were planted. I remember very well hearing President Woodruff say—for he was one among the very first to plant seeds in the ground on this soil—"Why. Brother Young, I could have cried, and so my brethren felt, because we were planting all that we had into an untried soil, and but for our perfect faith in God we would have felt no hope to ever see products from that seed." The selfish thought was that it should not be planted, in order that if the time should come, that life must be preserved, they might be compelled to eat those precious grains of corn, wheat, barley, and vegetables to preserve life. But, their faith was greater than this; it was broad; in fact, unlimited, because the Prophet of God who led them, under the same inspiration that had come to the martyred Prophet Joseph Smith, was prompted to say, "This is the place," and, when he had said that, the brethren planted in faith and the harvest came. The second year, in '48, when the germinating seed was beginning to show green stalks of grain above the surface, then came the swarm of crickets to devastate and destroy wherever they had access to the growing crops. The green fields, after they had passed over, appeared as if a fire had consumed and left its black mark upon every spot of ground visited by these devouring hosts. The people fought them with brush, and by other methods tried to sweep them from the land, or stay them in their progress, but it was an impossibility; they could not be stayed by the hand of man. That was the appearance, that was the thought, and that was really the experience of the people. Saturday night, at midnight, they ceased their labors through sheer fatigue. Sunday morning they assembled, fasting and praying for deliverance, and as they came from their place of worship the heavens were darkened with flocks of wild birds, and some asked the question, "What are these coming now? Are these a new enemy to complete the entire destruction of our labors?" But when the sea-gulls alighted upon the green fields of growing crops they certainly began destruction, not of the crops of the suffering, praying people, but they began and continued to devour the enemy, the black crickets from the mountains, until they had swept the land clean from this formidable foe; then the Saints knew again that God lived, that He had not forsaken them.
The Saints came out from Illinois, from their City Beautiful, Nauvoo. They were given an alternative to deny the faith of the gospel which they had obeyed, and for which they had suffered. They had seen their Prophet and Patriarch martyred for the cause they so manfully maintained. All these distressing things were constantly before their faces, and when the demand was made upon them, by a committee sent by the mob hordes surrounding the city of Nauvoo, either to give up their faith and, as a celebrated congressman has said since, "Be like us, or leave the country, or forfeit your lives." But the men to whom this address was made, the people who heard this alternative, were of the kind of which martyrs are made, and they said, "We cannot relinquish our faith. We know it is of God, we will sacrifice our homes, leave the lands that we have purchased and beautified, and seek a home where less hatred and opposition may exist." I believe that President Brigham Young felt as did our old friend Chief Washakie, when his braves gathered around and said to him, "All of our hunting grounds are gone; the white man has overspread the land and we have no more a place for our abode, where will you lead us now?" The old chief replied, "If I can find a spot so barren, so sterile that not a blade of grass shall grow upon it, and where nothing lies beneath to excite the cupidity of the white race, there would I place your feet, hoping that you might not be driven out." Possibly such a thought entered the heart of our pioneer President, Brigham Young, I have heard more than one of that sturdy band of pioneers say?, "I wept; my heart was full of grief when I beheld the land, the appearance of which was so forbidding, the ground was so sterile." I heard that great pioneer, Wilford Woodruff, say that the little part that they did succeed in turning over before water was turned upon it, was just as dry as ashes fresh from the furnace.
They did not leave the city of Nauvoo to get away from the Constitution of the United States. They brought the love of the Constitution with them, and the record that you have heard quoted today, is proof, if any other proof were needed—and there is plenty of just such all through the history of the pioneers of this great country—that they loved the Constitution, and that they knew and had always taught and accepted it as. a divine truth, that the Constitution was inspired of God. They did not leave Nauvoo to get away from the flag of our country. They brought Old Glory with them, and unfurled it to the breeze upon this land, then Mexican territory, and by that act took possession of the land in the name of our common country. They did not leave the land of their nativity and the land of civilization because they were ashamed of their faith, of their religion, nor did they relinquish the hope that God had planted in their hearts. No, they fled to this western country to be free from persecution and bloodshed. When they arrived impressive services were held; the second day after their feet had trodden this arid desert, they assembled together, and their Prophet leader said to them, "We will dedicate this soil to Almighty. God for the gathering of Israel, for the hope of a peaceful home for our people in all time to come." He said to Elder Orson Pratt, "Brother Pratt, offer our prayer to God, and dedicate this soil to Him for Israel's welfare, say to Him that from all that He giveth to us in the times to come, we will give to Him our tithes and offerings, of all the blessings of the soil, of the herds and flocks, of the orchards and gardens, and here we will build the temple of our God, for the salvation of the living and the dead."
The members of the National Irrigation Congress went away from here imbued with a feeling of gratitude. They expressed their praise and admiration for this people, for the pioneers of this country, for the elegant reception that was tendered to them, and for the use of these great buildings in which they held the sessions of their congress. They have nothing in their hearts today, I believe—for I think they were honest in their expressions— but good will for you, my brethren and sisters, and especially for the Presidency of the Church.
I pray God to bless you, and that He will endow our brethren who lead us in the future as they have been endowed in the past. I testify to you that "Mormonism" is true. It is the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, as testified by one of the mightiest prophets that ever lived, who sealed that testimony with his own blood. Obedience to this Gospel will bring to us salvation and eternal life. I pray God to bless you all forever, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
A duet, "The Crucifix," was rendered by Prof. Hugh Dougal and Miss Mary Haigh.
(President of First Council of Seventy.)
My brethren and sisters: Indeed I am deeply appreciative of the honor that I have in this privilege of addressing you for a few minutes this morning. I have listened with very much pleasure, and I hope some profit, to the remarks of my brethren, and especially the introductory remarks of our President at the beginning of this conference. A spirit of universal charity, of forbearance and brotherly love, has been characteristic of the speakers on this stand, and I take it that no better theme could be introduced, and that no better thought could be inspired by any other line of doctrine that could be taught.
For the past few days, before the beginning of this our semi-annual conference, I have had the pleasure of being associated with the International Irrigation Congress, meeting with men who seem to be deeply interested in the welfare of these great communities of our western country. The Irrigation Congress brought to this city some very choice men, representatives from about thirty states of the Union, also from Canada, from Old Mexico, from some of the southern republics, and from far distant Japan. These gentlemen were unanimous in expressing their views in regard to the great benefits already attained, and that will be consummated in the future, through irrigation of the arid west, and through the reclamation services in which our great government is taking so prominent a part for the benefit of settlers upon the arid lands of this once desert country. All of those gentlemen that I heard express themselves were in one accord in stating their sincere regard, and appreciation, for the welcome extended to them by the people of our beautiful city, and especially commending the authorities of the "Mormon" church for the splendid reception in this great building, on the first day and the first session of the congress.
The National Irrigation Ode, composed by Prof. J. J. McClellan, and that was rendered here by the excellent band of singers and musicians accompanying; the splendid performance of the choir, under Professor Stephens, all were regarded as efforts that were very fine indeed, arid received from the members of the congress, and from visitors generally, high encomiums, and praise unstinted. I heard one gentleman say, who was a representative from California, "When I listened to the organ recital that was tendered to us by Professor McClellan and heard that touching part in the Pilgrim's Song of Hope, the vox humana, so like to a human voice, it brought tears to my eyes," said he; and many more testified to the pleasure they had.
Sixty-five years ago, the first Anglo-Saxon people introduced irrigation here on this very spot. The "Mormon" pioneers, under Brigham Young, our great pioneer President, started the scheme of irrigation. It was necessary before a plow could be made to enter the soil that the water be turned on to the ground to permeate its hard, encrusted surface, that had been undisturbed for centuries. When the water was thus turned on to the parched, arid soil, then it was possible for the plow-share to penetrate and to turn the furrow, that the seeds might find covering as they were planted. I remember very well hearing President Woodruff say—for he was one among the very first to plant seeds in the ground on this soil—"Why. Brother Young, I could have cried, and so my brethren felt, because we were planting all that we had into an untried soil, and but for our perfect faith in God we would have felt no hope to ever see products from that seed." The selfish thought was that it should not be planted, in order that if the time should come, that life must be preserved, they might be compelled to eat those precious grains of corn, wheat, barley, and vegetables to preserve life. But, their faith was greater than this; it was broad; in fact, unlimited, because the Prophet of God who led them, under the same inspiration that had come to the martyred Prophet Joseph Smith, was prompted to say, "This is the place," and, when he had said that, the brethren planted in faith and the harvest came. The second year, in '48, when the germinating seed was beginning to show green stalks of grain above the surface, then came the swarm of crickets to devastate and destroy wherever they had access to the growing crops. The green fields, after they had passed over, appeared as if a fire had consumed and left its black mark upon every spot of ground visited by these devouring hosts. The people fought them with brush, and by other methods tried to sweep them from the land, or stay them in their progress, but it was an impossibility; they could not be stayed by the hand of man. That was the appearance, that was the thought, and that was really the experience of the people. Saturday night, at midnight, they ceased their labors through sheer fatigue. Sunday morning they assembled, fasting and praying for deliverance, and as they came from their place of worship the heavens were darkened with flocks of wild birds, and some asked the question, "What are these coming now? Are these a new enemy to complete the entire destruction of our labors?" But when the sea-gulls alighted upon the green fields of growing crops they certainly began destruction, not of the crops of the suffering, praying people, but they began and continued to devour the enemy, the black crickets from the mountains, until they had swept the land clean from this formidable foe; then the Saints knew again that God lived, that He had not forsaken them.
The Saints came out from Illinois, from their City Beautiful, Nauvoo. They were given an alternative to deny the faith of the gospel which they had obeyed, and for which they had suffered. They had seen their Prophet and Patriarch martyred for the cause they so manfully maintained. All these distressing things were constantly before their faces, and when the demand was made upon them, by a committee sent by the mob hordes surrounding the city of Nauvoo, either to give up their faith and, as a celebrated congressman has said since, "Be like us, or leave the country, or forfeit your lives." But the men to whom this address was made, the people who heard this alternative, were of the kind of which martyrs are made, and they said, "We cannot relinquish our faith. We know it is of God, we will sacrifice our homes, leave the lands that we have purchased and beautified, and seek a home where less hatred and opposition may exist." I believe that President Brigham Young felt as did our old friend Chief Washakie, when his braves gathered around and said to him, "All of our hunting grounds are gone; the white man has overspread the land and we have no more a place for our abode, where will you lead us now?" The old chief replied, "If I can find a spot so barren, so sterile that not a blade of grass shall grow upon it, and where nothing lies beneath to excite the cupidity of the white race, there would I place your feet, hoping that you might not be driven out." Possibly such a thought entered the heart of our pioneer President, Brigham Young, I have heard more than one of that sturdy band of pioneers say?, "I wept; my heart was full of grief when I beheld the land, the appearance of which was so forbidding, the ground was so sterile." I heard that great pioneer, Wilford Woodruff, say that the little part that they did succeed in turning over before water was turned upon it, was just as dry as ashes fresh from the furnace.
They did not leave the city of Nauvoo to get away from the Constitution of the United States. They brought the love of the Constitution with them, and the record that you have heard quoted today, is proof, if any other proof were needed—and there is plenty of just such all through the history of the pioneers of this great country—that they loved the Constitution, and that they knew and had always taught and accepted it as. a divine truth, that the Constitution was inspired of God. They did not leave Nauvoo to get away from the flag of our country. They brought Old Glory with them, and unfurled it to the breeze upon this land, then Mexican territory, and by that act took possession of the land in the name of our common country. They did not leave the land of their nativity and the land of civilization because they were ashamed of their faith, of their religion, nor did they relinquish the hope that God had planted in their hearts. No, they fled to this western country to be free from persecution and bloodshed. When they arrived impressive services were held; the second day after their feet had trodden this arid desert, they assembled together, and their Prophet leader said to them, "We will dedicate this soil to Almighty. God for the gathering of Israel, for the hope of a peaceful home for our people in all time to come." He said to Elder Orson Pratt, "Brother Pratt, offer our prayer to God, and dedicate this soil to Him for Israel's welfare, say to Him that from all that He giveth to us in the times to come, we will give to Him our tithes and offerings, of all the blessings of the soil, of the herds and flocks, of the orchards and gardens, and here we will build the temple of our God, for the salvation of the living and the dead."
The members of the National Irrigation Congress went away from here imbued with a feeling of gratitude. They expressed their praise and admiration for this people, for the pioneers of this country, for the elegant reception that was tendered to them, and for the use of these great buildings in which they held the sessions of their congress. They have nothing in their hearts today, I believe—for I think they were honest in their expressions— but good will for you, my brethren and sisters, and especially for the Presidency of the Church.
I pray God to bless you, and that He will endow our brethren who lead us in the future as they have been endowed in the past. I testify to you that "Mormonism" is true. It is the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, as testified by one of the mightiest prophets that ever lived, who sealed that testimony with his own blood. Obedience to this Gospel will bring to us salvation and eternal life. I pray God to bless you all forever, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
A duet, "The Crucifix," was rendered by Prof. Hugh Dougal and Miss Mary Haigh.
ELDER LEVI EDGAR YOUNG.
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
I have been interested in the words of my brethren in the meeting this morning. I only regret that I did not hear all the words of yesterday. My academic duties at the University of Utah prevented my being in attendance at the conference in the forenoon.
I rejoice in seeing the people. As we all have our favorite themes and thoughts to speak about, I have mine, and the impressive thought that I have this morning is this fact, that no better people ever lived nor lives today, than the Latter- day Saints of the Church of Christ. I believe in you, and- 1 am always grateful when I can meet you, my brethren and sisters, feel your genial and hospitable spirits here in the center stake of Zion, or wherever you live in your homes throughout the State. I am proud of you, and I am proud to know that I am one of you. I believe in the goodness of your hearts, in your hospitality, in your charity, in your love for truth, wherever you live, and I only wish that we here in the center stake of Zion, may retain in our hearts the same honesty and sincerity of purpose, and truth loving character that seems to be so characteristic of you people who come from the remote parts of these states in the west. The rural districts today have a people that are honest, God-fearing, lovers of the truth, and I hope that spirit can be retained in those communities; and I also pray that we will get more of it right here in the city where we live.
It has been pointed out briefly that we have had a great history. I believe our people have always been tolerant, charitable, and above all, constant to the principles which they hold to be true, and which they know with all their hearts. I am glad for all the organizations of this Church, for they have made history by their acts as well as their thoughts. I believe that the one great organization that has impressed the world with its charity and its bigness of activity has been the Relief Society, from the beginning to the present day. It was my privilege but a few weeks ago to listen to a man who had not been to Salt Lake City since 1856, He asked the question—How the Mormon Church had grown ? He wanted to know whether or not we hold to be sacred and true principles that we held to be sacred and true in 1856 when he came here on a visit on his way to California. I answered him as best I could, but one thing he said that impressed me, and I want to say it to the sisters of the Relief Society. He said that he landed here with some emigrants. They were penniless, they were hungry, they were without shoes and stockings; but he never forgot the time when some "Mormon" women came into camp, gave them stockings, brought them bacon and flour, and they did it because, said they, "Our prophet leader tells us to, and not only he told it, but greater still, we have the Spirit of God that dictates to us, and it says that no one must starve or be in need where there is plenty, and where we have the chance to give, and to live and let live." This man said that these woman were members of a society organized for charitable purposes. It was the Relief Society of one of the wards of Salt Lake City, which as early as 1850 was doing charitable acts and helping humanity in its need. I am grateful today for such an organization, and I am proud of it, for I think you have done great deeds, and manifested your faith in God by your acts.
What we need today, my brethren and sisters, more than anything else, is honesty and integrity to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We can't get too much faith in our hearts. Faith, after all, is the moving force in the history of the world, and is today, and always will be; and I hold that faith in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son Jesus Christ, must become the greatest moving force for humanity. It will be in the future, for I believe that the world is coming back, after all, to a belief in God the Eternal Father. In our schools, in all of our institutions of learning, there can't be too "much of the teaching that God lives, and is the directive force and power behind the onward march of the human race.
Not long ago some prominent educators in the United States came together in a meeting, and the question was asked: "What can we do that will bring the children of our schools to a higher standard of thought and action?" The question was answered in many, many ways. One brother of this city was asked the question, and the answer was that there are many practical ways but he believed that if in every school room throughout the world there could be on the right in gold letters the Ten Commandments, and on the left the Preamble of the Constitution of the United States, and on the front the words, "I believe in God the Eternal Father, and in His Son Jesus Christ," he believed that the students and scholars of this country would receive an inspiration and a power in their work that would lift the standard of American life and American scholarship. So this is the thought I want to leave with you today. May I ask you to receive it and think about it. I know that we can get your support for it.
There are today nineteen million students in the schools of the United States. This includes the university students, down to those of the kindergarten department; nineteen million students whom we hold to be educated, whom we hope to see go out into life as real citizens, true citizens of this republic and believers in God. The question comes up whether or not we are performing our duties as we should perform them. Being in the academic world I see on every hand great blunders, great mistakes made in the name of education. You see them in your homes, you see these blunders in the schools, but I believe that the glory of this country and the glory of this state, just the same, is the public school system, which is destined to grow and grow until men and women are truly educated. But I say that the one thing that will lift us up educationally and morally to higher standards in a general way throughout all this land, will be to teach our children the majesty, the greatness, the divinity, and the power of the Ten Commandments, and the beauty, the justice and the grandeur and the greatness of the Preamble of the Constitution of the United States, together with the belief in God, and Jesus Christ as the Redeemer of the world. These three things I think are needed in our American schools. They are needed by men, women and children. We have never yet learned to live up to the Ten Commandments, and politically the Constitution of the United States is so far ahead of us that it will take ages to see its greatness and its power prevail. And so what has this to do with us, as followers of the Lord and the Redeemer of the world and the Christian faith? Only this, that as the great tenor and standard of morality are raised, our dreams are made higher, our ideals become greater; and people can only become great as they have great ideals to which they work. My brethren and sisters, to me the glory of "Mormonism" lies in this fact, that there is never a thing suggested for the uplift of humanity but what we are behind it with all our souls, and with all of our works as well. We believe that the human race will be redeemed if the human race will accept the law of the Gospel; and obedience to law is liberty. Let us remember that obedience to political law, to religious law, to social law, becomes our truest liberty after all, and when we learn to become liberty-loving we will be law-abiding, and when we are law-abiding we will be developed individually and socially, and become lights unto the world as holders of the Priesthood of God. "Mormonism" is the greatest movement in the history of the race. It stands today for the greatest intellectual moral and social uplift and political uplift that the race has today. It stands for everything good, everything noble. It stands, however, upon the principle of faith in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son Jesus Christ: and let us as Latter-day Saints hold this sacredly in our hearts. Whatever we do, and think, there is always that truth within us that God is God, and that Jesus is the Christ, now and forever. We must, therefore, learn true charity, true love. We must learn to work and to pray, and not give up our simplicity of life. The other day I was asked what our institutions, human society, need more than anything else. My reply was that we need more of the faith, honesty, and sincerity of our fathers and mothers, more than we need anything else. We want to hark back to the honesty and the simplicity of what some call the common people. We need to get rid of the love for gold and show, and come back with all our souls to the knowledge that this gospel is true, and that we must be true to it. Then our standard of living will be raised, we will be united. We will act more as God wants us to act. We will live nearer to the Savior as He taught the race to live, and as He teaches us today. I hope we may be united in the faith, in the law, and in the knowledge of what is right and true; and I hope the day may come when in every schoolroom throughout this land, at least whenever we come into that schoolroom, there shall be placed in gold letters first, "I believe in God the Eternal Father and in His Son Jesus Christ," on the right the Ten Commandments, the greatest moral law of the human race; and on the left the Preamble of the greatest document ever given to the world, for the government of nations, the Preamble of the Constitution of the United States. When we do this we will raise our standard of thought, our standard of living, and we will approach what the Prophet Joseph Smith once said we must do, the higher soul, the higher life that naturally lies within.
That God may help us to see these things one and all, and to work for great truths and live humbly and to work with a hunger for truth and light, I ask it in the name of Jesus. Amen.
(Of the First Council of Seventy.)
I have been interested in the words of my brethren in the meeting this morning. I only regret that I did not hear all the words of yesterday. My academic duties at the University of Utah prevented my being in attendance at the conference in the forenoon.
I rejoice in seeing the people. As we all have our favorite themes and thoughts to speak about, I have mine, and the impressive thought that I have this morning is this fact, that no better people ever lived nor lives today, than the Latter- day Saints of the Church of Christ. I believe in you, and- 1 am always grateful when I can meet you, my brethren and sisters, feel your genial and hospitable spirits here in the center stake of Zion, or wherever you live in your homes throughout the State. I am proud of you, and I am proud to know that I am one of you. I believe in the goodness of your hearts, in your hospitality, in your charity, in your love for truth, wherever you live, and I only wish that we here in the center stake of Zion, may retain in our hearts the same honesty and sincerity of purpose, and truth loving character that seems to be so characteristic of you people who come from the remote parts of these states in the west. The rural districts today have a people that are honest, God-fearing, lovers of the truth, and I hope that spirit can be retained in those communities; and I also pray that we will get more of it right here in the city where we live.
It has been pointed out briefly that we have had a great history. I believe our people have always been tolerant, charitable, and above all, constant to the principles which they hold to be true, and which they know with all their hearts. I am glad for all the organizations of this Church, for they have made history by their acts as well as their thoughts. I believe that the one great organization that has impressed the world with its charity and its bigness of activity has been the Relief Society, from the beginning to the present day. It was my privilege but a few weeks ago to listen to a man who had not been to Salt Lake City since 1856, He asked the question—How the Mormon Church had grown ? He wanted to know whether or not we hold to be sacred and true principles that we held to be sacred and true in 1856 when he came here on a visit on his way to California. I answered him as best I could, but one thing he said that impressed me, and I want to say it to the sisters of the Relief Society. He said that he landed here with some emigrants. They were penniless, they were hungry, they were without shoes and stockings; but he never forgot the time when some "Mormon" women came into camp, gave them stockings, brought them bacon and flour, and they did it because, said they, "Our prophet leader tells us to, and not only he told it, but greater still, we have the Spirit of God that dictates to us, and it says that no one must starve or be in need where there is plenty, and where we have the chance to give, and to live and let live." This man said that these woman were members of a society organized for charitable purposes. It was the Relief Society of one of the wards of Salt Lake City, which as early as 1850 was doing charitable acts and helping humanity in its need. I am grateful today for such an organization, and I am proud of it, for I think you have done great deeds, and manifested your faith in God by your acts.
What we need today, my brethren and sisters, more than anything else, is honesty and integrity to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We can't get too much faith in our hearts. Faith, after all, is the moving force in the history of the world, and is today, and always will be; and I hold that faith in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son Jesus Christ, must become the greatest moving force for humanity. It will be in the future, for I believe that the world is coming back, after all, to a belief in God the Eternal Father. In our schools, in all of our institutions of learning, there can't be too "much of the teaching that God lives, and is the directive force and power behind the onward march of the human race.
Not long ago some prominent educators in the United States came together in a meeting, and the question was asked: "What can we do that will bring the children of our schools to a higher standard of thought and action?" The question was answered in many, many ways. One brother of this city was asked the question, and the answer was that there are many practical ways but he believed that if in every school room throughout the world there could be on the right in gold letters the Ten Commandments, and on the left the Preamble of the Constitution of the United States, and on the front the words, "I believe in God the Eternal Father, and in His Son Jesus Christ," he believed that the students and scholars of this country would receive an inspiration and a power in their work that would lift the standard of American life and American scholarship. So this is the thought I want to leave with you today. May I ask you to receive it and think about it. I know that we can get your support for it.
There are today nineteen million students in the schools of the United States. This includes the university students, down to those of the kindergarten department; nineteen million students whom we hold to be educated, whom we hope to see go out into life as real citizens, true citizens of this republic and believers in God. The question comes up whether or not we are performing our duties as we should perform them. Being in the academic world I see on every hand great blunders, great mistakes made in the name of education. You see them in your homes, you see these blunders in the schools, but I believe that the glory of this country and the glory of this state, just the same, is the public school system, which is destined to grow and grow until men and women are truly educated. But I say that the one thing that will lift us up educationally and morally to higher standards in a general way throughout all this land, will be to teach our children the majesty, the greatness, the divinity, and the power of the Ten Commandments, and the beauty, the justice and the grandeur and the greatness of the Preamble of the Constitution of the United States, together with the belief in God, and Jesus Christ as the Redeemer of the world. These three things I think are needed in our American schools. They are needed by men, women and children. We have never yet learned to live up to the Ten Commandments, and politically the Constitution of the United States is so far ahead of us that it will take ages to see its greatness and its power prevail. And so what has this to do with us, as followers of the Lord and the Redeemer of the world and the Christian faith? Only this, that as the great tenor and standard of morality are raised, our dreams are made higher, our ideals become greater; and people can only become great as they have great ideals to which they work. My brethren and sisters, to me the glory of "Mormonism" lies in this fact, that there is never a thing suggested for the uplift of humanity but what we are behind it with all our souls, and with all of our works as well. We believe that the human race will be redeemed if the human race will accept the law of the Gospel; and obedience to law is liberty. Let us remember that obedience to political law, to religious law, to social law, becomes our truest liberty after all, and when we learn to become liberty-loving we will be law-abiding, and when we are law-abiding we will be developed individually and socially, and become lights unto the world as holders of the Priesthood of God. "Mormonism" is the greatest movement in the history of the race. It stands today for the greatest intellectual moral and social uplift and political uplift that the race has today. It stands for everything good, everything noble. It stands, however, upon the principle of faith in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son Jesus Christ: and let us as Latter-day Saints hold this sacredly in our hearts. Whatever we do, and think, there is always that truth within us that God is God, and that Jesus is the Christ, now and forever. We must, therefore, learn true charity, true love. We must learn to work and to pray, and not give up our simplicity of life. The other day I was asked what our institutions, human society, need more than anything else. My reply was that we need more of the faith, honesty, and sincerity of our fathers and mothers, more than we need anything else. We want to hark back to the honesty and the simplicity of what some call the common people. We need to get rid of the love for gold and show, and come back with all our souls to the knowledge that this gospel is true, and that we must be true to it. Then our standard of living will be raised, we will be united. We will act more as God wants us to act. We will live nearer to the Savior as He taught the race to live, and as He teaches us today. I hope we may be united in the faith, in the law, and in the knowledge of what is right and true; and I hope the day may come when in every schoolroom throughout this land, at least whenever we come into that schoolroom, there shall be placed in gold letters first, "I believe in God the Eternal Father and in His Son Jesus Christ," on the right the Ten Commandments, the greatest moral law of the human race; and on the left the Preamble of the greatest document ever given to the world, for the government of nations, the Preamble of the Constitution of the United States. When we do this we will raise our standard of thought, our standard of living, and we will approach what the Prophet Joseph Smith once said we must do, the higher soul, the higher life that naturally lies within.
That God may help us to see these things one and all, and to work for great truths and live humbly and to work with a hunger for truth and light, I ask it in the name of Jesus. Amen.
PRESIDENT JOSEPH F. SMITH.
Divine guidance needed in all human affairs.
If my brethren and sisters will indulge me just a moment I have this to say with reference to the discourses we have heard this morning: I believe in all that has been said, and I also believe a little farther than that which has been said. I would like just for a moment to try to express briefly and, very likely, very imperfectly the thought that has occurred to me in relation to one point especially that has been referred to.
I think that in the realms of liberty, and the exercise of human judgment, all men should exercise extreme caution, that they do not change or abolish those things which God has willed and has inspired to be done. It has been in this realm of freedom, and the exercise of human judgment, that most of the evils that have occurred in the world have been done—the martyrdom of saints, the crucifixion of the Son of God Himself, and much of the apostasy and departure from the work of righteousness, and from the laws of God, have occurred in this realm of freedom and the exercise of human judgment. God in His boundless wisdom and gracious mercy has provided means, and has shown the way to the children of men whereby, even in the realms of freedom and the exercise of their own judgment, they may individually go unto God in faith and prayer, and find out what should guide and direct their human judgment and wisdom; and I do not want the Latter-day Saints to forget that this is their privilege. I would rather that they should seek God for a counselor and guide, than to follow the wild harangues of political leaders, or leaders of any other cult. I felt like I ought to say that much; and I know that I am right.
The congregation sang the hymn:
There is beauty all around,
When there's love at home.
There is joy in every sound,
When there's love at home,
Peace and plenty there abide.
Smiling sweet on every side,
Time doth softly, sweetly slide.
When there's love at home
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Samuel O. Bennion.
Conference adjourned until 2 p. m.
Divine guidance needed in all human affairs.
If my brethren and sisters will indulge me just a moment I have this to say with reference to the discourses we have heard this morning: I believe in all that has been said, and I also believe a little farther than that which has been said. I would like just for a moment to try to express briefly and, very likely, very imperfectly the thought that has occurred to me in relation to one point especially that has been referred to.
I think that in the realms of liberty, and the exercise of human judgment, all men should exercise extreme caution, that they do not change or abolish those things which God has willed and has inspired to be done. It has been in this realm of freedom, and the exercise of human judgment, that most of the evils that have occurred in the world have been done—the martyrdom of saints, the crucifixion of the Son of God Himself, and much of the apostasy and departure from the work of righteousness, and from the laws of God, have occurred in this realm of freedom and the exercise of human judgment. God in His boundless wisdom and gracious mercy has provided means, and has shown the way to the children of men whereby, even in the realms of freedom and the exercise of their own judgment, they may individually go unto God in faith and prayer, and find out what should guide and direct their human judgment and wisdom; and I do not want the Latter-day Saints to forget that this is their privilege. I would rather that they should seek God for a counselor and guide, than to follow the wild harangues of political leaders, or leaders of any other cult. I felt like I ought to say that much; and I know that I am right.
The congregation sang the hymn:
There is beauty all around,
When there's love at home.
There is joy in every sound,
When there's love at home,
Peace and plenty there abide.
Smiling sweet on every side,
Time doth softly, sweetly slide.
When there's love at home
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Samuel O. Bennion.
Conference adjourned until 2 p. m.
AFTERNOON SESSION.
Conference was resumed at 2 p. m.. President Joseph F. Smith presiding.
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 Rey L. Pratt.
The congregation sang the hymn:
For the strength of the hills we bless Thee,
Our God, our fathers' God;
Thou hast made Thy children mighty.
By the touch of the mountain sod.
Conference was resumed at 2 p. m.. President Joseph F. Smith presiding.
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 Rey L. Pratt.
The congregation sang the hymn:
For the strength of the hills we bless Thee,
Our God, our fathers' God;
Thou hast made Thy children mighty.
By the touch of the mountain sod.
PRESIDENT FRANCIS M. LYMAN.
The Holy Spirit a spiritual and temporal guide.—All can, and should be continuously doing good.—Splendid accomplishments of "Mormons" in Mexico. — A plea for fraternal assistance to refugees from Mexico.
I am very greatly pleased, my brethren and sisters, with this opportunity of meeting with the Saints in conference, and trust that the same good spirit that has attended the brethren who have spoken to us may be enjoyed during this meeting.
The work of the Lord is very remarkable among the peoples of the earth. It is attracting attention from every direction, and the doctrines that we have embraced, which have been revealed through the Prophet Joseph, attract the consideration of many people throughout the earth. These doctrines are true, and it is the truth that gives strength to this work. Their truth is discovered by many who have hardly the courage to embrace the principles, and to undertake to live them. Some people I have known feel that the truths we proclaim are too good to be true, and remark that they proffer too .much, and offer more than is reasonable for mortal men to anticipate and expect in this world, or the world to come. Hut, all who embrace the Gospel, with full purpose of heart, obtain a testimony of the truth of the doctrines. They obtain a witness also from the Lord Himself, a witness of the Father and of the .Son, and the record is borne in the hearts of the children of men by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost. That Spirit has the mission not only to bear record of the Father and the Son, and the truth and divinity of the doctrines that we have embraced, but He will abide with us, not only in spiritual matters—matters pertaining to the church—but in regard to all things, for the truth of all things, temporal and spiritual, is known by the Holy Ghost. Those who enter into covenant with the Lord, having humbled themselves before Him and repented of their sins, as a result of their faith, and have taken upon them the name of Jesus Christ, and have undertaken to serve Him to the end, having repented of all their sins, they receive that witness and testimony, and that Spirit abides with them always through their faithfulness. It gives them stability of character; it gives them understanding and light that is not possessed otherwise, and that does not remain with Latter-day Saints unless they continue to be faithful and very humble, meek and lowly of heart. The Spirit of the Lord is easily offended, easily grieved, and it is quite an undertaking for men to so live that that Spirit can always be a fountain of inspiration, of revelation and light to them. It is a difficult thing for men to do good always, and I want to show you, my brethren and sisters, that the Lord expects us to do so.
Now, I do not want to take too much time, I do not want to lay too broad a foundation, but I will read one. little text. I think I shall be satisfied with this one small text, if I can expound it to your understanding, which I believe I can with the help of the Lord, and possibly bring to your understanding an improvement that we may engage in for the future, possibly having lived something near it in the past, but may do so more perfectly in the future. The Lord says:
"Verily I say men"—that is all men; I desire to expound to you that word in this scripture, that men, all men. Latter-day Saints and everybody else—"should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness, for the power is in them" —the power is in all men—"wherein they are agents unto themselves; and inasmuch as men do good they shall in no wise lose their reward."
Now, I desire to make this impression, my brethren and sisters, for men, the term, the word, includes the sisters as well as the brethren—all mankind, men and women—should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, because they are agents unto themselves and are so empowered by the Lord, who is our Father, so that we should be thus occupied always. We should not be employed at any time, on any occasion, anywhere, doing anything that is not a good cause. Where we have done things that were not proper and right, and were not a good cause, we have departed from the obligation and undertaking that. we entered into in the beginning, and our beginning was when we entered into covenant with the Lord. I am speaking now of our beginning with this latter-day work. This Church began on the 6th of April, 1830, and you began when you entered into covenant with the Lord. Your end will be when you have laid off this mortal body, when your work has been finished and your undertaking with the Lord has been completed. We undertook at the beginning to serve the Lord to the end, to the end of our mortal mission, our probation, hence I desire to make this impression upon all Latter-day Saints; and if there should be some here who are not Latter-day Saints I would like to make the impression upon them also that they, too, should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and bring to pass much righteousness. That is being done today in the world by very many people, for much righteousness is accomplished by people who are not of our faith. A great deal of good is being done; there is a great deal of virtue and morality, uprightness and humility, love of the Lord, love of the truth, love of righteousness, in the hearts of the children of men. So that my appeal is not to Latter-day Saints alone this afternoon, but to all men and all women. If any man or any woman does good in this world, they shall not lose their reward, whether they be Latter-day Saints or not. But, if they would have all the good, all that the Lord has to bestow upon them, it is necessary for them to have faith in Him, repent of their sins, humble themselves before God and enter into covenant with Him, as the Latter-day Saints have done, and then endure in the faith to the end of their lives. It is possible in this world, I take it from the example and history of our elder brother, Jesus, it is possible for men to do good; I believe it is quite possible for all men to do good, to work righteousness. I believe that it is quite possible for all men to repent of their sins, through faith. The Lord is generous and willing to bestow upon all men the principle of faith, and by their repentance, turning from sin and working righteousness, it is quite possible for them to get into fellowship with the Lord. It is really possible for men to do what is right, and to be perfect as God Himself is perfect.
In the range of thought, in looking over my own experience, and the opportunities about me in the field of activity in this world, I have wondered what on earth there is that a man cannot do that is right, and that ought to be done, so far as morality and purity and righteousness is concerned. There may be heights that men may not easily reach, there may be works that are difficult to accomplish, but so far as being perfect in our lives in the service of the Lord, .in serving our brethren, working for them and blessing them, and doing good to others as we would that others should do to us, is there anything that we cannot do ? Can we not be sober ? Can we not be honest, moral and upright? Can we not work righteousness and deal justly? I can think of nothing of this sort but what is possible for us to do. I can't think of a wrong that I ever did in my life, nor a wrong that you have ever done, that I have known about, but what we could just as well, and better, have done what was right. It has always been so with me, I could have done better. It was always easier for me to do right than to do wrong. The things that have tried me, and have been difficult for me, are the wrongs I have done; but where I have done right I have felt well paid, well rewarded, it has made me feel comfortable and happy, it has made me free. I have always felt free and comfortable when I have done right, and always felt uncomfortable, unhappy and a slave when I have done wrong. Hence I have concluded not to do wrong any more. I am not going to wrong anybody; and I don't want to wrong myself, but just do exactly what is right, and I want my brethren and sisters, the Latter-day Saints, so to do.
The Lord has given us a perfect organization, commencing with the Aaronic Priesthood as it was revealed to us in this day, and dividing the labors that they have to perform, from the deacon to the priest; and in the Melchisedek Priesthood, from the office of the elder to the chiefest among us, those who have the greatest power and authority upon the earth. The Lord has so designed and arranged that all men embracing the gospel may receive divine authority from Him, and power that will aid them and help them far above what men can naturally do. The natural man is a very unsafe quantity, he must be assisted by the Lord. I don't know of anything that a man can do that will be quite pleasing and satisfactory, unless the Lord helps him, and then he can be perfectly safe. There are many things that men need to be enlightened upon, and the Spirit of the Lord occupies the whole field, and will enlighten our minds and enable us to see alike in all matters, and make us one with the Father and the Son. That Spirit should dwell richly in our hearts; when it does, and abides with us, it will draw us together, unite us, enlighten us, and strengthen -us in the performance of the duties that devolve upon us, our lives will then be successful, and we will be anxiously occupied and engaged in works of righteousness. A man with the Spirit of the Lord is not offensive, he is not offensive in his home and family, or neighborhood, he is a pleasant and agreeable companion, as a father, as a brother, as a husband, and as a neighbor, if he enjoys the Spirit of the Lord. The Spirit of the Lord should be enjoyed by all men; and when men possess that Spirit their difficulties disappear; they see the right. The Spirit of the Lord always prompts us to do our full duty, all that is required of us, and to be willing to make some little sacrifice in order to be at peace. It will enable us to endure wrong if it comes upon us, and submit so far as we need and have occasion to; to endure but never do wrong, never to wrong any one else; if needs be to suffer wrong and evil at the hand of others, but always do what is right ourselves.
I want, at the closing of my remarks, to draw attention to the conditions that have been spoken of here in this conference, first by the President, and then referred to by others. I want to state my views, briefly, in regard to our refugee brethren and sisters from Mexico. They are not a numerous people, possibly only four thousand. Of course four thousand people is quite a community, would be considered a large ward. If we have four thousand in a ward it is regarded as quite a little town; but four thousand are not very many of the people that are gathered together of the Latter-day Saints—maybe half a million of us—the four thousand would be but few. We have lots of land and water, and any amount of climate. It happens just now that we are living in pretty fruitful times, and we are well fixed with good crops, grains and fruit crops, everything of the kind. I judge so when I see the fruit covering the ground, and we cannot take proper care of it, to make good, profitable use of it. So I want to sound this note of advice to my brethren and sisters who are not refugees, who are at home and live in the United States, in Arizona, New Mexico, California, Nevada, Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming. It is our friends, and neighbors, our brothers and sisters that are down there, and who have been driven from the republic of Mexico. They have not been able to remain there. It seems they were not wanted there. I happened to be among the first of the brethren who went as missionaries into that country, to pioneer the country. I went with President Taylor, President Joseph F. Smith and others of the brethren; quite a company of us went from here into Mexico in about 1885, as I remember. I went three times that year from Salt Lake City to the City of Mexico, and into the hot country beyond. I spent some time there with Erastus Snow, Brigham Young, Jr., John W. Taylor, Moses Thatcher, and others of the brethren. We visited the president of the republic, and we were made welcome by him and by his ministers, and we learned to respect those leading men of that republic. They offered me soldiers when I went down to pioneer the country, for that was my purpose, on my second trip into Mexico. The Indian Chief Geronimo and his men were raiding that country, and raiding Arizona, and our soldiers were there as well as the Mexican soldiers, trying to capture the outlaw and his band. While we were there the Indians went down on the west of us, and on the south, and came out on the east of us, went almost round us, but we were out of sight; they did not happen to see us when we were pioneering the country. We had a little company of soldiers offered us, but Mexican soldiers do not go until tomorrow, they never go till "manana," that is, they do not go today but tomorrow, and we went today, and the soldiers following us could not find us. They thought we would make tracks, and so we did, but a tremendous storm of rain came and obliterated the tracks, and they could not find us. We thus pioneered the country.
I want to say that when we say hard things about the people of that country we only say it about those who are a hard people, a bad people, not about those who are good. They have not had in Mexico, so far as I have known, a secure and stable government. There has not been protection and safety in that country, and a man always had to have a gun across his lap, or hanging on his back, so that it could be seen that he was armed, in order to take care of himself. I was given to understand, in the City of Mexico, that it was not safe for a man to walk across that valley, from one town or village to another, unless he was armed; that he would likely he killed by some one to get his suit of clothes, or a pair of boots, or the dollar in his pocket, if he had it. There were that class of people; but we were made welcome, they wanted us there. They wanted us because our people were thrifty, and prosperous, because we would build good brick houses, and good school buildings, and establish merchandise business and so forth in the country. Our people went there, and they built the finest villages, so far as I can judge and know, in Mexico, the finest considering the population occupying them, that can be found in the republic. I rather think that is correct, they really have built splendid houses, cities, and towns, and have conducted our district schools and high schools there also. We have taken care of ourselves, and have set a good example, and the leading men of that nation were always proud of what the "Mormons" had done there. President Diaz, as long as he stayed there, and his ministers, always spoke well of the "Mormon" people, they could not say otherwise. But there was a man killed every little while. It was dangerous, always more or less dangerous, and they could not be protected, they could not get justice, and the wicked could not be punished, as a rule they were not punished.
Well, now our people have come away, they have been driven away because of the revolution in that country. It is a revolutionary country and a revolutionary people, and there is no telling, of course, as we learned from the President here, when peace will be declared and a good government established. I don't know when it will come, but I do want us, brethren and sisters, to open our hearts and homes, and open the way for the Latter-day Saints to come back to their friends, to come to their neighbors and kindred, they will be no tax on the people of this country. Those four thousand people can stay right here with us, and it will hardly be known that there is anybody extra. We have plenty of room, and everything to make them comfortable. They are a people that will make their way and pay as they go, and earn their living and establish themselves, and in a few years they will be just as wealthy as they were in Mexico, and they will be upon safe, solid ground, where they need not be afraid of anything on earth, no more than we are in Canada. I saw the contrast. I was down in Mexico in '85, and just a little later it fell to my lot to go to Canada to help the pioneers and give them counsel — Elder John W. Taylor and I. We went to the head of the Canadian government, and we were welcomed there. They wanted us, they were glad to have us come, and we have been building there just as we built in Mexico, and just as we have built in Utah, in Arizona, in Nevada, Colorado and Idaho.
Everywhere the Latter - day Saints go they are doing work that speaks well for them, and is a credit to them. They are a stable element —not quite perfect yet, but they are devoted to good works, and the Spirit of the Lord that dwells in them makes them worthy citizens of any country and government. The government of any state or county is stronger for the "Mormon" people that locate therein, or in any city or nation, for it has been proven that they are a good element. The Spirit of the Lord has made them this, and that Spirit will make them even more worthy than what they are now if they will continue faithful. I advise that we should invite our friends home, ask them to come home and take some of our land and work with us. Many of them come unclothed almost, and unfed. They have been robbed, and have nothing to bring with them, as a rule. There are some few that will be able to fight their own way and take care of themselves, but the others will be no burden upon us, we will be richer from taking care of them, helping them, for the Lord will compensate us for doing the good that we should be engaged in. He will reward us, for He says that we shall not lose our reward for any good thing that we do. We want to welcome home our brethren and sisters who have suffered, we want them to come back again into the United. States, if they so desire. If they prefer to stay and try their chances again in Mexico, of course we make no objection, and our blessing and love will go with them where they go, and with the people who will open their hearts and homes to receive them and make them welcome.
I wanted to say that much in regard to those people, for I was there in the country; I was with them when they were in their camps and tents. I was with them there and wrestled for their benefit with the government of the country. The Church has helped them attain what they could; that land was legally obtained for permanent settlement, and we have done our duty in the republic of Mexico. We have been preaching the gospel there also, and maintaining missions among them. We have been doing 'a good work for that republic, and we have not hurt them at all, but have done them a great deal of good; and that was the desire, I am sure, of the leading men of their nation. The Lord will bless those who have befriended our people and those who do befriend them hereafter. The Lord will bless us my brethren and sisters, in being anxiously engaged in this good cause. The Latter-day Saints who do not return to Mexico shall not feel that they are imposing on their kindred and friends, but that the latch string is out, or the door is open, and they are welcome to come and fare and share, with us until they can get on their feet, and it will not be a long time for them to do it. They are the right kind of element.
I pray the Lord to bless you, my brethren and sisters. Let us remember the injunction of this text and be constantly, anxiously and earnestly engaged in a good cause, and bring to pass much righteousness every day of our lives, and the Lord will bless and sustain us, and preserve and redeem us, and make us eminently successful among the children of men. God bless you, my brethren and sisters, and keep us faithful, and help us to endure in His service while we live in the flesh, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
The Holy Spirit a spiritual and temporal guide.—All can, and should be continuously doing good.—Splendid accomplishments of "Mormons" in Mexico. — A plea for fraternal assistance to refugees from Mexico.
I am very greatly pleased, my brethren and sisters, with this opportunity of meeting with the Saints in conference, and trust that the same good spirit that has attended the brethren who have spoken to us may be enjoyed during this meeting.
The work of the Lord is very remarkable among the peoples of the earth. It is attracting attention from every direction, and the doctrines that we have embraced, which have been revealed through the Prophet Joseph, attract the consideration of many people throughout the earth. These doctrines are true, and it is the truth that gives strength to this work. Their truth is discovered by many who have hardly the courage to embrace the principles, and to undertake to live them. Some people I have known feel that the truths we proclaim are too good to be true, and remark that they proffer too .much, and offer more than is reasonable for mortal men to anticipate and expect in this world, or the world to come. Hut, all who embrace the Gospel, with full purpose of heart, obtain a testimony of the truth of the doctrines. They obtain a witness also from the Lord Himself, a witness of the Father and of the .Son, and the record is borne in the hearts of the children of men by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost. That Spirit has the mission not only to bear record of the Father and the Son, and the truth and divinity of the doctrines that we have embraced, but He will abide with us, not only in spiritual matters—matters pertaining to the church—but in regard to all things, for the truth of all things, temporal and spiritual, is known by the Holy Ghost. Those who enter into covenant with the Lord, having humbled themselves before Him and repented of their sins, as a result of their faith, and have taken upon them the name of Jesus Christ, and have undertaken to serve Him to the end, having repented of all their sins, they receive that witness and testimony, and that Spirit abides with them always through their faithfulness. It gives them stability of character; it gives them understanding and light that is not possessed otherwise, and that does not remain with Latter-day Saints unless they continue to be faithful and very humble, meek and lowly of heart. The Spirit of the Lord is easily offended, easily grieved, and it is quite an undertaking for men to so live that that Spirit can always be a fountain of inspiration, of revelation and light to them. It is a difficult thing for men to do good always, and I want to show you, my brethren and sisters, that the Lord expects us to do so.
Now, I do not want to take too much time, I do not want to lay too broad a foundation, but I will read one. little text. I think I shall be satisfied with this one small text, if I can expound it to your understanding, which I believe I can with the help of the Lord, and possibly bring to your understanding an improvement that we may engage in for the future, possibly having lived something near it in the past, but may do so more perfectly in the future. The Lord says:
"Verily I say men"—that is all men; I desire to expound to you that word in this scripture, that men, all men. Latter-day Saints and everybody else—"should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness, for the power is in them" —the power is in all men—"wherein they are agents unto themselves; and inasmuch as men do good they shall in no wise lose their reward."
Now, I desire to make this impression, my brethren and sisters, for men, the term, the word, includes the sisters as well as the brethren—all mankind, men and women—should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, because they are agents unto themselves and are so empowered by the Lord, who is our Father, so that we should be thus occupied always. We should not be employed at any time, on any occasion, anywhere, doing anything that is not a good cause. Where we have done things that were not proper and right, and were not a good cause, we have departed from the obligation and undertaking that. we entered into in the beginning, and our beginning was when we entered into covenant with the Lord. I am speaking now of our beginning with this latter-day work. This Church began on the 6th of April, 1830, and you began when you entered into covenant with the Lord. Your end will be when you have laid off this mortal body, when your work has been finished and your undertaking with the Lord has been completed. We undertook at the beginning to serve the Lord to the end, to the end of our mortal mission, our probation, hence I desire to make this impression upon all Latter-day Saints; and if there should be some here who are not Latter-day Saints I would like to make the impression upon them also that they, too, should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and bring to pass much righteousness. That is being done today in the world by very many people, for much righteousness is accomplished by people who are not of our faith. A great deal of good is being done; there is a great deal of virtue and morality, uprightness and humility, love of the Lord, love of the truth, love of righteousness, in the hearts of the children of men. So that my appeal is not to Latter-day Saints alone this afternoon, but to all men and all women. If any man or any woman does good in this world, they shall not lose their reward, whether they be Latter-day Saints or not. But, if they would have all the good, all that the Lord has to bestow upon them, it is necessary for them to have faith in Him, repent of their sins, humble themselves before God and enter into covenant with Him, as the Latter-day Saints have done, and then endure in the faith to the end of their lives. It is possible in this world, I take it from the example and history of our elder brother, Jesus, it is possible for men to do good; I believe it is quite possible for all men to do good, to work righteousness. I believe that it is quite possible for all men to repent of their sins, through faith. The Lord is generous and willing to bestow upon all men the principle of faith, and by their repentance, turning from sin and working righteousness, it is quite possible for them to get into fellowship with the Lord. It is really possible for men to do what is right, and to be perfect as God Himself is perfect.
In the range of thought, in looking over my own experience, and the opportunities about me in the field of activity in this world, I have wondered what on earth there is that a man cannot do that is right, and that ought to be done, so far as morality and purity and righteousness is concerned. There may be heights that men may not easily reach, there may be works that are difficult to accomplish, but so far as being perfect in our lives in the service of the Lord, .in serving our brethren, working for them and blessing them, and doing good to others as we would that others should do to us, is there anything that we cannot do ? Can we not be sober ? Can we not be honest, moral and upright? Can we not work righteousness and deal justly? I can think of nothing of this sort but what is possible for us to do. I can't think of a wrong that I ever did in my life, nor a wrong that you have ever done, that I have known about, but what we could just as well, and better, have done what was right. It has always been so with me, I could have done better. It was always easier for me to do right than to do wrong. The things that have tried me, and have been difficult for me, are the wrongs I have done; but where I have done right I have felt well paid, well rewarded, it has made me feel comfortable and happy, it has made me free. I have always felt free and comfortable when I have done right, and always felt uncomfortable, unhappy and a slave when I have done wrong. Hence I have concluded not to do wrong any more. I am not going to wrong anybody; and I don't want to wrong myself, but just do exactly what is right, and I want my brethren and sisters, the Latter-day Saints, so to do.
The Lord has given us a perfect organization, commencing with the Aaronic Priesthood as it was revealed to us in this day, and dividing the labors that they have to perform, from the deacon to the priest; and in the Melchisedek Priesthood, from the office of the elder to the chiefest among us, those who have the greatest power and authority upon the earth. The Lord has so designed and arranged that all men embracing the gospel may receive divine authority from Him, and power that will aid them and help them far above what men can naturally do. The natural man is a very unsafe quantity, he must be assisted by the Lord. I don't know of anything that a man can do that will be quite pleasing and satisfactory, unless the Lord helps him, and then he can be perfectly safe. There are many things that men need to be enlightened upon, and the Spirit of the Lord occupies the whole field, and will enlighten our minds and enable us to see alike in all matters, and make us one with the Father and the Son. That Spirit should dwell richly in our hearts; when it does, and abides with us, it will draw us together, unite us, enlighten us, and strengthen -us in the performance of the duties that devolve upon us, our lives will then be successful, and we will be anxiously occupied and engaged in works of righteousness. A man with the Spirit of the Lord is not offensive, he is not offensive in his home and family, or neighborhood, he is a pleasant and agreeable companion, as a father, as a brother, as a husband, and as a neighbor, if he enjoys the Spirit of the Lord. The Spirit of the Lord should be enjoyed by all men; and when men possess that Spirit their difficulties disappear; they see the right. The Spirit of the Lord always prompts us to do our full duty, all that is required of us, and to be willing to make some little sacrifice in order to be at peace. It will enable us to endure wrong if it comes upon us, and submit so far as we need and have occasion to; to endure but never do wrong, never to wrong any one else; if needs be to suffer wrong and evil at the hand of others, but always do what is right ourselves.
I want, at the closing of my remarks, to draw attention to the conditions that have been spoken of here in this conference, first by the President, and then referred to by others. I want to state my views, briefly, in regard to our refugee brethren and sisters from Mexico. They are not a numerous people, possibly only four thousand. Of course four thousand people is quite a community, would be considered a large ward. If we have four thousand in a ward it is regarded as quite a little town; but four thousand are not very many of the people that are gathered together of the Latter-day Saints—maybe half a million of us—the four thousand would be but few. We have lots of land and water, and any amount of climate. It happens just now that we are living in pretty fruitful times, and we are well fixed with good crops, grains and fruit crops, everything of the kind. I judge so when I see the fruit covering the ground, and we cannot take proper care of it, to make good, profitable use of it. So I want to sound this note of advice to my brethren and sisters who are not refugees, who are at home and live in the United States, in Arizona, New Mexico, California, Nevada, Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming. It is our friends, and neighbors, our brothers and sisters that are down there, and who have been driven from the republic of Mexico. They have not been able to remain there. It seems they were not wanted there. I happened to be among the first of the brethren who went as missionaries into that country, to pioneer the country. I went with President Taylor, President Joseph F. Smith and others of the brethren; quite a company of us went from here into Mexico in about 1885, as I remember. I went three times that year from Salt Lake City to the City of Mexico, and into the hot country beyond. I spent some time there with Erastus Snow, Brigham Young, Jr., John W. Taylor, Moses Thatcher, and others of the brethren. We visited the president of the republic, and we were made welcome by him and by his ministers, and we learned to respect those leading men of that republic. They offered me soldiers when I went down to pioneer the country, for that was my purpose, on my second trip into Mexico. The Indian Chief Geronimo and his men were raiding that country, and raiding Arizona, and our soldiers were there as well as the Mexican soldiers, trying to capture the outlaw and his band. While we were there the Indians went down on the west of us, and on the south, and came out on the east of us, went almost round us, but we were out of sight; they did not happen to see us when we were pioneering the country. We had a little company of soldiers offered us, but Mexican soldiers do not go until tomorrow, they never go till "manana," that is, they do not go today but tomorrow, and we went today, and the soldiers following us could not find us. They thought we would make tracks, and so we did, but a tremendous storm of rain came and obliterated the tracks, and they could not find us. We thus pioneered the country.
I want to say that when we say hard things about the people of that country we only say it about those who are a hard people, a bad people, not about those who are good. They have not had in Mexico, so far as I have known, a secure and stable government. There has not been protection and safety in that country, and a man always had to have a gun across his lap, or hanging on his back, so that it could be seen that he was armed, in order to take care of himself. I was given to understand, in the City of Mexico, that it was not safe for a man to walk across that valley, from one town or village to another, unless he was armed; that he would likely he killed by some one to get his suit of clothes, or a pair of boots, or the dollar in his pocket, if he had it. There were that class of people; but we were made welcome, they wanted us there. They wanted us because our people were thrifty, and prosperous, because we would build good brick houses, and good school buildings, and establish merchandise business and so forth in the country. Our people went there, and they built the finest villages, so far as I can judge and know, in Mexico, the finest considering the population occupying them, that can be found in the republic. I rather think that is correct, they really have built splendid houses, cities, and towns, and have conducted our district schools and high schools there also. We have taken care of ourselves, and have set a good example, and the leading men of that nation were always proud of what the "Mormons" had done there. President Diaz, as long as he stayed there, and his ministers, always spoke well of the "Mormon" people, they could not say otherwise. But there was a man killed every little while. It was dangerous, always more or less dangerous, and they could not be protected, they could not get justice, and the wicked could not be punished, as a rule they were not punished.
Well, now our people have come away, they have been driven away because of the revolution in that country. It is a revolutionary country and a revolutionary people, and there is no telling, of course, as we learned from the President here, when peace will be declared and a good government established. I don't know when it will come, but I do want us, brethren and sisters, to open our hearts and homes, and open the way for the Latter-day Saints to come back to their friends, to come to their neighbors and kindred, they will be no tax on the people of this country. Those four thousand people can stay right here with us, and it will hardly be known that there is anybody extra. We have plenty of room, and everything to make them comfortable. They are a people that will make their way and pay as they go, and earn their living and establish themselves, and in a few years they will be just as wealthy as they were in Mexico, and they will be upon safe, solid ground, where they need not be afraid of anything on earth, no more than we are in Canada. I saw the contrast. I was down in Mexico in '85, and just a little later it fell to my lot to go to Canada to help the pioneers and give them counsel — Elder John W. Taylor and I. We went to the head of the Canadian government, and we were welcomed there. They wanted us, they were glad to have us come, and we have been building there just as we built in Mexico, and just as we have built in Utah, in Arizona, in Nevada, Colorado and Idaho.
Everywhere the Latter - day Saints go they are doing work that speaks well for them, and is a credit to them. They are a stable element —not quite perfect yet, but they are devoted to good works, and the Spirit of the Lord that dwells in them makes them worthy citizens of any country and government. The government of any state or county is stronger for the "Mormon" people that locate therein, or in any city or nation, for it has been proven that they are a good element. The Spirit of the Lord has made them this, and that Spirit will make them even more worthy than what they are now if they will continue faithful. I advise that we should invite our friends home, ask them to come home and take some of our land and work with us. Many of them come unclothed almost, and unfed. They have been robbed, and have nothing to bring with them, as a rule. There are some few that will be able to fight their own way and take care of themselves, but the others will be no burden upon us, we will be richer from taking care of them, helping them, for the Lord will compensate us for doing the good that we should be engaged in. He will reward us, for He says that we shall not lose our reward for any good thing that we do. We want to welcome home our brethren and sisters who have suffered, we want them to come back again into the United. States, if they so desire. If they prefer to stay and try their chances again in Mexico, of course we make no objection, and our blessing and love will go with them where they go, and with the people who will open their hearts and homes to receive them and make them welcome.
I wanted to say that much in regard to those people, for I was there in the country; I was with them when they were in their camps and tents. I was with them there and wrestled for their benefit with the government of the country. The Church has helped them attain what they could; that land was legally obtained for permanent settlement, and we have done our duty in the republic of Mexico. We have been preaching the gospel there also, and maintaining missions among them. We have been doing 'a good work for that republic, and we have not hurt them at all, but have done them a great deal of good; and that was the desire, I am sure, of the leading men of their nation. The Lord will bless those who have befriended our people and those who do befriend them hereafter. The Lord will bless us my brethren and sisters, in being anxiously engaged in this good cause. The Latter-day Saints who do not return to Mexico shall not feel that they are imposing on their kindred and friends, but that the latch string is out, or the door is open, and they are welcome to come and fare and share, with us until they can get on their feet, and it will not be a long time for them to do it. They are the right kind of element.
I pray the Lord to bless you, my brethren and sisters. Let us remember the injunction of this text and be constantly, anxiously and earnestly engaged in a good cause, and bring to pass much righteousness every day of our lives, and the Lord will bless and sustain us, and preserve and redeem us, and make us eminently successful among the children of men. God bless you, my brethren and sisters, and keep us faithful, and help us to endure in His service while we live in the flesh, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
ELDER HEBER J. GRANT.
Diligence in preaching the Gospel increases faith of the preachers.—Unison in proclaiming Gospel truths.—The true Latter-day Saint an exemplar of every virtue.—Cheerful giving of time and means to God's work.
I am happy in having the opportunity of again meeting with the Latter-day Saints in general conference. I have thoroughly enjoyed my labors during the past six months in traveling among the different stakes of Zion, and in visiting two of the missions in the east. I rejoice in finding the Latter-day Saints, who are faithful and diligent in serving the Lord, growing in the light and knowledge of the gospel, growing in a love of the truth and in a determination to do all in their power for the spread of the gospel at home and abroad. I am very happy in contemplating the fact that the gospel of Jesus Christ brings peace, joy and happiness to every soul who embraces it, and who lives it. I rejoice in the fact that the more we do in the gospel of Jesus Christ, the more we love the truth, the stronger is our faith, the more perfect and absolute is our testimony regarding the divinity of this work.
To me one of the greatest of all the great testimonies of the divinity of the work in which we are engaged is the fact that all those who go out to proclaim it, and who live virtuous and upright lives, return to us with a burning testimony of this work, and bear witness to those at home that the most profitable and the happiest time of their lives has been while they have been proclaiming the truth. The Spirit of the Lord accompanies the elders. God blesses those who go forth to preach this gospel. If this gospel were not the truth, honest, prayerful, diligent, humble men would discover that fact, but I have yet to hear of one man in all the eighty odd years that this gospel has been preached, who has gone forth to proclaim it and who has been a diligent, faithful man, who has returned and announced that he has discovered that they have the gospel of Christ in some other land or some other clime. But I have heard of thousands who have studied other gospels, tens of thousands; I have known many who have been members of many different denominations, who never found peace and joy and perfect contentment until they embraced the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is a very difficult "thing to undertake to tell a He and to maintain it. A writer in a book entitled "The Power of Truth" says that lies are fearsome things, and that they have to travel in battalions, that they are like a lot of drunken men, one holding up the other. But, he says, truth can stand alone, it needs no chaperone; and this is true.
This gospel of Jesus Christ has been taught during the past eighty odd years, and all of those who have gone forth to proclaim it have taught the one and the same gospel. There has been no schism, there has been no disagreement. There has been nothing but an increase of faith and a love of the truth that has come to those who have gone forth in humility to spread this gospel of Jesus Christ. It is in very deed the power of God unto salvation, and the people know it, and the people love the truth. Wherever I go among them, whenever the Lord blesses me with liberty to preach this gospel to the people, I can see in their countenances that they rejoice in the witness of the Spirit; that they drink in the words that are given to them; and after meetings, and people shake hands with you, you feel that there is a determination in their hearts to serve God and keep His commandments.
The Latter-day Saints do in very deed thank God for a prophet to .guide them in these latter days. The Latter-day Saints do enjoy singing the song by Brother John Jaques, "O Say What Is Truth?" They rejoice in this gospel and all the teachings of it in the scriptures and in the inspired hymns that we have received. I rejoice in it beyond my power to tell. I enjoy mingling among the Latter-day Saints. I enjoy visiting the households of the Latter-day Saints and conversing with them, and I want to bear my testimony, in connection with that of the others which have been borne, that there are no better people in any land or in any clime. There are no more honest people than the Latter-day Saints. The business integrity of every true Latter- day Saint is perfect. No man who is a Latter-day Saint but what is living a virtuous, upright, honest and a true life. No matter what may be said again.st an individual, it has no effect upon that individual if it is false, and no man can say that any man who lives up to the teachings of the gospel of Jesus Christ, but what that man is a good citizen, that he is a good man, that he desires the welfare of his fellow men, and that his example is above reproach.
I believe that the Latter-day Saints are endeavoring to live up to the teachings of the Savior. I believe that they follow more perfectly the admonitions of the Savior in His sermon upon the mount than any other people. I believe that there is a living, vital force among the people which cannot be found elsewhere. I not only believe this, but I know it. Where are there any other people who make the same sacrifices, that is, sacrifices in the eyes of the world? You and I cannot make any sacrifice for this gospel. Life eternal is the greatest of all of the gifts of God to man, therefore there is no labor that can be required of us whereby we can gain this greatest of all God's blessings, that can be called a sacrifice. It is a privilege for us to learn the lessons that devolve upon us. I thank God for the privilege of paying tithing. I rejoice in having the opportunity of showing my gratitude to my Heavenly Father for His mercies to me. I thank the Lord for the opportunity of contributing of the means that come to me for the erection of meeting-houses, of schoolhouses, of temples, and for the opportunity of going forth to proclaim this gospel.
I have been suffering for several days with a slight cold, and I find that I am rasping my throat. I have pitched my voice a little bit too high, therefore I will close my remarks, by praying God to bless you. I know that God lives. I know that Jesus is the Christ. I know that Joseph Smith is a prophet of the true and the living God, and that we have the truth; and I know that Joseph 'F. Smith is the prophet of God, and that the inspiration of God guides him. May the Latter-day Saints be loyal and true, I ask it in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Miss Josie Hinckley sang a soprano solo, entitled, "Jesus, Our Savior."
Diligence in preaching the Gospel increases faith of the preachers.—Unison in proclaiming Gospel truths.—The true Latter-day Saint an exemplar of every virtue.—Cheerful giving of time and means to God's work.
I am happy in having the opportunity of again meeting with the Latter-day Saints in general conference. I have thoroughly enjoyed my labors during the past six months in traveling among the different stakes of Zion, and in visiting two of the missions in the east. I rejoice in finding the Latter-day Saints, who are faithful and diligent in serving the Lord, growing in the light and knowledge of the gospel, growing in a love of the truth and in a determination to do all in their power for the spread of the gospel at home and abroad. I am very happy in contemplating the fact that the gospel of Jesus Christ brings peace, joy and happiness to every soul who embraces it, and who lives it. I rejoice in the fact that the more we do in the gospel of Jesus Christ, the more we love the truth, the stronger is our faith, the more perfect and absolute is our testimony regarding the divinity of this work.
To me one of the greatest of all the great testimonies of the divinity of the work in which we are engaged is the fact that all those who go out to proclaim it, and who live virtuous and upright lives, return to us with a burning testimony of this work, and bear witness to those at home that the most profitable and the happiest time of their lives has been while they have been proclaiming the truth. The Spirit of the Lord accompanies the elders. God blesses those who go forth to preach this gospel. If this gospel were not the truth, honest, prayerful, diligent, humble men would discover that fact, but I have yet to hear of one man in all the eighty odd years that this gospel has been preached, who has gone forth to proclaim it and who has been a diligent, faithful man, who has returned and announced that he has discovered that they have the gospel of Christ in some other land or some other clime. But I have heard of thousands who have studied other gospels, tens of thousands; I have known many who have been members of many different denominations, who never found peace and joy and perfect contentment until they embraced the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is a very difficult "thing to undertake to tell a He and to maintain it. A writer in a book entitled "The Power of Truth" says that lies are fearsome things, and that they have to travel in battalions, that they are like a lot of drunken men, one holding up the other. But, he says, truth can stand alone, it needs no chaperone; and this is true.
This gospel of Jesus Christ has been taught during the past eighty odd years, and all of those who have gone forth to proclaim it have taught the one and the same gospel. There has been no schism, there has been no disagreement. There has been nothing but an increase of faith and a love of the truth that has come to those who have gone forth in humility to spread this gospel of Jesus Christ. It is in very deed the power of God unto salvation, and the people know it, and the people love the truth. Wherever I go among them, whenever the Lord blesses me with liberty to preach this gospel to the people, I can see in their countenances that they rejoice in the witness of the Spirit; that they drink in the words that are given to them; and after meetings, and people shake hands with you, you feel that there is a determination in their hearts to serve God and keep His commandments.
The Latter-day Saints do in very deed thank God for a prophet to .guide them in these latter days. The Latter-day Saints do enjoy singing the song by Brother John Jaques, "O Say What Is Truth?" They rejoice in this gospel and all the teachings of it in the scriptures and in the inspired hymns that we have received. I rejoice in it beyond my power to tell. I enjoy mingling among the Latter-day Saints. I enjoy visiting the households of the Latter-day Saints and conversing with them, and I want to bear my testimony, in connection with that of the others which have been borne, that there are no better people in any land or in any clime. There are no more honest people than the Latter-day Saints. The business integrity of every true Latter- day Saint is perfect. No man who is a Latter-day Saint but what is living a virtuous, upright, honest and a true life. No matter what may be said again.st an individual, it has no effect upon that individual if it is false, and no man can say that any man who lives up to the teachings of the gospel of Jesus Christ, but what that man is a good citizen, that he is a good man, that he desires the welfare of his fellow men, and that his example is above reproach.
I believe that the Latter-day Saints are endeavoring to live up to the teachings of the Savior. I believe that they follow more perfectly the admonitions of the Savior in His sermon upon the mount than any other people. I believe that there is a living, vital force among the people which cannot be found elsewhere. I not only believe this, but I know it. Where are there any other people who make the same sacrifices, that is, sacrifices in the eyes of the world? You and I cannot make any sacrifice for this gospel. Life eternal is the greatest of all of the gifts of God to man, therefore there is no labor that can be required of us whereby we can gain this greatest of all God's blessings, that can be called a sacrifice. It is a privilege for us to learn the lessons that devolve upon us. I thank God for the privilege of paying tithing. I rejoice in having the opportunity of showing my gratitude to my Heavenly Father for His mercies to me. I thank the Lord for the opportunity of contributing of the means that come to me for the erection of meeting-houses, of schoolhouses, of temples, and for the opportunity of going forth to proclaim this gospel.
I have been suffering for several days with a slight cold, and I find that I am rasping my throat. I have pitched my voice a little bit too high, therefore I will close my remarks, by praying God to bless you. I know that God lives. I know that Jesus is the Christ. I know that Joseph Smith is a prophet of the true and the living God, and that we have the truth; and I know that Joseph 'F. Smith is the prophet of God, and that the inspiration of God guides him. May the Latter-day Saints be loyal and true, I ask it in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Miss Josie Hinckley sang a soprano solo, entitled, "Jesus, Our Savior."
ELDER REED SMOOT.
Great influence of music in religious and secular affairs.—Remarkable effects of the hymn, "O, My Father."—Advice to shun all get-rich-quick propositions. — Smokers, drinkers, and immoral men unfit for responsible positions.
In a revelation given through the Prophet. Joseph Smith in July, 1830, the Lord, in speaking to Joseph's wife, Emma, said: "For my soul delighteth in the song of the heart; yea, the song of the righteous is a prayer unto me, and it shall be answered with a blessing upon their heads."
I could not help but think of this part of the revelation in listening to the beautiful hymns that have been sung during this conference. I believe that we can worship in song as acceptably to Him as in any other way. In reading the history of the world we find that music has been conspicuous, in all ages and among all nations. There are but few religious 'denominations that do not avail themselves of the sweet influence of music. It is not only a custom to worship God by singing His praises in song, but we find the power of music manifest in almost all the great affairs in life. It is made use of to encourage and inspire men in battle. It is depended upon on occasions when there is necessity for inspiring in the hearts of men enthusiasm or loyalty. The history of nations is, in part, told in song-. I know of no people on earth who have written into their songs the principles of the gospel they believe in more than have the Latter-da}- Saints. It is true there are many beautiful hymns written by men that all Christians love to sing, and we sing them in devotion to our Maker. We often sing the hymn composed by Charles Wesley entitled, "Jesus Lover of My Soul." It is said that Charles Wesley was inspired to write this greatest of his hymns by a bird, frightened by a thunder storm, flying into his room, preferring to risk Its life indoors with him than outside where the elements were disturbed. As it sat quivering on his mantel, frightened nearly to death, Wesley was inspired to write that hymn. Henry Ward Beecher, speaking at his father's funeral, referred to the hymn that had been composed by Charles Wesley, "Jesus Lover of My Soul," and made the statement that he would rather have been the author of that song than to have the wealth of the greatest millionaire, for in it was inspiration, in it was power. While wealth would perish and its possessor be forgotten, the memory of Wesley would live for ages to come, because the words of the song would be perpetuated. The opening hymn of this conference,
"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,"
is filled with inspiration. Brother William Clayton, the author of this song, was inspired to write it, at a time when the people were crossing the plains, careworn, disheartened and in need of encouragement. President Young realized their condition and knew that music would inspire them to renewed energy. He therefore asked William Clayton to write a hymn suitable to the conditions, and the result was the hymn, "Come, come, ye Saints." It was inspired by God, and it has been an inspiration to God's people ever since.
I believe that Sister Snow, when she composed that immortalized song, ''O my Father, Thou that dwellest in the high and glorious place," was inspired of God the Eternal Father. The idea that we had a Mother, as well as a Father, in Heaven was first taught in this dispensation by the Prophet Joseph Smith. Sister Snow was convinced that he was right in so teaching, and embodied that principle of the Gospel in the song. I believe that hymn, "O My Father," has been the means of causing thousands of the people of the world to investigate "Mormonism." When I heard our choir sing it in the Capital of this nation I noticed many a wet eye. It seemed to me that it had the effect of a testimony to the people present; it certainly was listened to in song more intently than it would have been by word of mouth.
The closing song of the first day's session of this conference, the hymn that President Woodruff loved so well,
"God moves in a mysterious way,
His wonders to perform,
He plants his footsteps in the sea
And rides upon the storm,"
will live forever. It is said that Cowper, the author, was inspired to write it after he had made up his mind that life was not worth living. The story is that he called a London cabby and asked him to drive to London Bridge, with the avowed purpose of throwing himself in the Thames river and ending his life. It is reported that the cabby, driving around the city, landed at last before the door of the house where he took the poet from. Cowper got out of the cab and went to the room which he had left a short time before for the purpose of ending his life. While contemplating the circumstance, the inspiration came to him and he wrote the song, "God moves in a mysterious way."
There is one thing known to the people of all countries, whether they approve of our religion or not, that is the remarkable musical ability of the "Mormon" people. People, in general, appreciate the songs our missionaries sing, and the spirit with which they are sung. I have met many men in my travels, and in conversation some have said, "Yes, I remember hearing your elders sing upon the street corners of England, or in America, or in some other place as the case might be. In some cases Elders had visited a gentleman's home and had sung our gospel hymns. They pleased him, and impressed him with the thought that our songs carried with them the true spirit of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I am always proud, and it gives me joy to be able to testify to the world that the "Mormon" people as a whole are lovers of music, and that we have talented students in many of the musical academies of the world.
In connection with the brethren, I have rejoiced exceedingly in the proceedings of this conference. There is one subject, my brethren and sisters, that I wish to call your attention to today. Perhaps some will think that it is out of place at a general conference, but I don't believe that it is. I speak of it now as this may be the only chance I will have. I notice in a report made by our government, through the post office department, that there was over $120,000,000 lost to the American people last year, through frauds carried on through the mails, by persons and companies formed for the purpose of fleecing the people of the United States. I want to say that I was sorry to find that tens of thousands of dollars of this vast amount had been secured from the people of this state. I want to advise the people attending this conference, and all the people of Utah, that whenever circular letters come to you, from unknown companies, with a promise that you can be made rich quick, such letters and promises should be given the most thorough investigation, for nine hundred and ninety-nine times out of one thousand they are frauds. I have received letters from all parts of this state, from men whom I was dumbfounded to learn had been influenced by unreasonable propositions, and invested in them. I call to mind a real estate firm, whose land was supposed to be near the city of Washington, D. C, selling building lots with a promise of enormous profits, and upon investigation as to the location of its land, I found that it was many miles from Washington. One might just as well put his money in a sand hill in the desert as to buy the lands which were described in the firm's circulars. Many, no doubt, receive circulars from all over the United States asking you to subscribe for stock in companies whose future success depends upon some patent, or supposed patent, that may be issued to some individual, which, if investigated, would probably be found worthless. I say to the good people of Utah that there are plenty of opportunities for good investments in this state, and it is far better to invest in them than to send your hard earned money abroad, and virtually give it to a lot of crooks who are living on their wits, and robbing the people of the United States.
I rejoice in the fact that there is a compensation in living the laws of God, not for the world to come only, but in this life, and the world will sooner or later acknowledge it. Business men are beginning to understand it, especially men who require the full strength and faculties of their employees. Responsible positions require not only physical, but intellectual strength, and many employers are demanding that neither be impaired by the use of liquor or tobacco. Managers in the American baseball league will not select a player who has acquired the habit of liquor drinking. Every player is closely examined as to his moral habits. I have heard it stated that Walter Johnson, the swiftest and best pitcher in the American League, can always be depended upon as he is free from all bad habits. The mountain air of Idaho gave him a splendid constitution, and it has not been destroyed by the use of liquor; he lives a clean life. The managers of the great railroads are not employing men who drink and smoke. They have learned through experience that the engineers, who have in their hands the lives of millions of people, cannot be trusted with that great responsibility if they dull their intellect by the use of tobacco or liquor. This is going to be the rule not only with the great railroads, but with many of the great business concerns requiring men of ability in responsible positions. I could not help but think of similar cases when Brother Wells was speaking of the boy who could not refuse to drink with his companions, and did not have the moral strength to withstand temptation. I never lost a thing in this world, not even the respect of a single person that I know of, by refusing to smoke or drink upon any occasion; and I know that I have won the respect and confidence of thousands by refusing to do so, and by living up to what I profess. I don't care where tobacco or liquors are offered or served, whether it be at a dinner, or a gathering of any kind, they have been no temptation to me. The oftener you refuse the easier it is to do so. My Father in heaven has given me strength to do so. My mother taught me in my young days the evils that would follow any man who did not have the strength to resist temptation. When I was eighteen years of age I was manager of the Provo Co-operative Institution and I was thrown in the company of all classes of men. During that time I visited nearly every state in the Union on business, and I testify to you that I never lost one thing by refusing to drink, smoke, or to follow those inclined to evil habits. On the contrary I won their respect, and I have heard them so testify. So I say again, we are compensated in this life for obeying the temporal laws of God.
I want to add my testimony that this is the work of God, and I know that He doth live, and that Jesus is the Christ. I have confidence in the predictions of the prophets of God; I know that this is His Church and that it will do all that He intends it to accomplish; and that we may be successful, and be loyal to it as long as we live, I ask in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Great influence of music in religious and secular affairs.—Remarkable effects of the hymn, "O, My Father."—Advice to shun all get-rich-quick propositions. — Smokers, drinkers, and immoral men unfit for responsible positions.
In a revelation given through the Prophet. Joseph Smith in July, 1830, the Lord, in speaking to Joseph's wife, Emma, said: "For my soul delighteth in the song of the heart; yea, the song of the righteous is a prayer unto me, and it shall be answered with a blessing upon their heads."
I could not help but think of this part of the revelation in listening to the beautiful hymns that have been sung during this conference. I believe that we can worship in song as acceptably to Him as in any other way. In reading the history of the world we find that music has been conspicuous, in all ages and among all nations. There are but few religious 'denominations that do not avail themselves of the sweet influence of music. It is not only a custom to worship God by singing His praises in song, but we find the power of music manifest in almost all the great affairs in life. It is made use of to encourage and inspire men in battle. It is depended upon on occasions when there is necessity for inspiring in the hearts of men enthusiasm or loyalty. The history of nations is, in part, told in song-. I know of no people on earth who have written into their songs the principles of the gospel they believe in more than have the Latter-da}- Saints. It is true there are many beautiful hymns written by men that all Christians love to sing, and we sing them in devotion to our Maker. We often sing the hymn composed by Charles Wesley entitled, "Jesus Lover of My Soul." It is said that Charles Wesley was inspired to write this greatest of his hymns by a bird, frightened by a thunder storm, flying into his room, preferring to risk Its life indoors with him than outside where the elements were disturbed. As it sat quivering on his mantel, frightened nearly to death, Wesley was inspired to write that hymn. Henry Ward Beecher, speaking at his father's funeral, referred to the hymn that had been composed by Charles Wesley, "Jesus Lover of My Soul," and made the statement that he would rather have been the author of that song than to have the wealth of the greatest millionaire, for in it was inspiration, in it was power. While wealth would perish and its possessor be forgotten, the memory of Wesley would live for ages to come, because the words of the song would be perpetuated. The opening hymn of this conference,
"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,"
is filled with inspiration. Brother William Clayton, the author of this song, was inspired to write it, at a time when the people were crossing the plains, careworn, disheartened and in need of encouragement. President Young realized their condition and knew that music would inspire them to renewed energy. He therefore asked William Clayton to write a hymn suitable to the conditions, and the result was the hymn, "Come, come, ye Saints." It was inspired by God, and it has been an inspiration to God's people ever since.
I believe that Sister Snow, when she composed that immortalized song, ''O my Father, Thou that dwellest in the high and glorious place," was inspired of God the Eternal Father. The idea that we had a Mother, as well as a Father, in Heaven was first taught in this dispensation by the Prophet Joseph Smith. Sister Snow was convinced that he was right in so teaching, and embodied that principle of the Gospel in the song. I believe that hymn, "O My Father," has been the means of causing thousands of the people of the world to investigate "Mormonism." When I heard our choir sing it in the Capital of this nation I noticed many a wet eye. It seemed to me that it had the effect of a testimony to the people present; it certainly was listened to in song more intently than it would have been by word of mouth.
The closing song of the first day's session of this conference, the hymn that President Woodruff loved so well,
"God moves in a mysterious way,
His wonders to perform,
He plants his footsteps in the sea
And rides upon the storm,"
will live forever. It is said that Cowper, the author, was inspired to write it after he had made up his mind that life was not worth living. The story is that he called a London cabby and asked him to drive to London Bridge, with the avowed purpose of throwing himself in the Thames river and ending his life. It is reported that the cabby, driving around the city, landed at last before the door of the house where he took the poet from. Cowper got out of the cab and went to the room which he had left a short time before for the purpose of ending his life. While contemplating the circumstance, the inspiration came to him and he wrote the song, "God moves in a mysterious way."
There is one thing known to the people of all countries, whether they approve of our religion or not, that is the remarkable musical ability of the "Mormon" people. People, in general, appreciate the songs our missionaries sing, and the spirit with which they are sung. I have met many men in my travels, and in conversation some have said, "Yes, I remember hearing your elders sing upon the street corners of England, or in America, or in some other place as the case might be. In some cases Elders had visited a gentleman's home and had sung our gospel hymns. They pleased him, and impressed him with the thought that our songs carried with them the true spirit of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I am always proud, and it gives me joy to be able to testify to the world that the "Mormon" people as a whole are lovers of music, and that we have talented students in many of the musical academies of the world.
In connection with the brethren, I have rejoiced exceedingly in the proceedings of this conference. There is one subject, my brethren and sisters, that I wish to call your attention to today. Perhaps some will think that it is out of place at a general conference, but I don't believe that it is. I speak of it now as this may be the only chance I will have. I notice in a report made by our government, through the post office department, that there was over $120,000,000 lost to the American people last year, through frauds carried on through the mails, by persons and companies formed for the purpose of fleecing the people of the United States. I want to say that I was sorry to find that tens of thousands of dollars of this vast amount had been secured from the people of this state. I want to advise the people attending this conference, and all the people of Utah, that whenever circular letters come to you, from unknown companies, with a promise that you can be made rich quick, such letters and promises should be given the most thorough investigation, for nine hundred and ninety-nine times out of one thousand they are frauds. I have received letters from all parts of this state, from men whom I was dumbfounded to learn had been influenced by unreasonable propositions, and invested in them. I call to mind a real estate firm, whose land was supposed to be near the city of Washington, D. C, selling building lots with a promise of enormous profits, and upon investigation as to the location of its land, I found that it was many miles from Washington. One might just as well put his money in a sand hill in the desert as to buy the lands which were described in the firm's circulars. Many, no doubt, receive circulars from all over the United States asking you to subscribe for stock in companies whose future success depends upon some patent, or supposed patent, that may be issued to some individual, which, if investigated, would probably be found worthless. I say to the good people of Utah that there are plenty of opportunities for good investments in this state, and it is far better to invest in them than to send your hard earned money abroad, and virtually give it to a lot of crooks who are living on their wits, and robbing the people of the United States.
I rejoice in the fact that there is a compensation in living the laws of God, not for the world to come only, but in this life, and the world will sooner or later acknowledge it. Business men are beginning to understand it, especially men who require the full strength and faculties of their employees. Responsible positions require not only physical, but intellectual strength, and many employers are demanding that neither be impaired by the use of liquor or tobacco. Managers in the American baseball league will not select a player who has acquired the habit of liquor drinking. Every player is closely examined as to his moral habits. I have heard it stated that Walter Johnson, the swiftest and best pitcher in the American League, can always be depended upon as he is free from all bad habits. The mountain air of Idaho gave him a splendid constitution, and it has not been destroyed by the use of liquor; he lives a clean life. The managers of the great railroads are not employing men who drink and smoke. They have learned through experience that the engineers, who have in their hands the lives of millions of people, cannot be trusted with that great responsibility if they dull their intellect by the use of tobacco or liquor. This is going to be the rule not only with the great railroads, but with many of the great business concerns requiring men of ability in responsible positions. I could not help but think of similar cases when Brother Wells was speaking of the boy who could not refuse to drink with his companions, and did not have the moral strength to withstand temptation. I never lost a thing in this world, not even the respect of a single person that I know of, by refusing to smoke or drink upon any occasion; and I know that I have won the respect and confidence of thousands by refusing to do so, and by living up to what I profess. I don't care where tobacco or liquors are offered or served, whether it be at a dinner, or a gathering of any kind, they have been no temptation to me. The oftener you refuse the easier it is to do so. My Father in heaven has given me strength to do so. My mother taught me in my young days the evils that would follow any man who did not have the strength to resist temptation. When I was eighteen years of age I was manager of the Provo Co-operative Institution and I was thrown in the company of all classes of men. During that time I visited nearly every state in the Union on business, and I testify to you that I never lost one thing by refusing to drink, smoke, or to follow those inclined to evil habits. On the contrary I won their respect, and I have heard them so testify. So I say again, we are compensated in this life for obeying the temporal laws of God.
I want to add my testimony that this is the work of God, and I know that He doth live, and that Jesus is the Christ. I have confidence in the predictions of the prophets of God; I know that this is His Church and that it will do all that He intends it to accomplish; and that we may be successful, and be loyal to it as long as we live, I ask in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
ELDER HYRUM M. SMITH.
Prevailing disposition to discredit the Bible.—"Private" interpretation of scripture denounced.—Principles of salvation plainly declared in scriptures. —Gift of the Holy Ghost most 'desirable.— Saints enjoined to become familiar with ancient and modem scriptures.
There appears at the head of each number of the Millennial Star, which is published weekly in Liverpool, England, a quotation from scripture, or a wise saying of some man. I opened the "Star" of Thursday, September 19, 1912, a day or two ago, and read this particular passage, and the remarks of some of the brethren in this conference have directed my mind again to it. I would like to read it because it is a striking sentiment and it is true. It is as follows:
"We must come to the study of the Bible as pupils, not as judges, to find, not what ought to be said, but what God has said, as enquirers after divine truth, not as advocates seeking arguments. It is the student and not the book that needs to be spiritualized."
It is accredited to Dr. Liddon. I don't know who this gentleman is, and I don't know whether or not in his article from which this excerpt was taken he attempts to direct people how to become spiritualized. This is not altogether a new idea. The form of words may be new in which the idea is clothed, but the idea itself has been advocated by the elders of the Church for upwards of eighty .years. Infidels have treated the Bible with the utmost contempt. They have read it only with the idea of condemning it. They have ridiculed it and have held in derision those who have professed to believe in it. Another class of men, calling themselves philosophers, or higher critics, have studied the scriptures very carefully, and have criticised them severely. They have discredited all in them that partakes of the supernatural or miraculous. They have raised grave questions concerning the authorship of the books of the Bible, and they contend among themselves over many of the things which are recorded in the Holy Writ. They argue over the question as to whether there was ever such a man as Job, or whether Mark wrote the gospel that bears his name, or whether Christ performed the miracles which are related of Him. This second class, I might say, have pretty thoroughly torn to fragments the holy scriptures. As a result of their work multitudes of men have come to doubt the divine nature of the Bible. Then there is still another class of men who are known as Christian ministers, who profess to believe the Bible to be the word of God entirely. They declare that it is the word of God, the whole word of God; that God had spoken nothing before the beginning; nor since the close of that record and will .speak never again. They profess belief in the book, with their lips, and then straightway deny it in their acts and their lives by refusing, or at least failing to follow the teachings of the Bible, notwithstanding the book itself declares, "Why call ye me Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say ?"
Now, these three classes of people have pretty well succeeded, with their sophistries and their criticisms and their ridicule, in thoroughly sterilizing the whole Christian world as to spiritual life. Of course, no man can spiritualize the scriptures. Men subject the scriptures to a form or process which they term spiritualizing, but which is not spiritualizing at all, but is merely placing their own interpretation upon them, in order to make the scriptures conform to their own particular views, and this again, in the very face of the declaration of the book itself, "that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Ghost." And again, neither can the Bible spiritualize men. That is to say, the Bible has not the power to confer upon men the Holy Ghost, nor to give unto them that Spirit of God, which has been spoken of here in this conference by President Lyman and others. The Bible truly, as has been explained by the Prophet Joseph Smith, is the word of God, so far as it is translated correctly. The Latter- day Saints believe it to be such, and we are endeavoring to put into practice in our every-clay lives the principles and precepts that are made plain and clear in the holy scriptures, which things were indited by the Spirit of God, but which things must be understood, and can only be understood by men who enjoy the Holy Spirit. Now, how shall men become spiritualized in very truth? Weh, the scriptures are plain on that matter. It is, first, by faith in God. We should believe in Him with all our heart, might, mind and strength, and, second, by repentance of our sins, a process of turning away from sin or being sorry for the evils we have done, calling upon the Lord to be merciful to us, and to accept us and acknowledge our repentance, and to help us to remain repentant to the extent that we shall no more return again to the works of evil. When we have thus repented and have purified our tabernacles and made them clean, that they may be indeed temples of the Lord our God, wherein may dwell the Holy Ghost, we are prepared for baptism in water by immersion for the remission of our sins, that through that ordinance our sins may be washed away and we be forgiven, being buried with Christ in baptism, in the similitude of His death, and being raised again cleansed and purified, to walk in newness of life, in the likeness of the glorious resurrection of the Son of God, then we are prepared to receive the Holy Ghost, the Spirit oi truth, that takes of the things of God and reveals them unto the children of our Father in heaven. The Holy Ghost is received by the laying on of hands by one having authority, and then, and not until then, can the student of the scripture and the believer in God become truly spiritualized.
When he has so received the gift of the Holy Ghost, or the Holy Ghost as a gift from God, he has received a comforter to his soul, a light to his path, a spirit that giveth understanding and knowledge, that brightens the mind, quickens the intellect and gives a proper comprehension of the things of God that have been revealed through the prophets, and are written in the holy scriptures. A man with this spirit, reading the scriptures will understand them. He will not wrest them to his own condemnation. He will accept the declaration of the Holy Scriptures that the Lord Jesus Christ was born of a woman, literally and naturally, like all other men have been born, and will not attempt, as some do, to spiritualize the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ. He will believe in the ministry of the Redeemer of men, will accept the history of His ministry, of His death, of His burial, and will believe and understand, by the power and witness of the Holy Ghost, that Christ rose from the dead, that He again took up that very same body that was crucified and laid in the grave, and further, he will believe that as Christ rose from the dead so shall all men come forth in a resurrection from the dead, taking up the body that died and was buried. And he will not attempt to spiritualize it or to interpret the word of God into meaning something else—that it is a spiritual resurrection and not the resurrection of a mortal body into an immortal body. As he reads the scriptures all things spoken by the prophets of old shall be understood by him, by virtue of his possessing the Spirit of truth, and they will be clear to his understanding; and, as the multitude read who are possessed of this Spirit, having been spiritualized in this manner, they shall see and understand, believe and know alike, and there shall be no difference of opinion nor of understanding upon these great fundamental truths of the gospel of salvation. He, the spirit of truth, shall guide them into all truth, and shall abide with the faithful forever.
My brethren and sisters, perchance there are some among us who have been spiritualized in this way, who have received the Holy Ghost, by which our minds may be enlightened and our knowledge increased, who have wandered away from daily companionship with the things that have been spoken and written by holy men of God, and which are found recorded in the Bible. If there are any who are not in close association and familiar with the word of the Lord as contained in the Bible, then I would invite all such to return again to that book, and to read it frequently, to be encouraged and comforted, enlightened and made wiser, more humble and true by daily converse with the inspired word of the Lord. I there are any among us who rarely, if ever, take up the Book of Mormon, another book containing the words and prophecies of holy men who spoke and wrote as they were moved upon by the Holy Ghost, which has been revealed to us through the Prophet Joseph Smith in the latter days, and contains the history of the dealings of God with His children who dwelt upon this continent—then I would say, return again to the Book of Mormon and become familiar with it. Read it and be instructed, and allow the Spirit of God, even the Holy Ghost, to open the. eyes of your understanding, to make clear unto you the precious words of life which it contains. And as you read the Book of Mormon and come to comprehend its great message, you will come to love it, love it most dearly, as a direct communication of God to man.
If there are any of the Saints who neglect to read the Doctrine and Covenants—which contains the revelations of our Lord to His children in the dispensation of the fulness of times—I would advise them to take it up oftener and read it carefully and prayerfully, because it contains indeed the words of eternal life.
I might say the same of the Pearl of Great Price, which we might all read with great profit to ourselves. Now, I would advise you, my brethren, if in your communities there are members of the Church who have long since ceased to be daily searchers of the scriptures, that you invite them to renew their acquaintance with the word of the Lord. If there are any among us who are not as faithful as they should be in attending to their meetings, where they may hear the word of God spoken, spoken too, by the promptings arid inspiration of the Holy Ghost; things which come fresh and new from the fountain of all truth, then I would say, labor among them and with them and invite them to come into the house of the Lord, where they may be comforted and instructed. Encourage them to repent and to commune with the Lord through the gift of the Spirit, and to associate more with the Saints who enjoy and possess that glorious Spirit.
There is a cry that has gone forth from some of the leading statesmen of our land recently to those who crowd and congest the great cities of our country, it is "back to the farm," back to the soil, back to nature. It is good advice. It is wise counsel. And I would say, too, that if there are any of us, who have wandered away from reading the scriptures and from acquaintance with the word of God, that we come back to the Bible, back to the Book of Mormon, back to the Doctrine and Covenants, and back to prayer; back to our knees, if not to our mother's knee, at least to our own knees before the Lord, in the spirit of prayer and repentance, that we might possess and enjoy the companionship of the Holy Ghost.
My brethren and sisters, I would say just this word farther, that the process of becoming despiritualized is just the reverse to that of becoming spiritualized, or of receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost as we receive it through faith and repentance and baptism by immersion in water, and by the laying on of hands by one holding authority. Let us see to it that we do not lose the Spirit of God by lapsing into indifference, into neglect of duty, into failure to pray, into disobedience, and the breaking of the commandments; into the spirit of fault-finding and committing of sin. One step leads to another, until by and by the Spirit is grieved and will no longer strive with us. We can go to the extent, in our sinning and neglect, that the Spirit of God will altogether withdraw from us, and then when the light that is within us has become darkness, oh, how intense, indeed, is that darkness. Then we are left to the buffetings of Satan, to become like the waves of the sea, driven by the wind and tossed, to be carried about by every wind of doctrine, to be persuaded by all manner of men, never secure, never established in the truth, always full of anxiety and doubt, not knowing whither we are being enticed. That is a terrible condition. it has been said that it had been better never to have been born, than to have received the Holy Ghost, and then deny Him. "For if after we have escaped the pollution of the world through the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ we are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse than the beginning. For it had been better for us not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after we have known it to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto us." I would warn all the Latter-day Saints against getting into such a state through neglect of meetings, neglect of prayer, neglect to read the Bible, the Book of Mormon, and the scriptures of modern times, lest they lose the Spirit of the Lord and are left in a darkened state of mind. If there are any taking such a course let them repent and return ere it is too late, for when once a man has enjoyed this Spirit and the witness thereof—and the chief mission of the Spirit is to bear record and witness that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, and to bring and reveal to man this knowledge, which is eternal life—I say that when a man has once enjoyed that Spirit and had that witness and then through sin and neglect, and wickedness, has that Spirit withdrawn from him, so that he cannot repent, he is in a terrible condition, and it is practically impossible, either in this life or the life to come, for that man ever again to get possession of the Spirit of God and the witness of Jesus Christ. It is impossible, either in this life or the life to come, for a man who commits such a crime, to obtain forgiveness, for there is no forgiveness without true repentance.
I bear testimony to you of the truth of these things. I rejoice in the truth, and I love it, as my brethren have declared they love it, and I trust that I shall have sufficient courage and sufficient of the Spirit of God and the light of truth always to guide me in that path which leadeth again into the presence of God the Eternal Father. May that Spirit be kept alive and free within every one of us. May we keep our tabernacles pure and holy as temples of the Lord our God, that we all may be led back into the presence of the Father to enjoy for eternity the association of loved ones and of the Saints who have confessed, both in their lives and with their tongues, that Jesus is the Christ. And O may God grant that not one of us may be lost, I pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
A letter to President Joseph F. Smith, from the Presidency of Alberta Stake, was read by Elder Heber J. Grant, in which it was stated that the Cardston choir had been honored with an invitation to sing at the Dry Farming Congress meetings in Lethbridge.
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Junius Romney.
Conference adjourned until Sunday, October 6th, at 10 a. m.
Prevailing disposition to discredit the Bible.—"Private" interpretation of scripture denounced.—Principles of salvation plainly declared in scriptures. —Gift of the Holy Ghost most 'desirable.— Saints enjoined to become familiar with ancient and modem scriptures.
There appears at the head of each number of the Millennial Star, which is published weekly in Liverpool, England, a quotation from scripture, or a wise saying of some man. I opened the "Star" of Thursday, September 19, 1912, a day or two ago, and read this particular passage, and the remarks of some of the brethren in this conference have directed my mind again to it. I would like to read it because it is a striking sentiment and it is true. It is as follows:
"We must come to the study of the Bible as pupils, not as judges, to find, not what ought to be said, but what God has said, as enquirers after divine truth, not as advocates seeking arguments. It is the student and not the book that needs to be spiritualized."
It is accredited to Dr. Liddon. I don't know who this gentleman is, and I don't know whether or not in his article from which this excerpt was taken he attempts to direct people how to become spiritualized. This is not altogether a new idea. The form of words may be new in which the idea is clothed, but the idea itself has been advocated by the elders of the Church for upwards of eighty .years. Infidels have treated the Bible with the utmost contempt. They have read it only with the idea of condemning it. They have ridiculed it and have held in derision those who have professed to believe in it. Another class of men, calling themselves philosophers, or higher critics, have studied the scriptures very carefully, and have criticised them severely. They have discredited all in them that partakes of the supernatural or miraculous. They have raised grave questions concerning the authorship of the books of the Bible, and they contend among themselves over many of the things which are recorded in the Holy Writ. They argue over the question as to whether there was ever such a man as Job, or whether Mark wrote the gospel that bears his name, or whether Christ performed the miracles which are related of Him. This second class, I might say, have pretty thoroughly torn to fragments the holy scriptures. As a result of their work multitudes of men have come to doubt the divine nature of the Bible. Then there is still another class of men who are known as Christian ministers, who profess to believe the Bible to be the word of God entirely. They declare that it is the word of God, the whole word of God; that God had spoken nothing before the beginning; nor since the close of that record and will .speak never again. They profess belief in the book, with their lips, and then straightway deny it in their acts and their lives by refusing, or at least failing to follow the teachings of the Bible, notwithstanding the book itself declares, "Why call ye me Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say ?"
Now, these three classes of people have pretty well succeeded, with their sophistries and their criticisms and their ridicule, in thoroughly sterilizing the whole Christian world as to spiritual life. Of course, no man can spiritualize the scriptures. Men subject the scriptures to a form or process which they term spiritualizing, but which is not spiritualizing at all, but is merely placing their own interpretation upon them, in order to make the scriptures conform to their own particular views, and this again, in the very face of the declaration of the book itself, "that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Ghost." And again, neither can the Bible spiritualize men. That is to say, the Bible has not the power to confer upon men the Holy Ghost, nor to give unto them that Spirit of God, which has been spoken of here in this conference by President Lyman and others. The Bible truly, as has been explained by the Prophet Joseph Smith, is the word of God, so far as it is translated correctly. The Latter- day Saints believe it to be such, and we are endeavoring to put into practice in our every-clay lives the principles and precepts that are made plain and clear in the holy scriptures, which things were indited by the Spirit of God, but which things must be understood, and can only be understood by men who enjoy the Holy Spirit. Now, how shall men become spiritualized in very truth? Weh, the scriptures are plain on that matter. It is, first, by faith in God. We should believe in Him with all our heart, might, mind and strength, and, second, by repentance of our sins, a process of turning away from sin or being sorry for the evils we have done, calling upon the Lord to be merciful to us, and to accept us and acknowledge our repentance, and to help us to remain repentant to the extent that we shall no more return again to the works of evil. When we have thus repented and have purified our tabernacles and made them clean, that they may be indeed temples of the Lord our God, wherein may dwell the Holy Ghost, we are prepared for baptism in water by immersion for the remission of our sins, that through that ordinance our sins may be washed away and we be forgiven, being buried with Christ in baptism, in the similitude of His death, and being raised again cleansed and purified, to walk in newness of life, in the likeness of the glorious resurrection of the Son of God, then we are prepared to receive the Holy Ghost, the Spirit oi truth, that takes of the things of God and reveals them unto the children of our Father in heaven. The Holy Ghost is received by the laying on of hands by one having authority, and then, and not until then, can the student of the scripture and the believer in God become truly spiritualized.
When he has so received the gift of the Holy Ghost, or the Holy Ghost as a gift from God, he has received a comforter to his soul, a light to his path, a spirit that giveth understanding and knowledge, that brightens the mind, quickens the intellect and gives a proper comprehension of the things of God that have been revealed through the prophets, and are written in the holy scriptures. A man with this spirit, reading the scriptures will understand them. He will not wrest them to his own condemnation. He will accept the declaration of the Holy Scriptures that the Lord Jesus Christ was born of a woman, literally and naturally, like all other men have been born, and will not attempt, as some do, to spiritualize the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ. He will believe in the ministry of the Redeemer of men, will accept the history of His ministry, of His death, of His burial, and will believe and understand, by the power and witness of the Holy Ghost, that Christ rose from the dead, that He again took up that very same body that was crucified and laid in the grave, and further, he will believe that as Christ rose from the dead so shall all men come forth in a resurrection from the dead, taking up the body that died and was buried. And he will not attempt to spiritualize it or to interpret the word of God into meaning something else—that it is a spiritual resurrection and not the resurrection of a mortal body into an immortal body. As he reads the scriptures all things spoken by the prophets of old shall be understood by him, by virtue of his possessing the Spirit of truth, and they will be clear to his understanding; and, as the multitude read who are possessed of this Spirit, having been spiritualized in this manner, they shall see and understand, believe and know alike, and there shall be no difference of opinion nor of understanding upon these great fundamental truths of the gospel of salvation. He, the spirit of truth, shall guide them into all truth, and shall abide with the faithful forever.
My brethren and sisters, perchance there are some among us who have been spiritualized in this way, who have received the Holy Ghost, by which our minds may be enlightened and our knowledge increased, who have wandered away from daily companionship with the things that have been spoken and written by holy men of God, and which are found recorded in the Bible. If there are any who are not in close association and familiar with the word of the Lord as contained in the Bible, then I would invite all such to return again to that book, and to read it frequently, to be encouraged and comforted, enlightened and made wiser, more humble and true by daily converse with the inspired word of the Lord. I there are any among us who rarely, if ever, take up the Book of Mormon, another book containing the words and prophecies of holy men who spoke and wrote as they were moved upon by the Holy Ghost, which has been revealed to us through the Prophet Joseph Smith in the latter days, and contains the history of the dealings of God with His children who dwelt upon this continent—then I would say, return again to the Book of Mormon and become familiar with it. Read it and be instructed, and allow the Spirit of God, even the Holy Ghost, to open the. eyes of your understanding, to make clear unto you the precious words of life which it contains. And as you read the Book of Mormon and come to comprehend its great message, you will come to love it, love it most dearly, as a direct communication of God to man.
If there are any of the Saints who neglect to read the Doctrine and Covenants—which contains the revelations of our Lord to His children in the dispensation of the fulness of times—I would advise them to take it up oftener and read it carefully and prayerfully, because it contains indeed the words of eternal life.
I might say the same of the Pearl of Great Price, which we might all read with great profit to ourselves. Now, I would advise you, my brethren, if in your communities there are members of the Church who have long since ceased to be daily searchers of the scriptures, that you invite them to renew their acquaintance with the word of the Lord. If there are any among us who are not as faithful as they should be in attending to their meetings, where they may hear the word of God spoken, spoken too, by the promptings arid inspiration of the Holy Ghost; things which come fresh and new from the fountain of all truth, then I would say, labor among them and with them and invite them to come into the house of the Lord, where they may be comforted and instructed. Encourage them to repent and to commune with the Lord through the gift of the Spirit, and to associate more with the Saints who enjoy and possess that glorious Spirit.
There is a cry that has gone forth from some of the leading statesmen of our land recently to those who crowd and congest the great cities of our country, it is "back to the farm," back to the soil, back to nature. It is good advice. It is wise counsel. And I would say, too, that if there are any of us, who have wandered away from reading the scriptures and from acquaintance with the word of God, that we come back to the Bible, back to the Book of Mormon, back to the Doctrine and Covenants, and back to prayer; back to our knees, if not to our mother's knee, at least to our own knees before the Lord, in the spirit of prayer and repentance, that we might possess and enjoy the companionship of the Holy Ghost.
My brethren and sisters, I would say just this word farther, that the process of becoming despiritualized is just the reverse to that of becoming spiritualized, or of receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost as we receive it through faith and repentance and baptism by immersion in water, and by the laying on of hands by one holding authority. Let us see to it that we do not lose the Spirit of God by lapsing into indifference, into neglect of duty, into failure to pray, into disobedience, and the breaking of the commandments; into the spirit of fault-finding and committing of sin. One step leads to another, until by and by the Spirit is grieved and will no longer strive with us. We can go to the extent, in our sinning and neglect, that the Spirit of God will altogether withdraw from us, and then when the light that is within us has become darkness, oh, how intense, indeed, is that darkness. Then we are left to the buffetings of Satan, to become like the waves of the sea, driven by the wind and tossed, to be carried about by every wind of doctrine, to be persuaded by all manner of men, never secure, never established in the truth, always full of anxiety and doubt, not knowing whither we are being enticed. That is a terrible condition. it has been said that it had been better never to have been born, than to have received the Holy Ghost, and then deny Him. "For if after we have escaped the pollution of the world through the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ we are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse than the beginning. For it had been better for us not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after we have known it to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto us." I would warn all the Latter-day Saints against getting into such a state through neglect of meetings, neglect of prayer, neglect to read the Bible, the Book of Mormon, and the scriptures of modern times, lest they lose the Spirit of the Lord and are left in a darkened state of mind. If there are any taking such a course let them repent and return ere it is too late, for when once a man has enjoyed this Spirit and the witness thereof—and the chief mission of the Spirit is to bear record and witness that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, and to bring and reveal to man this knowledge, which is eternal life—I say that when a man has once enjoyed that Spirit and had that witness and then through sin and neglect, and wickedness, has that Spirit withdrawn from him, so that he cannot repent, he is in a terrible condition, and it is practically impossible, either in this life or the life to come, for that man ever again to get possession of the Spirit of God and the witness of Jesus Christ. It is impossible, either in this life or the life to come, for a man who commits such a crime, to obtain forgiveness, for there is no forgiveness without true repentance.
I bear testimony to you of the truth of these things. I rejoice in the truth, and I love it, as my brethren have declared they love it, and I trust that I shall have sufficient courage and sufficient of the Spirit of God and the light of truth always to guide me in that path which leadeth again into the presence of God the Eternal Father. May that Spirit be kept alive and free within every one of us. May we keep our tabernacles pure and holy as temples of the Lord our God, that we all may be led back into the presence of the Father to enjoy for eternity the association of loved ones and of the Saints who have confessed, both in their lives and with their tongues, that Jesus is the Christ. And O may God grant that not one of us may be lost, I pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
A letter to President Joseph F. Smith, from the Presidency of Alberta Stake, was read by Elder Heber J. Grant, in which it was stated that the Cardston choir had been honored with an invitation to sing at the Dry Farming Congress meetings in Lethbridge.
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Junius Romney.
Conference adjourned until Sunday, October 6th, at 10 a. m.
THIRD DAY.
Conference was resumed in the Tabernacle, at 10 a. m., Sunday, October 6th; President Joseph F. Smith presiding.
President Smith announced that, for the benefit of the great number of people unable to obtain admission to the Tabernacle, overflow meetings will be held in the adjoining Assembly Hall this morning, and afternoon, and in the vicinity of the Bureau of Information building at 2 p. m.
The Tabernacle Choir sang the hymn:
Sweet is the work, my God, my King,
To praise Thy name, give thanks and sing,
To show Thy love by morning light,
And talk of all Thy truths at night.
Prayer was offered by Elder David H. Cannon.
The choir and congregation sang the hymn:
Shall the youth of Zion falter.
In defending truth and right?
While the enemy assaileth,
Shall we shrink, or shun the fight?
No! True to the faith that our parents have cherished,
True to the truth for which martyrs have perished,
To God's command, soul, heart and hand,
Faithful and true we will ever stand.
Conference was resumed in the Tabernacle, at 10 a. m., Sunday, October 6th; President Joseph F. Smith presiding.
President Smith announced that, for the benefit of the great number of people unable to obtain admission to the Tabernacle, overflow meetings will be held in the adjoining Assembly Hall this morning, and afternoon, and in the vicinity of the Bureau of Information building at 2 p. m.
The Tabernacle Choir sang the hymn:
Sweet is the work, my God, my King,
To praise Thy name, give thanks and sing,
To show Thy love by morning light,
And talk of all Thy truths at night.
Prayer was offered by Elder David H. Cannon.
The choir and congregation sang the hymn:
Shall the youth of Zion falter.
In defending truth and right?
While the enemy assaileth,
Shall we shrink, or shun the fight?
No! True to the faith that our parents have cherished,
True to the truth for which martyrs have perished,
To God's command, soul, heart and hand,
Faithful and true we will ever stand.
PREST. CHARLES W. PENROSE.
Present revelation a basic principle. —The Holy Spirit a Revelator.—All revealed truths are essential.—Exercise of charity enjoined.
We are all greatly pleased in having the privilege of attending this general conference of the Church to which we belong, and I have rejoiced in my soul, during the services that have been held, that I have been spared by the Lord once more to meet with the Latter-day Saints in general conference and receive the instructions that are imparted, and partake of the good spirit which prevails. I feel that the Lord has been with us in our assemblies from the very beginning to the present time, and the instructions that were given to us by our President in his opening remarks gave great jo)' and satisfaction to all who were present on the occasion. I congratulate those of the Saints who had the privilege of being here at that time, and I sympathize and condole with those who were not able to be present and hear the instructions that were imparted. We shall all have the privilege, no doubt, of seeing them in print, but there is a very great difference in reading what has been said and hearing it, because the words that were spoken on that occasion were accompanied by the spirit and power of the office and calling of the man who stands at the head of the Church, and through whom the Lord will impart to His people that which He has to give them by way of revelation and commandment as well as counsel. I thank the Lord for the organization of the Church in the latter days, that He revealed Himself accompanied by the presence of His Son Jesus Christ our Redeemer to open up the last dispensation, and that Joseph Smith, in his youth, while uncontaminated with the notions and opinions of the world, received the message that was to be imparted to the people later on in all the world, and I am very thankful that I live on the earth at a time when I can take part in the great work, that "marvelous work and a wonder" foreseen by ancient prophets, which has been ushered in and which is now in progress.
In the revelations that the Lord has given to the Church from time to time since the beginning, we have the fundamental doctrines of the gospel of Jesus Christ made manifest. Every principle which forms the creed or set of principles held by this Church has come to us, not by the wisdom or the folly of men—but has been revealed direct from on high. This basic principle of the Church of Jesus Christ must always be kept in view and will remain while the Church remains; that is, the doctrine of present revelation. While the world has had to depend for centuries upon the communications from on high in the past, many of which have not been preserved and kept among men, and in addition to that have only had for their guide the opinions of men, the different notions and ideas prevailing among men, for their guide, this Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is in communion, in communication, with the powers on high, and the Lord has established His Church upon a firm foundation so that the people may not be led astray by error, by false doctrine, by the notions and opinions of men, whether they be good men or bad men; but has so organized the Church that we can all look to the head of the Church for the word of the Lord by way of commandment, and so that in every department of the Church the people may receive instruction in conformity to that which the Lord reveals. From the organization of the little children up through the various societies and associations that have been formed, and in all the quorums and organizations of the holy priesthood, the word of the Lord may be received and form the guide for the people, the young and the old—of all ages and degrees—so that this Church is unique in this particular, that the communication opened up by the appearance of the Father and the Son to the boy Joseph Smith is' continued.
God is made manifest sometimes by His own voice through the appointed channels; sometimes through the ministration of angels authorized to speak for Him; sometimes by the voice of Jesus Christ, our Redeemer, through whom revelations contained in the Doctrine and Covenants have come to us, and always by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, the witness for the Father and the Son, and it is the privilege of every member of the Church to receive and be inspired by that divine influence. The Holy Ghost, the Comforter that Christ spoke about, that "personage of spirit" is with the Church, and the influence that proceeds from him and from the Father and from the Son, which is one spirit, it is the privilege of every member of the Church to enjoy. It is the light of the Lord; it is that which gives life and light to all things; it has a diversity of operations but is the same Spirit, and it permeates the whole Church as, in some of its operations it pervades the cosmos, the whole universe, for it "proceedeth from the presence of God the Father throughout the immensity of space."
But in those operations which pertain especially to the Church of Christ it is manifest to those who have faith in God and in Jesus Christ, and who have repented of sin, and have become members of the Church through being baptized in water by one having authority for the remission of sins, and upon whom the hands of authorized servants of God have been laid, that they may have the gift of the Holy Ghost. It is the abiding witness, the continual light, that which reveals the things of God and makes them plain to the human mind, that which bears witness of the truth and which, when God speaks through His appointed oracles, when the head of the Church receives any revelation or commandment for the Church, bears witness in the souls of the Saints concerning it. Thus they may see and ununited together, "baptized by one not be in the darkness, and may be united together," baptized by one spirit into one body." No matter what they may have been before; no matter what associations or churches or societies they may have previously belonged to, no matter how much they may have wandered in. the darkness in devious ways—now having come into the strait and narrow way that leadeth unto eternal life, they are baptized by the one Spirit into one body and see eye to eye when they are enlightened by that Spirit. But it does not force itself upon the human mind; it must be sought for; the soul of man must be opened to receive its incoming and to yield to its impressions. And when that one Spirit rests down upon the body of the Church they do indeed see eye to eye and when those who are appointed speak by the power and gift of their calling in the Holy Ghost there is an echo to the words that are spoken in the hearts and souls of the people.
This is how it is in the presence of the Father; this is what we will find when we enter into a state of perfection. God speaks and the whole heavens respond. If anything discordant arises, means are at hand to remove it from the midst of the assembled hosts on high, so that harmony and union and concord and understanding and knowledge are enjoyed by the great body of the Saints and sons and daughters of God. This is how it is, measurably, here on earth when we are all rightly disposed, when we put away from ourselves our personal desires, ambitions, appetites, failings and weaknesses, and humble ourselves before the Lord and are willing to receive Flis word; when we imbibe and are governed by that Spirit which Jesus Christ, our Savior, had when He dwelt in the flesh and by which He was governed in all His life; that is, to make the will of the Father our will. "I come," He said, "not to do my own will but the will of Him that sent me," and He manifested this spirit and disposition during the whole of His earthly career, and even to the last moment when He gave up the ghost on the cross and finished the work that He had to do in the flesh. He still had that Spirit within Him, "Father, let not my will but Thy will be done." When we have that spirit, then, we are ready to receive the impressions that come from on high, and the eyes of our understanding are opened and our ears are unstopped, and we receive the word that comes through the proper channel and our hearts rejoice and our spirits are glad and we are ready and willing to do that which the Lord requires at our hands.
I say that this is one of the fundamental principles of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Lord in a revelation which we will find in the 88th section of the Doctrine and Covenants ( which, by the way, contains a great number of most glorious truths and admonitions and instructions), the Lord says that we are to "abide in the liberty by which we have been made free" in the Gospel; and it is necessary from time to time that our minds are called back to the fundamentals of our Church. Not but what everything that the' Lord has revealed is 'true, and truth abideth forever, but there are basic principles underlying our faith that we should have our minds called attention to from time to time, and these are expounded to us in our conferences, in our sacramental meetings, in our organizations of the Holy Priesthood, through men who are appointed to teach and preach and expound and declare the mind and will of the Lord. And it is necessary that we understand these things so that we may not be led astray and go off into by and forbidden paths. The great trouble in the early times, just after the Savior had departed and the apostles were put to death, was the straying off into side issues, into by and forbidden paths, by the members of the Church. When the lights that God had placed in the midst of the darkness of that generation were put out by the hands of wicked men, darkness came again and covered the earth and gross darkness came upon the people and they were led hither and thither because they commenced to depart from the simple principles of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and were led astray by the vagaries and opinions of men.
Now we have to be cautioned about this course, we Latter-day Saints, lest we also depart from the faith and give heed to seducing spirits and doctrines that are not in accordance with the mind and will of God. If we become established in the truth, if our fee^ are planted upon the rock, if we receive the impressions of that divine Spirit which is "the anointing that comes from above and teacheth all things" and is to be an abiding witness within us, there will be very little danger of our going astray. But when we imbibe opinions and notions that are introduced by speculative philosophy falsely called science, and our minds are turned to those things that are taught in many of the schools and colleges of the world under the name of science, we are apt to go astray and get away from the fundamentals to which I am making brief allusion this morning. So, my brethren and sisters, we should become fully established in those things that are fundamental to our faith. And these are essential. Indeed I do not know anything that is really true and that is divine that is not essential. It is true, a division is made in the Christian world between what are called "essentials" and "non-essentials." But the trouble is that there is no real unity among men in the Christian world as to what is essential and what is non-essential. Every principle that the Lord has revealed to us in the latter days is to be counted among the essentials, and as I have said, I do not know anything that the Lord has revealed, that God has made manifest to us, which is non-essential.
Now, there should be liberty, of course, in all these things; liberty in regard to essentials as well as liberty in regard to what are called non-essentials. To what extent? To this extent:
"Know this, that every soul is free
To choose his life and what he'll be,
For this eternal truth is given.
That God will force no man to heaven.
He'll call, persuade, direct aright.
Lead him with wisdom, love and light,
In nameless ways be good and kind,
But never force the human mind."
That freedom is given to all people. And yet, at the same time, while people are at liberty to choose the right or to refuse it, they must receive and bear the consequences of their own individual acts. The truth is presented to the world. "Go ye into all nations and preach the gospel to every creature; he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, but he that believeth not shall be damned." That is the Savior's edict, and it comes on natural principles. If a man hears the truth and will not receive it, if he rejects it, he must take the consequences, but he has the liberty to receive or reject. A man is not compelled to be baptized. He may choose to be baptized or to remain unbaptized, but if he remains unbaptized having faith and repentance he cannot receive the remission of his sins and he cannot enter into the fold and family of Christ either on earth or in the heavens. for "except a man be born of water and of the spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God." That is one of the fundamental things taught by our Savior when in the flesh, and He has renewed it in the latter days in the revelations given through the Prophet Joseph Smith.
Now we should be very careful when we hear the word of the Lord, to receive it and to obey it, and we should be very careful when men utter their own opinions and ideas, whether in regard to the principles of the Gospel or to anything that pertains to the welfare of the human family, about accepting it. And we should have our eyes open to the light and be willing to receive good counsel and good advice, and to hearken to the voice of the Lord through the appointed channel and seek to the Lord our God for light that we may know whether we are traveling in the straight path that leadeth to happiness and eternal life or are being led off into by and forbidden paths. In the Christian world the idea of "essentials and non-essentials" refers to religion. That saying which was quoted here so beautifully by Brother Roberts, emanating from a distinguished divine of the latter times: "Unity in essentials, liberty in non-essentials and charity in all things" is very attractive at first sight and first hearing. But the question arises, as I have intimated, as to what are essentials and what are non-essentials. The saying as uttered by that modern divine related entirely to religious matters; that in essentials we should be united, that in non-essentials, that is, pertaining to religious ideas, not particularly to civil government — it was not uttered in that connection— but in non-essentials we should have liberty. Yes, certainly liberty in both, I say; liberty in essentials— that is, the liberty to receive or reject when a principle or doctrine or idea is presented to us; we have the liberty to receive it and we have the liberty to reject it, but we take the consequences of our own act because we are responsible beings, intelligent beings, and there is a day appointed in which all people shall be judged for the deeds done in the body. And this will be because they are responsible for their own acts and they can receive or reject, whether it be in essentials or in non-essentials.
But in regard to what is called "civil government." Are there no essentials in that which is grouped under the head of civil government? Yes, I think so; I think that there are fundamentals in regard to civil government and particularly in the kind of government under which we live. We live in a government "of the people and by the people and for the people." Yes, that is a splendid idea; it is true; but it has to be understood in the spirit of it. We have a government of the people because the people of the united States, through their representatives, made a Constitution which is the fundamental, supreme law of the land, and there are definite principles contained in that sacred instrument. And we have the right to talk about it in our general conference, or in our other religious gatherings, because we have received the word of the Lord concerning it. In the 101st section of the Doctrine and Covenants we can read what the Lord has said concerning that instrument. He says that we are to befriend it and to stand by it because it was written and framed by wise men whom He raised up for that very purpose; that is what the Lord says, in verse 80. God gave to the framers of the Constitution of our country the wisdom which they exhibited in adopting and agreeing to certain fundamental principles which stand at the base* of that beautiful and glorious instrument. It is called the "palladium of our rights," for it secures rights not only to an individual but to the whole people. And the Lord says, in verse 77, that this is what it was framed for ^that ALL PEOPLE might be preserved and protected in their rights and their privileges; not merely an individual or a faction, but the whole people.
Now, the framers of that instrument had before them the history of the progress of civil government, for ages. They knew something about the failings of the past; they knew something about the various kinds of governments that had been set up in the centuries that had passed away; they had learned the difference between that which is called popular government—the unguided will of the people, the masses, and a representative government carried on by persons chosen by the people. And, my dear brethren and sisters, if you will study the Constitution of our country as we all ought to do, for we form a part of the government, we are part of the people, and we are endowed as a State in the Union — I say "we," I mean, of course, all the people of Utah—endowed by the power of the Constitution with all the rights and privileges that pertain to citizens of our country, we should become familiar with that instrument. I am glad to know that the Mutual Improvement Association has endeavored to introduce among the members of that body a manual relating to the government of our country and its institutions, so that our brethren may become acquainted with it. Now, you will find by studying that sacred instrument that it provides for what is generally called a representative form of government. The government is divided into three branches: the legislative, the executive and the judicial; the judiciary, and the President, and the Congress which is formed into two branches, one to make a balance or check upon the other. These institutions set up and established in the Constitution of our country were the product of the knowledge and the wisdom of the men who sat in council who had had the opportunity of reading about the experiences of the past, away back to the time of ancient Rome and Greece, and they saw the failures that had occurred when the populace directly had power to regulate the affairs of the community. They saw what was needed to put a check upon the passions of the multitude; they saw what was necessary to secure the rights and privileges of ALL the people under the Constitution which they were framing, and God gave them the wisdom to select out of the experiences of the past the things that abide, that would remain, that were imperishable in their nature because they were founded in truth, founded in the real spirit of liberty, founded in the essential spirit of freedom to secure to all people their rights and privileges so that none might intrude upon the other.
Individual liberty would not do in the full extent of the term, for if every man was at liberty, as some have contended, to say what he chooses and in the way he chooses, how soon there would be chaos! You go along the street here in Salt Lake City and tell every man what you think of him and say it in the way that you choose, what would be the consequence? Why, you would find yourself in the gutter if he is stronger than you physically. Suppose people everywhere had the freedom to say just what they liked and in the way they liked and contended individually for that which they thought would be for the best interests of the community, we would soon have no community, we would have chaos, and by and by there would be anarchy. You will find by reading closely the history of the past, that this extreme popular liberty has generally gone back again into tyranny and monarchism. But the representative form of government provided in the Constitution of the United States, if preserved among the people of this country, will maintain and continue that freedom, that liberty and that power to the nation which the Lord designed this nation should have, if the people would follow in His ways and keep His commandments. For it is the history of this country that when the majority of the people went into wickedness and corruption and turned away from the principles bequeathed to them by their fathers and rushed into self-government to the full extent, they perished, they were involved in war and destruction came upon them. And now the Lord has declared that if we continue in the truths which He has revealed, He will maintain this nation and make it great in the eyes of all the world, and for over a hundred years this has been going on under the form of government established by the "fathers, under that instrument called the Constitution of our country which the Lord inspired wise men to adopt.
We have been told repeatedly — I have heard it ever since I came into the Church almost—that the time would come when that Constitution would be in danger, and it would be the privilege and the duty of the men of God in the Church of Christ to stand up for the Constitution and .help to maintain it and preserve it from being trampled under foot. I call the attention of my brethren and sisters this morning to this declaration, and even if it had not been uttered in that form I believe with all my heart, because of the revelation that I have referred to, that the Lord designs that this people, of all people in this great land, shall be the defenders of the Constitution of the United States and stand by that fundamental principle which runs through the whole instrument, by which the people are represented by men of their own choice to make the laws, to execute them and to pass upon them—not to be passed upon by the multitude, but by the tribunal that the Lord helped to bring about by giving wisdom to our forefathers that they might establish the government on those foundations. I draw your attention to this because I believe, as President Smith declared in the opening speech in this conference, that "we are living in perilous times ;" that the time has come when our attention should be drawn to these things that we may know our duty and that we may perform it manfully. The Lord told the prophet Ezekiel that He made him a watchman on the towers of Israel, and He laid the responsibility upon him for telling the people what was right and calling them back from doing what was wrong, and He said if the watchman did his duty his skirts should be clear; but if he did not do his duty and trouble' and sorrow and destruction came, the responsibility should be on his head, but if the watchman warned the people and they would not take the warning, then the consequences they would have to suffer and the responsibility would be theirs, and I thank God that we have a watchman on the towers of Zion inspired of the Lord, filled with the Spirit of his predecessors in office, clothed upon with the right and 'the power and the authority to speak to us in the name of the Lord.
Let us heed the warning voice! do not be led astray into by and forbidden paths, but observe that splendid principle enunciated by the English divine whom I have briefly alluded to this morning, that we should have ''charity in all things" —charity that covers a multitude of faults; charity that "believeth all things, that hopeth all things ;" (that is, all things that are true and good); that is not puffed up, that does not seek its own, but seeks the welfare of others. And let me say here, in passing, that that is not true charity which is exhibited sometimes by some of us when we can do nothing but find fault; when we try to portray the weaknesses of our fellow men: when we stand up in public and berate them and call them evil names; when we do not go to them as brothers and talk to them about what we think is wrong in their ideas and notions, bur stand up before the populace and call them vile names—no charity to my mind in that—but we should be charitable and exercise discretion and judgment in all that we do and be kind and forbearing and faithful. But it is the duty of those who stand to regulate, to preside, to direct, to be stern for the truth and to stand by it, and sometimes, as the Prophet Joseph said in one of the revelations given to him, that the power of the priesthood should be exercised in kindness, with love unfeigned, by persuasion, by teaching, by enlightenment, and yet sometimes to "rebuke with sharpness" where it was necessary, so that those who failed or were drawn aside might repent and return unto the Lord.
I regret in my soul that any of my brethren should go out before the people and lift u]) their voices apparently for the sole purpose of exposing the faults, and as they think sometimes, the iniquities, of men who are in office and in authority, their own brethren in the Church of Christ, instead of trying to explain to the individuals their faults. I do not believe that it is the right of men, and particularly if they themselves claim to have ecclesiastical authority and power in the ministry, to go out and berate others, and at the same time if the man who stands at the head utters his opinion, no matter how carefully and kindly, they want to rob him of that right. I contend and have contended all along through the years that have passed, by tongue and pen, that the rights of the authorities of this Church are at least equal to the rights of other citizens in these matters, and it is the right and privilege of the man who stands at the head to give forth his opinions arid his views. If at any time he tries to enforce his private opinions upon others by way of edicts against them, by ecclesiastical force, by physical force, by any pains or penalties, that will be another thing; but that hasn't occurred in our history so far as I know, and I will support my brethren with whom I am associated in pointing out the truth as they see it, and exposing the wrong as they understand it, and in trying to convince and convert those who go astray to come into the right path, that good government may prevail; that is our privilege.
The realm of civil government contains no doubt many things that are non-essential and in them we can be at difference, and so we can in regard to essentials, and I regard as essential to the welfare of this country the things contained in the Constitution of our land. Of course it may be amended, but amending the Constitution and ripping it up the back and tearing out its vitals are two very different things. We want to stand by the Constitution in its spirit and meaning and intent, and in the fundamental parts thereof. There have been amendments made, but if you will study them you will find that they are not in discord or at discord with the body of the document. The ten amendments first passed are enlargements of powers and rights in the direction of the people and they are all right, every one of them, and in harmony with the instrument itself. There may be difference of opinion in regard to some others that have been passed, but they have been adopted and they are part of the fundamental law now and we must stand by them; it is our duty to do so, but in every respect they are carrying out the powers legitimately bestowed by the Constitution of our country. Now then let us be careful that we do not drift away from that Constitution and be led off into by and forbidden paths and bring chaos and finally anarchy and destruction upon this glorious nation.
In the last chapter of the Old Testament we read about Elijah the prophet coming before the great and dreadful day of the Lord, and connected with that is the prediction or rather the commandment of - God, "Remember ye the law that I gave unto you in Horeb, with the statutes and judgment." Turn back to the Old Testament in the book of Exodus, chapter 20, that was read in our first meeting, and you will find that which was given in Horeb, consisting of the ten commandments, and they are fundamentals that abide and remain through all changes of time. The ordinances and regulations established by the lesser law of Moses were given to Israel because they would not receive the fulness of the Gospel; when these were fulfilled in Christ the higher law came up again and the people had to stand by that; and connected with it and part of it is that fundamental law, or those fundamental principles contained in the Ten Commandments. Let us remember them and at the same time let us stand fast as Paul said in that liberty in which Christ has made us free—free from the bondage of sin, free from the tyranny of vices, free from control by those appetites and passions which sway the multitude, and let us be chaste and pure and holy in our practice and in our spirit, and with charity in our hearts and that love toward God and mankind which is a part of true charity, let us carry on the work of God and preach to the nations of the earth that which we know to be essential to their salvation— salvation in time, salvation in eternity!
I thank the Lord for this glorious gospel and for the truths that He has revealed and for the knowledge that He has given me concerning them which has been with me from the beginning and remains until today. Glory and praise be unto His holy name for ever and ever, for the truth which He has revealed which shall abide forever and may God help us every one to be true to the covenants that we have made, and stand by the faith which He has revealed to us and aid in the preservation of the liberties of our glorious country, that we with the good and the true among men may rejoice in 'the blessings of civil and religious and political liberty. Amen.
The choir sang Professor Evan Stephens' anthem, "Awake My Soul ;" the duet passages were rendered by Margaret Sumerhays and Thomas Ashworth.
Present revelation a basic principle. —The Holy Spirit a Revelator.—All revealed truths are essential.—Exercise of charity enjoined.
We are all greatly pleased in having the privilege of attending this general conference of the Church to which we belong, and I have rejoiced in my soul, during the services that have been held, that I have been spared by the Lord once more to meet with the Latter-day Saints in general conference and receive the instructions that are imparted, and partake of the good spirit which prevails. I feel that the Lord has been with us in our assemblies from the very beginning to the present time, and the instructions that were given to us by our President in his opening remarks gave great jo)' and satisfaction to all who were present on the occasion. I congratulate those of the Saints who had the privilege of being here at that time, and I sympathize and condole with those who were not able to be present and hear the instructions that were imparted. We shall all have the privilege, no doubt, of seeing them in print, but there is a very great difference in reading what has been said and hearing it, because the words that were spoken on that occasion were accompanied by the spirit and power of the office and calling of the man who stands at the head of the Church, and through whom the Lord will impart to His people that which He has to give them by way of revelation and commandment as well as counsel. I thank the Lord for the organization of the Church in the latter days, that He revealed Himself accompanied by the presence of His Son Jesus Christ our Redeemer to open up the last dispensation, and that Joseph Smith, in his youth, while uncontaminated with the notions and opinions of the world, received the message that was to be imparted to the people later on in all the world, and I am very thankful that I live on the earth at a time when I can take part in the great work, that "marvelous work and a wonder" foreseen by ancient prophets, which has been ushered in and which is now in progress.
In the revelations that the Lord has given to the Church from time to time since the beginning, we have the fundamental doctrines of the gospel of Jesus Christ made manifest. Every principle which forms the creed or set of principles held by this Church has come to us, not by the wisdom or the folly of men—but has been revealed direct from on high. This basic principle of the Church of Jesus Christ must always be kept in view and will remain while the Church remains; that is, the doctrine of present revelation. While the world has had to depend for centuries upon the communications from on high in the past, many of which have not been preserved and kept among men, and in addition to that have only had for their guide the opinions of men, the different notions and ideas prevailing among men, for their guide, this Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is in communion, in communication, with the powers on high, and the Lord has established His Church upon a firm foundation so that the people may not be led astray by error, by false doctrine, by the notions and opinions of men, whether they be good men or bad men; but has so organized the Church that we can all look to the head of the Church for the word of the Lord by way of commandment, and so that in every department of the Church the people may receive instruction in conformity to that which the Lord reveals. From the organization of the little children up through the various societies and associations that have been formed, and in all the quorums and organizations of the holy priesthood, the word of the Lord may be received and form the guide for the people, the young and the old—of all ages and degrees—so that this Church is unique in this particular, that the communication opened up by the appearance of the Father and the Son to the boy Joseph Smith is' continued.
God is made manifest sometimes by His own voice through the appointed channels; sometimes through the ministration of angels authorized to speak for Him; sometimes by the voice of Jesus Christ, our Redeemer, through whom revelations contained in the Doctrine and Covenants have come to us, and always by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, the witness for the Father and the Son, and it is the privilege of every member of the Church to receive and be inspired by that divine influence. The Holy Ghost, the Comforter that Christ spoke about, that "personage of spirit" is with the Church, and the influence that proceeds from him and from the Father and from the Son, which is one spirit, it is the privilege of every member of the Church to enjoy. It is the light of the Lord; it is that which gives life and light to all things; it has a diversity of operations but is the same Spirit, and it permeates the whole Church as, in some of its operations it pervades the cosmos, the whole universe, for it "proceedeth from the presence of God the Father throughout the immensity of space."
But in those operations which pertain especially to the Church of Christ it is manifest to those who have faith in God and in Jesus Christ, and who have repented of sin, and have become members of the Church through being baptized in water by one having authority for the remission of sins, and upon whom the hands of authorized servants of God have been laid, that they may have the gift of the Holy Ghost. It is the abiding witness, the continual light, that which reveals the things of God and makes them plain to the human mind, that which bears witness of the truth and which, when God speaks through His appointed oracles, when the head of the Church receives any revelation or commandment for the Church, bears witness in the souls of the Saints concerning it. Thus they may see and ununited together, "baptized by one not be in the darkness, and may be united together," baptized by one spirit into one body." No matter what they may have been before; no matter what associations or churches or societies they may have previously belonged to, no matter how much they may have wandered in. the darkness in devious ways—now having come into the strait and narrow way that leadeth unto eternal life, they are baptized by the one Spirit into one body and see eye to eye when they are enlightened by that Spirit. But it does not force itself upon the human mind; it must be sought for; the soul of man must be opened to receive its incoming and to yield to its impressions. And when that one Spirit rests down upon the body of the Church they do indeed see eye to eye and when those who are appointed speak by the power and gift of their calling in the Holy Ghost there is an echo to the words that are spoken in the hearts and souls of the people.
This is how it is in the presence of the Father; this is what we will find when we enter into a state of perfection. God speaks and the whole heavens respond. If anything discordant arises, means are at hand to remove it from the midst of the assembled hosts on high, so that harmony and union and concord and understanding and knowledge are enjoyed by the great body of the Saints and sons and daughters of God. This is how it is, measurably, here on earth when we are all rightly disposed, when we put away from ourselves our personal desires, ambitions, appetites, failings and weaknesses, and humble ourselves before the Lord and are willing to receive Flis word; when we imbibe and are governed by that Spirit which Jesus Christ, our Savior, had when He dwelt in the flesh and by which He was governed in all His life; that is, to make the will of the Father our will. "I come," He said, "not to do my own will but the will of Him that sent me," and He manifested this spirit and disposition during the whole of His earthly career, and even to the last moment when He gave up the ghost on the cross and finished the work that He had to do in the flesh. He still had that Spirit within Him, "Father, let not my will but Thy will be done." When we have that spirit, then, we are ready to receive the impressions that come from on high, and the eyes of our understanding are opened and our ears are unstopped, and we receive the word that comes through the proper channel and our hearts rejoice and our spirits are glad and we are ready and willing to do that which the Lord requires at our hands.
I say that this is one of the fundamental principles of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Lord in a revelation which we will find in the 88th section of the Doctrine and Covenants ( which, by the way, contains a great number of most glorious truths and admonitions and instructions), the Lord says that we are to "abide in the liberty by which we have been made free" in the Gospel; and it is necessary from time to time that our minds are called back to the fundamentals of our Church. Not but what everything that the' Lord has revealed is 'true, and truth abideth forever, but there are basic principles underlying our faith that we should have our minds called attention to from time to time, and these are expounded to us in our conferences, in our sacramental meetings, in our organizations of the Holy Priesthood, through men who are appointed to teach and preach and expound and declare the mind and will of the Lord. And it is necessary that we understand these things so that we may not be led astray and go off into by and forbidden paths. The great trouble in the early times, just after the Savior had departed and the apostles were put to death, was the straying off into side issues, into by and forbidden paths, by the members of the Church. When the lights that God had placed in the midst of the darkness of that generation were put out by the hands of wicked men, darkness came again and covered the earth and gross darkness came upon the people and they were led hither and thither because they commenced to depart from the simple principles of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and were led astray by the vagaries and opinions of men.
Now we have to be cautioned about this course, we Latter-day Saints, lest we also depart from the faith and give heed to seducing spirits and doctrines that are not in accordance with the mind and will of God. If we become established in the truth, if our fee^ are planted upon the rock, if we receive the impressions of that divine Spirit which is "the anointing that comes from above and teacheth all things" and is to be an abiding witness within us, there will be very little danger of our going astray. But when we imbibe opinions and notions that are introduced by speculative philosophy falsely called science, and our minds are turned to those things that are taught in many of the schools and colleges of the world under the name of science, we are apt to go astray and get away from the fundamentals to which I am making brief allusion this morning. So, my brethren and sisters, we should become fully established in those things that are fundamental to our faith. And these are essential. Indeed I do not know anything that is really true and that is divine that is not essential. It is true, a division is made in the Christian world between what are called "essentials" and "non-essentials." But the trouble is that there is no real unity among men in the Christian world as to what is essential and what is non-essential. Every principle that the Lord has revealed to us in the latter days is to be counted among the essentials, and as I have said, I do not know anything that the Lord has revealed, that God has made manifest to us, which is non-essential.
Now, there should be liberty, of course, in all these things; liberty in regard to essentials as well as liberty in regard to what are called non-essentials. To what extent? To this extent:
"Know this, that every soul is free
To choose his life and what he'll be,
For this eternal truth is given.
That God will force no man to heaven.
He'll call, persuade, direct aright.
Lead him with wisdom, love and light,
In nameless ways be good and kind,
But never force the human mind."
That freedom is given to all people. And yet, at the same time, while people are at liberty to choose the right or to refuse it, they must receive and bear the consequences of their own individual acts. The truth is presented to the world. "Go ye into all nations and preach the gospel to every creature; he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, but he that believeth not shall be damned." That is the Savior's edict, and it comes on natural principles. If a man hears the truth and will not receive it, if he rejects it, he must take the consequences, but he has the liberty to receive or reject. A man is not compelled to be baptized. He may choose to be baptized or to remain unbaptized, but if he remains unbaptized having faith and repentance he cannot receive the remission of his sins and he cannot enter into the fold and family of Christ either on earth or in the heavens. for "except a man be born of water and of the spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God." That is one of the fundamental things taught by our Savior when in the flesh, and He has renewed it in the latter days in the revelations given through the Prophet Joseph Smith.
Now we should be very careful when we hear the word of the Lord, to receive it and to obey it, and we should be very careful when men utter their own opinions and ideas, whether in regard to the principles of the Gospel or to anything that pertains to the welfare of the human family, about accepting it. And we should have our eyes open to the light and be willing to receive good counsel and good advice, and to hearken to the voice of the Lord through the appointed channel and seek to the Lord our God for light that we may know whether we are traveling in the straight path that leadeth to happiness and eternal life or are being led off into by and forbidden paths. In the Christian world the idea of "essentials and non-essentials" refers to religion. That saying which was quoted here so beautifully by Brother Roberts, emanating from a distinguished divine of the latter times: "Unity in essentials, liberty in non-essentials and charity in all things" is very attractive at first sight and first hearing. But the question arises, as I have intimated, as to what are essentials and what are non-essentials. The saying as uttered by that modern divine related entirely to religious matters; that in essentials we should be united, that in non-essentials, that is, pertaining to religious ideas, not particularly to civil government — it was not uttered in that connection— but in non-essentials we should have liberty. Yes, certainly liberty in both, I say; liberty in essentials— that is, the liberty to receive or reject when a principle or doctrine or idea is presented to us; we have the liberty to receive it and we have the liberty to reject it, but we take the consequences of our own act because we are responsible beings, intelligent beings, and there is a day appointed in which all people shall be judged for the deeds done in the body. And this will be because they are responsible for their own acts and they can receive or reject, whether it be in essentials or in non-essentials.
But in regard to what is called "civil government." Are there no essentials in that which is grouped under the head of civil government? Yes, I think so; I think that there are fundamentals in regard to civil government and particularly in the kind of government under which we live. We live in a government "of the people and by the people and for the people." Yes, that is a splendid idea; it is true; but it has to be understood in the spirit of it. We have a government of the people because the people of the united States, through their representatives, made a Constitution which is the fundamental, supreme law of the land, and there are definite principles contained in that sacred instrument. And we have the right to talk about it in our general conference, or in our other religious gatherings, because we have received the word of the Lord concerning it. In the 101st section of the Doctrine and Covenants we can read what the Lord has said concerning that instrument. He says that we are to befriend it and to stand by it because it was written and framed by wise men whom He raised up for that very purpose; that is what the Lord says, in verse 80. God gave to the framers of the Constitution of our country the wisdom which they exhibited in adopting and agreeing to certain fundamental principles which stand at the base* of that beautiful and glorious instrument. It is called the "palladium of our rights," for it secures rights not only to an individual but to the whole people. And the Lord says, in verse 77, that this is what it was framed for ^that ALL PEOPLE might be preserved and protected in their rights and their privileges; not merely an individual or a faction, but the whole people.
Now, the framers of that instrument had before them the history of the progress of civil government, for ages. They knew something about the failings of the past; they knew something about the various kinds of governments that had been set up in the centuries that had passed away; they had learned the difference between that which is called popular government—the unguided will of the people, the masses, and a representative government carried on by persons chosen by the people. And, my dear brethren and sisters, if you will study the Constitution of our country as we all ought to do, for we form a part of the government, we are part of the people, and we are endowed as a State in the Union — I say "we," I mean, of course, all the people of Utah—endowed by the power of the Constitution with all the rights and privileges that pertain to citizens of our country, we should become familiar with that instrument. I am glad to know that the Mutual Improvement Association has endeavored to introduce among the members of that body a manual relating to the government of our country and its institutions, so that our brethren may become acquainted with it. Now, you will find by studying that sacred instrument that it provides for what is generally called a representative form of government. The government is divided into three branches: the legislative, the executive and the judicial; the judiciary, and the President, and the Congress which is formed into two branches, one to make a balance or check upon the other. These institutions set up and established in the Constitution of our country were the product of the knowledge and the wisdom of the men who sat in council who had had the opportunity of reading about the experiences of the past, away back to the time of ancient Rome and Greece, and they saw the failures that had occurred when the populace directly had power to regulate the affairs of the community. They saw what was needed to put a check upon the passions of the multitude; they saw what was necessary to secure the rights and privileges of ALL the people under the Constitution which they were framing, and God gave them the wisdom to select out of the experiences of the past the things that abide, that would remain, that were imperishable in their nature because they were founded in truth, founded in the real spirit of liberty, founded in the essential spirit of freedom to secure to all people their rights and privileges so that none might intrude upon the other.
Individual liberty would not do in the full extent of the term, for if every man was at liberty, as some have contended, to say what he chooses and in the way he chooses, how soon there would be chaos! You go along the street here in Salt Lake City and tell every man what you think of him and say it in the way that you choose, what would be the consequence? Why, you would find yourself in the gutter if he is stronger than you physically. Suppose people everywhere had the freedom to say just what they liked and in the way they liked and contended individually for that which they thought would be for the best interests of the community, we would soon have no community, we would have chaos, and by and by there would be anarchy. You will find by reading closely the history of the past, that this extreme popular liberty has generally gone back again into tyranny and monarchism. But the representative form of government provided in the Constitution of the United States, if preserved among the people of this country, will maintain and continue that freedom, that liberty and that power to the nation which the Lord designed this nation should have, if the people would follow in His ways and keep His commandments. For it is the history of this country that when the majority of the people went into wickedness and corruption and turned away from the principles bequeathed to them by their fathers and rushed into self-government to the full extent, they perished, they were involved in war and destruction came upon them. And now the Lord has declared that if we continue in the truths which He has revealed, He will maintain this nation and make it great in the eyes of all the world, and for over a hundred years this has been going on under the form of government established by the "fathers, under that instrument called the Constitution of our country which the Lord inspired wise men to adopt.
We have been told repeatedly — I have heard it ever since I came into the Church almost—that the time would come when that Constitution would be in danger, and it would be the privilege and the duty of the men of God in the Church of Christ to stand up for the Constitution and .help to maintain it and preserve it from being trampled under foot. I call the attention of my brethren and sisters this morning to this declaration, and even if it had not been uttered in that form I believe with all my heart, because of the revelation that I have referred to, that the Lord designs that this people, of all people in this great land, shall be the defenders of the Constitution of the United States and stand by that fundamental principle which runs through the whole instrument, by which the people are represented by men of their own choice to make the laws, to execute them and to pass upon them—not to be passed upon by the multitude, but by the tribunal that the Lord helped to bring about by giving wisdom to our forefathers that they might establish the government on those foundations. I draw your attention to this because I believe, as President Smith declared in the opening speech in this conference, that "we are living in perilous times ;" that the time has come when our attention should be drawn to these things that we may know our duty and that we may perform it manfully. The Lord told the prophet Ezekiel that He made him a watchman on the towers of Israel, and He laid the responsibility upon him for telling the people what was right and calling them back from doing what was wrong, and He said if the watchman did his duty his skirts should be clear; but if he did not do his duty and trouble' and sorrow and destruction came, the responsibility should be on his head, but if the watchman warned the people and they would not take the warning, then the consequences they would have to suffer and the responsibility would be theirs, and I thank God that we have a watchman on the towers of Zion inspired of the Lord, filled with the Spirit of his predecessors in office, clothed upon with the right and 'the power and the authority to speak to us in the name of the Lord.
Let us heed the warning voice! do not be led astray into by and forbidden paths, but observe that splendid principle enunciated by the English divine whom I have briefly alluded to this morning, that we should have ''charity in all things" —charity that covers a multitude of faults; charity that "believeth all things, that hopeth all things ;" (that is, all things that are true and good); that is not puffed up, that does not seek its own, but seeks the welfare of others. And let me say here, in passing, that that is not true charity which is exhibited sometimes by some of us when we can do nothing but find fault; when we try to portray the weaknesses of our fellow men: when we stand up in public and berate them and call them evil names; when we do not go to them as brothers and talk to them about what we think is wrong in their ideas and notions, bur stand up before the populace and call them vile names—no charity to my mind in that—but we should be charitable and exercise discretion and judgment in all that we do and be kind and forbearing and faithful. But it is the duty of those who stand to regulate, to preside, to direct, to be stern for the truth and to stand by it, and sometimes, as the Prophet Joseph said in one of the revelations given to him, that the power of the priesthood should be exercised in kindness, with love unfeigned, by persuasion, by teaching, by enlightenment, and yet sometimes to "rebuke with sharpness" where it was necessary, so that those who failed or were drawn aside might repent and return unto the Lord.
I regret in my soul that any of my brethren should go out before the people and lift u]) their voices apparently for the sole purpose of exposing the faults, and as they think sometimes, the iniquities, of men who are in office and in authority, their own brethren in the Church of Christ, instead of trying to explain to the individuals their faults. I do not believe that it is the right of men, and particularly if they themselves claim to have ecclesiastical authority and power in the ministry, to go out and berate others, and at the same time if the man who stands at the head utters his opinion, no matter how carefully and kindly, they want to rob him of that right. I contend and have contended all along through the years that have passed, by tongue and pen, that the rights of the authorities of this Church are at least equal to the rights of other citizens in these matters, and it is the right and privilege of the man who stands at the head to give forth his opinions arid his views. If at any time he tries to enforce his private opinions upon others by way of edicts against them, by ecclesiastical force, by physical force, by any pains or penalties, that will be another thing; but that hasn't occurred in our history so far as I know, and I will support my brethren with whom I am associated in pointing out the truth as they see it, and exposing the wrong as they understand it, and in trying to convince and convert those who go astray to come into the right path, that good government may prevail; that is our privilege.
The realm of civil government contains no doubt many things that are non-essential and in them we can be at difference, and so we can in regard to essentials, and I regard as essential to the welfare of this country the things contained in the Constitution of our land. Of course it may be amended, but amending the Constitution and ripping it up the back and tearing out its vitals are two very different things. We want to stand by the Constitution in its spirit and meaning and intent, and in the fundamental parts thereof. There have been amendments made, but if you will study them you will find that they are not in discord or at discord with the body of the document. The ten amendments first passed are enlargements of powers and rights in the direction of the people and they are all right, every one of them, and in harmony with the instrument itself. There may be difference of opinion in regard to some others that have been passed, but they have been adopted and they are part of the fundamental law now and we must stand by them; it is our duty to do so, but in every respect they are carrying out the powers legitimately bestowed by the Constitution of our country. Now then let us be careful that we do not drift away from that Constitution and be led off into by and forbidden paths and bring chaos and finally anarchy and destruction upon this glorious nation.
In the last chapter of the Old Testament we read about Elijah the prophet coming before the great and dreadful day of the Lord, and connected with that is the prediction or rather the commandment of - God, "Remember ye the law that I gave unto you in Horeb, with the statutes and judgment." Turn back to the Old Testament in the book of Exodus, chapter 20, that was read in our first meeting, and you will find that which was given in Horeb, consisting of the ten commandments, and they are fundamentals that abide and remain through all changes of time. The ordinances and regulations established by the lesser law of Moses were given to Israel because they would not receive the fulness of the Gospel; when these were fulfilled in Christ the higher law came up again and the people had to stand by that; and connected with it and part of it is that fundamental law, or those fundamental principles contained in the Ten Commandments. Let us remember them and at the same time let us stand fast as Paul said in that liberty in which Christ has made us free—free from the bondage of sin, free from the tyranny of vices, free from control by those appetites and passions which sway the multitude, and let us be chaste and pure and holy in our practice and in our spirit, and with charity in our hearts and that love toward God and mankind which is a part of true charity, let us carry on the work of God and preach to the nations of the earth that which we know to be essential to their salvation— salvation in time, salvation in eternity!
I thank the Lord for this glorious gospel and for the truths that He has revealed and for the knowledge that He has given me concerning them which has been with me from the beginning and remains until today. Glory and praise be unto His holy name for ever and ever, for the truth which He has revealed which shall abide forever and may God help us every one to be true to the covenants that we have made, and stand by the faith which He has revealed to us and aid in the preservation of the liberties of our glorious country, that we with the good and the true among men may rejoice in 'the blessings of civil and religious and political liberty. Amen.
The choir sang Professor Evan Stephens' anthem, "Awake My Soul ;" the duet passages were rendered by Margaret Sumerhays and Thomas Ashworth.
ELDER ORSON F. WHITNEY.
Continuous Revelation.—Parallel Between the Apostle Paul and the Prophet Joseph.—Why the Lord's Servants are Slain.—Gospel Dispensations.— Judaism and Christianity. — Mormonism's Message.—The Christian Church Conscious of Its Defects. —A Rediscovery of God.—A New Paul and a Restored Gospel.—History Repeating Itself.
"Once to every man and nation
Comes the moment to decide,
In the strife of truth with falsehood,
For the good or evil side;
Some great cause—God's new Messiah,
Offering each the bloom or blight.
Parts the goats upon the left hand and
The sheep upon the right,
And the choice goes by forever
'Twixt that darkness and that light."
"We believe all that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal, and we believe that He will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the kingdom of God." The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints stands committed irrevocably to this position; the only safe position for a people to assume when they are dealing with that God who framed in the eternal heavens the Gospel of life and salvation, and decreed that it should be the means of man's progress and glory in time and in eternity. The neglect of this important truth has brought upon the human race the most serious calamities that it has ever suffered.
During a recent indisposition, which confined me to my home for several days, I perused, not for the first time, the life of the Apostle Paul, reading along with it the epistles of St. Paul and the Acts of the Apostles. I was struck more forcefully than ever with the general similarity between the experiences of ,that great man, that mighty apostle 'of Jesus Christ, and the experiences of another great man, another mighty apostle of our Lord, namely, the Prophet Joseph Smith. I could almost imagine myself reading the history of the modern prophet while poring over the biography of the ancient apostle. True there are great differences between them. Joseph Smith was never a persecutor of the Church of God, nor a persecutor of any man or men, and when he closed his career he was slain by an irresponsible mob, while Paul was the victim of a judicial murder, a legal execution. Could Joseph have been slain legally, it would probably have been done in that way; but after he had been' tried and acquitted many times, his enemies came to this conclusion: "The law cannot reach him, but powder and ball shall."
Paul describes some of his experiences in these words:
"Of the Jews, five times received I forty stripes save one;
"Thrice was I beaten with rods; once was I stoned; thrice I suffered shipwreck; a night and a day I have been in the deep;
"In journeyings often; in perils of waters; in perils of robbers; in perils by mine own countrymen; in perils by the heathen; in perils in the city; in perils in the wilderness; in perils in the sea; in perils among false brethren;
"In weariness and painfulness; in watchings often; in hunger and thirst; in fastings often; in cold and nakedness;
"Besides those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches;
"Who is weak, and I am not weak; who is offended, and I burn not?"—II Corinthians 2:24-29.
The mind wearies and the heart aches while reading of Paul's tribulations; and the same is true as to the sufferings of the Prophet Joseph.
What was it all about? What was the cause of all these troubles and trials? Why were these men persecuted and finally put to death? Paul was condemned by the Emperor Nero and beheaded at Rome in the year A. D. 66. Joseph, with his brother Hyrum, was shot to death at Carthage, Illinois, June 27, 1844. Paul was accused of a capital crime; he was one of a body of people who were accused of setting fire to the great city of Rome. It was a false charge, but under it he was condemned and executed. Joseph was also accused falsely—charged with riot and treason—thrust into prison to await trial, and while there murdered by a mob that broke into the jail. These are the surface reasons for the death of those noble men.
But what was the real reason? Deep down, fundamentally, what was it that brought about the death of the Apostle Paul and, the death of the Prophet Joseph? The fundamental reason was this: They were servants of God, and Satan wanted them out of the way. They stood as "lions in the path," and were building up God's kingdom in His own appointed way. Both these men had looked upon the face ' of Deity. Paul had been "caught up to the third heaven," Joseph to the "seventh heaven," and had there "heard things unlawful to be uttered." Each was a divinely commissioned preacher of the gospel at the opening of a new dispensation. What do we mean by a gospel dispensation ? We mean the opening of the heavens after a period of darkness and degeneracy, and the sending forth or dispensing of spiritual light for the salvation of mankind; the sending forth also of divine authority, without which no man can be qualified to preach the gospel or administer its sacred ordinances. And these men, each in his time, stood as a proclaimer and an authorized minister of the restored gospel. Yes, the restored gospel: Paul preached no new gospel. There is only one gospel, as he told the Galatians: “I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him who called you into the grace of Christ, unto another gospel. Which is not another, but there be some who would trouble you and pervert the gospel of Christ; but though we or an angel from heaven preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, * * * * than that which ye have received, let him be accursed."
The gospel that Paul preached was the gospel that Adam had preached; the gospel that Enoch had preached; that Noah had preached; that Abraham had preached; and that Moses had preached; for we are told in modern revelation that Moses had the fulness of the Gospel, with the Melchisedek Priesthood, and that if Israel had been willing at that time, Moses would have sanctified them by the gospel, by the priesthood, and they as well as he would have been admitted into the presence of the Lord. But they would have none of it; they were unworthy of it; were not ready for it; had not progressed to that degree that they could receive the fulness of the gospel; and so it was taken, with Moses and the Melchisedek priesthood, and Israel was left for fifteen hundred years under the rule of the Aaronic or lesser priesthood, with the Mosaic law—the law of carnal commandments. These continued, in a more or less degenerate state, until the coming of John the Baptist and the Lord Jesus Christ.
What did Jesus ask of the Jews? Did he propose to destroy what they had that was true and good and wise and praiseworthy? No. "Think not I come to destroy, but to fulfill." This had reference to such observances as sacrifice, circumcision and the Passover; it did not affect the Ten Commandments, which are still in force, nor the Prophecies, many of which are yet to be fulfilled. He asked them to lay aside the obsolete, that which had fulfilled its purpose, and to accept of something better, even the fulness of the Gospel, to prepare them for which the Law of Moses had been given—"a school master," as Paul puts it, "to bring us to Christ." This was what the new dispensation meant: Come up higher! "You have heard it said aforetime. Thou shalt love thy neighbor, and hate thine enemy; but I say unto you, love your enemies, pray for them that despitefully use you and persecute you." "Be ye perfect, even as your Father in Heaven is perfect; for He makes His sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sends His rain upon the just and upon the unjust." And they were "astonished at the; doctrine ;" because for fifteen centuries they had been schooled under a lesser law, and were now required to take the higher law for their guidance: to stand upon a broader, grander platform, and practice the fulness of the religion of Jesus Christ. Only a few were willing to do this: "He came unto His own, and His own received Him not, but to such as did receive Him," both Jews and Gentiles, "gave He power to become the sons of God." And because the great mass of the Jewish race were unwilling to lay aside the obsolete law of Moses and accept the living law of the Christ, they rejected their Messiah, whom they had been expecting for centuries, crucified the Son of God, and persecuted His followers. The real reason for the martyrdom of such men as Paul and Peter was this: The world, while willing to believe, in part, what God had revealed, was not willing to accept a new revelation, for which the former revelation was intended to prepare them. The same was true when Joseph the Prophet announced the opening of the last dispensation. What did he demand of the world? Did he ask them to throw away anything that was good, that was useful, that was still in force and had been since the days of Moses and Paul? No; God's servants have never required this of mankind. Joseph called upon Christendom, not to turn its back upon the Redeemer, not to lose its faith in Jesus Christ, not to throw away anything that ,was precious, that was designed to endure, not having accomplished its mission. Like his divine Master he came not to destroy but to fulfill; he called upon men to receive something better than they already possessed— even the restored Gospel, restored for the last time, in this the ' dispensation of the fulness of times, into which all other dispensations flow, as rivers into the ocean ;—the time of the second coming of the Son of God: of the great Millennium of peace and good will—the morning of the glorious resurrection, when the dead m Christ shall rise to meet the Lord, as. He comes with His Saints in the clouds of heaven to reign over His people.
This is "Mormonism's" message to the world—it is not a message of war but of peace; not a message of destruction but of conservation. It call'; upon the Christian world and upon all men to abandon their lifeless, worn-out creeds; to throw away all that is false and worthless— the doctrines of men and the doctrines of devils, and come back into the light, into the path that God has marked out. That is all; and this is what brought about the death of Joseph Smith—not the abatement of the Nauvoo Expositor, nor the calling out of the Legion to defend the city against mobs and despoilers. That is only the surface reason. The deep-rooted, fundamental reason is this: The world was unwilling, as ever, to give up its false traditions, to believe all that God had revealed, that it might be prepared for what He will yet reveal before man can be made perfect and the kingdom of God firmly established.
The Christian world, however, is beginning to be conscious of its defects, is beginning to realize its need of new light and help from God. At the Autumnal Assembly of British Congregationalists, October, 1910, one of the topics under discussion was: "Is the Church Losing Her Hold Upon Men?" The Reverend David Walters, of Leeds, expressed himself as follows; "I have heard it said over and over again; when you preachers of religion decide among yourselves what we ought to believe, we shall be ready to listen. It is not a mere excuse; it is the expression of weariness with uncertainty. Different preachers not only contradict' one another, but very few of us. if any, preach with that accent of assurance which carries conviction. We cannot make the people believe more, or more deeply and strongly, than, we do ourselves. We do not know where we are. Hesitation is never inspiring. I believe that we shall get out of this period of uncertainty, and that God will raise up in His own time, when conditions are favorable, another Paul, or Augustine, or Calvin, who will interpret for us our great gospel in terms that will be real and convincing to the modern mind. It will be a newer theology than anything we have yet had; and yet it will be recognized as the old. The hearts of men will leap in response to it and will say: This is true; this is what we have been waiting for; and we shall all preach it with a consciousness that we are in line with all the faithful preachers of the past, and yet that we preach in language that is understood by the present generation." The Bishop of Liverpool, in a sermon delivered at the Holy Trinity Church, Southport, March 20, 1912, said that "the church at present seemed almost overmatched by the powers of darkness. Sometimes it seemed as if the darkness was gaining on the light. What was the cause of this strange paralysis that had befallen the church? He believed that the church needed to day a re-discovery of God; he believed that the church was weak today because God was so distant, so unreal, so dimly seen today. They saw the results of that dim vision of the distant God; they saw on all sides unsettlement in the faith, slackness in the spiritual life, men losing their grip on those great and vital truths which made Christendom what it was.
The only serious fault that can be found with such utterances as these is the fact that they predict something that has already come to pass. There has been "a re-discovery of God," and as the result, thousands, yea, tens, hundreds of thousands, are today worshiping the true and living God, who is no more like the dim and distant God of modem Christendom than heaven is like earth or substance like shadow. The new "Paul" has come; the new Gospel, which is the old, restored by heavenly messengers, interpreted by living oracles, to the joy of many honest souls is being preached again in all the world as a witness before the end comes.
And history is repeating itself: The Jews were expecting a Messiah, but when He came they crucified Him, and still went on expecting him to come. The Christian world has put to death the prophets of God, sent as forerunners of the Messiah's second advent. What will be its attitude toward the One who sent them? Let us hope, for the honor of the human race, that when the glorified Christ has come, and is sitting upon His sovereign throne, with all nations before' Him, there will be no Latter-day Saint, no Christian, no Jew, no Gentile, who, after gazing upon His glorious countenance, after meeting Him face to face, will still be looking forth for the time of his coming.
Professor Evan Stephens' anthem, "Grant Us Peace," was sung by the choir, Sarah L. Wood and James Moncar rendering the solo parts.
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Serge L. Baliff.
Conference adjourned until 2 p. m.
Continuous Revelation.—Parallel Between the Apostle Paul and the Prophet Joseph.—Why the Lord's Servants are Slain.—Gospel Dispensations.— Judaism and Christianity. — Mormonism's Message.—The Christian Church Conscious of Its Defects. —A Rediscovery of God.—A New Paul and a Restored Gospel.—History Repeating Itself.
"Once to every man and nation
Comes the moment to decide,
In the strife of truth with falsehood,
For the good or evil side;
Some great cause—God's new Messiah,
Offering each the bloom or blight.
Parts the goats upon the left hand and
The sheep upon the right,
And the choice goes by forever
'Twixt that darkness and that light."
"We believe all that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal, and we believe that He will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the kingdom of God." The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints stands committed irrevocably to this position; the only safe position for a people to assume when they are dealing with that God who framed in the eternal heavens the Gospel of life and salvation, and decreed that it should be the means of man's progress and glory in time and in eternity. The neglect of this important truth has brought upon the human race the most serious calamities that it has ever suffered.
During a recent indisposition, which confined me to my home for several days, I perused, not for the first time, the life of the Apostle Paul, reading along with it the epistles of St. Paul and the Acts of the Apostles. I was struck more forcefully than ever with the general similarity between the experiences of ,that great man, that mighty apostle 'of Jesus Christ, and the experiences of another great man, another mighty apostle of our Lord, namely, the Prophet Joseph Smith. I could almost imagine myself reading the history of the modern prophet while poring over the biography of the ancient apostle. True there are great differences between them. Joseph Smith was never a persecutor of the Church of God, nor a persecutor of any man or men, and when he closed his career he was slain by an irresponsible mob, while Paul was the victim of a judicial murder, a legal execution. Could Joseph have been slain legally, it would probably have been done in that way; but after he had been' tried and acquitted many times, his enemies came to this conclusion: "The law cannot reach him, but powder and ball shall."
Paul describes some of his experiences in these words:
"Of the Jews, five times received I forty stripes save one;
"Thrice was I beaten with rods; once was I stoned; thrice I suffered shipwreck; a night and a day I have been in the deep;
"In journeyings often; in perils of waters; in perils of robbers; in perils by mine own countrymen; in perils by the heathen; in perils in the city; in perils in the wilderness; in perils in the sea; in perils among false brethren;
"In weariness and painfulness; in watchings often; in hunger and thirst; in fastings often; in cold and nakedness;
"Besides those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches;
"Who is weak, and I am not weak; who is offended, and I burn not?"—II Corinthians 2:24-29.
The mind wearies and the heart aches while reading of Paul's tribulations; and the same is true as to the sufferings of the Prophet Joseph.
What was it all about? What was the cause of all these troubles and trials? Why were these men persecuted and finally put to death? Paul was condemned by the Emperor Nero and beheaded at Rome in the year A. D. 66. Joseph, with his brother Hyrum, was shot to death at Carthage, Illinois, June 27, 1844. Paul was accused of a capital crime; he was one of a body of people who were accused of setting fire to the great city of Rome. It was a false charge, but under it he was condemned and executed. Joseph was also accused falsely—charged with riot and treason—thrust into prison to await trial, and while there murdered by a mob that broke into the jail. These are the surface reasons for the death of those noble men.
But what was the real reason? Deep down, fundamentally, what was it that brought about the death of the Apostle Paul and, the death of the Prophet Joseph? The fundamental reason was this: They were servants of God, and Satan wanted them out of the way. They stood as "lions in the path," and were building up God's kingdom in His own appointed way. Both these men had looked upon the face ' of Deity. Paul had been "caught up to the third heaven," Joseph to the "seventh heaven," and had there "heard things unlawful to be uttered." Each was a divinely commissioned preacher of the gospel at the opening of a new dispensation. What do we mean by a gospel dispensation ? We mean the opening of the heavens after a period of darkness and degeneracy, and the sending forth or dispensing of spiritual light for the salvation of mankind; the sending forth also of divine authority, without which no man can be qualified to preach the gospel or administer its sacred ordinances. And these men, each in his time, stood as a proclaimer and an authorized minister of the restored gospel. Yes, the restored gospel: Paul preached no new gospel. There is only one gospel, as he told the Galatians: “I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him who called you into the grace of Christ, unto another gospel. Which is not another, but there be some who would trouble you and pervert the gospel of Christ; but though we or an angel from heaven preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, * * * * than that which ye have received, let him be accursed."
The gospel that Paul preached was the gospel that Adam had preached; the gospel that Enoch had preached; that Noah had preached; that Abraham had preached; and that Moses had preached; for we are told in modern revelation that Moses had the fulness of the Gospel, with the Melchisedek Priesthood, and that if Israel had been willing at that time, Moses would have sanctified them by the gospel, by the priesthood, and they as well as he would have been admitted into the presence of the Lord. But they would have none of it; they were unworthy of it; were not ready for it; had not progressed to that degree that they could receive the fulness of the gospel; and so it was taken, with Moses and the Melchisedek priesthood, and Israel was left for fifteen hundred years under the rule of the Aaronic or lesser priesthood, with the Mosaic law—the law of carnal commandments. These continued, in a more or less degenerate state, until the coming of John the Baptist and the Lord Jesus Christ.
What did Jesus ask of the Jews? Did he propose to destroy what they had that was true and good and wise and praiseworthy? No. "Think not I come to destroy, but to fulfill." This had reference to such observances as sacrifice, circumcision and the Passover; it did not affect the Ten Commandments, which are still in force, nor the Prophecies, many of which are yet to be fulfilled. He asked them to lay aside the obsolete, that which had fulfilled its purpose, and to accept of something better, even the fulness of the Gospel, to prepare them for which the Law of Moses had been given—"a school master," as Paul puts it, "to bring us to Christ." This was what the new dispensation meant: Come up higher! "You have heard it said aforetime. Thou shalt love thy neighbor, and hate thine enemy; but I say unto you, love your enemies, pray for them that despitefully use you and persecute you." "Be ye perfect, even as your Father in Heaven is perfect; for He makes His sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sends His rain upon the just and upon the unjust." And they were "astonished at the; doctrine ;" because for fifteen centuries they had been schooled under a lesser law, and were now required to take the higher law for their guidance: to stand upon a broader, grander platform, and practice the fulness of the religion of Jesus Christ. Only a few were willing to do this: "He came unto His own, and His own received Him not, but to such as did receive Him," both Jews and Gentiles, "gave He power to become the sons of God." And because the great mass of the Jewish race were unwilling to lay aside the obsolete law of Moses and accept the living law of the Christ, they rejected their Messiah, whom they had been expecting for centuries, crucified the Son of God, and persecuted His followers. The real reason for the martyrdom of such men as Paul and Peter was this: The world, while willing to believe, in part, what God had revealed, was not willing to accept a new revelation, for which the former revelation was intended to prepare them. The same was true when Joseph the Prophet announced the opening of the last dispensation. What did he demand of the world? Did he ask them to throw away anything that was good, that was useful, that was still in force and had been since the days of Moses and Paul? No; God's servants have never required this of mankind. Joseph called upon Christendom, not to turn its back upon the Redeemer, not to lose its faith in Jesus Christ, not to throw away anything that ,was precious, that was designed to endure, not having accomplished its mission. Like his divine Master he came not to destroy but to fulfill; he called upon men to receive something better than they already possessed— even the restored Gospel, restored for the last time, in this the ' dispensation of the fulness of times, into which all other dispensations flow, as rivers into the ocean ;—the time of the second coming of the Son of God: of the great Millennium of peace and good will—the morning of the glorious resurrection, when the dead m Christ shall rise to meet the Lord, as. He comes with His Saints in the clouds of heaven to reign over His people.
This is "Mormonism's" message to the world—it is not a message of war but of peace; not a message of destruction but of conservation. It call'; upon the Christian world and upon all men to abandon their lifeless, worn-out creeds; to throw away all that is false and worthless— the doctrines of men and the doctrines of devils, and come back into the light, into the path that God has marked out. That is all; and this is what brought about the death of Joseph Smith—not the abatement of the Nauvoo Expositor, nor the calling out of the Legion to defend the city against mobs and despoilers. That is only the surface reason. The deep-rooted, fundamental reason is this: The world was unwilling, as ever, to give up its false traditions, to believe all that God had revealed, that it might be prepared for what He will yet reveal before man can be made perfect and the kingdom of God firmly established.
The Christian world, however, is beginning to be conscious of its defects, is beginning to realize its need of new light and help from God. At the Autumnal Assembly of British Congregationalists, October, 1910, one of the topics under discussion was: "Is the Church Losing Her Hold Upon Men?" The Reverend David Walters, of Leeds, expressed himself as follows; "I have heard it said over and over again; when you preachers of religion decide among yourselves what we ought to believe, we shall be ready to listen. It is not a mere excuse; it is the expression of weariness with uncertainty. Different preachers not only contradict' one another, but very few of us. if any, preach with that accent of assurance which carries conviction. We cannot make the people believe more, or more deeply and strongly, than, we do ourselves. We do not know where we are. Hesitation is never inspiring. I believe that we shall get out of this period of uncertainty, and that God will raise up in His own time, when conditions are favorable, another Paul, or Augustine, or Calvin, who will interpret for us our great gospel in terms that will be real and convincing to the modern mind. It will be a newer theology than anything we have yet had; and yet it will be recognized as the old. The hearts of men will leap in response to it and will say: This is true; this is what we have been waiting for; and we shall all preach it with a consciousness that we are in line with all the faithful preachers of the past, and yet that we preach in language that is understood by the present generation." The Bishop of Liverpool, in a sermon delivered at the Holy Trinity Church, Southport, March 20, 1912, said that "the church at present seemed almost overmatched by the powers of darkness. Sometimes it seemed as if the darkness was gaining on the light. What was the cause of this strange paralysis that had befallen the church? He believed that the church needed to day a re-discovery of God; he believed that the church was weak today because God was so distant, so unreal, so dimly seen today. They saw the results of that dim vision of the distant God; they saw on all sides unsettlement in the faith, slackness in the spiritual life, men losing their grip on those great and vital truths which made Christendom what it was.
The only serious fault that can be found with such utterances as these is the fact that they predict something that has already come to pass. There has been "a re-discovery of God," and as the result, thousands, yea, tens, hundreds of thousands, are today worshiping the true and living God, who is no more like the dim and distant God of modem Christendom than heaven is like earth or substance like shadow. The new "Paul" has come; the new Gospel, which is the old, restored by heavenly messengers, interpreted by living oracles, to the joy of many honest souls is being preached again in all the world as a witness before the end comes.
And history is repeating itself: The Jews were expecting a Messiah, but when He came they crucified Him, and still went on expecting him to come. The Christian world has put to death the prophets of God, sent as forerunners of the Messiah's second advent. What will be its attitude toward the One who sent them? Let us hope, for the honor of the human race, that when the glorified Christ has come, and is sitting upon His sovereign throne, with all nations before' Him, there will be no Latter-day Saint, no Christian, no Jew, no Gentile, who, after gazing upon His glorious countenance, after meeting Him face to face, will still be looking forth for the time of his coming.
Professor Evan Stephens' anthem, "Grant Us Peace," was sung by the choir, Sarah L. Wood and James Moncar rendering the solo parts.
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Serge L. Baliff.
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. 6th, 1912. The services were presided over by Elder Joseph F. Smith, Jr.
The Seventeenth ward choir, under direction of James H. Neilson, rendered the musical exercises.
The choir sang the hymn:
A poor wayfaring man of grief
Hath often crossed me on the way,
Who sued so humbly for relief
That I could never answer, Nay.
Prayer was offered by Elder Ferdinand F. Hintze.
The choir sang the hymn:
Oh, happy is the man who hears
Instruction's warning voice!
And who celestial wisdom makes
His early, only choice.
An overflow session of the Conference was held in the Assembly Hall, adjoining the Tabernacle, at 10 a. m., Sunday, Oct. 6th, 1912. The services were presided over by Elder Joseph F. Smith, Jr.
The Seventeenth ward choir, under direction of James H. Neilson, rendered the musical exercises.
The choir sang the hymn:
A poor wayfaring man of grief
Hath often crossed me on the way,
Who sued so humbly for relief
That I could never answer, Nay.
Prayer was offered by Elder Ferdinand F. Hintze.
The choir sang the hymn:
Oh, happy is the man who hears
Instruction's warning voice!
And who celestial wisdom makes
His early, only choice.
ELDER LEWIS ANDERSON.
(President of South Sanpete Stake.)
I am very grateful, my brethren and sisters, for the privilege of attending this conference, for the opportunity of association with you, and for the privilege of hearing the splendid instructions that have been given unto us in the sessions of this conference. This morning, while I address you for a few moments, I greatly desire that I may have the Spirit of the Lord to suggest unto me something that may be of value to those that have assembled here, and that I may have your faith and prayers to this end.
I am very grateful for. a testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and that He has revealed unto us in this dispensation the fulness of the everlasting gospel, with all its ordinances and blessings. The Church has been greatly prospered and blessed, in that so great a multitude of people have been brought together in these mountain vales, and for the prosperity of the work of the Lord, which bears testimony unto us that the Lord has answered the wishes of His servants, and the predictions of his Prophets have come to pass in these latter days. It is but a short time since the Lord spoke from the heavens unto his servant the Prophet Joseph, and revealed unto him the things that He was about to accomplish in the earth; and through him the gospel in its fulness, with all its gifts and blessings, has been bestowed upon thousands of the children of men in the earth. The predictions of His servants have been verified, which is a great testimony unto us; part of that fulfillment we see here today in the great gatherings that are now in session in this conference.
We have been partakers of the blessings of the gospel of Jesus Christ. We have yielded obedience to the first principles thereof, having faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and in God, the Eternal Father, having repented of our sins, showing that we desired to come near unto the Father; and we have received the ordinance of baptism for the remission of our sins, and the laying on of hands for the gift -of the Holy Ghost. We have also participated in all other blessings that have been given unto the Saints. I believe that there is a unanimous feeling among our people that these principles are essential unto salvation, that it needs be that we yield obedience to them in order to enter into the kingdom of our Father, that we might become members of the Church of Christ. We are united, I believe, in regard to all the principles and ordinances of the gospel that have been revealed. Naturally we feel that there is much that is required of us as Latter-day Saints, after receiving all these blessings, the living according to gospel laws, living up to these principles in our every day life.
We covenant with God, our Heavenly Father, that we will do His will, that we will keep the commandments that He has given unto us, and by reason of yielding obedience to these requirements it is expected of us that our lives will conform to the principles revealed from heaven, not only outward ordinances, but in all the labors and duties that devolve upon us, and that are made known unto us from day to day by the servants oi the Lord. Honorable lives ought to be led by us, absolute honesty with our fellow men, with all the world, that our light may thus shine forth to the inhabitants of the earth that they may really see our good works and glorify our Father. In these things, my brethren and sisters; living every day according to the gospel, speaks volumes and is more impressive than word can tell. Performing our duties, whether home or abroad, preaching the gospel, delivering the message we have received to those that do not know nor understand the things of the Lord, these duties rest upon us as Latter-day Saints. Also the building up of the Church of Christ at home — and how can this be done? It can be done by our good works, in remembering our tithes and our offerings unto the Lord, that we might be like unto Jacob of old, when he made 'a covenant with the Lord that, if He would pour out His blessings upon him, he would give unto Him that which belonged to Him, even one-tenth of all that the Lord should bless him with. We as Latter-day Saints should observe fully this command of the Lord, this revelation given unto us in these the latter days, that it be not a halfhearted deceiving of ourselves and the Lord, by reason of our unfaithfulness in this particular.
The duties of Latter-day Saints include laboring for the betterment of mankind at home in our stakes of Zion, in the wards thereof, performing our duties as Latter-day Saints, servants and hand maidens of the Lord, that our lives may be clean, upright, and honorable before God and all men. To observe and keep holy the Sabbath day is enjoined upon us. I am sorry to say that there are those that profess to be Latter-day Saints who do not faithfully observe this command of the Lord, in gathering to the house of worship upon that day and holding sacred that which the Lord has commanded us to do. I feel that, unless we more strictly observe this duty, the Spirit of the Lord will in a great measure withdraw from us. When we fail to offer prayers unto our Father in Heaven, in the house of God and in our homes the Spirit of the Lord will be withdrawn, and a spirit of darkness come over us.
I am persuaded that, unless we observe the commandments of the Lord, there is great danger of our losing His Spirit, and our minds consequently become darkened. We have found that, by reason of not observing these things in the time and season thereof, it leads to finding fault with those whom God has chosen to preside in the midst of His people, therefore we need to carefully observe all these commandments of the Lord.
We also owe a great and important duty unto our kindred dead. The gospel of Jesus Christ is being preached not 'only to the living but also to the dead, and it is a sacred duty of Latter-day Saints that they also perform the ordinances that are required to redeem the dead. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is not narrowed up to the few people who have obeyed it in life, but it extends to all the human family, to all of God's children that will accept its conditions in the spirit world. In this dispensation and time the Lord has graciously permitted us to rear temples Wherein the ordinances necessary to the salvation of the dead may be attended to. I sometimes think that we do not fully appreciate all these blessings that we enjoy.
I hope and pray that the spirit of the gospel of Christ may rest abundantly upon the Saints, that the spirit of temple work, may rest upon them, that they may diligently accomplish this work that is required at their hands, because, as the Scripture says, we cannot be made perfect without our ancestors, neither can they be made perfect without us. Therefore, this is a great responsibility that is resting upon us as Latter-day Saints. I contemplate with great pleasure and satisfaction what the Lord has done to open the way for His people to obtain their genealogies in the various lands of the earth, and in our glorious country, how that the Lord has moved upon the children of men to prepare the records of their kindred. It seems to me that this ought to be greatly appreciated by us. This spirit is manifest in all the nations of the earth, in every civilized land men are being moved upon to accomplished this work. We know and understand the great importance of this thing. We ought to be thankful for it, and while the day lasts we ought to be workers, because the time will come when no man can work along this line. Therefore, while it is today, it is our duty as well as our privilege to accomplish what we can for the salvation of our kindred dead, because we know that the Savior of the world laid the foundation of this work. We read of Him going to the spirit world, and preaching to the spirits that were in prison, those that were disobedient in times past, being given another opportunity to receive the Gospel message that He delivered to the living, and afterward delivered to the dead likewise. We know the reasons for these things. We know that this should be, because the dead will be judged just the same as the living, and we are privileged to do this glorious work for them vicariously.
I feel, my brethren and sisters, to ask the Lord to bless us to this end. May we do our full duty. May we uphold and sustain God's servants. I bear you my testimony that they are in the right place, and that they are inspired of Almighty God. I thank my Father in heaven for them, and may His blessing be upon us, is my prayer, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
(President of South Sanpete Stake.)
I am very grateful, my brethren and sisters, for the privilege of attending this conference, for the opportunity of association with you, and for the privilege of hearing the splendid instructions that have been given unto us in the sessions of this conference. This morning, while I address you for a few moments, I greatly desire that I may have the Spirit of the Lord to suggest unto me something that may be of value to those that have assembled here, and that I may have your faith and prayers to this end.
I am very grateful for. a testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and that He has revealed unto us in this dispensation the fulness of the everlasting gospel, with all its ordinances and blessings. The Church has been greatly prospered and blessed, in that so great a multitude of people have been brought together in these mountain vales, and for the prosperity of the work of the Lord, which bears testimony unto us that the Lord has answered the wishes of His servants, and the predictions of his Prophets have come to pass in these latter days. It is but a short time since the Lord spoke from the heavens unto his servant the Prophet Joseph, and revealed unto him the things that He was about to accomplish in the earth; and through him the gospel in its fulness, with all its gifts and blessings, has been bestowed upon thousands of the children of men in the earth. The predictions of His servants have been verified, which is a great testimony unto us; part of that fulfillment we see here today in the great gatherings that are now in session in this conference.
We have been partakers of the blessings of the gospel of Jesus Christ. We have yielded obedience to the first principles thereof, having faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and in God, the Eternal Father, having repented of our sins, showing that we desired to come near unto the Father; and we have received the ordinance of baptism for the remission of our sins, and the laying on of hands for the gift -of the Holy Ghost. We have also participated in all other blessings that have been given unto the Saints. I believe that there is a unanimous feeling among our people that these principles are essential unto salvation, that it needs be that we yield obedience to them in order to enter into the kingdom of our Father, that we might become members of the Church of Christ. We are united, I believe, in regard to all the principles and ordinances of the gospel that have been revealed. Naturally we feel that there is much that is required of us as Latter-day Saints, after receiving all these blessings, the living according to gospel laws, living up to these principles in our every day life.
We covenant with God, our Heavenly Father, that we will do His will, that we will keep the commandments that He has given unto us, and by reason of yielding obedience to these requirements it is expected of us that our lives will conform to the principles revealed from heaven, not only outward ordinances, but in all the labors and duties that devolve upon us, and that are made known unto us from day to day by the servants oi the Lord. Honorable lives ought to be led by us, absolute honesty with our fellow men, with all the world, that our light may thus shine forth to the inhabitants of the earth that they may really see our good works and glorify our Father. In these things, my brethren and sisters; living every day according to the gospel, speaks volumes and is more impressive than word can tell. Performing our duties, whether home or abroad, preaching the gospel, delivering the message we have received to those that do not know nor understand the things of the Lord, these duties rest upon us as Latter-day Saints. Also the building up of the Church of Christ at home — and how can this be done? It can be done by our good works, in remembering our tithes and our offerings unto the Lord, that we might be like unto Jacob of old, when he made 'a covenant with the Lord that, if He would pour out His blessings upon him, he would give unto Him that which belonged to Him, even one-tenth of all that the Lord should bless him with. We as Latter-day Saints should observe fully this command of the Lord, this revelation given unto us in these the latter days, that it be not a halfhearted deceiving of ourselves and the Lord, by reason of our unfaithfulness in this particular.
The duties of Latter-day Saints include laboring for the betterment of mankind at home in our stakes of Zion, in the wards thereof, performing our duties as Latter-day Saints, servants and hand maidens of the Lord, that our lives may be clean, upright, and honorable before God and all men. To observe and keep holy the Sabbath day is enjoined upon us. I am sorry to say that there are those that profess to be Latter-day Saints who do not faithfully observe this command of the Lord, in gathering to the house of worship upon that day and holding sacred that which the Lord has commanded us to do. I feel that, unless we more strictly observe this duty, the Spirit of the Lord will in a great measure withdraw from us. When we fail to offer prayers unto our Father in Heaven, in the house of God and in our homes the Spirit of the Lord will be withdrawn, and a spirit of darkness come over us.
I am persuaded that, unless we observe the commandments of the Lord, there is great danger of our losing His Spirit, and our minds consequently become darkened. We have found that, by reason of not observing these things in the time and season thereof, it leads to finding fault with those whom God has chosen to preside in the midst of His people, therefore we need to carefully observe all these commandments of the Lord.
We also owe a great and important duty unto our kindred dead. The gospel of Jesus Christ is being preached not 'only to the living but also to the dead, and it is a sacred duty of Latter-day Saints that they also perform the ordinances that are required to redeem the dead. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is not narrowed up to the few people who have obeyed it in life, but it extends to all the human family, to all of God's children that will accept its conditions in the spirit world. In this dispensation and time the Lord has graciously permitted us to rear temples Wherein the ordinances necessary to the salvation of the dead may be attended to. I sometimes think that we do not fully appreciate all these blessings that we enjoy.
I hope and pray that the spirit of the gospel of Christ may rest abundantly upon the Saints, that the spirit of temple work, may rest upon them, that they may diligently accomplish this work that is required at their hands, because, as the Scripture says, we cannot be made perfect without our ancestors, neither can they be made perfect without us. Therefore, this is a great responsibility that is resting upon us as Latter-day Saints. I contemplate with great pleasure and satisfaction what the Lord has done to open the way for His people to obtain their genealogies in the various lands of the earth, and in our glorious country, how that the Lord has moved upon the children of men to prepare the records of their kindred. It seems to me that this ought to be greatly appreciated by us. This spirit is manifest in all the nations of the earth, in every civilized land men are being moved upon to accomplished this work. We know and understand the great importance of this thing. We ought to be thankful for it, and while the day lasts we ought to be workers, because the time will come when no man can work along this line. Therefore, while it is today, it is our duty as well as our privilege to accomplish what we can for the salvation of our kindred dead, because we know that the Savior of the world laid the foundation of this work. We read of Him going to the spirit world, and preaching to the spirits that were in prison, those that were disobedient in times past, being given another opportunity to receive the Gospel message that He delivered to the living, and afterward delivered to the dead likewise. We know the reasons for these things. We know that this should be, because the dead will be judged just the same as the living, and we are privileged to do this glorious work for them vicariously.
I feel, my brethren and sisters, to ask the Lord to bless us to this end. May we do our full duty. May we uphold and sustain God's servants. I bear you my testimony that they are in the right place, and that they are inspired of Almighty God. I thank my Father in heaven for them, and may His blessing be upon us, is my prayer, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
ELDER JOSEPH E. ROBINSON.
(President of California Mission.)
My brethren and sisters, my soul "has been enlarged for the love of my fellow men through the teachings of our leaders during this conference, and it has been added upon with. the living word of the Lord, and a desire to serve Him and keep His commandments.
In the remarks of President Smith, at the beginning of our conference, he made it clear to us that no untoward thing had come except it was designed for our experience and our good, that even when our people were driven from Ohio, Missouri and Illinois, as well as those that made an exodus from Mexico, it is for some purpose, to serve the best good of the Saints at large. At first blush, we do not always recognize the hand of God in His providences in vicissitudes that come upon us; but when we look over the history of the nations, when we see the effect upon the lives of men in the generations that follow them, we can then determine more fully and more perfectly the influence that men have had, and the good that has come to the nations because of having wrought out their destiny. Apropos of this, we might look at ancient Israel. It was for their salvation, the salvation of the family of Jacob, that they were called down into Egypt. Again, it was for their salvation that they were called out, for doubtless in that land they would have become effeminate as the Egyptians have become effeminate. They would have followed after the fleshpots of Egypt that they hungered and yearned after when they were in the wilderness. It is the history of all nations who have lived in such countries as Egypt, and particularly in the low hot lands of any of the countries of the earth, that in time they have become effeminate, have lost their powers of resistance. They have become followers of pleasure rather than followers of God. They have become listless and indolent in their habits, instead of active and full of work. And so the Lord, with an outstretched arm and a strong hand, brought them out of Egypt into the mountains and plains of Palestine, where they might be taught the way of truth and righteousness. Those who knew the way of the Egyptians were permitted to die, or were kept at least in the wilderness until they died, and only the new generation, those who were possessed of new ideals and new habits and traditions were permitted to go to the promised land.
From that people have come the most vigorous stock of all the world, a nation that has kept its race, its religion, its customs, through all time Though preyed upon by other nations, imprisoned and made slaves, a hiss and a by-word, scattered, driven and peeled, still for all that the Jew today is the Jew of David's time, and the Jew of the days of Jerusalem when it was the Holy City; and the doctrines which they were taught of sanitation, the doctrines in part of the gospel which would bring them as a schoolmaster to Christ, have kept them intact as a people until this day. The peoples who occupied the countries of Europe, who lived in the mountain sections have been the most indomitable in courage and in perseverance, and in maintaining and upholding human liberties. They have become the pioneers and explorers of the world. Little Switzerland, for 500 years surrounded by empires and kingdoms, preserved her individuality and autonomy as a republic. From the hills of Sweden and Norway, and the vine-clad hills of Germany, even the chalk hills of little, sea-girt, England came the hardy peoples who have pioneered and explored the earth, and who have kept, more or less, their integrity, and their individuality, and their characteristics through all time so far as history accounts for them.
So in this land of America, most of our great leaders have come from the uplands of New Hampshire, the Green Mountains of Vermont and the hills of Virginia. So we may well sing, as we did yesterday --
"For the strength of the hills we bless thee,
Our God, our Fathers' God.
Thou hast made thy children mighty
By the touch of the mountain sod."
This is in fulfillment of scripture. This is the destiny of the Latter-day Saints or modern Israel, that they should come to these mountains, that in them and by them and through them, in part, they might partake of that same sturdy nature as the nations who have occupied the uplands and mountain plains of the old world, and who have got away from the low lands. And so today, I can see, my brethren and sisters, the providences of God, in our people being called out from the low lands of Missouri and of Illinois and brought to these mountains, and too it was in fulfillment of scriptures. From reading some of the remarks of our early brethren in the Church, it appears they did not think that they were going away from Ohio, and when they had come to Far West, they felt that there was the boundary line and that our people were destined to build up the center stake of Zion, and not come into these mountains, and it was with aching hearts, and with tear dimmed eyes, and with lagging feet that many of them made their way across the great wilderness of the west to this land. I can understand how one of our pioneer sisters felt when she looked over this valley, which was then a sea of shimmering sage and salt—no place to rest the eye, no green to enliven the scene, but all a dead sage color, when she felt in her heart that she had been brought here to die, that she would rather have gone back and met mobocracy with all of its hate than to have sojourned here. But today we are made to rejoice, and the hills and the valleys sing because of us, and the fields pour forth of their fulness, and the deserts have blossomed, and in the wilderness spring's have broken forth. So Israel rejoices in the fact, and as one visitor said last week in our Congress here, "We rejoice in this incomparable city." Isaiah said "Beautiful for location is Mount Zion, situate upon the sides of the North. The joy of the whole earth is Zion."
I want to read to you just a little from these scriptures to bear out my point that we came here not by accident. Nor is it merely an incident in our history, but it was the design of the Almighty that here might His children find a place of refuge and rest. David anciently declared: "Get thee up into the high mountains, thou that bring glad tidings and that publisheth peace." And Isaiah tells us: "Come, my people, into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee. Hide thyself, as it were, for a little moment, until the indignation be overpassed; for behold, the Lord cometh unto His people, to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity. The earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain." If you will turn back to the early history of our Church, you will remember that immediately in the wake of our expatriation from Illinois, there came the four years of fratricidal strife when father fought against son, brother against brother, that terminated "in the death and -misery" of a million souls, and no 'end of property was destroyed. And it will be remembered that the contending bodies, those two great armies, came and made a camping ground and bivouac of the very country which our people inhabited, in Missouri and Illinois, especially in Missouri, and if any one will read the history of Missouri, he will see there the dread penalties they paid for the persecutions heaped upon the Saints of God in the forties and the latter part of the thirties of the last century. We did not understand it then, but how would it have been had we remained in that land? Would we have lost our individuality as a people, between the nether stone and the upper stone, the millstones of war and strife, of hatred, of plundering and guerilla warfare, when whole districts were plundered and houses burned, the only witness seeming to be the chimneys pointing as with a solitary finger to God, and asking for vengeance upon those who had despoiled the hearthstones of those once happy homes? But we were gathered here, and shut in the chambers of the mountains, as God ordained we should be, so many hundreds of years before, "till the indignation was overpassed," and the wicked and iniquitous of the earth had been made to suffer for their iniquity.
Again, I want to say to you that we were to come here, for. Prophet as he was, David the King and sweet singer of Israel, foretold also the coming of Israel to this land, and sang in these words:
"O give thanks unto the Lord, for he is good, and his mercy endureth forever. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy and gathered them out of the lands, from the east and from the west and from the north and from the south."
When Israel was brought out of Egypt they were not gathered from the east, nor out of the west, nor from the north; but they came up out of the land of the south, and so this does not apply to ancient Israel, as our ministerial friends of the world would have us believe. "He gathered them from the lands of the west, the north and the south. They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary way," this Israel. "They found no cities to dwell in," and you remember ancient Israel found cities prepared for them. They overturned Jericho, and they even came in and occupied the Holy City itself, the place where David dwelt, the place where Melchisedek doubtless had reigned as king, when Abraham paid tithes to him. But this Israel "wandered in a solitary way," where there was no place prepared for them. "They found no city to dwell in, hungering and thirsty, their soul fainted in them." They were not fed by manna from heaven. The bitter waters were not made sweet for latter-day Israel, but they hungered and thirsted in their journey, and "they cried unto the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them out of their distresses, and he led them forth by the right way, that they might go to a city of habitation." "O that men would praise the Lord, for his goodness and for his wonderful works to the children of men." Again, he says:
"O that men would praise the Lord for His goodness; let them exalt Him also in the congregation of the people and praise Him in the assembly of the elders. He turneth the wilderness into standing water and dry ground into water springs, and there he maketh the hungry to dwell, that they may prepare a city of habitation, and sow the field, and plant the vineyards which may yield the fruit of increase. He blesseth them also so that they are multiplied greatly, and suffereth not their cattle to decrease."
I want to read just a little further from Isaiah, along this same line:
"The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them, and the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose. It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and dancing. The glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon. They shall see the glory of the Lord and the excellency of our God."
It was not to be Lebanon, nor was it to be Carmel or the plains of Sharon in Palestine that they should occupy, this latter-day Israel; but their country should be made fruitful as Sharon, and as rich as her plain, and as rich in its strength and beauty as Lebanon with its forests, or as Carmel with her richness.
"Strengthen the weak hands," said Isaiah, "and confirm the feeble knees. Say to them that are of fearful heart, Be strong, fear not. Behold, your God will come with vengeance, even God with a recompense. He will come and save you. Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb man shall sing, for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert; and the barren ground shall become a pool; and an highway shall be there, and it shall be called the way of holiness. The unclean shall not pass over it, but it shall be for those, the wayfaring man, though a fool, shall not err therein. No lion shall be there, nor any ravenous beast. The redeemed of the Lord shall walk there, and the ransomed of the Lord shall return and come to Zion with songs of everlasting joy upon their heads. They shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away."
Isaiah goes on to tell of this latter- day Israel, saying:
"Thy watchman shall lift up the voice, and with a voice together shall they sing, for they shall see eye to eye when the Lord shall bring again Zion," proving in this statement that a Zion was to be brought again. It was not the old Zion he was speaking of, but a Zion that was to be brought again when the watchmen should see eye to eye — discourse with the same testimony, preach the same gospel, tell of the same providences of God and should be united in their faith. That was to be the condition "when the Lord should bring again Zion." "Sorrow and sadness were to flee away," and there was to be heard therein the song of praise with the psalter and with the harp, and even with the dance. There should be heard also the voice of singing and of melody. These things are characteristic of our people, and go to prove what I said in the beginning, in quoting the President in the opening address of conference, that it is not by accident but by design, in fulfillment of prophecy and in the providences of our God that these things have come to us, which, at first blush, we look upon as an untoward ill; and if we can see His providences, should we not look upon it as an earnest for our future, and that we should not question the providence of God nor doubt His infinite love, remembering that we are just "as close to Him as any child to the nursing place," as one of the poets has said, and that He loves us, and counts us, and cares for us as he cares for the least of all His creatures, for He is a compassionate Father and is not unmindful of the least of His creatures.
I have had much to build up my faith in the providences of the Lord in meeting with our people upon the borderland of Mexico, having been commissioned to assist in bringing them out of that republic, and it might do you a little good if you knew some of the proofs that I received that made me so proud of my people, a people whose interests are my interests and with whom my children are identified. I met some of them at the station as they came in from Mexico. I looked down into the affrighted eyes of little children, and could see that, despite the fact that it was their first visit to a modern city of electric lights, automobiles, street cars and all that is incident to the traffic and turmoil of a busy city, it did not wean them away from the fear, and the dread and the terror that was seen in their little eyes, as they lifted up their faces to greet friends who awaited them at the station. As I looked in the faces of the women I read the tale told by tears dried upon their cheeks as they drew their little ones to their breasts and hurried through the crowd, seeking shelter in this blessed land of liberty. I could tell just a little of the stress under which they labored; and when men stalked by, heedless of all things about them, silent, gaunt, and red eyed through watching, with lips split and blistered with the dust and winds of the mountains and plains —I could understand, I say, a little of the stress that had driven them out from that country. When I heard men, grown grey in the faith, men who have borne the burden in the heat of the day, men who have laid their all upon the altar of God, men who have spent thirty years and more in that land, for the sake of that people, and who love them as a man loves his firstborn, for that is the way that missionaries learn to love the people they labor among; and I heard men of that kind say that if they had not left that land there would have been bloodshed, I felt what they meant. It was not because they were afraid their lives would be taken, but they were afraid they would kill some Mexican. That was the proposition, and to keep their hands clean and unstained of blood they came out with their wives and children, and left all their possessions behind them. I sought the family of an elder in the mission field, and found his wife with her little ones, gathered together in one house of sixteen rooms, with 115 souls and not a curtain at a window, nor a blind, not a chair to sit upon, not a rug, not one thing for comfort, the little ones lying upon the bare floor, with a few blankets that the mothers were able to gather hastily about them when they made their exodus; and, when they greeted me, what do you think was the first thing they said to me—"Sing to us, Brother Robinson; sing 'We will go where you want us to go, dear Lord." I couldn't sing for tears. But it was to me a new testimony of the integrity and the worth, the courage and devotion, the unbounded faith of the Latter-day Saints. Where else under the sun could you go and find a people who were driven and peeled as they were there, as some of you were when you were driven from Illinois, when you were scattered from Cottage Grove to Florence or Winter Quarters, as you called it ?—when, in the brief season you stayed in Florence, you had dug 600 graves, and yet you could say:
"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."
And then add, in your refrain as you made your way over the dreary plain, unmarked save tiy the graves of those who had preceded you --
"And should we die before our journey's through,
Happy day, all is well!
We then are free from toil and sorrow, too,
With the just we shall dwell."
And I heard them sing this song in the camps at El Paso and on the plains of Hachita in New Mexico, and Douglas, Arizona. I heard some of them singing this same hymn, "I'll go where you want me to go, dear Lord," and "My Father knows how frail I am to meet my foes," and yet He gave them strength. These were the hymns they sang; these were the prayers they said, and this was the faith they exhibited. And does it not make one feel that his lot is cast with the best people of the earth, a God-fearing people, a people that trust God and question not His providences? It may be that modern Israel has been called out of Egypt for a purpose. For a purpose they went into Mexico. It may be now they are called out because the purpose for which our people went into Mexico was achieved. Now they have been given an opportunity, perchance, as ancient Israel was, to find better homes and to answer best the end of their creation and destiny, with an assurance and a success that may never have come to them in that land. I bear testimony to the truth of the Gospel. I bear testimony to the truthfulness of the testimony of our brethren who stand at the head of the Church.
I bear testimony to the truth of God's word as revealed in ancient and in modern scriptures. My heart is made to exult in the fact that I am able to see in the promises that are vouchsafed to us, if we are but faithful and true, the glorious reward for which we seek.
"Let us," my brethren and sisters, "keep the faith, finish the course, fight the good fight, and henceforth there is laid up for us a crown of righteousness, which God, the just judge, will give to all those that love Him and His appearance," which may it be our happy lot to realize, is my prayer, in the name of Jesus. Amen.
The anthem, "Praise to God, immortal praise," was rendered by the choir, Jennie U. Davis and Jacob A. Van Dueren sang the duets.
(President of California Mission.)
My brethren and sisters, my soul "has been enlarged for the love of my fellow men through the teachings of our leaders during this conference, and it has been added upon with. the living word of the Lord, and a desire to serve Him and keep His commandments.
In the remarks of President Smith, at the beginning of our conference, he made it clear to us that no untoward thing had come except it was designed for our experience and our good, that even when our people were driven from Ohio, Missouri and Illinois, as well as those that made an exodus from Mexico, it is for some purpose, to serve the best good of the Saints at large. At first blush, we do not always recognize the hand of God in His providences in vicissitudes that come upon us; but when we look over the history of the nations, when we see the effect upon the lives of men in the generations that follow them, we can then determine more fully and more perfectly the influence that men have had, and the good that has come to the nations because of having wrought out their destiny. Apropos of this, we might look at ancient Israel. It was for their salvation, the salvation of the family of Jacob, that they were called down into Egypt. Again, it was for their salvation that they were called out, for doubtless in that land they would have become effeminate as the Egyptians have become effeminate. They would have followed after the fleshpots of Egypt that they hungered and yearned after when they were in the wilderness. It is the history of all nations who have lived in such countries as Egypt, and particularly in the low hot lands of any of the countries of the earth, that in time they have become effeminate, have lost their powers of resistance. They have become followers of pleasure rather than followers of God. They have become listless and indolent in their habits, instead of active and full of work. And so the Lord, with an outstretched arm and a strong hand, brought them out of Egypt into the mountains and plains of Palestine, where they might be taught the way of truth and righteousness. Those who knew the way of the Egyptians were permitted to die, or were kept at least in the wilderness until they died, and only the new generation, those who were possessed of new ideals and new habits and traditions were permitted to go to the promised land.
From that people have come the most vigorous stock of all the world, a nation that has kept its race, its religion, its customs, through all time Though preyed upon by other nations, imprisoned and made slaves, a hiss and a by-word, scattered, driven and peeled, still for all that the Jew today is the Jew of David's time, and the Jew of the days of Jerusalem when it was the Holy City; and the doctrines which they were taught of sanitation, the doctrines in part of the gospel which would bring them as a schoolmaster to Christ, have kept them intact as a people until this day. The peoples who occupied the countries of Europe, who lived in the mountain sections have been the most indomitable in courage and in perseverance, and in maintaining and upholding human liberties. They have become the pioneers and explorers of the world. Little Switzerland, for 500 years surrounded by empires and kingdoms, preserved her individuality and autonomy as a republic. From the hills of Sweden and Norway, and the vine-clad hills of Germany, even the chalk hills of little, sea-girt, England came the hardy peoples who have pioneered and explored the earth, and who have kept, more or less, their integrity, and their individuality, and their characteristics through all time so far as history accounts for them.
So in this land of America, most of our great leaders have come from the uplands of New Hampshire, the Green Mountains of Vermont and the hills of Virginia. So we may well sing, as we did yesterday --
"For the strength of the hills we bless thee,
Our God, our Fathers' God.
Thou hast made thy children mighty
By the touch of the mountain sod."
This is in fulfillment of scripture. This is the destiny of the Latter-day Saints or modern Israel, that they should come to these mountains, that in them and by them and through them, in part, they might partake of that same sturdy nature as the nations who have occupied the uplands and mountain plains of the old world, and who have got away from the low lands. And so today, I can see, my brethren and sisters, the providences of God, in our people being called out from the low lands of Missouri and of Illinois and brought to these mountains, and too it was in fulfillment of scriptures. From reading some of the remarks of our early brethren in the Church, it appears they did not think that they were going away from Ohio, and when they had come to Far West, they felt that there was the boundary line and that our people were destined to build up the center stake of Zion, and not come into these mountains, and it was with aching hearts, and with tear dimmed eyes, and with lagging feet that many of them made their way across the great wilderness of the west to this land. I can understand how one of our pioneer sisters felt when she looked over this valley, which was then a sea of shimmering sage and salt—no place to rest the eye, no green to enliven the scene, but all a dead sage color, when she felt in her heart that she had been brought here to die, that she would rather have gone back and met mobocracy with all of its hate than to have sojourned here. But today we are made to rejoice, and the hills and the valleys sing because of us, and the fields pour forth of their fulness, and the deserts have blossomed, and in the wilderness spring's have broken forth. So Israel rejoices in the fact, and as one visitor said last week in our Congress here, "We rejoice in this incomparable city." Isaiah said "Beautiful for location is Mount Zion, situate upon the sides of the North. The joy of the whole earth is Zion."
I want to read to you just a little from these scriptures to bear out my point that we came here not by accident. Nor is it merely an incident in our history, but it was the design of the Almighty that here might His children find a place of refuge and rest. David anciently declared: "Get thee up into the high mountains, thou that bring glad tidings and that publisheth peace." And Isaiah tells us: "Come, my people, into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee. Hide thyself, as it were, for a little moment, until the indignation be overpassed; for behold, the Lord cometh unto His people, to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity. The earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain." If you will turn back to the early history of our Church, you will remember that immediately in the wake of our expatriation from Illinois, there came the four years of fratricidal strife when father fought against son, brother against brother, that terminated "in the death and -misery" of a million souls, and no 'end of property was destroyed. And it will be remembered that the contending bodies, those two great armies, came and made a camping ground and bivouac of the very country which our people inhabited, in Missouri and Illinois, especially in Missouri, and if any one will read the history of Missouri, he will see there the dread penalties they paid for the persecutions heaped upon the Saints of God in the forties and the latter part of the thirties of the last century. We did not understand it then, but how would it have been had we remained in that land? Would we have lost our individuality as a people, between the nether stone and the upper stone, the millstones of war and strife, of hatred, of plundering and guerilla warfare, when whole districts were plundered and houses burned, the only witness seeming to be the chimneys pointing as with a solitary finger to God, and asking for vengeance upon those who had despoiled the hearthstones of those once happy homes? But we were gathered here, and shut in the chambers of the mountains, as God ordained we should be, so many hundreds of years before, "till the indignation was overpassed," and the wicked and iniquitous of the earth had been made to suffer for their iniquity.
Again, I want to say to you that we were to come here, for. Prophet as he was, David the King and sweet singer of Israel, foretold also the coming of Israel to this land, and sang in these words:
"O give thanks unto the Lord, for he is good, and his mercy endureth forever. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy and gathered them out of the lands, from the east and from the west and from the north and from the south."
When Israel was brought out of Egypt they were not gathered from the east, nor out of the west, nor from the north; but they came up out of the land of the south, and so this does not apply to ancient Israel, as our ministerial friends of the world would have us believe. "He gathered them from the lands of the west, the north and the south. They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary way," this Israel. "They found no cities to dwell in," and you remember ancient Israel found cities prepared for them. They overturned Jericho, and they even came in and occupied the Holy City itself, the place where David dwelt, the place where Melchisedek doubtless had reigned as king, when Abraham paid tithes to him. But this Israel "wandered in a solitary way," where there was no place prepared for them. "They found no city to dwell in, hungering and thirsty, their soul fainted in them." They were not fed by manna from heaven. The bitter waters were not made sweet for latter-day Israel, but they hungered and thirsted in their journey, and "they cried unto the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them out of their distresses, and he led them forth by the right way, that they might go to a city of habitation." "O that men would praise the Lord, for his goodness and for his wonderful works to the children of men." Again, he says:
"O that men would praise the Lord for His goodness; let them exalt Him also in the congregation of the people and praise Him in the assembly of the elders. He turneth the wilderness into standing water and dry ground into water springs, and there he maketh the hungry to dwell, that they may prepare a city of habitation, and sow the field, and plant the vineyards which may yield the fruit of increase. He blesseth them also so that they are multiplied greatly, and suffereth not their cattle to decrease."
I want to read just a little further from Isaiah, along this same line:
"The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them, and the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose. It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and dancing. The glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon. They shall see the glory of the Lord and the excellency of our God."
It was not to be Lebanon, nor was it to be Carmel or the plains of Sharon in Palestine that they should occupy, this latter-day Israel; but their country should be made fruitful as Sharon, and as rich as her plain, and as rich in its strength and beauty as Lebanon with its forests, or as Carmel with her richness.
"Strengthen the weak hands," said Isaiah, "and confirm the feeble knees. Say to them that are of fearful heart, Be strong, fear not. Behold, your God will come with vengeance, even God with a recompense. He will come and save you. Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb man shall sing, for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert; and the barren ground shall become a pool; and an highway shall be there, and it shall be called the way of holiness. The unclean shall not pass over it, but it shall be for those, the wayfaring man, though a fool, shall not err therein. No lion shall be there, nor any ravenous beast. The redeemed of the Lord shall walk there, and the ransomed of the Lord shall return and come to Zion with songs of everlasting joy upon their heads. They shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away."
Isaiah goes on to tell of this latter- day Israel, saying:
"Thy watchman shall lift up the voice, and with a voice together shall they sing, for they shall see eye to eye when the Lord shall bring again Zion," proving in this statement that a Zion was to be brought again. It was not the old Zion he was speaking of, but a Zion that was to be brought again when the watchmen should see eye to eye — discourse with the same testimony, preach the same gospel, tell of the same providences of God and should be united in their faith. That was to be the condition "when the Lord should bring again Zion." "Sorrow and sadness were to flee away," and there was to be heard therein the song of praise with the psalter and with the harp, and even with the dance. There should be heard also the voice of singing and of melody. These things are characteristic of our people, and go to prove what I said in the beginning, in quoting the President in the opening address of conference, that it is not by accident but by design, in fulfillment of prophecy and in the providences of our God that these things have come to us, which, at first blush, we look upon as an untoward ill; and if we can see His providences, should we not look upon it as an earnest for our future, and that we should not question the providence of God nor doubt His infinite love, remembering that we are just "as close to Him as any child to the nursing place," as one of the poets has said, and that He loves us, and counts us, and cares for us as he cares for the least of all His creatures, for He is a compassionate Father and is not unmindful of the least of His creatures.
I have had much to build up my faith in the providences of the Lord in meeting with our people upon the borderland of Mexico, having been commissioned to assist in bringing them out of that republic, and it might do you a little good if you knew some of the proofs that I received that made me so proud of my people, a people whose interests are my interests and with whom my children are identified. I met some of them at the station as they came in from Mexico. I looked down into the affrighted eyes of little children, and could see that, despite the fact that it was their first visit to a modern city of electric lights, automobiles, street cars and all that is incident to the traffic and turmoil of a busy city, it did not wean them away from the fear, and the dread and the terror that was seen in their little eyes, as they lifted up their faces to greet friends who awaited them at the station. As I looked in the faces of the women I read the tale told by tears dried upon their cheeks as they drew their little ones to their breasts and hurried through the crowd, seeking shelter in this blessed land of liberty. I could tell just a little of the stress under which they labored; and when men stalked by, heedless of all things about them, silent, gaunt, and red eyed through watching, with lips split and blistered with the dust and winds of the mountains and plains —I could understand, I say, a little of the stress that had driven them out from that country. When I heard men, grown grey in the faith, men who have borne the burden in the heat of the day, men who have laid their all upon the altar of God, men who have spent thirty years and more in that land, for the sake of that people, and who love them as a man loves his firstborn, for that is the way that missionaries learn to love the people they labor among; and I heard men of that kind say that if they had not left that land there would have been bloodshed, I felt what they meant. It was not because they were afraid their lives would be taken, but they were afraid they would kill some Mexican. That was the proposition, and to keep their hands clean and unstained of blood they came out with their wives and children, and left all their possessions behind them. I sought the family of an elder in the mission field, and found his wife with her little ones, gathered together in one house of sixteen rooms, with 115 souls and not a curtain at a window, nor a blind, not a chair to sit upon, not a rug, not one thing for comfort, the little ones lying upon the bare floor, with a few blankets that the mothers were able to gather hastily about them when they made their exodus; and, when they greeted me, what do you think was the first thing they said to me—"Sing to us, Brother Robinson; sing 'We will go where you want us to go, dear Lord." I couldn't sing for tears. But it was to me a new testimony of the integrity and the worth, the courage and devotion, the unbounded faith of the Latter-day Saints. Where else under the sun could you go and find a people who were driven and peeled as they were there, as some of you were when you were driven from Illinois, when you were scattered from Cottage Grove to Florence or Winter Quarters, as you called it ?—when, in the brief season you stayed in Florence, you had dug 600 graves, and yet you could say:
"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."
And then add, in your refrain as you made your way over the dreary plain, unmarked save tiy the graves of those who had preceded you --
"And should we die before our journey's through,
Happy day, all is well!
We then are free from toil and sorrow, too,
With the just we shall dwell."
And I heard them sing this song in the camps at El Paso and on the plains of Hachita in New Mexico, and Douglas, Arizona. I heard some of them singing this same hymn, "I'll go where you want me to go, dear Lord," and "My Father knows how frail I am to meet my foes," and yet He gave them strength. These were the hymns they sang; these were the prayers they said, and this was the faith they exhibited. And does it not make one feel that his lot is cast with the best people of the earth, a God-fearing people, a people that trust God and question not His providences? It may be that modern Israel has been called out of Egypt for a purpose. For a purpose they went into Mexico. It may be now they are called out because the purpose for which our people went into Mexico was achieved. Now they have been given an opportunity, perchance, as ancient Israel was, to find better homes and to answer best the end of their creation and destiny, with an assurance and a success that may never have come to them in that land. I bear testimony to the truth of the Gospel. I bear testimony to the truthfulness of the testimony of our brethren who stand at the head of the Church.
I bear testimony to the truth of God's word as revealed in ancient and in modern scriptures. My heart is made to exult in the fact that I am able to see in the promises that are vouchsafed to us, if we are but faithful and true, the glorious reward for which we seek.
"Let us," my brethren and sisters, "keep the faith, finish the course, fight the good fight, and henceforth there is laid up for us a crown of righteousness, which God, the just judge, will give to all those that love Him and His appearance," which may it be our happy lot to realize, is my prayer, in the name of Jesus. Amen.
The anthem, "Praise to God, immortal praise," was rendered by the choir, Jennie U. Davis and Jacob A. Van Dueren sang the duets.
ELDER BEN E. RICH.
(President of Eastern States Mission.)
I realize that the time is growing short, and there is another speaker to follow me, hence the necessity of being as brief as possible in the remarks that I may make.
In this congregation, I see a number of young men who have labored under my direction as missionaries during the past fourteen and a half years, and I have received the consent of Brother Joseph F. Smith, Jr., who presides over this meeting, to call here to my side, if they are present in the congregation. Elders W. A. Casper and Ray Gardner. If those two young men are here I desire them to come forward at once, and stand by my side for a few moments. I want to introduce to you these two young men, and make a few remarks. (A young man came forward and stood beside the speaker.) This is Elder Ray Gardner; I suppose that Elder Casper is in the Tabernacle.
These two young men that I have named have been very faithful missionaries, in the Eastern States Mission. From time to time we transferred them from one conference to another, and quite usually we allowed them to walk to their new fields of labor. A little over six months ago these two young men were transferred from the conference in which they were then laboring, in West Virginia, and were instructed to travel to Salt Lake City without purse or scrip, and to report to me at this conference. Six months ago yesterday, they took their grips, and set their faces toward the setting sun, and traveled toward Zion. They reached here yesterday. They made the journey on foot. They have made their reports to the Eastern States mission, like other missionaries do, once a week. They have preached the gospel, and sought food and shelter while on their way, and during that six months' traveling, without purse or scrip, ordering their literature from the mission headquarters, in New York City, they have slept out, or failed to receive entertainment only four nights. They have had occasion to spend less money in their travel homeward than they have done in any other portion of their missionary experience. Their missionary trail carried them to Kirtland, Ohio, to Nauvoo, and through other places where our fathers and mothers dwelt. They sought entertainment at the place where the .Prophet and Patriarch were murdered; and in all of those places they met with a hearty welcome. During these six months they have been energetic in preaching the gospel in the open air, and at the firesides of the people. They have been treated well. Of the thousands of missionaries that it has been my privilege to give an honorable release to, it is the first time that I have had the privilege of honorably releasing Elders while here at a general conference. These young men are willing to take their grips and go back again, and report once more in their former field of labor. I thought I would like you brethren and sisters to see a living evidence of the simple energy, the faithfulness, the enthusiasm that dwells, generally, in the heart of a missionary. The missionaries are willing, any of them, to do as these young men have done. Sometimes I have thought that if more of them were directed to travel homeward, as these two young men have done, it would help to scatter the seeds of the gospel, and create even more energy in the hearts of the young men of Zion, and thus more might be accomplished in spreading a knowledge of the gospel that has done so much for us.
In listening to the words of President Robinson, I was reminded of the gospel sermons that were given in the missionary field, and that were common in the early days of this Church, when the Elders in the Church opened the scriptures and spoke of this great latter-day work as simply being the fulfillment of what God has declared through the mouths of His servants who have lived in different dispensations of this world's history. I was specially interested from the fact that, in the missionary labors of Brother Robinson, I have learned to love him for his integrity, for the great work that he is accomplishing in the missionary field, and for the good that I myself have witnessed he has done among great and prominent men with whom he has labored. I have heard him preach when the Spirit of God has thrilled my system, and every fiber felt the testimony that God is with Elder Robinson when he bears witness to the work that God Almighty is doing in the day and age in which we live.
It has been my privilege, recently, to have a remarkable experience, one that I have often dreamed might come to me, but it has always appeared to me to be among the impossibilities. Within the last three months, I have had the privilege of visiting my old field of labor, where I labored in the midland counties of England as a boy missionary, places where I was mobbed. I have had the chance of holding open air meetings, and speaking to thousands, not only in open air meetings but in hall meetings. I have had the privilege, recently also, of speaking in the open air upon the soil from which my grandmother came. I have stood in Dublin, Ireland, with a minister forty feet away holding an anti-"Mormon" meeting, and felt to rejoice that the Spirit of God moved upon the parents of Nancy O'Neil, and brought them to this land, where she became acquainted with the principles of the gospel. One of the individuals at that meeting, filled with rage, shook his fist in my face and said I had no right there. I asked the crowd to show me the color of an Irishman's hair who would say that a grandson of Nancy O'Neil had no right to speak upon the old sod. One fellow yelled out, and said: "Let him alone, he has got a good Irish tongue in his head ;" and I made friends. I felt the spirit of my old missionary days as I spoke in the streets of Glasgow, Scotland, and in London, and as I continued my journey down through France, and met with the Saints of the Swiss and German Mission. I felt there, although they could not understand me, only by means of an interpreter, that the Spirit of God burned in the breasts of all nationalities when they are baptized into our faith, serving one Lord, receiving one baptism.
It was my privilege to visit Rome, and as I stood in the ruins of the Coliseum, I remembered the history of the faithful former-day Saints who, refusing to deny the faith, stood there in the arena where the Romans opened the cages of the wild beasts that had purposely been starved for several days, and turned them loose upon those Christians who would not deny the faith. As I looked upon the ruins of that ancient city, I could perceive that the wrath of God had been poured forth upon that nation who had caused His saints to suffer so much, and who had, under their laws, crucified the Redeemer of mankind. I wondered if the blood of the proud Romans could be found now in the places where, so few centuries ago, it was said "To be a Roman is greater than to be a king." You have to search today among the lowest of "dagos" to find the blood of the proud Roman. I felt in my heart that it is not a prosperous thing to disobey or to fight against God Almighty. I went farther south, and walked for hours through the streets of the City of Pompeii that, on account of wickedness, had been covered up by a terrible catastrophe, 79 years after Christ. But two thirds of it is yet excavated. When I looked at the beautiful streets, and saw the grooves that had been worn in the rocks by the wheels of the vehicles, and looked upon the beautiful pictures upon the walls, and noted the wonderful manner in which the colors had been preserved, then again I thought, here is another city that has suffered the wrath of God.
When I listened to the words of President Robinson, concerning the trials and tribulations that the mothers and children, and men have passed through in Mexico, and thought of the trials of our fathers and mothers in coming here, I wondered in my soul if there was one person in this congregation that would not be willing to do anything, suffer anything, to perpetuate the faith of these great men and women, who were our fathers and mothers, and who brought us here to this goodly land.
I pray God Almighty to bless you, in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Edna Crowther, and the choir, sang the hymn:
School thy feelings, O my brother,
Train thy warm, impulsive soul:
Do not its emotions smother,
But let wisdom's voice control.
(President of Eastern States Mission.)
I realize that the time is growing short, and there is another speaker to follow me, hence the necessity of being as brief as possible in the remarks that I may make.
In this congregation, I see a number of young men who have labored under my direction as missionaries during the past fourteen and a half years, and I have received the consent of Brother Joseph F. Smith, Jr., who presides over this meeting, to call here to my side, if they are present in the congregation. Elders W. A. Casper and Ray Gardner. If those two young men are here I desire them to come forward at once, and stand by my side for a few moments. I want to introduce to you these two young men, and make a few remarks. (A young man came forward and stood beside the speaker.) This is Elder Ray Gardner; I suppose that Elder Casper is in the Tabernacle.
These two young men that I have named have been very faithful missionaries, in the Eastern States Mission. From time to time we transferred them from one conference to another, and quite usually we allowed them to walk to their new fields of labor. A little over six months ago these two young men were transferred from the conference in which they were then laboring, in West Virginia, and were instructed to travel to Salt Lake City without purse or scrip, and to report to me at this conference. Six months ago yesterday, they took their grips, and set their faces toward the setting sun, and traveled toward Zion. They reached here yesterday. They made the journey on foot. They have made their reports to the Eastern States mission, like other missionaries do, once a week. They have preached the gospel, and sought food and shelter while on their way, and during that six months' traveling, without purse or scrip, ordering their literature from the mission headquarters, in New York City, they have slept out, or failed to receive entertainment only four nights. They have had occasion to spend less money in their travel homeward than they have done in any other portion of their missionary experience. Their missionary trail carried them to Kirtland, Ohio, to Nauvoo, and through other places where our fathers and mothers dwelt. They sought entertainment at the place where the .Prophet and Patriarch were murdered; and in all of those places they met with a hearty welcome. During these six months they have been energetic in preaching the gospel in the open air, and at the firesides of the people. They have been treated well. Of the thousands of missionaries that it has been my privilege to give an honorable release to, it is the first time that I have had the privilege of honorably releasing Elders while here at a general conference. These young men are willing to take their grips and go back again, and report once more in their former field of labor. I thought I would like you brethren and sisters to see a living evidence of the simple energy, the faithfulness, the enthusiasm that dwells, generally, in the heart of a missionary. The missionaries are willing, any of them, to do as these young men have done. Sometimes I have thought that if more of them were directed to travel homeward, as these two young men have done, it would help to scatter the seeds of the gospel, and create even more energy in the hearts of the young men of Zion, and thus more might be accomplished in spreading a knowledge of the gospel that has done so much for us.
In listening to the words of President Robinson, I was reminded of the gospel sermons that were given in the missionary field, and that were common in the early days of this Church, when the Elders in the Church opened the scriptures and spoke of this great latter-day work as simply being the fulfillment of what God has declared through the mouths of His servants who have lived in different dispensations of this world's history. I was specially interested from the fact that, in the missionary labors of Brother Robinson, I have learned to love him for his integrity, for the great work that he is accomplishing in the missionary field, and for the good that I myself have witnessed he has done among great and prominent men with whom he has labored. I have heard him preach when the Spirit of God has thrilled my system, and every fiber felt the testimony that God is with Elder Robinson when he bears witness to the work that God Almighty is doing in the day and age in which we live.
It has been my privilege, recently, to have a remarkable experience, one that I have often dreamed might come to me, but it has always appeared to me to be among the impossibilities. Within the last three months, I have had the privilege of visiting my old field of labor, where I labored in the midland counties of England as a boy missionary, places where I was mobbed. I have had the chance of holding open air meetings, and speaking to thousands, not only in open air meetings but in hall meetings. I have had the privilege, recently also, of speaking in the open air upon the soil from which my grandmother came. I have stood in Dublin, Ireland, with a minister forty feet away holding an anti-"Mormon" meeting, and felt to rejoice that the Spirit of God moved upon the parents of Nancy O'Neil, and brought them to this land, where she became acquainted with the principles of the gospel. One of the individuals at that meeting, filled with rage, shook his fist in my face and said I had no right there. I asked the crowd to show me the color of an Irishman's hair who would say that a grandson of Nancy O'Neil had no right to speak upon the old sod. One fellow yelled out, and said: "Let him alone, he has got a good Irish tongue in his head ;" and I made friends. I felt the spirit of my old missionary days as I spoke in the streets of Glasgow, Scotland, and in London, and as I continued my journey down through France, and met with the Saints of the Swiss and German Mission. I felt there, although they could not understand me, only by means of an interpreter, that the Spirit of God burned in the breasts of all nationalities when they are baptized into our faith, serving one Lord, receiving one baptism.
It was my privilege to visit Rome, and as I stood in the ruins of the Coliseum, I remembered the history of the faithful former-day Saints who, refusing to deny the faith, stood there in the arena where the Romans opened the cages of the wild beasts that had purposely been starved for several days, and turned them loose upon those Christians who would not deny the faith. As I looked upon the ruins of that ancient city, I could perceive that the wrath of God had been poured forth upon that nation who had caused His saints to suffer so much, and who had, under their laws, crucified the Redeemer of mankind. I wondered if the blood of the proud Romans could be found now in the places where, so few centuries ago, it was said "To be a Roman is greater than to be a king." You have to search today among the lowest of "dagos" to find the blood of the proud Roman. I felt in my heart that it is not a prosperous thing to disobey or to fight against God Almighty. I went farther south, and walked for hours through the streets of the City of Pompeii that, on account of wickedness, had been covered up by a terrible catastrophe, 79 years after Christ. But two thirds of it is yet excavated. When I looked at the beautiful streets, and saw the grooves that had been worn in the rocks by the wheels of the vehicles, and looked upon the beautiful pictures upon the walls, and noted the wonderful manner in which the colors had been preserved, then again I thought, here is another city that has suffered the wrath of God.
When I listened to the words of President Robinson, concerning the trials and tribulations that the mothers and children, and men have passed through in Mexico, and thought of the trials of our fathers and mothers in coming here, I wondered in my soul if there was one person in this congregation that would not be willing to do anything, suffer anything, to perpetuate the faith of these great men and women, who were our fathers and mothers, and who brought us here to this goodly land.
I pray God Almighty to bless you, in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Edna Crowther, and the choir, sang the hymn:
School thy feelings, O my brother,
Train thy warm, impulsive soul:
Do not its emotions smother,
But let wisdom's voice control.
ELDER ANDREW KIMBALL.
(President of St. Joseph Stake.)
As the closest neighbor of Old Mexico, the Latter-day Saint people and those not of our faith, in the St. Joseph Stake of Zion have had considerable to do with our refugee brethren and sisters from that unfortunate country. Immediately upon receiving word from President Smith concerning the distress of our people, we invited the committee to send as many as they desired into our stake, and we would take care of them. Within a few hours, our Bishops, through me acting teachers, ascertained that we could take care of a thousand of the people throughout the stake, if necessary, and they would be entertained in our homes. On the arrival of those unfortunate people- in our stake, they were immediately taken care of and provided with the necessary comforts of life. Not satisfied with this, for we knew that it would cost a great deal to keep them, and pay for their transportation, we immediately telegraphed our Congressmen from Arizona, and urged that they should get an appropriation from the government to assist us. Accordingly, aided by the Utah Senators, the Arizona Senators and Representatives succeeded in getting an appropriation of one hundred thousand dollars from the United States government to pay for the transportation of these good people to wherever they desired to go. A little later, we appealed to our Congressmen, and they secured the privilege of setting aside twenty thousand dollars of the one hundred thousand for the maintenance of these people, and a- little later they sent us some tents from the government quarters at Hachita. An officer of the United States government is now visiting from house to house among these refugees, and serving them with the necessary comforts of life.
We have thought much of how conditions have changed. Once, many years ago, a President of the U. S.. when appealed to by our people, said to the Prophet Joseph Smith and his followers, "Your cause is just, but I can do nothing for you." Today the whole Congress of the United States has been warmed up in feelings of sympathy for the "Mormon" refugees from Mexico. Representative Howell has told me that it was no difficulty to get the appropriation, we could get almost anything we wanted for the benefit of that people. The Governor of Arizona wrote to me, and sent a nice liberal contribution, and said. "Mr. Kimball, we are ready to help you in any way. I guarantee to you the influence that I have as the Executive of this State for anything that you desire us to do. I will issue a proclamation if you desire it." I thanked him kindly, and said we would endeavor to take care of our own people. He renewed the same offer later. Many who are not Latter-day Saints offered assistance. We have done the work almost entirely, with other than those means furnished by the government, in entertaining and looking after our people. Senator Ashworth wrote to me from Washington, and said, "Mr. Kimball, the example your people have shown is the strongest representation of magnanimity, of generosity and of hospitality that I have ever seen, it is an example to our state and nation, and to the world."
I have thought of a scripture statement concerning the interview between Ruth and Naomi, on the occasion of Ruth's separation from her mother in law, when she said: "Entreat me not to leave thee or to return from following after thee, for whither thou goest I will go, and whither thou lodgest I will lodge; thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God." The exemplification of this sentiment, this beautiful, sweet kindred spirit, is one of the strongest testimonies of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, which inculcates the principles of brotherly love and kindness to each other. I wanted to call the attention of this conference to this. President Smith and President Lyman have recommended that the refugees from Mexico shall now scatter among the various stakes of Zion. I recommend and hope the brethren and sisters throughout the various stakes of Zion will take this' principle to heart, and let these people move into your stakes of Zion, while they yet have the means with which to move. It costs something to move from Mexico to the North, and now that they have the means that was appropriated for that purpose, we hope you will open your doors to them. We cannot take care of all these people in Arizona for a great length of time, and it is not wholesome for them to be idle. In our agricultural districts the harvest season is nearly over, and there will be nothing for them to do. Winter is approaching, and I beg of you, brethren and sisters throughout the Church, that you now open up your homes to those unfortunate refugees, and that you write about this to the President of that stake, or to me, as we have a great many under our supervision at this time. Let us send some of these afflicted families to you that they may be absorbed in the Church, and not want for the comforts and necessaries of life. I mention this to you who are assembled here, not that we do not want to entertain them longer, but it is not proper for so many of them to be together without employment, they sympathize with each other, and look back to their deserted homes. It would make you sad to look upon the pictures we have seen in the last two or three months, in consequence of the terrible disaster that has come to them.
One of those good brethren, who has spent 15 years of his life in endeavoring to proclaim the gospel and bring the Mexican people to a knowledge of the truth, who was well established in his home and could ill afford to leave it, was telling me how two of those rebels came into his home, and with a revolver pointed at his body, told him to open up his house and show them the treasures of his home. This good brother went with them through the eight rooms of his house, and they ransacked everything. They found a trunk, the key of which his wife had carried away, and they were about to murder him because he could not open that trunk, they then brought an ax and chopped it open, and took there-. from the hard earned savings of this good family, $500.00.
When the first train load of these people came into our stake, we took them down to the meeting house, and distributed them among the people. I took one family to my home, and they stayed there and ate at my table for several days, and then I procured a tent and fixed them comfortably in my house yard. I just mention this one circumstance which is only one out of hundreds. There was in the neighborhood of four thousand of these people, who were comfortably situated; they had fine homes. We are almost ashamed to think that many of us in the United States, with the advantages that we have, are not surrounded with the comforts that these good people had in that foreign country, because of their industry and thrift. The family that came to my home had left 130 acres of well tilled and cultivated land; the good wife was making cheese and realizing 25 cents a pound for it. Her butter was bringing one dollar a pound in Mexican money, (50 cents in our money.) and they had their chickens and orchard and every comfort that they could enjoy. This family had grown up from childhood in the Southern States, and 17 years ago had gone from there to Mexico. I have seen that good, sweet woman go out in the garden, and weep bitterly. They had left a home that had been very sacred to them, made so by 17 years of hard work, and all the associations that home could give, and they possessed every comfort that they could desire, and suddenly, within a few moments, they picked up what they could throw into a trunk, and away they went, leaving everything else behind, a big drove of chickens, about 20 splendid milch cows, a waving field of grain, their garden and everything.' They had to come to a condition of absolute dependence. In many instances those good people, in answer to our questions: "Why is it we don't see you in our meetings?" have said, "We haven't clothes fit to appear in the society of our brethren and sisters in Thatcher." We appealed to our Relief Society, and they have made clothing for them. The most of these people are still in El Paso, Texas, others in the field of President "Robinson's mission, and in our country, the St. Joseph Stake of Zion, and in the Maracopa Stake of Zion.
Now, brethren and sisters, these people ought, by all means, to remove to the North. Many of them come from an altitude of 6500 feet, where they dressed in warm clothing, as you do today, and they came down into our valley where it is very warm, and suffered there by reason of the heat. They ought, by all means, to be brought into the North. Do not be afraid of hurting them by inviting them to Canada, as suggested by Elder Woods in his letter yesterday. Do not be afraid of inviting them to Idaho, or any other locality, for they can accommodate themselves to whatever climate or condition they locate in. Open up your hearts and feelings, brethren and sisters, and let us absorb the people of this disorganized Stake of Zion amongst us, that they shall have employment, and be made to feel that they are not dependent, and God will bless you for it. Remember the splendid principle suggested in the conversation between Ruth and Naomi, "for thy people shall be my people, and your God my God."
May the Lord bless us, my brethren and sisters, with the splendid feeling of fellowship and love that is exemplified in the discourses at this conference. May the influence thereof sink deep in our hearts, that we may be instruments in the hands of God in perpetuating the principles of brotherly love and fellowship to all humanity, that the world may with us, glorify God for bringing to pass this great work and a wonder in the last days, and this I ask in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
(President of St. Joseph Stake.)
As the closest neighbor of Old Mexico, the Latter-day Saint people and those not of our faith, in the St. Joseph Stake of Zion have had considerable to do with our refugee brethren and sisters from that unfortunate country. Immediately upon receiving word from President Smith concerning the distress of our people, we invited the committee to send as many as they desired into our stake, and we would take care of them. Within a few hours, our Bishops, through me acting teachers, ascertained that we could take care of a thousand of the people throughout the stake, if necessary, and they would be entertained in our homes. On the arrival of those unfortunate people- in our stake, they were immediately taken care of and provided with the necessary comforts of life. Not satisfied with this, for we knew that it would cost a great deal to keep them, and pay for their transportation, we immediately telegraphed our Congressmen from Arizona, and urged that they should get an appropriation from the government to assist us. Accordingly, aided by the Utah Senators, the Arizona Senators and Representatives succeeded in getting an appropriation of one hundred thousand dollars from the United States government to pay for the transportation of these good people to wherever they desired to go. A little later, we appealed to our Congressmen, and they secured the privilege of setting aside twenty thousand dollars of the one hundred thousand for the maintenance of these people, and a- little later they sent us some tents from the government quarters at Hachita. An officer of the United States government is now visiting from house to house among these refugees, and serving them with the necessary comforts of life.
We have thought much of how conditions have changed. Once, many years ago, a President of the U. S.. when appealed to by our people, said to the Prophet Joseph Smith and his followers, "Your cause is just, but I can do nothing for you." Today the whole Congress of the United States has been warmed up in feelings of sympathy for the "Mormon" refugees from Mexico. Representative Howell has told me that it was no difficulty to get the appropriation, we could get almost anything we wanted for the benefit of that people. The Governor of Arizona wrote to me, and sent a nice liberal contribution, and said. "Mr. Kimball, we are ready to help you in any way. I guarantee to you the influence that I have as the Executive of this State for anything that you desire us to do. I will issue a proclamation if you desire it." I thanked him kindly, and said we would endeavor to take care of our own people. He renewed the same offer later. Many who are not Latter-day Saints offered assistance. We have done the work almost entirely, with other than those means furnished by the government, in entertaining and looking after our people. Senator Ashworth wrote to me from Washington, and said, "Mr. Kimball, the example your people have shown is the strongest representation of magnanimity, of generosity and of hospitality that I have ever seen, it is an example to our state and nation, and to the world."
I have thought of a scripture statement concerning the interview between Ruth and Naomi, on the occasion of Ruth's separation from her mother in law, when she said: "Entreat me not to leave thee or to return from following after thee, for whither thou goest I will go, and whither thou lodgest I will lodge; thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God." The exemplification of this sentiment, this beautiful, sweet kindred spirit, is one of the strongest testimonies of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, which inculcates the principles of brotherly love and kindness to each other. I wanted to call the attention of this conference to this. President Smith and President Lyman have recommended that the refugees from Mexico shall now scatter among the various stakes of Zion. I recommend and hope the brethren and sisters throughout the various stakes of Zion will take this' principle to heart, and let these people move into your stakes of Zion, while they yet have the means with which to move. It costs something to move from Mexico to the North, and now that they have the means that was appropriated for that purpose, we hope you will open your doors to them. We cannot take care of all these people in Arizona for a great length of time, and it is not wholesome for them to be idle. In our agricultural districts the harvest season is nearly over, and there will be nothing for them to do. Winter is approaching, and I beg of you, brethren and sisters throughout the Church, that you now open up your homes to those unfortunate refugees, and that you write about this to the President of that stake, or to me, as we have a great many under our supervision at this time. Let us send some of these afflicted families to you that they may be absorbed in the Church, and not want for the comforts and necessaries of life. I mention this to you who are assembled here, not that we do not want to entertain them longer, but it is not proper for so many of them to be together without employment, they sympathize with each other, and look back to their deserted homes. It would make you sad to look upon the pictures we have seen in the last two or three months, in consequence of the terrible disaster that has come to them.
One of those good brethren, who has spent 15 years of his life in endeavoring to proclaim the gospel and bring the Mexican people to a knowledge of the truth, who was well established in his home and could ill afford to leave it, was telling me how two of those rebels came into his home, and with a revolver pointed at his body, told him to open up his house and show them the treasures of his home. This good brother went with them through the eight rooms of his house, and they ransacked everything. They found a trunk, the key of which his wife had carried away, and they were about to murder him because he could not open that trunk, they then brought an ax and chopped it open, and took there-. from the hard earned savings of this good family, $500.00.
When the first train load of these people came into our stake, we took them down to the meeting house, and distributed them among the people. I took one family to my home, and they stayed there and ate at my table for several days, and then I procured a tent and fixed them comfortably in my house yard. I just mention this one circumstance which is only one out of hundreds. There was in the neighborhood of four thousand of these people, who were comfortably situated; they had fine homes. We are almost ashamed to think that many of us in the United States, with the advantages that we have, are not surrounded with the comforts that these good people had in that foreign country, because of their industry and thrift. The family that came to my home had left 130 acres of well tilled and cultivated land; the good wife was making cheese and realizing 25 cents a pound for it. Her butter was bringing one dollar a pound in Mexican money, (50 cents in our money.) and they had their chickens and orchard and every comfort that they could enjoy. This family had grown up from childhood in the Southern States, and 17 years ago had gone from there to Mexico. I have seen that good, sweet woman go out in the garden, and weep bitterly. They had left a home that had been very sacred to them, made so by 17 years of hard work, and all the associations that home could give, and they possessed every comfort that they could desire, and suddenly, within a few moments, they picked up what they could throw into a trunk, and away they went, leaving everything else behind, a big drove of chickens, about 20 splendid milch cows, a waving field of grain, their garden and everything.' They had to come to a condition of absolute dependence. In many instances those good people, in answer to our questions: "Why is it we don't see you in our meetings?" have said, "We haven't clothes fit to appear in the society of our brethren and sisters in Thatcher." We appealed to our Relief Society, and they have made clothing for them. The most of these people are still in El Paso, Texas, others in the field of President "Robinson's mission, and in our country, the St. Joseph Stake of Zion, and in the Maracopa Stake of Zion.
Now, brethren and sisters, these people ought, by all means, to remove to the North. Many of them come from an altitude of 6500 feet, where they dressed in warm clothing, as you do today, and they came down into our valley where it is very warm, and suffered there by reason of the heat. They ought, by all means, to be brought into the North. Do not be afraid of hurting them by inviting them to Canada, as suggested by Elder Woods in his letter yesterday. Do not be afraid of inviting them to Idaho, or any other locality, for they can accommodate themselves to whatever climate or condition they locate in. Open up your hearts and feelings, brethren and sisters, and let us absorb the people of this disorganized Stake of Zion amongst us, that they shall have employment, and be made to feel that they are not dependent, and God will bless you for it. Remember the splendid principle suggested in the conversation between Ruth and Naomi, "for thy people shall be my people, and your God my God."
May the Lord bless us, my brethren and sisters, with the splendid feeling of fellowship and love that is exemplified in the discourses at this conference. May the influence thereof sink deep in our hearts, that we may be instruments in the hands of God in perpetuating the principles of brotherly love and fellowship to all humanity, that the world may with us, glorify God for bringing to pass this great work and a wonder in the last days, and this I ask in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
ELDER JOSEPH F. SMITH, JR.
Prophecies fulfilled in Saints locating in the Rocky Mountain region.
I trust that our brethren and sisters will bear with us for just a moment longer.
I have been pleased with the testimonies of the brethren. I desire to add one quotation in connection with that which was given by Brother Robinson, concerning the gathering of the Latter-day Saints in these valleys of the Rocky Mountains. The Lord says:
"Wherefore, be not deceived, but continue in steadfastness, looking forth for the heavens to be shaken, and the earth to tremble and to reel to and fro as a drunken man, for the valleys to be exalted, and for the mountains to be made low, and for the rough places to become smooth; and all this when the angel shall sound his trump. But before the great day of the Lord shall come, Jacob shall flourish in the wilderness, and the Lamanites shall blossom as the rose. Zion shall flourish upon the hills and rejoice upon the mountains, and shall be assembled together unto the place which I have appointed."
In my travels among the people, I have seen, in part at least, the fulfillment of the words of the Lord. I have seen where the water has been increased, where the deserts have been made to blossom; pools of water have sprung forth, and barren places had become fruitful fields. This has been through the activity and industry of the Latter-day Saints and the blessings of the Lord which have attended them. I feel that we should honor the Lord, and sing praises unto him, be true and faithful to our covenants, honor the priesthood, love the Lord our God, and seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, giving him all the honor the praise and the glory for the blessings he has poured out upon us as Latter-day Saints; for they are many, and will be continued, as we know, from day to day if we are faithful. The Lord will bless us abundantly, granting us all things we need, and in His own due time righteousness shall prevail upon the earth, truth spread among the people, wickedness shall not be found. and the righteous shall inherit the earth. May we go home from the Conference with renewed energy and determination to serve the Lord, which is my prayer, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
James H. Neilson, and choir, sang the hymn:
O Zion, when I think of thee,
I long for pinions like the dove.
And mourn to think that I should be
So distant from the land I love.
The music for all the pieces rendered during the service was composed by Prof. J. J. McClellan.
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Rea Gardner.
Prophecies fulfilled in Saints locating in the Rocky Mountain region.
I trust that our brethren and sisters will bear with us for just a moment longer.
I have been pleased with the testimonies of the brethren. I desire to add one quotation in connection with that which was given by Brother Robinson, concerning the gathering of the Latter-day Saints in these valleys of the Rocky Mountains. The Lord says:
"Wherefore, be not deceived, but continue in steadfastness, looking forth for the heavens to be shaken, and the earth to tremble and to reel to and fro as a drunken man, for the valleys to be exalted, and for the mountains to be made low, and for the rough places to become smooth; and all this when the angel shall sound his trump. But before the great day of the Lord shall come, Jacob shall flourish in the wilderness, and the Lamanites shall blossom as the rose. Zion shall flourish upon the hills and rejoice upon the mountains, and shall be assembled together unto the place which I have appointed."
In my travels among the people, I have seen, in part at least, the fulfillment of the words of the Lord. I have seen where the water has been increased, where the deserts have been made to blossom; pools of water have sprung forth, and barren places had become fruitful fields. This has been through the activity and industry of the Latter-day Saints and the blessings of the Lord which have attended them. I feel that we should honor the Lord, and sing praises unto him, be true and faithful to our covenants, honor the priesthood, love the Lord our God, and seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, giving him all the honor the praise and the glory for the blessings he has poured out upon us as Latter-day Saints; for they are many, and will be continued, as we know, from day to day if we are faithful. The Lord will bless us abundantly, granting us all things we need, and in His own due time righteousness shall prevail upon the earth, truth spread among the people, wickedness shall not be found. and the righteous shall inherit the earth. May we go home from the Conference with renewed energy and determination to serve the Lord, which is my prayer, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
James H. Neilson, and choir, sang the hymn:
O Zion, when I think of thee,
I long for pinions like the dove.
And mourn to think that I should be
So distant from the land I love.
The music for all the pieces rendered during the service was composed by Prof. J. J. McClellan.
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Rea Gardner.
SECOND OVERFLOW MEETING.
Another meeting of the Conference was held in the Assembly Hall, at 2 p. m., at which Elder Anthony W. Ivins presided. The Seventeenth ward choir again furnished the musical exercises.
The choir sang the anthem, 'Grant us peace, O Lord."' This anthem, and the other selections rendered during this service, were composed by Prof. Evan Stephens; solo parts were sung by James H. Neilson, H. J. Christiansen, Amer Hansen, and Sisters Barnes and Smith.
Prayer was offered by Elder James H. Martineau.
A male quartet sang the hymn:
Oh, give me back my Prophet dear,
And Patriarch, O give them back,
The Saints of latter-days to cheer.
And lead them in the Gospel track!
Elder Anthony W. Ivins presented the names of the General Authorities of the Church; each and all were duly sustained in the positions designated, by unanimous vote of the congregation.
The choir sang the anthem, "Gospel restoration."
Another meeting of the Conference was held in the Assembly Hall, at 2 p. m., at which Elder Anthony W. Ivins presided. The Seventeenth ward choir again furnished the musical exercises.
The choir sang the anthem, 'Grant us peace, O Lord."' This anthem, and the other selections rendered during this service, were composed by Prof. Evan Stephens; solo parts were sung by James H. Neilson, H. J. Christiansen, Amer Hansen, and Sisters Barnes and Smith.
Prayer was offered by Elder James H. Martineau.
A male quartet sang the hymn:
Oh, give me back my Prophet dear,
And Patriarch, O give them back,
The Saints of latter-days to cheer.
And lead them in the Gospel track!
Elder Anthony W. Ivins presented the names of the General Authorities of the Church; each and all were duly sustained in the positions designated, by unanimous vote of the congregation.
The choir sang the anthem, "Gospel restoration."
ELDER DAVID H. CANNON.
(President of St. George Temple.)
I am very much gratified with the opportunity afforded me of addressing you for a few minutes this afternoon, and I trust that while I shall attempt this that I may have an interest in your faith, that such things as may be suggested to my mind may be of mutual benefit to us. The Gospel, with which we have become identified, is the power of God unto salvation to every man and woman who render themselves strictly obedient to its requirements; and I want to bear my testimony to the truth of that gospel, as revealed in this day and age of the world in which we live. Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God, inspired to do that which he accomplished in his day, and this gospel as restored through the Prophet has come to the earth never more to be taken from it, or given to another people, but is destined to accomplish that which God has designed should be brought about for the redemption of His children.
I remember the Prophet Joseph Smith very well, though but a small boy at the time of his martyrdom; but I was impressed as a lad that he was a Prophet, a m.an superior to his fellows, and that God had raised him up to accomplish a great work. I have been acquainted with the other leaders of the Church, President Young, President Taylor, President Woodruff, President Snow, and President Smith. I bear testimony to their integrity to the truth and to the influence they have had upon the world, gathering many people from various nations where the gospel message greeted their ears, and caused them to come to these peaceful valleys, where they have the privilege of worshiping God according to the dictates of their conscience, and have not been made afraid. When these glad tidings reached the ears of our fathers in the lands of their nativity, they rendered obedience to the requirements of the gospel. It did not require a manifestation of any great mysterious power to convert them to the gospel, yet they faithfully adhered to the principles thereof, believing that they were principles that God had revealed. No matter how dark the day, or how lowering the clouds seemed to be that hung over the people, and, discouraging the conditions by which they were surrounded, they were unfaltering in their fealty to God and the principles that they had espoused. Driven from their homes, they sought refuge in some other part of the country, not knowing where they were going. They were always cheerful, making camp fires, sitting by them, and singing the songs of Zion, apparently as happy as it was possible for people to be, though deprived of everything they had possessed on the earth.
I was talking the other day with some of those people who have recently been driven from Mexico. They said "A person cannot realize the feeling that possessed us in being forced from our homes, with nothing but what we stood up in, not having time to take our clothing or anything but the few things that were necessary for our immediate use. Nobody could understand our feeling, unless they had passed through a' similar experience." I can truly sympathize with them, because I remember the time when the people were driven from their homes in Nauvoo, when the end apparently had come, everything seemed dark. They did not have friends that they could go to after being driven from their peaceful homes in Illinois, but they crossed the Mississippi river, and journeyed in the wilderness, not knowing where they were going: but they were cheerful, and the Lord guided them, and brought them to these mountains. I 'remember very well the distressing conditions of the people. I remember the power of the Lord being manifest in many instances in their deliverance. I remember coming to Winter Quarters and remaining there, and that many of the people scattered from there into the surrounding regions to work and obtain outfits to enable them to come on to the valleys of the mountains; and others went on to locate an abiding place for the people.
I remember when we entered these mountains, the forbidding aspect, the dreary appearance of the country and the conditions by which we were surrounded. We come here today and see the contrast. This sight that we behold today, the people surrounded by the comforts and conveniences that the Lord has conferred upon them, and the peace and quiet that surround them, are sufficient to convince the most skeptical of God's power having been manifest in behalf of the people. Settlements. have sprung up east and west, north and south, until the then Territory and now the State of Utah, is filled almost to its capacity, and the people have had to find place in the adjacent states, and are becoming a mighty people in the midst of this nation, of which we form a part. If we continue faithful, obedient to the requirements of the gospel, living in conformity thereto, God will continue to manifest his power, and the people will prosper, and increase in a knowledge of the truth. I heard a man a short time ago predict the conditions which are coming upon our sons and daughters. He said: "Mr. Cannon, in associating with your young people, I find that they are not taking to religion, they are drifting into infidelity, and they have not the confidence in the leaders of the Church that you older men have had." I replied, "It may appear to you that way, but I am satisfied that these young men and young women, who now appear inactive in regard to spiritual affairs, if conditions should require it, you would find them as strong and as willing to defend the principles of eternal truth as their fathers ever were. The faith of the gospel is in their hearts, but, in our ordinary moving about, there is nothing connected with the gospel that requires us to wear a long face or appear sanctimonious." We believe that God is our Father, that His Son Jesus Christ is the Redeemer of the world, and that through Him and by Him, and through obedience to the requirements that He has made of us, we will gain eternal lives in His presence. Every principle that is true, or that is calculated in its nature to raise mankind in the scale of human intelligence, is a part of the gospel, no matter where it comes from. When we approach the Lord in prayer, as has been done on this occasion, we go to him in faith, nothing doubting, because we know that He is our Father and will hear our petition. As we embrace the gospel, and conform strictly to it, God gives us a knowledge regarding its divinity, and we increase in faith until we have become thoroughly imbued with the spirit of the work of the Lord, and it only requires the occasion to make us stand forth firmly and valiantly in its defense.
I rejoice in this great work. I rejoice in it from the fact that it is applicable to every condition in. which man may be found. The gospel requires the same degree of obedience from the man that is found in a palace as of the man who is found in a cottage. All men must render strict obedience to the requirements of the gospel. As the fruits of the spirit are manifest in man's life, he grows in intelligence, and in understanding of the things that pertain to God and godliness, and he becomes convinced and confirmed so that nothing can turn him from the truth, or rob him of the testimony of the spirit that is within him. You know sometimes people feel that in order for them to become converted to the gospel, it is necessary for them to have some kind of a miraculous manifestation; but the genuine Latter-day Saint will learn the truth by obedience, the conviction thus comes to them, and they realize that they are accepted of God.
Ask a man the question how he knows the gospel to be true. Ask him, "Did you ever see an angel?" "No." "Did you ever see any one raised from the dead? You speak of the resurrection of the dead; have you ever seen anybody that was resurrected?" "No." "How do you know that this gospel is true? What demonstration have you had to satisfy you?" I never have had any miraculous manifestation, but I will tell you what I have had: I have endeavored to render myself obedient to the requirements of the gospel, and as I have done so the Spirit of God has testified to me of its divine authenticity. Any principle that has been revealed from the earliest times until the present, as I have tried to render myself obedient to its requirements, God has given me a testimony regarding it, and my heart and my soul have been satisfied. The hope that is firmly implanted in my heart becomes brighter and stronger as I proceed to render obedience to the requirements made by the gospel through the servants of God.
When we receive the gospel, we are not satisfied to sit down and say in our hearts we have received it, and we are satisfied; but we begin to desire to extend this knowledge that we have received to our fellows, and we begin to see what we can do to improve the condition of mankind. When the spirit of the work comes upon us we are not satisfied to look just alone to the interests of the living, and to bear testimony to them of the divine truths that we have received, but we also desire the eternal welfare of our progenitors, and we endeavor to see what can be done in their interest, to ameliorate their condition. At the time that the Lord commanded His servants to go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He said, "he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, and he that believeth not shall be damned." So, we believe that those who did not render this obedience in their lifetime, and died without having the opportunity of obeying, that it is necessary for them to have the ordinance of baptism performed in their behalf, vicariously. As we become possessed of the genealogical data that will enable us to do so, we go into the houses that the Lord has caused to be erected, and we seek to perform the work that is necessary for the redemption of our kindred dead. The matter forces itself upon our understandings that we without our dead "can not be made perfect," nor can our dead be made perfect without us, so we find that there is something good that we may do, every day that we live in the earth.
A man said to me: "How is it that I have been identified with this Church so long and I have never been called upon to do anything?" "Well," I said, "the only reason that I can give is that you were never there when there was something to do." A person that is always ready and willing can easily find plenty to do, every day. No man is justified in sitting down and idling away his time, simply because he is not asked to go and do something. He can engage in no grander work than in the interest of his dead. He can go to the temple and be baptized for them; then he can receive other blessings on their behalf. He can place in the hands of his dead kindred keys, and power, and authority by which they may have the privilege of entering into celestial glory, and enjoying that which the Lord has to bestow upon the faithful. He can impart to them authority and power without which they never can pass to their exaltation.
There are plenty of people drifting about the country, and the streets, that the man who bears the holy Priesthood has ample opportunity to bear his testimony to, who have not yet found the path to eternal life. Thus we have no surplus time, or spare time, and there is no occasion for any one to say that he has not been asked to do anything, or to ask the question, "How is it that I have never been asked to do anything?" The servants of the Lord should not have to ask people to do their duty, the people should be ready and willing.
It is my desire to bear my testimony to the people. I know, as I know that God lives, that this is the work of God. I know that the work that is done in our temples for the redemption of the dead is essential; and I know, furthermore, that those who go to the temple and do the work as far as they have genealogical data that will enable them to do it, the Lord will open the way for them to receive further information. The greater the amount of work they do the greater their desires will be to do it, and more information will be placed in their hands to enable them to continue the great work for the redemption of the dead.
May God bless us, pour out His holy Spirit upon us, and enable us to be diligent in carrying out and assisting to accomplish His purposes in the earth, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
(President of St. George Temple.)
I am very much gratified with the opportunity afforded me of addressing you for a few minutes this afternoon, and I trust that while I shall attempt this that I may have an interest in your faith, that such things as may be suggested to my mind may be of mutual benefit to us. The Gospel, with which we have become identified, is the power of God unto salvation to every man and woman who render themselves strictly obedient to its requirements; and I want to bear my testimony to the truth of that gospel, as revealed in this day and age of the world in which we live. Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God, inspired to do that which he accomplished in his day, and this gospel as restored through the Prophet has come to the earth never more to be taken from it, or given to another people, but is destined to accomplish that which God has designed should be brought about for the redemption of His children.
I remember the Prophet Joseph Smith very well, though but a small boy at the time of his martyrdom; but I was impressed as a lad that he was a Prophet, a m.an superior to his fellows, and that God had raised him up to accomplish a great work. I have been acquainted with the other leaders of the Church, President Young, President Taylor, President Woodruff, President Snow, and President Smith. I bear testimony to their integrity to the truth and to the influence they have had upon the world, gathering many people from various nations where the gospel message greeted their ears, and caused them to come to these peaceful valleys, where they have the privilege of worshiping God according to the dictates of their conscience, and have not been made afraid. When these glad tidings reached the ears of our fathers in the lands of their nativity, they rendered obedience to the requirements of the gospel. It did not require a manifestation of any great mysterious power to convert them to the gospel, yet they faithfully adhered to the principles thereof, believing that they were principles that God had revealed. No matter how dark the day, or how lowering the clouds seemed to be that hung over the people, and, discouraging the conditions by which they were surrounded, they were unfaltering in their fealty to God and the principles that they had espoused. Driven from their homes, they sought refuge in some other part of the country, not knowing where they were going. They were always cheerful, making camp fires, sitting by them, and singing the songs of Zion, apparently as happy as it was possible for people to be, though deprived of everything they had possessed on the earth.
I was talking the other day with some of those people who have recently been driven from Mexico. They said "A person cannot realize the feeling that possessed us in being forced from our homes, with nothing but what we stood up in, not having time to take our clothing or anything but the few things that were necessary for our immediate use. Nobody could understand our feeling, unless they had passed through a' similar experience." I can truly sympathize with them, because I remember the time when the people were driven from their homes in Nauvoo, when the end apparently had come, everything seemed dark. They did not have friends that they could go to after being driven from their peaceful homes in Illinois, but they crossed the Mississippi river, and journeyed in the wilderness, not knowing where they were going: but they were cheerful, and the Lord guided them, and brought them to these mountains. I 'remember very well the distressing conditions of the people. I remember the power of the Lord being manifest in many instances in their deliverance. I remember coming to Winter Quarters and remaining there, and that many of the people scattered from there into the surrounding regions to work and obtain outfits to enable them to come on to the valleys of the mountains; and others went on to locate an abiding place for the people.
I remember when we entered these mountains, the forbidding aspect, the dreary appearance of the country and the conditions by which we were surrounded. We come here today and see the contrast. This sight that we behold today, the people surrounded by the comforts and conveniences that the Lord has conferred upon them, and the peace and quiet that surround them, are sufficient to convince the most skeptical of God's power having been manifest in behalf of the people. Settlements. have sprung up east and west, north and south, until the then Territory and now the State of Utah, is filled almost to its capacity, and the people have had to find place in the adjacent states, and are becoming a mighty people in the midst of this nation, of which we form a part. If we continue faithful, obedient to the requirements of the gospel, living in conformity thereto, God will continue to manifest his power, and the people will prosper, and increase in a knowledge of the truth. I heard a man a short time ago predict the conditions which are coming upon our sons and daughters. He said: "Mr. Cannon, in associating with your young people, I find that they are not taking to religion, they are drifting into infidelity, and they have not the confidence in the leaders of the Church that you older men have had." I replied, "It may appear to you that way, but I am satisfied that these young men and young women, who now appear inactive in regard to spiritual affairs, if conditions should require it, you would find them as strong and as willing to defend the principles of eternal truth as their fathers ever were. The faith of the gospel is in their hearts, but, in our ordinary moving about, there is nothing connected with the gospel that requires us to wear a long face or appear sanctimonious." We believe that God is our Father, that His Son Jesus Christ is the Redeemer of the world, and that through Him and by Him, and through obedience to the requirements that He has made of us, we will gain eternal lives in His presence. Every principle that is true, or that is calculated in its nature to raise mankind in the scale of human intelligence, is a part of the gospel, no matter where it comes from. When we approach the Lord in prayer, as has been done on this occasion, we go to him in faith, nothing doubting, because we know that He is our Father and will hear our petition. As we embrace the gospel, and conform strictly to it, God gives us a knowledge regarding its divinity, and we increase in faith until we have become thoroughly imbued with the spirit of the work of the Lord, and it only requires the occasion to make us stand forth firmly and valiantly in its defense.
I rejoice in this great work. I rejoice in it from the fact that it is applicable to every condition in. which man may be found. The gospel requires the same degree of obedience from the man that is found in a palace as of the man who is found in a cottage. All men must render strict obedience to the requirements of the gospel. As the fruits of the spirit are manifest in man's life, he grows in intelligence, and in understanding of the things that pertain to God and godliness, and he becomes convinced and confirmed so that nothing can turn him from the truth, or rob him of the testimony of the spirit that is within him. You know sometimes people feel that in order for them to become converted to the gospel, it is necessary for them to have some kind of a miraculous manifestation; but the genuine Latter-day Saint will learn the truth by obedience, the conviction thus comes to them, and they realize that they are accepted of God.
Ask a man the question how he knows the gospel to be true. Ask him, "Did you ever see an angel?" "No." "Did you ever see any one raised from the dead? You speak of the resurrection of the dead; have you ever seen anybody that was resurrected?" "No." "How do you know that this gospel is true? What demonstration have you had to satisfy you?" I never have had any miraculous manifestation, but I will tell you what I have had: I have endeavored to render myself obedient to the requirements of the gospel, and as I have done so the Spirit of God has testified to me of its divine authenticity. Any principle that has been revealed from the earliest times until the present, as I have tried to render myself obedient to its requirements, God has given me a testimony regarding it, and my heart and my soul have been satisfied. The hope that is firmly implanted in my heart becomes brighter and stronger as I proceed to render obedience to the requirements made by the gospel through the servants of God.
When we receive the gospel, we are not satisfied to sit down and say in our hearts we have received it, and we are satisfied; but we begin to desire to extend this knowledge that we have received to our fellows, and we begin to see what we can do to improve the condition of mankind. When the spirit of the work comes upon us we are not satisfied to look just alone to the interests of the living, and to bear testimony to them of the divine truths that we have received, but we also desire the eternal welfare of our progenitors, and we endeavor to see what can be done in their interest, to ameliorate their condition. At the time that the Lord commanded His servants to go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He said, "he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, and he that believeth not shall be damned." So, we believe that those who did not render this obedience in their lifetime, and died without having the opportunity of obeying, that it is necessary for them to have the ordinance of baptism performed in their behalf, vicariously. As we become possessed of the genealogical data that will enable us to do so, we go into the houses that the Lord has caused to be erected, and we seek to perform the work that is necessary for the redemption of our kindred dead. The matter forces itself upon our understandings that we without our dead "can not be made perfect," nor can our dead be made perfect without us, so we find that there is something good that we may do, every day that we live in the earth.
A man said to me: "How is it that I have been identified with this Church so long and I have never been called upon to do anything?" "Well," I said, "the only reason that I can give is that you were never there when there was something to do." A person that is always ready and willing can easily find plenty to do, every day. No man is justified in sitting down and idling away his time, simply because he is not asked to go and do something. He can engage in no grander work than in the interest of his dead. He can go to the temple and be baptized for them; then he can receive other blessings on their behalf. He can place in the hands of his dead kindred keys, and power, and authority by which they may have the privilege of entering into celestial glory, and enjoying that which the Lord has to bestow upon the faithful. He can impart to them authority and power without which they never can pass to their exaltation.
There are plenty of people drifting about the country, and the streets, that the man who bears the holy Priesthood has ample opportunity to bear his testimony to, who have not yet found the path to eternal life. Thus we have no surplus time, or spare time, and there is no occasion for any one to say that he has not been asked to do anything, or to ask the question, "How is it that I have never been asked to do anything?" The servants of the Lord should not have to ask people to do their duty, the people should be ready and willing.
It is my desire to bear my testimony to the people. I know, as I know that God lives, that this is the work of God. I know that the work that is done in our temples for the redemption of the dead is essential; and I know, furthermore, that those who go to the temple and do the work as far as they have genealogical data that will enable them to do it, the Lord will open the way for them to receive further information. The greater the amount of work they do the greater their desires will be to do it, and more information will be placed in their hands to enable them to continue the great work for the redemption of the dead.
May God bless us, pour out His holy Spirit upon us, and enable us to be diligent in carrying out and assisting to accomplish His purposes in the earth, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
ELDER CHARLES A. CALLIS.
(President of Southern States Mission.)
Many times when we are preaching in the mission fields, well meaning and good people say: "Why do you 'Mormons' give a place to Joseph Smith as one of the Prophets of God?'" And we answer, we do not do that; God gave Joseph Smith his place, and he is just as indispensable as an instrument in the hands of God to execute the purposes of the Almighty as Adam, Moses, Abraham, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Peter or Paul. You know, the very first words that the Angel Moroni said to Joseph Smith were these, "God has a work for you to do ;" and in that work we are associated with the Prophet Joseph Smith, and with him, as the Apostle Paul declares, we are "fellow workers with the Lord." What a glorious comfort, what a splendid privilege! A historian declared that "unless something new is born in America with power to save, that America will differ but little from the other parts of Christendom." That something new has been born;. the gospel, which is new to this dispensation, but which is the ancient everlasting gospel, hath been restored, and it is the "power of God unto salvation" to every man and woman.
A great preacher was asked the other day these questions: "Do you believe' that God is a personal being? Do you believe that Jesus is the Christ ?" And the great preacher declared that if he should answer "yes" to these questions that his answer might be taken in a dozen different ways. Has it come to that, that the people have been spoiled by vain philosophy, that a preacher cannot answer in the words of Peter, "Thou art the Christ, the son of the living God" ? Joseph Smith received that glorious vision, in which were shown to him the Father and the Son, whom to know is life eternal, the greatest gift that God can give to man. And it was his work, the work of that prophet, to declare the great truth to the world, that men were made in the image of God, and they are His children. This same preacher declared that the belief that "there is no hope beyond the grave" is a mistake, that he believed in it, that there is hope beyond the grave. Since when did this people that sit in darkness see a great light? Why, since in that stand in Kirtland, the Prophet Elijah, in fulfillment of prophecy, appeared to Joseph Smith and conferred upon him the Priesthood and the power to administer ordinances to save the souls of those who have separated from the body and gone into the world beyond. This meant, you know, that there is hope beyond the grave; but that is as far as that minister can go. Where is the power to put this belief into practice?
Items of truth there are in every creed, but Joseph Smith came with the bow that shot the apple to its core. He came with the power, with the Priesthood, with the means God had made and designed in the heavens, by which the dead could be saved, and through which they with us can be made perfect in the kingdom of our Father. And so God revealed to his prophets that, in the temples of God, sacred ordinances could be performed which would save our dead, and in which holy places we could be united to our loved ones for time and all eternity. This is the distinction, apparent to me, of the divinity of the mission of the Prophet Joseph Smith. He came not only to tell the truth, to announce God's word, but he came with the power, with the authority to put it into effect, and to give inspiration to all the commandments of God.
One of the happiest moments I ever spent in my life, one of the greatest privileges I ever had, was to sit in that big Tabernacle and hear the Prophet of God announce that it was deemed advisable to build another temple. I say when he announced that, and asked for the vote of the Priesthood of the Church to sustain him and the Church authorities in that undertaking, and in that splendid work, I say it was one of the happiest moments of my life to raise my hand to sustain the Prophet and his brethren in the accomplishment of that splendid work. Let the world say what it may of Joseph Smith, he was a Prophet of God.
"He gazed on the past, the present too,
And opened the heavenly worlds to view.”
He came as God's ambassador. He did this work well, and in that work God grant that you ani I may ever be with him, and with our leaders be blessed thereby. I ask it in the name of Jesus. Amen.
The choir sang the anthem. "Hosannah!"
(President of Southern States Mission.)
Many times when we are preaching in the mission fields, well meaning and good people say: "Why do you 'Mormons' give a place to Joseph Smith as one of the Prophets of God?'" And we answer, we do not do that; God gave Joseph Smith his place, and he is just as indispensable as an instrument in the hands of God to execute the purposes of the Almighty as Adam, Moses, Abraham, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Peter or Paul. You know, the very first words that the Angel Moroni said to Joseph Smith were these, "God has a work for you to do ;" and in that work we are associated with the Prophet Joseph Smith, and with him, as the Apostle Paul declares, we are "fellow workers with the Lord." What a glorious comfort, what a splendid privilege! A historian declared that "unless something new is born in America with power to save, that America will differ but little from the other parts of Christendom." That something new has been born;. the gospel, which is new to this dispensation, but which is the ancient everlasting gospel, hath been restored, and it is the "power of God unto salvation" to every man and woman.
A great preacher was asked the other day these questions: "Do you believe' that God is a personal being? Do you believe that Jesus is the Christ ?" And the great preacher declared that if he should answer "yes" to these questions that his answer might be taken in a dozen different ways. Has it come to that, that the people have been spoiled by vain philosophy, that a preacher cannot answer in the words of Peter, "Thou art the Christ, the son of the living God" ? Joseph Smith received that glorious vision, in which were shown to him the Father and the Son, whom to know is life eternal, the greatest gift that God can give to man. And it was his work, the work of that prophet, to declare the great truth to the world, that men were made in the image of God, and they are His children. This same preacher declared that the belief that "there is no hope beyond the grave" is a mistake, that he believed in it, that there is hope beyond the grave. Since when did this people that sit in darkness see a great light? Why, since in that stand in Kirtland, the Prophet Elijah, in fulfillment of prophecy, appeared to Joseph Smith and conferred upon him the Priesthood and the power to administer ordinances to save the souls of those who have separated from the body and gone into the world beyond. This meant, you know, that there is hope beyond the grave; but that is as far as that minister can go. Where is the power to put this belief into practice?
Items of truth there are in every creed, but Joseph Smith came with the bow that shot the apple to its core. He came with the power, with the Priesthood, with the means God had made and designed in the heavens, by which the dead could be saved, and through which they with us can be made perfect in the kingdom of our Father. And so God revealed to his prophets that, in the temples of God, sacred ordinances could be performed which would save our dead, and in which holy places we could be united to our loved ones for time and all eternity. This is the distinction, apparent to me, of the divinity of the mission of the Prophet Joseph Smith. He came not only to tell the truth, to announce God's word, but he came with the power, with the authority to put it into effect, and to give inspiration to all the commandments of God.
One of the happiest moments I ever spent in my life, one of the greatest privileges I ever had, was to sit in that big Tabernacle and hear the Prophet of God announce that it was deemed advisable to build another temple. I say when he announced that, and asked for the vote of the Priesthood of the Church to sustain him and the Church authorities in that undertaking, and in that splendid work, I say it was one of the happiest moments of my life to raise my hand to sustain the Prophet and his brethren in the accomplishment of that splendid work. Let the world say what it may of Joseph Smith, he was a Prophet of God.
"He gazed on the past, the present too,
And opened the heavenly worlds to view.”
He came as God's ambassador. He did this work well, and in that work God grant that you ani I may ever be with him, and with our leaders be blessed thereby. I ask it in the name of Jesus. Amen.
The choir sang the anthem. "Hosannah!"
ELDER GERMAN E. ELLSWORTH.
(President of Northern States Mission.)
In contrasting the sermons that I have heard during this conference with the spirit of the world, I am strongly reminded of the statement in the scriptures wherein it says that it shall be in the days of the coming of the Son of Man as it was in the days of Noah, that the people shall be indifferent, not knowing the way of life,- not certain of anything, and not particularly interested. Noah was unable, after 120 years' teaching, to induce more than his own family to go into the ark. In this day it seems to be the same. The members of sectarian churches of the world do not know they are right, neither do they know that they are not right. The people belonging to each church are willing to go on in their way, generally speaking, and willing to let all other churches do the same. The Baptists, Methodists, Congregationalists and all others concede that ministers of all the so-called Christian churches have the right to make their living by preaching. In doing this they feel that they are doing some good, and, in a general way, the Christian world certainly has been benefited, for we know that all Christians are elevated much above those who have not accepted Christianity. The Christian sects have not accepted all the truth, but they have accepted a great deal of it, and we know that those who have accepted a part have been made better and elevated to a higher standard.
In my short experience, I can remember when sectarian ministers preached the awful doctrine of damnation of infants, and that if people did not accept Christ in this life they were lost forever, and many other similar doctrines. But, today they have grown more liberal as they call it, and more broadminded, even willing to leave the hereafter to the Lord, while they now preach that men should repent and live a holy life, and walk the straight and narrow path. I believe that the Christian world has done a great work for the uplifting of the human family. They have fought the restored gospel, and been unwilling to accept it as a whole, but they are now accepting it little by little, and it is marvelous how much of the revealed gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ the Christian world now believes, compared to a few years ago. I have been told, in the last year, by a number of ministers, that they believe in the restoration of the gospel; that is, since the days of Luther, Calvin, Knox and other great religious reformers, there has been a restoration of the light of the primitive gospel of Jesus Christ, not a restoration of it as taught by the Latter-day Saints, but a restoration of it little by little, or as fast as they are prepared for the same.
I rejoice in the knowledge my brethren and sisters, that they are beginning to believe in the restoration. I rejoice to see them accepting principles which were revealed by the Lord of heaven to the Prophet Joseph Smith. I have rejoiced in the spirit of the testimonies that have been borne by the speakers during this conference, in their positiveness, and in their assurance that they know what the Church and people are doing, and where they are going. People of the world are growing tired of having leaders that are not certain of their path. Therein is the beauty of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, for in it is revealed to us the true character of our Father and His earth-born Son. We are not in doubt as to who they are, what they look like, the purpose of Christ's mission in the world, and their supervision over the human family. This restored gospel has been leavening the whole lump, and the world is being prepared to accept it, not in part, as at present, but as it was revealed from heaven, as to doctrine as well as to authority and organization.
Last spring I heard two sermons on the resurrection which were almost a counterpart of the teaching on this subject found in the Book of Mormon. When I think that, in the United States, in the last eight years, the seven missions have distributed nearly 200,000 copies of the Book of Mormon, it is no wonder that the truths in the book are spreading among the people. The simplicity and beauty of its teachings, like the revelation of the Father and the Son, are affecting the world. People are beginning to believe in the restoration of the gospel. They are beginning to believe that the God of heaven is our Father, and that He loves His children. Still they are lukewarm, they are not positive in the way that they are going. They are too easy in their religion. They are like some that we have among us —they are Christians, but are not doing much at their religion. And so in the Christian world, there are millions that are not doing much at it. In fact, the men folks of the world, in a very large measure, have withdrawn themselves from churches and are taking part in lodges, because the lodges give them something to do, if it is no more than to sit in a special chair, carry banners, march in line, and in turn be the head of the organization for a little time. But the women still attend the churches, and are doing the greater part of the family religion. In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, at home, we find some men that are not taking very much part. As Brother David H. Cannon said, they have never been called upon, because they have never been in the way of work. If there are any at home that feel sorry they have not been called, I wish to state that I hope they will be called upon to come into my mission field. We are at least fifty short in our field of the number we have had, and one hundred short of what we would like to have. There is plenty of work for them to do. If they will come out and do it, trusting in the Lord, the Spirit and power of God will come upon them, and they will be able to come home, as thousands have done, saying it is the happiest time of their lives, and the sweetest work they have ever performed. A testimony will grow in their hearts that the revelations of God through the Prophet Joseph Smith are true. The heavens will open to them, and they will rejoice in bearing testimony of the truth upon the public streets and in public and private meetings. I have heard hundreds of them bear that testimony, and none who heard them doubted what they said. There is joy in the service of the Lord. The world has grown lukewarm because of the nature of the doctrines taught to them, and the uncertainty of the self-appointed leaders. There has been no positiveness in their preachers, no certainty in their declarations, no knowledge concerning the true character of God; and, as was said in the Tabernacle this morning, how can they impart more than they have received ? On the other hand, the positive testimony of the elders is sweet to the hearts of the honest people of the earth, for they bear witness that God lives, that Jesus is the Christ, that He has restored the gospel to the earth, the gospel of faith, repentance and baptism. All men and women who will repent and be baptized for the remission of their sins shall know of the doctrine, and know that it is of God. That kind of preaching stirs the hearts of those who love God and would like to know the way to go. Hundreds of them are touched in their hearts, and some day they will bear witness of it by being baptized in water for the remission of their sins.
The world has not yet, by their .own wisdom, found the way, neither have they found any one who can tell them the way. I wonder sometimes that there should be any Latter-day Saints not doing anything at the religion that has been given to us in this day. The gold and silver of the world is nothing compared to the great gift that God our Father has given to us. We are not destined by our own efforts and tact, nor by our own intelligence to win the wealth of the world, but we have been promised the riches of the world, after we have sought and found the kingdom of God. The Lord gave the elders of this Church positive instructions that we should not seek the riches of this world, but seek to bring to pass the righteousness of God, and to bring about the salvation of the souls or men, and if we do that, and continue faithful all our days, we shall be saved in the kingdom of God, which is the greatest of all the gifts of our Father.
Two of our elders in the Minnesota conference, about three weeks ago, were accosted by a lady at her door, who said: "How is it you come to my door? Why, I entertained two of your elders a year ago. Won't any of my neighbors keep you?" They were two young men who had not been there very long, and one of them, who was the spokesman, said: "My good woman, we were turned away about ten times in this neighborhood after holding street meetings, so we knelt down and asked the Lord if there was an honest heart in this neighborhood or within our reach that He would lead us to such. We arose and have come straight to your door." She was so touched, because the Lord had led those two elders to her door, that she took them in; that statement of a common practice of the elders was sufficient to interest her in the restored gospel.
The work of the Lord is certainly increasing in the earth, and the Spirit of our Father is taking hold of the hearts of the people. I doubt not it will be but a short time till thousands of people will go further than to manifest only belief. To their belief they will add the works of repentance, baptism and the laying on of hands. They will understand that the Lord of heaven has indeed established His Church, and given men authority to bear witness in His name, and to officiate in the ordinances of the gospel of the Lord Jesus. Even today some are inquiring: "Who ordained our minister?' "So-and-So." "And who ordained him ?" And going further back they discover that no one ordained the first minister of their church, and so they find there is a broken link in the history of their authority. They wonder why and how it is that the authority has not continued down since the days of Christ upon the earth; and, if there has been a partial restoration of the gospel, has there been also a restoration of authority?
My brethren and sisters, we should not only sing in our Sabbath services, but in our souls, we ought to rejoice that we are made partakers of the glorious gospel, this gift and power by which we can be saved in the kingdom of our Father, and that will bring eternal life to each one of us, if we continue faithful to the end. The early elders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints were given a commandment to seek after righteousness and to bring- to pass the glory of God. So also are the elders of today under the same admonition from our Father, to seek first the kingdom of God, and the promise is that, afterward, the riches of heaven will be given unto us, that is, in the end, if faithful, we will be given the greatest of all blessings that can be bestowed upon the human family, the gift of salvation. It is worth our most earnest effort, my brethren and sisters, and no Latter-day Saint who has received the testimony of the gospel ought to be lukewarm in that testimony. To be a "Mormon" and not doing much at it, is beyond my comprehension, I can not understand such inactivity on the part of any young man or woman in whose heart burns the testimony of Jesus.
Let us go forth among our neighbors clothed upon with the armor of truth, depending upon the Spirit of God, and teach them the gospel. I think there will be as much joy in a convert at home as one abroad. If you convert a man at home, you are able to live together in the pure love of a missionary and a convert. You have heard the elders say it was the saddest day of their lives to leave the mission field, not that they did not wish to come home to their loved ones, but. under the influence of the Spirit of God, they have seen men and women yield to their teachings. They have gathered around them friends and converts that are very near to them, because they have taken part in their salvation; they have taken part in bringing light and truth into their lives, and learned to love them dearly. If we could bring light and truth to the hundreds of people who have gathered to the valleys of the mountains, to acquire gold and silver we would give them something greater than they came for, and in doing so feel the joy of a missionary with no parting sorrows, as they would always be near us. I am firmly convinced that the same effort, together with the same love and consideration, given at home as in the mission field would convert many. For such a work they would love us, and we would love them, and with them we would rejoice in the work of God when we finish our labors upon the earth. May it not be in Zion like it was in the days of Noah. Let us not be lukewarm.
Let us go forth in the spirit and power of the Lord, and the spirit of the counsel given us by the Prophets and apostles of the latter days, and work for the salvation of our fellow men. May God bless us and raise us up as ensigns to the world, that the honest among men shall see the light and come to Zion, is my prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen.
(President of Northern States Mission.)
In contrasting the sermons that I have heard during this conference with the spirit of the world, I am strongly reminded of the statement in the scriptures wherein it says that it shall be in the days of the coming of the Son of Man as it was in the days of Noah, that the people shall be indifferent, not knowing the way of life,- not certain of anything, and not particularly interested. Noah was unable, after 120 years' teaching, to induce more than his own family to go into the ark. In this day it seems to be the same. The members of sectarian churches of the world do not know they are right, neither do they know that they are not right. The people belonging to each church are willing to go on in their way, generally speaking, and willing to let all other churches do the same. The Baptists, Methodists, Congregationalists and all others concede that ministers of all the so-called Christian churches have the right to make their living by preaching. In doing this they feel that they are doing some good, and, in a general way, the Christian world certainly has been benefited, for we know that all Christians are elevated much above those who have not accepted Christianity. The Christian sects have not accepted all the truth, but they have accepted a great deal of it, and we know that those who have accepted a part have been made better and elevated to a higher standard.
In my short experience, I can remember when sectarian ministers preached the awful doctrine of damnation of infants, and that if people did not accept Christ in this life they were lost forever, and many other similar doctrines. But, today they have grown more liberal as they call it, and more broadminded, even willing to leave the hereafter to the Lord, while they now preach that men should repent and live a holy life, and walk the straight and narrow path. I believe that the Christian world has done a great work for the uplifting of the human family. They have fought the restored gospel, and been unwilling to accept it as a whole, but they are now accepting it little by little, and it is marvelous how much of the revealed gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ the Christian world now believes, compared to a few years ago. I have been told, in the last year, by a number of ministers, that they believe in the restoration of the gospel; that is, since the days of Luther, Calvin, Knox and other great religious reformers, there has been a restoration of the light of the primitive gospel of Jesus Christ, not a restoration of it as taught by the Latter-day Saints, but a restoration of it little by little, or as fast as they are prepared for the same.
I rejoice in the knowledge my brethren and sisters, that they are beginning to believe in the restoration. I rejoice to see them accepting principles which were revealed by the Lord of heaven to the Prophet Joseph Smith. I have rejoiced in the spirit of the testimonies that have been borne by the speakers during this conference, in their positiveness, and in their assurance that they know what the Church and people are doing, and where they are going. People of the world are growing tired of having leaders that are not certain of their path. Therein is the beauty of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, for in it is revealed to us the true character of our Father and His earth-born Son. We are not in doubt as to who they are, what they look like, the purpose of Christ's mission in the world, and their supervision over the human family. This restored gospel has been leavening the whole lump, and the world is being prepared to accept it, not in part, as at present, but as it was revealed from heaven, as to doctrine as well as to authority and organization.
Last spring I heard two sermons on the resurrection which were almost a counterpart of the teaching on this subject found in the Book of Mormon. When I think that, in the United States, in the last eight years, the seven missions have distributed nearly 200,000 copies of the Book of Mormon, it is no wonder that the truths in the book are spreading among the people. The simplicity and beauty of its teachings, like the revelation of the Father and the Son, are affecting the world. People are beginning to believe in the restoration of the gospel. They are beginning to believe that the God of heaven is our Father, and that He loves His children. Still they are lukewarm, they are not positive in the way that they are going. They are too easy in their religion. They are like some that we have among us —they are Christians, but are not doing much at their religion. And so in the Christian world, there are millions that are not doing much at it. In fact, the men folks of the world, in a very large measure, have withdrawn themselves from churches and are taking part in lodges, because the lodges give them something to do, if it is no more than to sit in a special chair, carry banners, march in line, and in turn be the head of the organization for a little time. But the women still attend the churches, and are doing the greater part of the family religion. In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, at home, we find some men that are not taking very much part. As Brother David H. Cannon said, they have never been called upon, because they have never been in the way of work. If there are any at home that feel sorry they have not been called, I wish to state that I hope they will be called upon to come into my mission field. We are at least fifty short in our field of the number we have had, and one hundred short of what we would like to have. There is plenty of work for them to do. If they will come out and do it, trusting in the Lord, the Spirit and power of God will come upon them, and they will be able to come home, as thousands have done, saying it is the happiest time of their lives, and the sweetest work they have ever performed. A testimony will grow in their hearts that the revelations of God through the Prophet Joseph Smith are true. The heavens will open to them, and they will rejoice in bearing testimony of the truth upon the public streets and in public and private meetings. I have heard hundreds of them bear that testimony, and none who heard them doubted what they said. There is joy in the service of the Lord. The world has grown lukewarm because of the nature of the doctrines taught to them, and the uncertainty of the self-appointed leaders. There has been no positiveness in their preachers, no certainty in their declarations, no knowledge concerning the true character of God; and, as was said in the Tabernacle this morning, how can they impart more than they have received ? On the other hand, the positive testimony of the elders is sweet to the hearts of the honest people of the earth, for they bear witness that God lives, that Jesus is the Christ, that He has restored the gospel to the earth, the gospel of faith, repentance and baptism. All men and women who will repent and be baptized for the remission of their sins shall know of the doctrine, and know that it is of God. That kind of preaching stirs the hearts of those who love God and would like to know the way to go. Hundreds of them are touched in their hearts, and some day they will bear witness of it by being baptized in water for the remission of their sins.
The world has not yet, by their .own wisdom, found the way, neither have they found any one who can tell them the way. I wonder sometimes that there should be any Latter-day Saints not doing anything at the religion that has been given to us in this day. The gold and silver of the world is nothing compared to the great gift that God our Father has given to us. We are not destined by our own efforts and tact, nor by our own intelligence to win the wealth of the world, but we have been promised the riches of the world, after we have sought and found the kingdom of God. The Lord gave the elders of this Church positive instructions that we should not seek the riches of this world, but seek to bring to pass the righteousness of God, and to bring about the salvation of the souls or men, and if we do that, and continue faithful all our days, we shall be saved in the kingdom of God, which is the greatest of all the gifts of our Father.
Two of our elders in the Minnesota conference, about three weeks ago, were accosted by a lady at her door, who said: "How is it you come to my door? Why, I entertained two of your elders a year ago. Won't any of my neighbors keep you?" They were two young men who had not been there very long, and one of them, who was the spokesman, said: "My good woman, we were turned away about ten times in this neighborhood after holding street meetings, so we knelt down and asked the Lord if there was an honest heart in this neighborhood or within our reach that He would lead us to such. We arose and have come straight to your door." She was so touched, because the Lord had led those two elders to her door, that she took them in; that statement of a common practice of the elders was sufficient to interest her in the restored gospel.
The work of the Lord is certainly increasing in the earth, and the Spirit of our Father is taking hold of the hearts of the people. I doubt not it will be but a short time till thousands of people will go further than to manifest only belief. To their belief they will add the works of repentance, baptism and the laying on of hands. They will understand that the Lord of heaven has indeed established His Church, and given men authority to bear witness in His name, and to officiate in the ordinances of the gospel of the Lord Jesus. Even today some are inquiring: "Who ordained our minister?' "So-and-So." "And who ordained him ?" And going further back they discover that no one ordained the first minister of their church, and so they find there is a broken link in the history of their authority. They wonder why and how it is that the authority has not continued down since the days of Christ upon the earth; and, if there has been a partial restoration of the gospel, has there been also a restoration of authority?
My brethren and sisters, we should not only sing in our Sabbath services, but in our souls, we ought to rejoice that we are made partakers of the glorious gospel, this gift and power by which we can be saved in the kingdom of our Father, and that will bring eternal life to each one of us, if we continue faithful to the end. The early elders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints were given a commandment to seek after righteousness and to bring- to pass the glory of God. So also are the elders of today under the same admonition from our Father, to seek first the kingdom of God, and the promise is that, afterward, the riches of heaven will be given unto us, that is, in the end, if faithful, we will be given the greatest of all blessings that can be bestowed upon the human family, the gift of salvation. It is worth our most earnest effort, my brethren and sisters, and no Latter-day Saint who has received the testimony of the gospel ought to be lukewarm in that testimony. To be a "Mormon" and not doing much at it, is beyond my comprehension, I can not understand such inactivity on the part of any young man or woman in whose heart burns the testimony of Jesus.
Let us go forth among our neighbors clothed upon with the armor of truth, depending upon the Spirit of God, and teach them the gospel. I think there will be as much joy in a convert at home as one abroad. If you convert a man at home, you are able to live together in the pure love of a missionary and a convert. You have heard the elders say it was the saddest day of their lives to leave the mission field, not that they did not wish to come home to their loved ones, but. under the influence of the Spirit of God, they have seen men and women yield to their teachings. They have gathered around them friends and converts that are very near to them, because they have taken part in their salvation; they have taken part in bringing light and truth into their lives, and learned to love them dearly. If we could bring light and truth to the hundreds of people who have gathered to the valleys of the mountains, to acquire gold and silver we would give them something greater than they came for, and in doing so feel the joy of a missionary with no parting sorrows, as they would always be near us. I am firmly convinced that the same effort, together with the same love and consideration, given at home as in the mission field would convert many. For such a work they would love us, and we would love them, and with them we would rejoice in the work of God when we finish our labors upon the earth. May it not be in Zion like it was in the days of Noah. Let us not be lukewarm.
Let us go forth in the spirit and power of the Lord, and the spirit of the counsel given us by the Prophets and apostles of the latter days, and work for the salvation of our fellow men. May God bless us and raise us up as ensigns to the world, that the honest among men shall see the light and come to Zion, is my prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen.
ELDER SAMUEL O. BENNION.
(President of Central States Mission.)
I realize that our time is pretty well spent, so I shall be brief in my remarks.
One thought expressed by Brother David H. Cannon has impressed me very much. There will not be many years pass until such men as Brother Cannon will not be upon this earth among us. He has lived about seventy-five years, and as a boy he knew the Prophet Joseph Smith. Such a testimony as this will not be given many more years by persons who knew Joseph Smith, for it will not be long until all those brethren and sisters who are among us now shall no longer he with us, and we shall have to take the words of men who have listened to them. I never saw the Prophet Joseph Smith, but I believe, my brethren and sisters, with all my heart, in fact I know, that there was a Prophet by the name of Joseph Smith who lived in this day and dispensation, and I know that the same testimony that I have, which was given to me by the Holy Spirit, I might say was inherited by me, undoubtedly will be obtained by millions in this world. I believe that same testimony shall be declared to every nation in all the world, until all shall have a chance to receive or reject the testimony of Jesus.
The Savior said that the gospel should be preached unto every creature under heaven. I believe that He meant just exactly what He said, and that men or women, whether in the flesh or out of the flesh, in this world or out of it, before they shall be judged and called to give an account of the deeds done in the body, that this gospel, the law of liberty, the principles which govern and control men upon the earth or anywhere, shall be made manifest unto them. The Lord shall never pass judgment upon a man until he shall be given an opportunity to fully understand the gospel of the Redeemer of the world, and unto this end the gospel shall be proclaimed unto men that they may become partakers of its blessings. Men may be led to investigate the gospel, through the influence of an elder traveling in their midst; or by some other agency. Individuals may hear a "Mormon" Elder preach, and receive some of the literature that we are delivering from day to day, by the thousands of pages. Every man and woman may not have the opportunity to hear, in the flesh, the testimony of men, but they have the privilege of reading the gospel of the Redeemer of the world. I believe that this message will be carried to the sons and daughters of men in many ways; they shall be warned through their neighbors, and when one is warned he shall in turn warn his neighbor, Joseph Smith received divine light, divine principles of truth and of justice, and these shall enter into the hearts of men and the truth shall make them free. Men who preach perverse doctrine shall be driven from the pulpit, and stand on common grounds with others; they shall have to abide the truth, confess that Jesus is the Christ, and that Joseph Smith is a prophet of the living Lord. The work called "Mormonism" is true, and these principles of truth, revealed just as we- have them today, shall make free all men and women who obey them, and shall release captives from the captivity of death. Men shall come to an understanding that the work of God, the Eternal Father, is everlasting, and that it shall never cease until every son and daughter of His shall have the privilege of saying, "Yes, I will serve Thee," or "I will not serve Thee." All men and women have free agency, and the power of intelligence, and they may know for themselves what they are doing. The Lord shall never take "snap judgment" upon His_ sons and daughters, for He loves them. The testimony that Joseph Smith is a true Prophet, that the work called "Mormonism" is true, shall continue to go into the world until the sons and daughters of men shall yield obedience, or shall say, "We do not desire to obey."
I pray God to bless the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the people who come to conference and those that do not, that you may be able to send your sons and daughters into the mission field, not only for the testimony that they shall bear but for the good that it shall do them. That this work may grow, and that this people residing in the valleys of the mountains, who have been led here by the hand of the living God, shall be the power which shall take into the world the leaven which shall "leaven the whole lump," and bring joy, happiness and eternal life unto the sons and daughters of God who are yet in darkness, I humbly pray, in the name of Jesus. Amen.
(President of Central States Mission.)
I realize that our time is pretty well spent, so I shall be brief in my remarks.
One thought expressed by Brother David H. Cannon has impressed me very much. There will not be many years pass until such men as Brother Cannon will not be upon this earth among us. He has lived about seventy-five years, and as a boy he knew the Prophet Joseph Smith. Such a testimony as this will not be given many more years by persons who knew Joseph Smith, for it will not be long until all those brethren and sisters who are among us now shall no longer he with us, and we shall have to take the words of men who have listened to them. I never saw the Prophet Joseph Smith, but I believe, my brethren and sisters, with all my heart, in fact I know, that there was a Prophet by the name of Joseph Smith who lived in this day and dispensation, and I know that the same testimony that I have, which was given to me by the Holy Spirit, I might say was inherited by me, undoubtedly will be obtained by millions in this world. I believe that same testimony shall be declared to every nation in all the world, until all shall have a chance to receive or reject the testimony of Jesus.
The Savior said that the gospel should be preached unto every creature under heaven. I believe that He meant just exactly what He said, and that men or women, whether in the flesh or out of the flesh, in this world or out of it, before they shall be judged and called to give an account of the deeds done in the body, that this gospel, the law of liberty, the principles which govern and control men upon the earth or anywhere, shall be made manifest unto them. The Lord shall never pass judgment upon a man until he shall be given an opportunity to fully understand the gospel of the Redeemer of the world, and unto this end the gospel shall be proclaimed unto men that they may become partakers of its blessings. Men may be led to investigate the gospel, through the influence of an elder traveling in their midst; or by some other agency. Individuals may hear a "Mormon" Elder preach, and receive some of the literature that we are delivering from day to day, by the thousands of pages. Every man and woman may not have the opportunity to hear, in the flesh, the testimony of men, but they have the privilege of reading the gospel of the Redeemer of the world. I believe that this message will be carried to the sons and daughters of men in many ways; they shall be warned through their neighbors, and when one is warned he shall in turn warn his neighbor, Joseph Smith received divine light, divine principles of truth and of justice, and these shall enter into the hearts of men and the truth shall make them free. Men who preach perverse doctrine shall be driven from the pulpit, and stand on common grounds with others; they shall have to abide the truth, confess that Jesus is the Christ, and that Joseph Smith is a prophet of the living Lord. The work called "Mormonism" is true, and these principles of truth, revealed just as we- have them today, shall make free all men and women who obey them, and shall release captives from the captivity of death. Men shall come to an understanding that the work of God, the Eternal Father, is everlasting, and that it shall never cease until every son and daughter of His shall have the privilege of saying, "Yes, I will serve Thee," or "I will not serve Thee." All men and women have free agency, and the power of intelligence, and they may know for themselves what they are doing. The Lord shall never take "snap judgment" upon His_ sons and daughters, for He loves them. The testimony that Joseph Smith is a true Prophet, that the work called "Mormonism" is true, shall continue to go into the world until the sons and daughters of men shall yield obedience, or shall say, "We do not desire to obey."
I pray God to bless the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the people who come to conference and those that do not, that you may be able to send your sons and daughters into the mission field, not only for the testimony that they shall bear but for the good that it shall do them. That this work may grow, and that this people residing in the valleys of the mountains, who have been led here by the hand of the living God, shall be the power which shall take into the world the leaven which shall "leaven the whole lump," and bring joy, happiness and eternal life unto the sons and daughters of God who are yet in darkness, I humbly pray, in the name of Jesus. Amen.
ELDER ANTHONY W. IVINS.
Signs of present times foretold by the Savior.—Endless progression result of obedience to Eternal laws.—-Fundamental doctrines of United States Government divine and everlasting.
The time has come, my brethren and sisters, when we are to adjourn this conference for another six months, to go to our homes and assume the responsibilities which devolve upon us in magnifying our calling in the Church, and performing the duties that devolve upon us as citizens of this Republic. I can think of no word of admonition or counsel that I could more profitably call your attention to before we dismiss than the words of the Savior which He spoke to His disciples just before His crucifixion. He was talking to them of the latter days. He was talking to them of us, who are assembled here this afternoon. He was talking of the time when He should come in the clouds of heaven to reign in power and dominion on the earth. And when they asked Him to give them a sign by which they might know that this period was near. He warned them, among other things, that those times would be perilous, that it would be a period when there would be wars and rumors of wars, when there would be confusion; but more than that, when many men would come in His name and would deceive many, when some would cry, Lo here, and others Lo there, false prophets would arise, and. false Christs, and their works would be so convincing that they would deceive, if possible, the very elect. He warned the people to stand fast to the doctrines which He had taught. And in emphasizing this, the Apostle Paul in his Epistle to the Ephesians warned them to be "not like children, moved hither and thither by every wind of doctrine" that blew, but to stand fast in the doctrines which had been taught to them.
That doctrine, briefly stated, was faith in God, our Eternal Father. It was that Jesus Christ of whom they bore witness, was the Son of God; that he was God manifest in the flesh, that He was the Redeemer of the world, and had been crucified for the sins of the world; that He had been raised from the dead, being "the first fruits of the resurrection," and that in time, to come He should reign in power and dominion over this earth, and His kingdom become supreme. Christ Himself declared, and His disciples taught, that this gospel of the kingdom must of necessity first "be preached as a witness" unto the inhabitants of the earth before that time should come.
Now, my brethren and sisters, I do not need to enter into any argument to convince you that we are living in these very times. Go out on to the corners of these streets tonight, or if you were there last night, you would have heard doctrines of every shade and color, plans of redemption that probably would appeal to some, which promise great blessing to human kind. It is a day of confusion, a day of religious unbelief. It is a day when demagogues seek to lead you into strange paths in civil and political economy. All I have to say to you is that we believe in progression, we are a progressive people, and we believe that there will never be an end to it, that we shall continue, and must continue, in this life and in the life to come, to go forward, for water that stands still of necessity becomes stagnant; but as we progress this one fact we must recognize, that there is no progression from these fundamental principles of truth upon which this Church is budded. The "Law of Carnal Commandments" was completed, was done away with in the coming of Christ. It was no longer necessary to slay the male lamb without blemish and offer up living things as a sacrifice to God in similitude of the Only Begotten of the Father. But in doing away with that ordinance there was no change to that commandment of God which had been given to His children in the very beginning, that they should not lie, that they should not steal, that they should not commit adultery. These truths are eternal. These doctrines of morality last forever. They will always be in the Church. That doctrine which seeks to lead us away from it beware of, for God will have us do just as He did at that time. Jesus is the Redeemer of the world just as He was at that time. He is God made manifest in the flesh. He has opened this gospel dispensation. Joseph Smith, through His instrumentality, established this work. Authority came to the earth, through the message of John the Baptist and the disciples of Jesus Christ, to administer in the ordinances of the gospel. Those are the fundamentals; those are the essentials. Those are the truths upon which this Church is builded, and we never can progress away from them, because they will stand forever, just as they were in the beginning. I am wedded to them. My conscience is a captive to them. I know them to be true. I know them to be essential to the welfare of this congregation of Latter-day Saints. So I admonish you that you hold fast to them, let come what may.
Just as I believe in these doctrines, so in my heart and soul I believe in the fundamental doctrines of civil government, which were given tr ). us by the fathers of our country that before God men are created equal, that governments are instituted among men for their protection and happiness, and that all just governments must derive their powers from the consent of the governed. The government belongs to us; it is ours. Now there may be differences of opinion as to the best methods of administering it. We may not always adhere just to the policy of the fathers, because, as conditions change different policies are necessary. But these fundamental doctrines to which I refer are just as true to us, they are just as true as are the fundamental doctrines of the gospel, because they are eternal, and there can be no government except they are based upon these principles. If you will remember that, keep it in mind, and live close to those divine doctrines of civil government, the Latter-day Saints will be the men and women that God wants us to be.
I am reminded of the words of J. G. Holland, who spoke them a long time ago, but it seems to me there never was a time when they were more applicable:
"God give us men. A time like this requires great minds,
Strong hearts, true faith, and ready hands;
Men whom the lust of office does not kill;
Men whom the spoils of-office cannot buy;
Men who are honest, men who will not lie;
Men who can stand before a demagogue,
And damn his flattering treachery without winking;
Tall men, sun-crowned, who live above the fog;
In public duty and in private thinking,
For while the rabble, with their thumb worn creeds.
Their large pretensions and their little deeds
Mingle in selfish strife, lo! Freedom weeps.
Wrong rules the land, and waiting Justice sleeps."
If we will adhere to these principles, my brethren and sisters, to which I have referred, every man and woman in the Church will be that kind of man and woman. That is what the gospel has done for us, that is what every one needs, and must have, that shall ever be redeemed and saved from the perils which are impending—that kind of men and women.
The Lord help us to be faithful, keep us in the truth, lead us back, eventually, into His presence, I pray through Jesus Christ. Amen.
The choir sang the anthem, "Overthrow of Gog and Magog."
Benediction was pronounced by Elder George C. Lambert.
Signs of present times foretold by the Savior.—Endless progression result of obedience to Eternal laws.—-Fundamental doctrines of United States Government divine and everlasting.
The time has come, my brethren and sisters, when we are to adjourn this conference for another six months, to go to our homes and assume the responsibilities which devolve upon us in magnifying our calling in the Church, and performing the duties that devolve upon us as citizens of this Republic. I can think of no word of admonition or counsel that I could more profitably call your attention to before we dismiss than the words of the Savior which He spoke to His disciples just before His crucifixion. He was talking to them of the latter days. He was talking to them of us, who are assembled here this afternoon. He was talking of the time when He should come in the clouds of heaven to reign in power and dominion on the earth. And when they asked Him to give them a sign by which they might know that this period was near. He warned them, among other things, that those times would be perilous, that it would be a period when there would be wars and rumors of wars, when there would be confusion; but more than that, when many men would come in His name and would deceive many, when some would cry, Lo here, and others Lo there, false prophets would arise, and. false Christs, and their works would be so convincing that they would deceive, if possible, the very elect. He warned the people to stand fast to the doctrines which He had taught. And in emphasizing this, the Apostle Paul in his Epistle to the Ephesians warned them to be "not like children, moved hither and thither by every wind of doctrine" that blew, but to stand fast in the doctrines which had been taught to them.
That doctrine, briefly stated, was faith in God, our Eternal Father. It was that Jesus Christ of whom they bore witness, was the Son of God; that he was God manifest in the flesh, that He was the Redeemer of the world, and had been crucified for the sins of the world; that He had been raised from the dead, being "the first fruits of the resurrection," and that in time, to come He should reign in power and dominion over this earth, and His kingdom become supreme. Christ Himself declared, and His disciples taught, that this gospel of the kingdom must of necessity first "be preached as a witness" unto the inhabitants of the earth before that time should come.
Now, my brethren and sisters, I do not need to enter into any argument to convince you that we are living in these very times. Go out on to the corners of these streets tonight, or if you were there last night, you would have heard doctrines of every shade and color, plans of redemption that probably would appeal to some, which promise great blessing to human kind. It is a day of confusion, a day of religious unbelief. It is a day when demagogues seek to lead you into strange paths in civil and political economy. All I have to say to you is that we believe in progression, we are a progressive people, and we believe that there will never be an end to it, that we shall continue, and must continue, in this life and in the life to come, to go forward, for water that stands still of necessity becomes stagnant; but as we progress this one fact we must recognize, that there is no progression from these fundamental principles of truth upon which this Church is budded. The "Law of Carnal Commandments" was completed, was done away with in the coming of Christ. It was no longer necessary to slay the male lamb without blemish and offer up living things as a sacrifice to God in similitude of the Only Begotten of the Father. But in doing away with that ordinance there was no change to that commandment of God which had been given to His children in the very beginning, that they should not lie, that they should not steal, that they should not commit adultery. These truths are eternal. These doctrines of morality last forever. They will always be in the Church. That doctrine which seeks to lead us away from it beware of, for God will have us do just as He did at that time. Jesus is the Redeemer of the world just as He was at that time. He is God made manifest in the flesh. He has opened this gospel dispensation. Joseph Smith, through His instrumentality, established this work. Authority came to the earth, through the message of John the Baptist and the disciples of Jesus Christ, to administer in the ordinances of the gospel. Those are the fundamentals; those are the essentials. Those are the truths upon which this Church is builded, and we never can progress away from them, because they will stand forever, just as they were in the beginning. I am wedded to them. My conscience is a captive to them. I know them to be true. I know them to be essential to the welfare of this congregation of Latter-day Saints. So I admonish you that you hold fast to them, let come what may.
Just as I believe in these doctrines, so in my heart and soul I believe in the fundamental doctrines of civil government, which were given tr ). us by the fathers of our country that before God men are created equal, that governments are instituted among men for their protection and happiness, and that all just governments must derive their powers from the consent of the governed. The government belongs to us; it is ours. Now there may be differences of opinion as to the best methods of administering it. We may not always adhere just to the policy of the fathers, because, as conditions change different policies are necessary. But these fundamental doctrines to which I refer are just as true to us, they are just as true as are the fundamental doctrines of the gospel, because they are eternal, and there can be no government except they are based upon these principles. If you will remember that, keep it in mind, and live close to those divine doctrines of civil government, the Latter-day Saints will be the men and women that God wants us to be.
I am reminded of the words of J. G. Holland, who spoke them a long time ago, but it seems to me there never was a time when they were more applicable:
"God give us men. A time like this requires great minds,
Strong hearts, true faith, and ready hands;
Men whom the lust of office does not kill;
Men whom the spoils of-office cannot buy;
Men who are honest, men who will not lie;
Men who can stand before a demagogue,
And damn his flattering treachery without winking;
Tall men, sun-crowned, who live above the fog;
In public duty and in private thinking,
For while the rabble, with their thumb worn creeds.
Their large pretensions and their little deeds
Mingle in selfish strife, lo! Freedom weeps.
Wrong rules the land, and waiting Justice sleeps."
If we will adhere to these principles, my brethren and sisters, to which I have referred, every man and woman in the Church will be that kind of man and woman. That is what the gospel has done for us, that is what every one needs, and must have, that shall ever be redeemed and saved from the perils which are impending—that kind of men and women.
The Lord help us to be faithful, keep us in the truth, lead us back, eventually, into His presence, I pray through Jesus Christ. Amen.
The choir sang the anthem, "Overthrow of Gog and Magog."
Benediction was pronounced by Elder George C. Lambert.
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.
The 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.
Prayer was offered by Elder Joseph L. Stott.
The congregation sang the hymn:
Come, listen to -a Prophet's voice,
And hear the word of God,
And in the way of truth rejoice,
And sing for joy aloud.
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.
The 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.
Prayer was offered by Elder Joseph L. Stott.
The congregation sang the hymn:
Come, listen to -a Prophet's voice,
And hear the word of God,
And in the way of truth rejoice,
And sing for joy aloud.
ELDER BENJAMIN GODDARD.
(Supt. Bureau of Information.)
Brethren and Sisters, we are very gratified and pleased to welcome such a large number to our open-air meeting, and we trust that you will give the same attention and observe the same order that is expected to prevail in the Tabernacle.
We regret very much that our buildings are not large enough, but I venture to say that when the Tabernacle was built, those who planned it did not realize that the time would come when it would not accommodate the people. Today, however, we need several such Tabernacles at conference time as the one that is now crowded to its utmost capacity. I surmise that in the Tabernacle now, standing and seated, there must be nearly 11,000 people. Our Assembly Hall is filled to overflowing, and still the people are coming.
It must be an impressive sight, it must be a matter for rejoicing among the Latter-day Saints that this condition prevails, and that each conference indicates the increased growth and development of the work of God. I believe that you all feel to rejoice over this fact. I do not know of anything that has given me more pleasure at this conference than to observe the evident growth of the Church. The decision at the General Priesthood Meeting, in response to the pleas of the people, that a Temple to the Most High God should be built in Canada, indicates how the people are craving for blessings, for the true path of life and salvation, and I trust that this spirit will continue to increase.
Our Church members have been recognized as builders from the beginning. No sooner had the Church been organized than the men and women of the Church commenced to build upon that sure foundation. In Kirtland the Saints were builders. They endeavored to establish themselves there where a Holy Temple was built, and they helped to bring together the honest in heart, though few in number at that time, but they were willing to gather and help build up the Church of God., Subsequently the Saints went to Independence, Mo., and from thence to Nauvoo where, in a beautiful location on the Mississippi, they built up a new city.
When driven from Nauvoo by mob violence, they crossed the plains and the Rockies, and no sooner had they arrived in these valleys than they commenced to work. They plowed the barren land, they planted seed, they built their houses, and commenced to erect school houses and churches throughout the land. And now our magnificent Temples here and in the north and south, indicate to all people that the Latter-day Saints are builders. They are workers, the Saints are glad to be thus engaged.
There are those who come among us sometimes whose delight it is to attempt to tear down. You find them on the street corners, at times they come upon this block, they enter our Tabernacle and their sole purpose in life appears to be to destroy or ridicule the Word of God. Call them what you please, they are not worthy of the name "Joseph," for Joseph was the Founder of the Church and a true prophet of the Lord.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints may be judged by its fruits, and by their works may the people be judged. We hope to continue in this work until the admiration of the world is called forth by the earnest labors of the people.
We welcome you again to this meeting. I have the honor to announce that brethren have been called to whom you will be pleased to listen. Elder Melvin J. Ballard, President of the North Western States Mission; Elder John L. Herrick, formerly of Ogden, an energetic worker and President of the Western States Mission; the President of Pioneer Stake, in this city, who has always been a valiant, true member of the Church, William McLachlan; also the ex-President of the Scandinavian Mission, and Assistant Historian, Andrew Jenson. I know you will be glad to hear them all and I bespeak for them your faith, your prayers, and your best attention.
(Supt. Bureau of Information.)
Brethren and Sisters, we are very gratified and pleased to welcome such a large number to our open-air meeting, and we trust that you will give the same attention and observe the same order that is expected to prevail in the Tabernacle.
We regret very much that our buildings are not large enough, but I venture to say that when the Tabernacle was built, those who planned it did not realize that the time would come when it would not accommodate the people. Today, however, we need several such Tabernacles at conference time as the one that is now crowded to its utmost capacity. I surmise that in the Tabernacle now, standing and seated, there must be nearly 11,000 people. Our Assembly Hall is filled to overflowing, and still the people are coming.
It must be an impressive sight, it must be a matter for rejoicing among the Latter-day Saints that this condition prevails, and that each conference indicates the increased growth and development of the work of God. I believe that you all feel to rejoice over this fact. I do not know of anything that has given me more pleasure at this conference than to observe the evident growth of the Church. The decision at the General Priesthood Meeting, in response to the pleas of the people, that a Temple to the Most High God should be built in Canada, indicates how the people are craving for blessings, for the true path of life and salvation, and I trust that this spirit will continue to increase.
Our Church members have been recognized as builders from the beginning. No sooner had the Church been organized than the men and women of the Church commenced to build upon that sure foundation. In Kirtland the Saints were builders. They endeavored to establish themselves there where a Holy Temple was built, and they helped to bring together the honest in heart, though few in number at that time, but they were willing to gather and help build up the Church of God., Subsequently the Saints went to Independence, Mo., and from thence to Nauvoo where, in a beautiful location on the Mississippi, they built up a new city.
When driven from Nauvoo by mob violence, they crossed the plains and the Rockies, and no sooner had they arrived in these valleys than they commenced to work. They plowed the barren land, they planted seed, they built their houses, and commenced to erect school houses and churches throughout the land. And now our magnificent Temples here and in the north and south, indicate to all people that the Latter-day Saints are builders. They are workers, the Saints are glad to be thus engaged.
There are those who come among us sometimes whose delight it is to attempt to tear down. You find them on the street corners, at times they come upon this block, they enter our Tabernacle and their sole purpose in life appears to be to destroy or ridicule the Word of God. Call them what you please, they are not worthy of the name "Joseph," for Joseph was the Founder of the Church and a true prophet of the Lord.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints may be judged by its fruits, and by their works may the people be judged. We hope to continue in this work until the admiration of the world is called forth by the earnest labors of the people.
We welcome you again to this meeting. I have the honor to announce that brethren have been called to whom you will be pleased to listen. Elder Melvin J. Ballard, President of the North Western States Mission; Elder John L. Herrick, formerly of Ogden, an energetic worker and President of the Western States Mission; the President of Pioneer Stake, in this city, who has always been a valiant, true member of the Church, William McLachlan; also the ex-President of the Scandinavian Mission, and Assistant Historian, Andrew Jenson. I know you will be glad to hear them all and I bespeak for them your faith, your prayers, and your best attention.
ELDER MELVIN J. BALLARD.
(President Northwestern States Mission.)
My heart rejoices in the growth of the work of the Lord. I ahi always happy to see the souls of the children of men brought within the fold of Christ, through the waters of baptism. I am happy to be able to tell you that the work of the Lord is growing in the missions of the Church. The increase in baptisms has been steadily advancing from year to year. While I am always glad to see the Church growing in numbers, I am more interested in seeing it grow in faith and in good works. I am not satisfied with the standard that I have attained, for I yet lack that perfection which the Gospel teaches. As each one of us shall consider our own life, and examine ourselves, I am sure that we all shall find room for improvement.
I desire to read to you from the revelation of the Lord some verses on a familiar subject, which has been brought to the attention of mankind from the beginning of time. Reference is found to this subject in various of the books of the Old and New Testament. I read from the revelation to the Prophet Joseph, because it seems to me more explicit and forcible than the words we find recorded in the Bible. I read to you. therefore, from the nineteenth section of the Doctrine and Covenants, beginning with the fourth verse:
"And surely every man must repent or suffer, for I, God, am endless; wherefore I revoke not the judgments which I shall pass, but woes shall go forth, weeping, wailing, and gnashing of teeth, yea, to those who are found on my left hand; nevertheless it is not written that there shall be no end to this torment, but it is written endless torment. Again, it is written eternal damnation; wherefore it is more express than other scriptures, that it might work upon the hearts of the children of men, altogether for my name's glory; wherefore I will explain unto you this mystery, for it is mete unto you to know even as mine apostles. I speak unto you that are chosen in this thing, even as one, that you may enter into my rest; for, behold the mystery of Godliness, how great is it? for, behold, I am endless, and the punishment which is given from my hand is endless punishment, for endless is my name; wherefore — eternal punishment is God's^ punishment. Endless punishment is God's punishment. Wherefore I command you to repent, and keep the commandments which you have received by the hand of my servant Joseph Smith, Tun., in my name; and it is by my al mighty power that you have received them; therefore I command you to repent—repent, lest I smite you by the rod of my mouth, and by mv wrath, and by my anger, and your sufferings be sore—how sore you know not! how exquisite you know not! yea, how hard to bear you know not! for behold I, God, have suffered these things for all, that they might not suffer if they would repent, but if they would not repent, they must suffer even as I, which suffering caused myself, even God, the greatest of all, to tremble because of pain, and to bleed at every pore, and to suffer both body and spirit; and would that I might not drink the bitter cup and shrink—nevertheless, glory be to the Father, and I partook and finished my preparations unto the children of men- wherefore I command you again to repent, lest I humble you with my almighty power, and that you confess your sins, lest you suffer these punishments of which I have spoken, of which in the smallest, yea. even m the least degree, you have tasted at the time I withdrew my Spirit. And I command you, that you preach nought but repentance, and show not these things unto the world until it is wisdom in me."
I presume that nearly all of those whom I am now addressing have gone into the waters of baptism, following repentance; for we were taught that it is essential and necessary that we should repent of our sins in order that baptism may be effectual in washing away the transgressions of the past. I fear that some of us members of the Church have failed to realize the necessity of retaining with us the spirit of repentance after we have entered the waters of baptism. That man or woman who ceases to repent, when repentance is necessary, ceases to grow, or progress. The advancements that have been made in science, in the arts, in the medical profession, or in the laboratory, all have been wrought by reason of men leaving the old things which were proven wrong, and instead thereof adopting new methods, new truths taking the place of old errors, and the things that are needed to make life's work a success adopted. Every man and woman has to progress in like manner. A young man came to the Savior and asked what good thing he might do to gain salvation; he was told of many things, not one only, that he must do, and then after he had accomplished these, that he should follow the Master—not that he should walk near the Sea of Galilee, or over the mountains, following in the footsteps of the Master, but that in his life he should follow the example, and thus walk in the footsteps of the Master.
The Latter-day Saints have learned that those who will be saved must be faithful to the end, must be possessed of the spirit of repentance. There is a thought in the minds of many of us that, once having repented of our sins, prior to entering the waters of baptism, we had then completed our repentance, and we have felt, Well, we have attended to that business, and we are now prepared to go on to perfection. We have been looking at the big mistakes we have made in our lives, and are not altogether conscious of the seriousness and importance of watching the little things.
I stood by a great vessel not long ago, one that had crossed the sea again and again, a vessel that had been a target of shot and shell of the enemy, and was proof against the assaults that had been directed against it, yet it is now helpless, condemned, and not fit to go to the sea, because the innumerable barnacles, little, insignificant insects, had eaten into the hull of the vessel and rendered it unseaworthy, it could no longer withstand the storms of the ocean, much less shot and shell. You have seen the mighty oak standing against the hurricane's blast, withstanding fierce winds and storms, but after the insidious work of a small insect that bores into the tree, and leaves it perforated with holes so small that they cannot be detected by the natural eye, it becomes weakened and liable to fall with a light wind. So we have seen in the lives of men and women, who are unconscious of the little vital things that are eating and sapping the foundation of their individual lives, which may ultimately so weaken them that, when the tests are made, they fail.
The conception which the Lord has given to the Latter-day Saints with reference to their earthly bodies is one that should cause us to honor, respect, and revere the body as a sacred instrument trusted into our hands for the purpose of making it submissive to the law of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. We are told in the revelations that, before we came into this mortal life, we existed irj a spiritual world, and that the intelligence that dwells in each of us inhabited a spiritual body. How many ages we had that experience we know not, but it was long enough, evidently, for our intelligence to attain control over that spiritual body, and we yielded to the law that was supreme in the spirit world; that law was the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. We are told that we are upon this earth because we did accept the Master, and agreed to stand by the decision rendered in His favor, when He was selected to be the Lamb to be slain for the redemption of mankind. We are here because we obeyed law there, and we have been sent into the world to see if we shall keep this, our second, estate. We knew and understood, before we came here, that it was only possible to obtain that progress which we sought for by obedience to law. We agreed, when we left the spirit world, to obey that law which we then accepted, the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. That law is eternal. Numberless intelligences have been saved and exalted to kingdoms of glory before our day and time, through obedience to that law. When we look out on the starry heavens at night, we see innumerable suns that, are centers of solar systems like unto ours, some undoubtedly older than ours, greater, mightier. Our sun is superior to the earth we inhabit, greater in dimensions and power, but it, too, is under the influence of another mighty one that rolls above it; on and on they rise until men are lost in the contemplation. We have learned that upon those planets our Father's children dwell in all stages of perfection and advancement. There are those who are infinitely beyond us in eternal progress, who have reached their present degree of perfection by obedience to everlasting and irrevocable law. God Himself can not change that law, he more than He could obliterate the consequence of Adam's fall. He could not be God and violate a law which is eternal, and by obedience to which He became God. We came into the world and received this mortal tabernacle for the purpose of perfecting it, making ourselves subservient to the law by which we may be raised to perfection and be worthy of the companionship of our heavenly Father.
There is in every human heart the consciousness of two forces working. Every act that a man or woman undertakes to do is usually influenced by two suggestions, the one to do good, and the other to do evil. The spirit of truth will influence us to yield obedience to the gospel law. The flesh is of the earth, and the earth is not yet redeemed, it is under the bondage of the curse, and the flesh has to be mastered. The earth itself has to undergo the process of redemption, it has to obey the law, as the prophet said it would, and it will eventually become a celestial earth, the home of celestial beings. We are to master and control our fleshy bodies, we must make them submit to the Good Spirit which asserts what is right,' and detects what is wrong; that Spirit does not speak audibly to the physical ears, but is the "still, small voice" that speaks to the spirit of man.
There is a warfare, a conflict between good and evil in every human soul. How sad and pitiful it is to see some of our Father's children yielding to the temptations that are set before them, the boy to taking the cigarette, drinking the forbidden glass, debauching himself, and then declaring that he is free! How pitiful it is to look upon those who might have been saved and exalted, wallowing in the gutter, so to speak, and almost lost to redemption! There are those who- feel that they cannot be free unless they take the liberty to participate m wrong and sin. I remember some of my own experiences, the temptation of the boys who wanted me to smoke, to drink liquor, get on a horse and raise a great disturbance, and because I would not do it, being influenced by the counsel of my parents, they said, "He is tied to his mother's apron strings and daren't do it." That was pretty hard for a boy that wanted to be free, and wanted to let others know he was free. I thank God I did not take the course they followed to obtain freedom! I remember two of those boys, who drank and smoked, deserted school, went from petty to grand larceny, and were caught finally and brought to the county jail. In the consciousness of the terrible condition in which they were, with a possibility of years of solitary confinement before them, deprived of the liquor and tobacco to which they had been addicted, they said. We cannot five and endure this punishment. One of them committed suicide, and the other went insane.
In the State penitentiary of Idaho a few years ago, a young man who had committed a theft, in one of our northern cities, said he could not stand fifteen years of prison and be denied the stimulants he desired and so he sought to escape. He walked back and forward behind the gate of the jail, waiting for a chance to break for liberty. The moment came, and he ran past the armed guards, but was shot down, with one limb almost torn from his body. Some time afterward he climbed upon the unfinished wall of the building, forty feet above the ground, and leaped in the hope of ending it all in death, but, as it happened, he was only slightly injured. He was discouraged to such an extent that, the last I knew of him, he was in the insane asylum.
There are men who cannot endure the afflictions that come to them, and the}' seek to drown their sorrows in the glass, or morphine, or in death itself. Is that freedom ? What a pitiful thing to see a man made in the image of God, with the possibilities of rising to all that our Father is, allow the appetite of the flesh to overcome the spirit, master it, drag it down, and saturate it with everything that is contemptible, mean and low. I read of some morphine fiends confined in jail in this city, who desired the drug so intensely that they begged to be killed if they could not be given the drug. One of the officers said, "Stand over against that wall and I'll shoot you." And they said, "Shoot." The officer said, "I did not think you meant it." "We do," they said, "and would rather die this minute, for we must have it." Such is the terribly enslaved condition caused by yielding to the passions and appetites of the flesh until they are not servants but masters.
The body that has been given to us was for the purpose of allowing the spirit to exalt itself to a nobler condition. The lightning that is seen flashing from cloud to cloud, from mountain top to mountain top, is an electrical force that may tear; down buildings, set fire to property, and destroy life. Conduct electricity through the dynamo wire, and motor, and behold its wonderful, results working for the service of man, accomplishing something under the control of a physical instrument, it thus becomes a power for good. So with steam, if allowed to evaporate freely it does little good, but restrain it in the boiler, send it through the engine, and under its power you may travel across the continent or sail from shore to shore. And so, too, with this highest, most potent of all spiritual forces, the intelligence that is in man; enshrine it in a spiritual body, that it may have the experiences of spiritual life; and then give it a physical body, that it may enter into and obtain the joy and experiences of physical life, and you have enlarged its powers immeasurably. Read this wonderful statement in the ninety-third section of the Doctrine and Covenants:
"Every man is spirit, saith the Lord. The elements are eternal, and spirit and element, inseparably connected, receiveth a fulness of joy; and when separated, man cannot receive a fullness of joy. The elements are the tabernacle of God; yea, man is the tabernacle of God, even temples; and whatsoever temple is defiled, God shall destroy that temple."
So we discover that it is essential and necessary, according to the law of the Lord, that the spirit shall be united with the flesh, for the purpose of redeeming that flesh and making it a fit companion for the spirit. I say the warfare goes on, and the end of that warfare will be when the man or woman says to the flesh, "You cannot violate the law of God, you cannot give loose rein to passion, you cannot have carnal appetite gratified, for it is against the law of life and of happiness; thus far you can go but you cannot go any further." The man who successfully carries on the warfare during his earth life, notwithstanding he is constantly being tempted by the flesh, when he takes his body up, in the resurrection from the dead, the warfare will cease, the flesh will yield absolutely to the spirit, and there will be no more conflict nor struggle. But woe to that man who lays his body down with passion unconquered, with appetite and desire running rampant, and with a temper unrestrained in such vicious streaks that he almost becomes a candidate for the insane asylum! Woe to him, for he shall not receive his body in the resurrection from the dead freed from such evil things. No, he shall have to overcome the evils he has acquired in this earth life, and he may find, too, that it will be harder to overcome in the next life than here, for everything there, hate, love, desire, all are intensified. Life here is in the clay state, we sometimes complain because it is so slow, it does not respond quickly, it seems plodding, the body does not acquire habits quickly. No man is a good, clean, virtuous man today and an immoral, depraved, wicked man tomorrow. These changes do not come rapidly; we should be thankful that we acquire them slowly, because thereby they may be arrested before they have developed to OUT serious injury. The body is as clay in the hands of the potter; when the clay is moulded, given its shape, and allowed to stand, it becomes hardened, then, O, how difficult it is to remodel it, to recast it. So, if we mould and create evil habits, it will be exceedingly difficult to reconstruct our characters after we have left this mortal life. After we have gone out of the flesh, and come to an understanding of the folly we have committed, we shall long for a chance to get back into that body, that we might bring it into subjection.
While it is possible that men may repent and overcome in the life that is to come, this is the better time, this is the hour. We may not, in our future experiences, find opportunity to repent, and make the flesh yield to the gospel as readily as in this present life. That man who has not conquered his temper, who flies in a rage at his wife or children, must master himself; he cannot come into the presence of God in such a condition as that. That man or woman who has not overcome the sin of avariciousness, and do not respond in this life to God's law of tithing, cannot be trusted with the greater riches of eternal life. That man who covets the wealth of the world, and steals that which does not belong to him, must repent, master himself, and make restitution, for no man that is dishonest can come into the Kingdom of God. That man who has not controlled his passions, and mastered himself, until he has full sway and power even over the thoughts of his mind, will not be allowed to associate with those that are pure and holy. That man who thinks he can escape the torments and afflictions of life by drinking intoxicating liquors, eating morphine, or committing suicide, is sadly mistaken, he will have a terrible awakening. As Job said, "If I go to the depths of hell, Lord, thou art there." We will have to look upon ourselves just as we are, and fashion ourselves as we desire to be. There is only one way by which any man or woman can get away from those things that afflict their lives, because of their transgressions, and that is every day to fill their life with acts of goodness, master self, and yield complete obedience to the laws of the Gospel. Remorse will then be blotted out, it will be displaced by the flowers that will blossom in the mind and heart by reason of the mastery that has been accomplished. The Lord has said, "Blessed is he that overcometh, for unto him shall all things be given, and I shall be his God and he shall be my son."
The gratification of the desires of the flesh is devoid of sweetness and joy, it gives only transitory pleasure, and leaves a lasting sting. The man or woman who masters self, who overcome evil, shall obtain their reward in the celestial kingdom of God, and receive glory and exaltation, while they who neglect the opportunities of this life may have to wait ten thousand or a million years trying to overcome the sad effects of their neglect. Brothers and sisters, we all have weaknesses that we must overcome. While I say this, I believe with all my heart that I am speaking to the best people on earth. I believe there are no people in the world who have mastered and overcome mortal weaknesses quite so well as we have. But, I want to see that mastery more complete. I want to see the children of those who have forsaken the sins of the world, who have left off the use of tea, tobacco, coffee and liquor, take advantage of the example of the fathers and mothers, thus each generation shall become more perfect, until we shall attain unto that which God has designed we should.
God help us not only to be the best, but a perfect people, acceptable in the sight of God, that the day when the Son of God comes, to dwell among men on the earth, shall find us and our posterity living in complete accordance with the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Then shall we see His face and dwell in His presence. God grant that this may be our happy lot, I ask in Jesus' name. Amen.
A baritone solo was sung by John Keddington.
(President Northwestern States Mission.)
My heart rejoices in the growth of the work of the Lord. I ahi always happy to see the souls of the children of men brought within the fold of Christ, through the waters of baptism. I am happy to be able to tell you that the work of the Lord is growing in the missions of the Church. The increase in baptisms has been steadily advancing from year to year. While I am always glad to see the Church growing in numbers, I am more interested in seeing it grow in faith and in good works. I am not satisfied with the standard that I have attained, for I yet lack that perfection which the Gospel teaches. As each one of us shall consider our own life, and examine ourselves, I am sure that we all shall find room for improvement.
I desire to read to you from the revelation of the Lord some verses on a familiar subject, which has been brought to the attention of mankind from the beginning of time. Reference is found to this subject in various of the books of the Old and New Testament. I read from the revelation to the Prophet Joseph, because it seems to me more explicit and forcible than the words we find recorded in the Bible. I read to you. therefore, from the nineteenth section of the Doctrine and Covenants, beginning with the fourth verse:
"And surely every man must repent or suffer, for I, God, am endless; wherefore I revoke not the judgments which I shall pass, but woes shall go forth, weeping, wailing, and gnashing of teeth, yea, to those who are found on my left hand; nevertheless it is not written that there shall be no end to this torment, but it is written endless torment. Again, it is written eternal damnation; wherefore it is more express than other scriptures, that it might work upon the hearts of the children of men, altogether for my name's glory; wherefore I will explain unto you this mystery, for it is mete unto you to know even as mine apostles. I speak unto you that are chosen in this thing, even as one, that you may enter into my rest; for, behold the mystery of Godliness, how great is it? for, behold, I am endless, and the punishment which is given from my hand is endless punishment, for endless is my name; wherefore — eternal punishment is God's^ punishment. Endless punishment is God's punishment. Wherefore I command you to repent, and keep the commandments which you have received by the hand of my servant Joseph Smith, Tun., in my name; and it is by my al mighty power that you have received them; therefore I command you to repent—repent, lest I smite you by the rod of my mouth, and by mv wrath, and by my anger, and your sufferings be sore—how sore you know not! how exquisite you know not! yea, how hard to bear you know not! for behold I, God, have suffered these things for all, that they might not suffer if they would repent, but if they would not repent, they must suffer even as I, which suffering caused myself, even God, the greatest of all, to tremble because of pain, and to bleed at every pore, and to suffer both body and spirit; and would that I might not drink the bitter cup and shrink—nevertheless, glory be to the Father, and I partook and finished my preparations unto the children of men- wherefore I command you again to repent, lest I humble you with my almighty power, and that you confess your sins, lest you suffer these punishments of which I have spoken, of which in the smallest, yea. even m the least degree, you have tasted at the time I withdrew my Spirit. And I command you, that you preach nought but repentance, and show not these things unto the world until it is wisdom in me."
I presume that nearly all of those whom I am now addressing have gone into the waters of baptism, following repentance; for we were taught that it is essential and necessary that we should repent of our sins in order that baptism may be effectual in washing away the transgressions of the past. I fear that some of us members of the Church have failed to realize the necessity of retaining with us the spirit of repentance after we have entered the waters of baptism. That man or woman who ceases to repent, when repentance is necessary, ceases to grow, or progress. The advancements that have been made in science, in the arts, in the medical profession, or in the laboratory, all have been wrought by reason of men leaving the old things which were proven wrong, and instead thereof adopting new methods, new truths taking the place of old errors, and the things that are needed to make life's work a success adopted. Every man and woman has to progress in like manner. A young man came to the Savior and asked what good thing he might do to gain salvation; he was told of many things, not one only, that he must do, and then after he had accomplished these, that he should follow the Master—not that he should walk near the Sea of Galilee, or over the mountains, following in the footsteps of the Master, but that in his life he should follow the example, and thus walk in the footsteps of the Master.
The Latter-day Saints have learned that those who will be saved must be faithful to the end, must be possessed of the spirit of repentance. There is a thought in the minds of many of us that, once having repented of our sins, prior to entering the waters of baptism, we had then completed our repentance, and we have felt, Well, we have attended to that business, and we are now prepared to go on to perfection. We have been looking at the big mistakes we have made in our lives, and are not altogether conscious of the seriousness and importance of watching the little things.
I stood by a great vessel not long ago, one that had crossed the sea again and again, a vessel that had been a target of shot and shell of the enemy, and was proof against the assaults that had been directed against it, yet it is now helpless, condemned, and not fit to go to the sea, because the innumerable barnacles, little, insignificant insects, had eaten into the hull of the vessel and rendered it unseaworthy, it could no longer withstand the storms of the ocean, much less shot and shell. You have seen the mighty oak standing against the hurricane's blast, withstanding fierce winds and storms, but after the insidious work of a small insect that bores into the tree, and leaves it perforated with holes so small that they cannot be detected by the natural eye, it becomes weakened and liable to fall with a light wind. So we have seen in the lives of men and women, who are unconscious of the little vital things that are eating and sapping the foundation of their individual lives, which may ultimately so weaken them that, when the tests are made, they fail.
The conception which the Lord has given to the Latter-day Saints with reference to their earthly bodies is one that should cause us to honor, respect, and revere the body as a sacred instrument trusted into our hands for the purpose of making it submissive to the law of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. We are told in the revelations that, before we came into this mortal life, we existed irj a spiritual world, and that the intelligence that dwells in each of us inhabited a spiritual body. How many ages we had that experience we know not, but it was long enough, evidently, for our intelligence to attain control over that spiritual body, and we yielded to the law that was supreme in the spirit world; that law was the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. We are told that we are upon this earth because we did accept the Master, and agreed to stand by the decision rendered in His favor, when He was selected to be the Lamb to be slain for the redemption of mankind. We are here because we obeyed law there, and we have been sent into the world to see if we shall keep this, our second, estate. We knew and understood, before we came here, that it was only possible to obtain that progress which we sought for by obedience to law. We agreed, when we left the spirit world, to obey that law which we then accepted, the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. That law is eternal. Numberless intelligences have been saved and exalted to kingdoms of glory before our day and time, through obedience to that law. When we look out on the starry heavens at night, we see innumerable suns that, are centers of solar systems like unto ours, some undoubtedly older than ours, greater, mightier. Our sun is superior to the earth we inhabit, greater in dimensions and power, but it, too, is under the influence of another mighty one that rolls above it; on and on they rise until men are lost in the contemplation. We have learned that upon those planets our Father's children dwell in all stages of perfection and advancement. There are those who are infinitely beyond us in eternal progress, who have reached their present degree of perfection by obedience to everlasting and irrevocable law. God Himself can not change that law, he more than He could obliterate the consequence of Adam's fall. He could not be God and violate a law which is eternal, and by obedience to which He became God. We came into the world and received this mortal tabernacle for the purpose of perfecting it, making ourselves subservient to the law by which we may be raised to perfection and be worthy of the companionship of our heavenly Father.
There is in every human heart the consciousness of two forces working. Every act that a man or woman undertakes to do is usually influenced by two suggestions, the one to do good, and the other to do evil. The spirit of truth will influence us to yield obedience to the gospel law. The flesh is of the earth, and the earth is not yet redeemed, it is under the bondage of the curse, and the flesh has to be mastered. The earth itself has to undergo the process of redemption, it has to obey the law, as the prophet said it would, and it will eventually become a celestial earth, the home of celestial beings. We are to master and control our fleshy bodies, we must make them submit to the Good Spirit which asserts what is right,' and detects what is wrong; that Spirit does not speak audibly to the physical ears, but is the "still, small voice" that speaks to the spirit of man.
There is a warfare, a conflict between good and evil in every human soul. How sad and pitiful it is to see some of our Father's children yielding to the temptations that are set before them, the boy to taking the cigarette, drinking the forbidden glass, debauching himself, and then declaring that he is free! How pitiful it is to look upon those who might have been saved and exalted, wallowing in the gutter, so to speak, and almost lost to redemption! There are those who- feel that they cannot be free unless they take the liberty to participate m wrong and sin. I remember some of my own experiences, the temptation of the boys who wanted me to smoke, to drink liquor, get on a horse and raise a great disturbance, and because I would not do it, being influenced by the counsel of my parents, they said, "He is tied to his mother's apron strings and daren't do it." That was pretty hard for a boy that wanted to be free, and wanted to let others know he was free. I thank God I did not take the course they followed to obtain freedom! I remember two of those boys, who drank and smoked, deserted school, went from petty to grand larceny, and were caught finally and brought to the county jail. In the consciousness of the terrible condition in which they were, with a possibility of years of solitary confinement before them, deprived of the liquor and tobacco to which they had been addicted, they said. We cannot five and endure this punishment. One of them committed suicide, and the other went insane.
In the State penitentiary of Idaho a few years ago, a young man who had committed a theft, in one of our northern cities, said he could not stand fifteen years of prison and be denied the stimulants he desired and so he sought to escape. He walked back and forward behind the gate of the jail, waiting for a chance to break for liberty. The moment came, and he ran past the armed guards, but was shot down, with one limb almost torn from his body. Some time afterward he climbed upon the unfinished wall of the building, forty feet above the ground, and leaped in the hope of ending it all in death, but, as it happened, he was only slightly injured. He was discouraged to such an extent that, the last I knew of him, he was in the insane asylum.
There are men who cannot endure the afflictions that come to them, and the}' seek to drown their sorrows in the glass, or morphine, or in death itself. Is that freedom ? What a pitiful thing to see a man made in the image of God, with the possibilities of rising to all that our Father is, allow the appetite of the flesh to overcome the spirit, master it, drag it down, and saturate it with everything that is contemptible, mean and low. I read of some morphine fiends confined in jail in this city, who desired the drug so intensely that they begged to be killed if they could not be given the drug. One of the officers said, "Stand over against that wall and I'll shoot you." And they said, "Shoot." The officer said, "I did not think you meant it." "We do," they said, "and would rather die this minute, for we must have it." Such is the terribly enslaved condition caused by yielding to the passions and appetites of the flesh until they are not servants but masters.
The body that has been given to us was for the purpose of allowing the spirit to exalt itself to a nobler condition. The lightning that is seen flashing from cloud to cloud, from mountain top to mountain top, is an electrical force that may tear; down buildings, set fire to property, and destroy life. Conduct electricity through the dynamo wire, and motor, and behold its wonderful, results working for the service of man, accomplishing something under the control of a physical instrument, it thus becomes a power for good. So with steam, if allowed to evaporate freely it does little good, but restrain it in the boiler, send it through the engine, and under its power you may travel across the continent or sail from shore to shore. And so, too, with this highest, most potent of all spiritual forces, the intelligence that is in man; enshrine it in a spiritual body, that it may have the experiences of spiritual life; and then give it a physical body, that it may enter into and obtain the joy and experiences of physical life, and you have enlarged its powers immeasurably. Read this wonderful statement in the ninety-third section of the Doctrine and Covenants:
"Every man is spirit, saith the Lord. The elements are eternal, and spirit and element, inseparably connected, receiveth a fulness of joy; and when separated, man cannot receive a fullness of joy. The elements are the tabernacle of God; yea, man is the tabernacle of God, even temples; and whatsoever temple is defiled, God shall destroy that temple."
So we discover that it is essential and necessary, according to the law of the Lord, that the spirit shall be united with the flesh, for the purpose of redeeming that flesh and making it a fit companion for the spirit. I say the warfare goes on, and the end of that warfare will be when the man or woman says to the flesh, "You cannot violate the law of God, you cannot give loose rein to passion, you cannot have carnal appetite gratified, for it is against the law of life and of happiness; thus far you can go but you cannot go any further." The man who successfully carries on the warfare during his earth life, notwithstanding he is constantly being tempted by the flesh, when he takes his body up, in the resurrection from the dead, the warfare will cease, the flesh will yield absolutely to the spirit, and there will be no more conflict nor struggle. But woe to that man who lays his body down with passion unconquered, with appetite and desire running rampant, and with a temper unrestrained in such vicious streaks that he almost becomes a candidate for the insane asylum! Woe to him, for he shall not receive his body in the resurrection from the dead freed from such evil things. No, he shall have to overcome the evils he has acquired in this earth life, and he may find, too, that it will be harder to overcome in the next life than here, for everything there, hate, love, desire, all are intensified. Life here is in the clay state, we sometimes complain because it is so slow, it does not respond quickly, it seems plodding, the body does not acquire habits quickly. No man is a good, clean, virtuous man today and an immoral, depraved, wicked man tomorrow. These changes do not come rapidly; we should be thankful that we acquire them slowly, because thereby they may be arrested before they have developed to OUT serious injury. The body is as clay in the hands of the potter; when the clay is moulded, given its shape, and allowed to stand, it becomes hardened, then, O, how difficult it is to remodel it, to recast it. So, if we mould and create evil habits, it will be exceedingly difficult to reconstruct our characters after we have left this mortal life. After we have gone out of the flesh, and come to an understanding of the folly we have committed, we shall long for a chance to get back into that body, that we might bring it into subjection.
While it is possible that men may repent and overcome in the life that is to come, this is the better time, this is the hour. We may not, in our future experiences, find opportunity to repent, and make the flesh yield to the gospel as readily as in this present life. That man who has not conquered his temper, who flies in a rage at his wife or children, must master himself; he cannot come into the presence of God in such a condition as that. That man or woman who has not overcome the sin of avariciousness, and do not respond in this life to God's law of tithing, cannot be trusted with the greater riches of eternal life. That man who covets the wealth of the world, and steals that which does not belong to him, must repent, master himself, and make restitution, for no man that is dishonest can come into the Kingdom of God. That man who has not controlled his passions, and mastered himself, until he has full sway and power even over the thoughts of his mind, will not be allowed to associate with those that are pure and holy. That man who thinks he can escape the torments and afflictions of life by drinking intoxicating liquors, eating morphine, or committing suicide, is sadly mistaken, he will have a terrible awakening. As Job said, "If I go to the depths of hell, Lord, thou art there." We will have to look upon ourselves just as we are, and fashion ourselves as we desire to be. There is only one way by which any man or woman can get away from those things that afflict their lives, because of their transgressions, and that is every day to fill their life with acts of goodness, master self, and yield complete obedience to the laws of the Gospel. Remorse will then be blotted out, it will be displaced by the flowers that will blossom in the mind and heart by reason of the mastery that has been accomplished. The Lord has said, "Blessed is he that overcometh, for unto him shall all things be given, and I shall be his God and he shall be my son."
The gratification of the desires of the flesh is devoid of sweetness and joy, it gives only transitory pleasure, and leaves a lasting sting. The man or woman who masters self, who overcome evil, shall obtain their reward in the celestial kingdom of God, and receive glory and exaltation, while they who neglect the opportunities of this life may have to wait ten thousand or a million years trying to overcome the sad effects of their neglect. Brothers and sisters, we all have weaknesses that we must overcome. While I say this, I believe with all my heart that I am speaking to the best people on earth. I believe there are no people in the world who have mastered and overcome mortal weaknesses quite so well as we have. But, I want to see that mastery more complete. I want to see the children of those who have forsaken the sins of the world, who have left off the use of tea, tobacco, coffee and liquor, take advantage of the example of the fathers and mothers, thus each generation shall become more perfect, until we shall attain unto that which God has designed we should.
God help us not only to be the best, but a perfect people, acceptable in the sight of God, that the day when the Son of God comes, to dwell among men on the earth, shall find us and our posterity living in complete accordance with the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Then shall we see His face and dwell in His presence. God grant that this may be our happy lot, I ask in Jesus' name. Amen.
A baritone solo was sung by John Keddington.
ELDER WILLIAM M'LACHLAN,
(President of Pioneer Stake.)
My brethren and sisters, I am here this afternoon in obedience to call, not with a desire to talk, for I feel incompetent and unable to do so. I want to tell you, after an experience of between fifty and sixty years in the Church, I enjoy a confidence and satisfaction in relation to the truth of this work that gives me a great deal of joy. Each year adds to my confidence in the truth of this work. The knowledge of it gradually grows upon the mind through obedience to God's law, and in obedience to the counsels and instructions of His servants that preside over us. I am glad to have the confidence of our people, my brethren and sisters, with whom I labor and associate from day to day, and from year to year. Ninety-two years ago our Savior, accompanied by His Fattier, came to earth, in compliance with the earnest prayer of Joseph Smith, then a boy of fourteen and a half years of age, in the Springtime of the year 1820. A true knowledge of God was not on the earth, and had been absent for generations in the past, but on that occasion, the commencement of this great and glorious work in which we are engaged was inaugurated, although the Church was not organized, until ten years later. This was the commencement of a great and glorious work, that could not be established without a perfect knowledge of the true character of God, the Eternal Father, and of the Redeemer who made atonement for the children of men. Joseph Smith on that occasion asked the question, which one of all the religious sects was right. It had never dawned on his mind that they were all wrong. I will read from the Pearl of Great Price just one section in relation to the purpose for which he went to ask the Lord:
"My object in going to inquire of the Lord, was to know which of all the sects was right, that I might know which to join. No sooner, therefore, did I get possession of myself, so as to be able to speak, than I asked the personages who stood above me in the light, which of all the sects was right (for at this time it had never entered into my heart that all were wrong), and which I should join. I was answered that I must join none of them, for they were all wrong, and the personage who addressed me said That all their creeds were an abomination in his sight; that those professors were all corrupt, They draw near to me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me; they teach for doctrine the commandments of men, having a form of godliness, but thy deny the power thereof."
Is it intolerant, is it uncharitable to declare to the people of the world the word of God, as it was given to the Prophet Joseph Smith in 1820? I say no, but the opinion of the world is very different. When we go into a Christian community and tell them the experience of Joseph Smith in going into the woods to pray, and the announcement that the Son of God made to him when he asked the question which he should join, I know that you, my brethren and sisters, feel like I do, that it is not intolerance, that it is not uncharitable to tell the people the truth as it has been given to us in the day in which we live.
I believe in being obedient to the word of the Lord. I believe in giving heed to the man who stands at the head of this Church today, who, if he sees danger ahead and fails to warn the people of it, comes under condemnation. But, when he warns the people, and gives them time to change their course, and turn away from the evil that is approaching, then if the people do not give heed to his word, they are under condemnation, and his skirts are clear. Some of the people of the world, many of our outside friends, say "You have no mind of your own; you are willing to be led by somebody else." Well, I want any man who thinks so to try me and see if he can lead me. I know what is good for me. I have the right to judge. I have my agency, and I intend to exercise it. I have found it profitable all through my life to give heed to that man who stands at the head, and, so far as God will give me help in the future, I want to be found true to God, true to His work and to all the interests thereof, and to His people, men, women and children.
I know that in "Mormonism" there is life eternal for every man and woman that will embrace it, and conform to it in their daily lives. Even boys and girls who have been properly taught in the homes, at the age of eight, when they are baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, are entitled to a testimony and knowledge of the truth of this work, just as much as I was at the age of 18 or 19 years, because they are innocent, pure and clean before God, far better than the great majority of men and women that enter into the Church through repentance and baptism. I contend that if the boys and girls are properly taught in the home they can have a knowledge of the truth of this work before their baptism; I have known boys less than eight years of age who have testified that they knew that this was the work of God.
Brethren and sisters, let us try and reflect the truth in our lives, and live it in the home, that our sons and daughters may get the benefit of our example and teaching in their youth, and grow up full of faith, virtue, energy and power to serve the Lord and keep His commandments, and our Father will be delighted with our work.
May God bless the people of the Latter-day Saints. I love men and women that are true. I respect them with all my soul, because of their integrity and devotion to this great and glorious truth that our Father in heaven has revealed. May His blessing and peace be upon the Latter-day Saints in all their dwelling places, in all their settlements and abiding places, that they may be true to God, our heavenly Father and His Son Jesus Christ. Amen.
(President of Pioneer Stake.)
My brethren and sisters, I am here this afternoon in obedience to call, not with a desire to talk, for I feel incompetent and unable to do so. I want to tell you, after an experience of between fifty and sixty years in the Church, I enjoy a confidence and satisfaction in relation to the truth of this work that gives me a great deal of joy. Each year adds to my confidence in the truth of this work. The knowledge of it gradually grows upon the mind through obedience to God's law, and in obedience to the counsels and instructions of His servants that preside over us. I am glad to have the confidence of our people, my brethren and sisters, with whom I labor and associate from day to day, and from year to year. Ninety-two years ago our Savior, accompanied by His Fattier, came to earth, in compliance with the earnest prayer of Joseph Smith, then a boy of fourteen and a half years of age, in the Springtime of the year 1820. A true knowledge of God was not on the earth, and had been absent for generations in the past, but on that occasion, the commencement of this great and glorious work in which we are engaged was inaugurated, although the Church was not organized, until ten years later. This was the commencement of a great and glorious work, that could not be established without a perfect knowledge of the true character of God, the Eternal Father, and of the Redeemer who made atonement for the children of men. Joseph Smith on that occasion asked the question, which one of all the religious sects was right. It had never dawned on his mind that they were all wrong. I will read from the Pearl of Great Price just one section in relation to the purpose for which he went to ask the Lord:
"My object in going to inquire of the Lord, was to know which of all the sects was right, that I might know which to join. No sooner, therefore, did I get possession of myself, so as to be able to speak, than I asked the personages who stood above me in the light, which of all the sects was right (for at this time it had never entered into my heart that all were wrong), and which I should join. I was answered that I must join none of them, for they were all wrong, and the personage who addressed me said That all their creeds were an abomination in his sight; that those professors were all corrupt, They draw near to me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me; they teach for doctrine the commandments of men, having a form of godliness, but thy deny the power thereof."
Is it intolerant, is it uncharitable to declare to the people of the world the word of God, as it was given to the Prophet Joseph Smith in 1820? I say no, but the opinion of the world is very different. When we go into a Christian community and tell them the experience of Joseph Smith in going into the woods to pray, and the announcement that the Son of God made to him when he asked the question which he should join, I know that you, my brethren and sisters, feel like I do, that it is not intolerance, that it is not uncharitable to tell the people the truth as it has been given to us in the day in which we live.
I believe in being obedient to the word of the Lord. I believe in giving heed to the man who stands at the head of this Church today, who, if he sees danger ahead and fails to warn the people of it, comes under condemnation. But, when he warns the people, and gives them time to change their course, and turn away from the evil that is approaching, then if the people do not give heed to his word, they are under condemnation, and his skirts are clear. Some of the people of the world, many of our outside friends, say "You have no mind of your own; you are willing to be led by somebody else." Well, I want any man who thinks so to try me and see if he can lead me. I know what is good for me. I have the right to judge. I have my agency, and I intend to exercise it. I have found it profitable all through my life to give heed to that man who stands at the head, and, so far as God will give me help in the future, I want to be found true to God, true to His work and to all the interests thereof, and to His people, men, women and children.
I know that in "Mormonism" there is life eternal for every man and woman that will embrace it, and conform to it in their daily lives. Even boys and girls who have been properly taught in the homes, at the age of eight, when they are baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, are entitled to a testimony and knowledge of the truth of this work, just as much as I was at the age of 18 or 19 years, because they are innocent, pure and clean before God, far better than the great majority of men and women that enter into the Church through repentance and baptism. I contend that if the boys and girls are properly taught in the home they can have a knowledge of the truth of this work before their baptism; I have known boys less than eight years of age who have testified that they knew that this was the work of God.
Brethren and sisters, let us try and reflect the truth in our lives, and live it in the home, that our sons and daughters may get the benefit of our example and teaching in their youth, and grow up full of faith, virtue, energy and power to serve the Lord and keep His commandments, and our Father will be delighted with our work.
May God bless the people of the Latter-day Saints. I love men and women that are true. I respect them with all my soul, because of their integrity and devotion to this great and glorious truth that our Father in heaven has revealed. May His blessing and peace be upon the Latter-day Saints in all their dwelling places, in all their settlements and abiding places, that they may be true to God, our heavenly Father and His Son Jesus Christ. Amen.
ELDER ANDREW JENSON.
(Late President of Scandinavian Mission.)
I have been away from this beautiful land for over three years and a half, and during that time I have sojourned in Europe, mostly in the Scandinavian countries. I have also, during my absence, visited Germany a number of times, made one visit to France, Holland and Belgium, and have gone as far north as Iceland, near the Arctic circle. In returning home, I had occasion to go over the Trans- Siberian railway, and I imagine that I and my traveling companion were the first Mormon Elders who ever traveled home from Europe that way. On my return trip I had the privilege of seeing Siberia, visiting part of China, passing through Japan and visiting also, for the second time in my life, the beautiful Hawaiian Islands.
During my absence abroad I have tried my best to be diligent and faithful. I have endeavored to labor with those talents and that physical and mental strength which God has given me for the advancement of the work of the Lord, and, in doing so, together with my brethren, who have stood faithful by my side, we have seen good fruits of our labors in those northern countries, and it gives me great satisfaction to say that during the three and a half years that I labored there we added about thirteen hundred persons to the Church by baptism. During the same length of time we distributed about two and a half millions of books and tracts.
To show what diligence can do, by the assistance of God, (who will always sustain those who will do His will and keep His commandments,) I may add that I traveled nearly one hundred thousand miles while on my late mission, and I delivered something like eleven hundred sermons or public addresses, including nearly one hundred illustrated lectures. We had considerable opposition in both Denmark and Norway, though there is religious liberty in the northern countries. Next to America and England, we think that in Scandinavia we have the most liberal institutions and the greatest individual freedom; and when I say Scandinavia in this connection, I speak of Denmark, Sweden and Norway. The mission that I presided over, however, does not include Sweden at the present time, but only Denmark and Norway; hence, when I speak of the additions to the Church, as I have done, it means only Denmark and Norway. Sweden is not included.
The opposition that we met with in those lands was mostly on the ground of our bearing testimony of new revelation. In our preaching we can not refrain from speaking plainly about the revelation of God, given in these the last days to the Prophet Joseph Smith. The people in Scandinavia are like the people in nearly all other parts of the so called Christian world: they will believe in old revelations, though they do not make effort to live according to them, but they will almost invariably reject new revelation. The moment we tell them that God has spoken in our day, they will harden their hearts and exclaim: "Sav anything but that; preach about Christ and Him crucified, but don't mention Joseph Smith; don't mention the Book of Mormon; don't mention the fact that angels have visited the earth in this day, for we will not believe it." On that ground we have met most bitter opposition, and we have had to contend hard against many odds in order to make headway, and in trying to break down superstition and to counteract the many accusations and lies that have been circulated against us in these lands of the North. We have ever been subject to such opposition from the beginning, and up to the present time;. My brethren, and sisters and friends, I have a word to say on this occasion in regard to revelation. I have traveled and preached somewhat extensively in my life time, and if there is one thing that I like to speak about especially, it is the necessity of revelation. Here we stand under the great canopy of heaven, and in looking up toward the blue sky, we feel as though heaven was near above, that God is above and that He looks down upon us, and He is truly our God and our Father. He loves His children. Tt .was said by the Prophet Isaiah, "Though a woman may forget her suckling child, yet God will not forget His people," addressing Himself to Zion, the chosen people in olden times, as well as in our own day. Now I am a strong believer in revelation from God. I feel that I cannot prosper or be safe without it. There is nothing in the world, in the shape of religion, that I can cleave to except that which comes from God.
A few years ago I traveled considerably in the southeastern part of Utah and also through parts of New Mexico and Arizona. I passed through the canyons and defiles along the San Juan river and other mountain streams. I saw, high up on the cliffs, the remnants of the old cliff dwellers, and I saw many peculiar inscriptions on the walls. The question naturally arose, "Who made those figures on the walls? Who were the people that lived there in days gone by ?" The voices of those who once inhabited those regions are no more to be heard among the children of men; but there is a God in heaven who has revealed something in regard to those people, and that is contained in the Book of Mormon. But the Book of Mormon does not do full justice to the history of those people. It does not tell all about them that we would like to know, hence, we want more revelation concerning them.
I went down on the Tongan islands, some years ago, and in going through those islands, I discovered that the natives there knew something about the Law of Moses. In fact they kept the Law of Moses in their way; and the question naturally arose in my mind: How did those people learn anything about the Law given on Mount Sinai. The learned men of the world do not know anything about it, and there is no man upon the earth that can tell by the aid of mere human learning. The Rev. William West, who wrote a book entitled, "Twenty Years in Polynesia," could not solve the problem. He was at a loss to understand, and he says, "We must have some more intelligence before we can believe that these people are of Israelitish origin." But new revelation states in part who the Tongans are, and again, the Book of Mormon help us out; yet we want more revelation before we can fully understand who the Tongans, the Maoris, and kindred peoples are. We have an idea or a theory concerning them, and it is no doubt a correct one, to the effect, that they came from the land of America. But the. full history of those people can only become known by new revelation.
Years ago I visited the Great Pyramid of Egypt, that grand stone structure standing so bold and beautiful in the Valley of the Nile, and as I stood upon that great structure, looked down upon the site of the ancient city of Memphis, and took in the view up and down the Nile valley, these thoughts came to me. "Who built these great pyramids? Who were the first people in this land?" The Pearl of Great Price tells us a little in regard to this matter, but not enough. We want more revelation before we can know who built the Great Pyramid of Egypt. Learned men may write books like the "Miracle in Stone," but it is not sufficient; God shall in His own due time open the heavens and tell us more about it. At present we are at sea, figuratively speaking.
I sojourned for a short time in Jerusalem in 1896. I also went up on the Mount of Olives, journeyed up and down the River Jordan and the Dead Sea, visited the Sea of Galilee, and saw many of those places that are mentioned in the history of generations gone by. But what do we know about these places and the scenes enacted there ? Very little. New revelation however can clear up the mystery, and to some extent it has done so; but we look for more revelation to come.
I traveled further and came over to Italy. I went to Rome, that "Eternal City," where I visited the greatest church building in the whole world—the magnificent St. Peters. I saw many people worshiping in there, but their mode of worship did not please me. I thought I beheld more fanaticism there than real worship, and I believe that the people of Rome, the Roman Catholics, sincere as some of them may be, do not know how to worship God, nor how to pray to Jesus Christ in that great church in a way that is acceptable to our Heavenly Father. What do the people need? They want revelation. One word from God would be worth more to mankind than all the bishops and popes of Rome have said for the last sixteen hundred years.
In passing through Siberia and Russia I noticed an unusual number of fine churches and chapels, and while the Saints in Utah deserve a great deal of praise for erecting four beautiful temples, a number of large tabernacles, and about seven hundred beautiful meeting houses or churches—and we certainly have done well in erecting so many houses of worship, and they are an honor to us — yet in passing through Russia, I found in the great cities of St. Petersburgh, and Moscow, thousands of fine church buildings erected for the worship of the Greek Catholics. In the city of Moscow alone there are nearly one thousand churches, including cathedrals, chapels, monasteries and smaller houses of worship; most of them are beautiful structures, with gilded spires and costly ornamentation, both inside and outside. Yet what are the people of Russia ? What do they know about true worship? They only know what their priests have told them for many generations, and that which the Czar of Russia compels them to believe, or at least accept openly. One word from God, or a few sections such as those that have been read to us this afternoon, would be worth more than all the Patriarchs of Constantinople and all the Czars of Russia have said from the beginning down to the present time. We want revelation, the only thing that can make the people wise unto salvation, and tell them about the true worship of God.
I visited the Parliament of Religions in Chicago, when the Tabernacle Choir first went there in 1893, and I saw and listened day after day to the learned theologians of the world. There was gathered on that occasion the cream of the whole earth, because that Parliament of Religions had invited, so to speak, all the learned men of the world to participate in its deliberations; every denomination, save the denomination known as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, was given access to that Parliament of Religions, and I think I can safely say that all who attended the meetings of that Parliament listened with the greatest interest to the reading of the many well prepared documents that were presented; but what were my feelings when I sat in the midst of that august body of learned men. "O! I thought, if God would only open the heavens and speak to those people five minutes. He would tell them more truths during those five minutes, and convey more intelligence leading toward the right worship of God, than all those learned men did in the three weeks' meetings held day after day at that great Chicago gathering.
These are. still my convictions, my brethren and sisters. I believe in revelation from on high. I firmly believe that in the acceptance of old and new revelations lies the only safety for us, the children of God; and I believe that God, our heavenly Father, is kind enough, and good enough, and loves us enough to answer our prayers and petitions, if we only seek Him in faith and sincerity. The Son of God said, "He that will do the will of my Father shall know whether the doctrine is of God, or whether I speak of myself." I want to bear this testimony to you, that in my travels abroad, and also in my associations with my brethren and sisters here at home, and particularly in associating with my brethren of the Priesthood, I have always been able to receive revelations from God.
It has been said in this conference that every member of the Church is entitled to revelation. I want to testify to you, that I have repeatedly sought God in the woods and hills of Scandinavia, in the wilds of Asia and Africa, upon the high seas, and in many places when I have been far away from my brethren who were entitled to give me advice; and I have always received sufficient revelation in answer to my prayers to lead, guide and direct me in my movements, and I have never been led astray when I have sought God in the proper way. This is my testimony. Even in the midst of political revolutions I have always known where I stood. I have never had to take counsel direct from my brethren on political matters. There is a God in heaven who reveals His secrets to His servants the Prophets, and we are all Prophets in a certain sense, if we are under the influence of the Holy Ghost, so far as that is concerned; the most humble man or woman in the Church can get down upon his or her knees in prayer, and the heavens will be opened in such a way that we will understand the will of God. Our prayers will ascend to God, and, if we are sincere and honest in our supplication, we will receive an answer through the still small voice which will guide our footsteps through life, and which will cause us to do the right thing at the right time, and to take such steps as we shall not subsequently have occasion to regret.
I pray God, our heavenly Father, to bless the Household of Faith, both at home and abroad. We have over in the Scandinavian countries about four thousand Latter-day Saints. I again speak of Denmark and Norway. Including Sweden we would have between six and seven thousand members of the Church. They are, as a rule, a good and devout people. We find already tens of thousands of the sons and daughters of the North in this land, right here in these mountain valleys; and though there was a time when some of us scarcely knew whether we should rejoice or weep because we were of Scandinavian origin, I thank God that that time is past, and all that Brother McLachlan (who is a Scotchman) can say is that he is an improved Scandinavian. (Laughter.) We have nearly all come from the northern countries, directly or indirectly; and when the God of heaven, among the many revelations that He in His mercy shall give unto us in the future, will reveal our genealogy, we will find some good reason why the Scandinavian, the American, the English and the German peoples amalgamate so beautifully, with scarcely any effort at all. We are all of Israel, and the history of our Church, so far, proves that when we preach the gospel to the different nations, kindreds, tongues and people, those people who are of Israel, or highly pregnated with the blood of Israel, embrace the gospel more willingly than those who are not. In fact, the preaching of the gospel in our day has been done, principally, up to the present, for the purpose of gathering Israel from the North, from the Islands of the Sea, and from all countries whence the chosen seed has been driven; for God remembers His promise to the Prophets of old: "He that scattered Israel shall gather them again."
In conclusion I want to bring you a greeting of love and good will from your brethren and sisters in Denmark, Sweden and Norway, and I will here say that there are many good, honorable people in those countries. We have some noble and faithful sons of Utah over there now, and many who have labored there as missionaries in the past, putting forth their effort early and late to preach the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ to their countrymen, or in the lands where their parents first saw the light of day.
May God bless you. May we always be the recipients of revelation to lead and guide us in all things, pertaining to our spiritual and temporal welfare, and may we always listen to the voice of the true Shepherd, and ultimately be saved in the Kingdom of God, is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
A violin solo was rendered by Prof. W. C. Clive.
(Late President of Scandinavian Mission.)
I have been away from this beautiful land for over three years and a half, and during that time I have sojourned in Europe, mostly in the Scandinavian countries. I have also, during my absence, visited Germany a number of times, made one visit to France, Holland and Belgium, and have gone as far north as Iceland, near the Arctic circle. In returning home, I had occasion to go over the Trans- Siberian railway, and I imagine that I and my traveling companion were the first Mormon Elders who ever traveled home from Europe that way. On my return trip I had the privilege of seeing Siberia, visiting part of China, passing through Japan and visiting also, for the second time in my life, the beautiful Hawaiian Islands.
During my absence abroad I have tried my best to be diligent and faithful. I have endeavored to labor with those talents and that physical and mental strength which God has given me for the advancement of the work of the Lord, and, in doing so, together with my brethren, who have stood faithful by my side, we have seen good fruits of our labors in those northern countries, and it gives me great satisfaction to say that during the three and a half years that I labored there we added about thirteen hundred persons to the Church by baptism. During the same length of time we distributed about two and a half millions of books and tracts.
To show what diligence can do, by the assistance of God, (who will always sustain those who will do His will and keep His commandments,) I may add that I traveled nearly one hundred thousand miles while on my late mission, and I delivered something like eleven hundred sermons or public addresses, including nearly one hundred illustrated lectures. We had considerable opposition in both Denmark and Norway, though there is religious liberty in the northern countries. Next to America and England, we think that in Scandinavia we have the most liberal institutions and the greatest individual freedom; and when I say Scandinavia in this connection, I speak of Denmark, Sweden and Norway. The mission that I presided over, however, does not include Sweden at the present time, but only Denmark and Norway; hence, when I speak of the additions to the Church, as I have done, it means only Denmark and Norway. Sweden is not included.
The opposition that we met with in those lands was mostly on the ground of our bearing testimony of new revelation. In our preaching we can not refrain from speaking plainly about the revelation of God, given in these the last days to the Prophet Joseph Smith. The people in Scandinavia are like the people in nearly all other parts of the so called Christian world: they will believe in old revelations, though they do not make effort to live according to them, but they will almost invariably reject new revelation. The moment we tell them that God has spoken in our day, they will harden their hearts and exclaim: "Sav anything but that; preach about Christ and Him crucified, but don't mention Joseph Smith; don't mention the Book of Mormon; don't mention the fact that angels have visited the earth in this day, for we will not believe it." On that ground we have met most bitter opposition, and we have had to contend hard against many odds in order to make headway, and in trying to break down superstition and to counteract the many accusations and lies that have been circulated against us in these lands of the North. We have ever been subject to such opposition from the beginning, and up to the present time;. My brethren, and sisters and friends, I have a word to say on this occasion in regard to revelation. I have traveled and preached somewhat extensively in my life time, and if there is one thing that I like to speak about especially, it is the necessity of revelation. Here we stand under the great canopy of heaven, and in looking up toward the blue sky, we feel as though heaven was near above, that God is above and that He looks down upon us, and He is truly our God and our Father. He loves His children. Tt .was said by the Prophet Isaiah, "Though a woman may forget her suckling child, yet God will not forget His people," addressing Himself to Zion, the chosen people in olden times, as well as in our own day. Now I am a strong believer in revelation from God. I feel that I cannot prosper or be safe without it. There is nothing in the world, in the shape of religion, that I can cleave to except that which comes from God.
A few years ago I traveled considerably in the southeastern part of Utah and also through parts of New Mexico and Arizona. I passed through the canyons and defiles along the San Juan river and other mountain streams. I saw, high up on the cliffs, the remnants of the old cliff dwellers, and I saw many peculiar inscriptions on the walls. The question naturally arose, "Who made those figures on the walls? Who were the people that lived there in days gone by ?" The voices of those who once inhabited those regions are no more to be heard among the children of men; but there is a God in heaven who has revealed something in regard to those people, and that is contained in the Book of Mormon. But the Book of Mormon does not do full justice to the history of those people. It does not tell all about them that we would like to know, hence, we want more revelation concerning them.
I went down on the Tongan islands, some years ago, and in going through those islands, I discovered that the natives there knew something about the Law of Moses. In fact they kept the Law of Moses in their way; and the question naturally arose in my mind: How did those people learn anything about the Law given on Mount Sinai. The learned men of the world do not know anything about it, and there is no man upon the earth that can tell by the aid of mere human learning. The Rev. William West, who wrote a book entitled, "Twenty Years in Polynesia," could not solve the problem. He was at a loss to understand, and he says, "We must have some more intelligence before we can believe that these people are of Israelitish origin." But new revelation states in part who the Tongans are, and again, the Book of Mormon help us out; yet we want more revelation before we can fully understand who the Tongans, the Maoris, and kindred peoples are. We have an idea or a theory concerning them, and it is no doubt a correct one, to the effect, that they came from the land of America. But the. full history of those people can only become known by new revelation.
Years ago I visited the Great Pyramid of Egypt, that grand stone structure standing so bold and beautiful in the Valley of the Nile, and as I stood upon that great structure, looked down upon the site of the ancient city of Memphis, and took in the view up and down the Nile valley, these thoughts came to me. "Who built these great pyramids? Who were the first people in this land?" The Pearl of Great Price tells us a little in regard to this matter, but not enough. We want more revelation before we can know who built the Great Pyramid of Egypt. Learned men may write books like the "Miracle in Stone," but it is not sufficient; God shall in His own due time open the heavens and tell us more about it. At present we are at sea, figuratively speaking.
I sojourned for a short time in Jerusalem in 1896. I also went up on the Mount of Olives, journeyed up and down the River Jordan and the Dead Sea, visited the Sea of Galilee, and saw many of those places that are mentioned in the history of generations gone by. But what do we know about these places and the scenes enacted there ? Very little. New revelation however can clear up the mystery, and to some extent it has done so; but we look for more revelation to come.
I traveled further and came over to Italy. I went to Rome, that "Eternal City," where I visited the greatest church building in the whole world—the magnificent St. Peters. I saw many people worshiping in there, but their mode of worship did not please me. I thought I beheld more fanaticism there than real worship, and I believe that the people of Rome, the Roman Catholics, sincere as some of them may be, do not know how to worship God, nor how to pray to Jesus Christ in that great church in a way that is acceptable to our Heavenly Father. What do the people need? They want revelation. One word from God would be worth more to mankind than all the bishops and popes of Rome have said for the last sixteen hundred years.
In passing through Siberia and Russia I noticed an unusual number of fine churches and chapels, and while the Saints in Utah deserve a great deal of praise for erecting four beautiful temples, a number of large tabernacles, and about seven hundred beautiful meeting houses or churches—and we certainly have done well in erecting so many houses of worship, and they are an honor to us — yet in passing through Russia, I found in the great cities of St. Petersburgh, and Moscow, thousands of fine church buildings erected for the worship of the Greek Catholics. In the city of Moscow alone there are nearly one thousand churches, including cathedrals, chapels, monasteries and smaller houses of worship; most of them are beautiful structures, with gilded spires and costly ornamentation, both inside and outside. Yet what are the people of Russia ? What do they know about true worship? They only know what their priests have told them for many generations, and that which the Czar of Russia compels them to believe, or at least accept openly. One word from God, or a few sections such as those that have been read to us this afternoon, would be worth more than all the Patriarchs of Constantinople and all the Czars of Russia have said from the beginning down to the present time. We want revelation, the only thing that can make the people wise unto salvation, and tell them about the true worship of God.
I visited the Parliament of Religions in Chicago, when the Tabernacle Choir first went there in 1893, and I saw and listened day after day to the learned theologians of the world. There was gathered on that occasion the cream of the whole earth, because that Parliament of Religions had invited, so to speak, all the learned men of the world to participate in its deliberations; every denomination, save the denomination known as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, was given access to that Parliament of Religions, and I think I can safely say that all who attended the meetings of that Parliament listened with the greatest interest to the reading of the many well prepared documents that were presented; but what were my feelings when I sat in the midst of that august body of learned men. "O! I thought, if God would only open the heavens and speak to those people five minutes. He would tell them more truths during those five minutes, and convey more intelligence leading toward the right worship of God, than all those learned men did in the three weeks' meetings held day after day at that great Chicago gathering.
These are. still my convictions, my brethren and sisters. I believe in revelation from on high. I firmly believe that in the acceptance of old and new revelations lies the only safety for us, the children of God; and I believe that God, our heavenly Father, is kind enough, and good enough, and loves us enough to answer our prayers and petitions, if we only seek Him in faith and sincerity. The Son of God said, "He that will do the will of my Father shall know whether the doctrine is of God, or whether I speak of myself." I want to bear this testimony to you, that in my travels abroad, and also in my associations with my brethren and sisters here at home, and particularly in associating with my brethren of the Priesthood, I have always been able to receive revelations from God.
It has been said in this conference that every member of the Church is entitled to revelation. I want to testify to you, that I have repeatedly sought God in the woods and hills of Scandinavia, in the wilds of Asia and Africa, upon the high seas, and in many places when I have been far away from my brethren who were entitled to give me advice; and I have always received sufficient revelation in answer to my prayers to lead, guide and direct me in my movements, and I have never been led astray when I have sought God in the proper way. This is my testimony. Even in the midst of political revolutions I have always known where I stood. I have never had to take counsel direct from my brethren on political matters. There is a God in heaven who reveals His secrets to His servants the Prophets, and we are all Prophets in a certain sense, if we are under the influence of the Holy Ghost, so far as that is concerned; the most humble man or woman in the Church can get down upon his or her knees in prayer, and the heavens will be opened in such a way that we will understand the will of God. Our prayers will ascend to God, and, if we are sincere and honest in our supplication, we will receive an answer through the still small voice which will guide our footsteps through life, and which will cause us to do the right thing at the right time, and to take such steps as we shall not subsequently have occasion to regret.
I pray God, our heavenly Father, to bless the Household of Faith, both at home and abroad. We have over in the Scandinavian countries about four thousand Latter-day Saints. I again speak of Denmark and Norway. Including Sweden we would have between six and seven thousand members of the Church. They are, as a rule, a good and devout people. We find already tens of thousands of the sons and daughters of the North in this land, right here in these mountain valleys; and though there was a time when some of us scarcely knew whether we should rejoice or weep because we were of Scandinavian origin, I thank God that that time is past, and all that Brother McLachlan (who is a Scotchman) can say is that he is an improved Scandinavian. (Laughter.) We have nearly all come from the northern countries, directly or indirectly; and when the God of heaven, among the many revelations that He in His mercy shall give unto us in the future, will reveal our genealogy, we will find some good reason why the Scandinavian, the American, the English and the German peoples amalgamate so beautifully, with scarcely any effort at all. We are all of Israel, and the history of our Church, so far, proves that when we preach the gospel to the different nations, kindreds, tongues and people, those people who are of Israel, or highly pregnated with the blood of Israel, embrace the gospel more willingly than those who are not. In fact, the preaching of the gospel in our day has been done, principally, up to the present, for the purpose of gathering Israel from the North, from the Islands of the Sea, and from all countries whence the chosen seed has been driven; for God remembers His promise to the Prophets of old: "He that scattered Israel shall gather them again."
In conclusion I want to bring you a greeting of love and good will from your brethren and sisters in Denmark, Sweden and Norway, and I will here say that there are many good, honorable people in those countries. We have some noble and faithful sons of Utah over there now, and many who have labored there as missionaries in the past, putting forth their effort early and late to preach the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ to their countrymen, or in the lands where their parents first saw the light of day.
May God bless you. May we always be the recipients of revelation to lead and guide us in all things, pertaining to our spiritual and temporal welfare, and may we always listen to the voice of the true Shepherd, and ultimately be saved in the Kingdom of God, is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
A violin solo was rendered by Prof. W. C. Clive.
ELDER JOHN L. HERRICK.
(President of Western States Mission.)
I will detain you but a very few minutes endeavoring to elucidate one thought, and 1 trust to have your assistance, your prayers, while I speak to you. This idea: The religions of the world, all Christian denominations, if they are not openly opposing "Mormonism," they are secretly doing so.
"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him might not perish but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth in Him is not condemned, but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the Only Begotten Son of the Father. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light that his deeds may be made manifest that they are wrought in God."
In the light of conditions as they exist today, it seems to me that these words of the Savior are pertinent to us and our conditions. I saw, a few days ago, a dispatch purporting to come from the Rev. Charles B. Mitchell, pastor of St. James Methodist Episcopal church; and this is what the minister said: "O God, send us another Bob Ingersoll to arouse the people. They sit in the pews with dull, dead indifference that breaks our hearts. It would be better if they threw bricks at us as they did at Wesley. But they don't even talk back. This is an age of doubt. We ministers need more than an apostolic succession. This scoffing, indifferent, and Godless age. The pendulum I believe will soon begin to swing back." Quite an admission, my friends, it seems to me, when a minister of a great church will admit that they need something more than apostolic succession in order to get to the people of the world the principles of Jesus Christ.
You cannot appreciate it at home what it means to preach religion to those that do not want it, for they really do not want it. You cannot appreciate what it costs to bring souls into the Church of God. But I will undertake to say that in monetary cost each one that joins our Church through baptism, in the world, costs at least $1,000 to $1,500 in missionary work. Some of them are worth it, and much more, and others are not worth the breath that we spend to preach a fifteen-minute sermon to them. But we have to put up with all. We have to give our testimony to the world. We have to say to them that there is a living, guiding faith that will lead men to eternal life, give them a salvation in this world, if they will but obey it.
I say to you, my friends, it is not only the Protestant churches today that oppose "Mormonism," but the great Mother Church, which has heretofore apparently kept her hands off, is now joining hands with Protestants, trying to come, some of them, to, one common platform on which they all can stand. Stand against what? let me ask you. It is, stand against the Church of God; that is what. You will find that the Church of Jesus Christ won't be asked to join with them when they get their platform fixed up. You say, "Well, what can you do?" We can do nothing, but continue to preach the principles of faith in God, in His Son Jesus Christ, and in the ordinances that He taught while He was in the earth. This thing, however, we may bear in mind, my brethren and sisters: "Blessed are ye when men shall revile you and shall persecute you and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake. Rejoice and be exceeding glad, for .Treat shall be your reward in heaven, for so persecuted they the prophets who were before you."
May God's blessing be with you, my brethren and sisters, and with all Israel, I testify to you that God's work is in the earth, and that He is seeking to redeem mankind through His gospel which He has established by divine revelation. And this light, this revelation, this living faith that is in the world today will redeem mankind, if they will listen unto its teachings and the voice of the servants of God. 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 takings
Of every action; do what is right!
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Heber J. Romney.
(President of Western States Mission.)
I will detain you but a very few minutes endeavoring to elucidate one thought, and 1 trust to have your assistance, your prayers, while I speak to you. This idea: The religions of the world, all Christian denominations, if they are not openly opposing "Mormonism," they are secretly doing so.
"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him might not perish but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth in Him is not condemned, but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the Only Begotten Son of the Father. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light that his deeds may be made manifest that they are wrought in God."
In the light of conditions as they exist today, it seems to me that these words of the Savior are pertinent to us and our conditions. I saw, a few days ago, a dispatch purporting to come from the Rev. Charles B. Mitchell, pastor of St. James Methodist Episcopal church; and this is what the minister said: "O God, send us another Bob Ingersoll to arouse the people. They sit in the pews with dull, dead indifference that breaks our hearts. It would be better if they threw bricks at us as they did at Wesley. But they don't even talk back. This is an age of doubt. We ministers need more than an apostolic succession. This scoffing, indifferent, and Godless age. The pendulum I believe will soon begin to swing back." Quite an admission, my friends, it seems to me, when a minister of a great church will admit that they need something more than apostolic succession in order to get to the people of the world the principles of Jesus Christ.
You cannot appreciate it at home what it means to preach religion to those that do not want it, for they really do not want it. You cannot appreciate what it costs to bring souls into the Church of God. But I will undertake to say that in monetary cost each one that joins our Church through baptism, in the world, costs at least $1,000 to $1,500 in missionary work. Some of them are worth it, and much more, and others are not worth the breath that we spend to preach a fifteen-minute sermon to them. But we have to put up with all. We have to give our testimony to the world. We have to say to them that there is a living, guiding faith that will lead men to eternal life, give them a salvation in this world, if they will but obey it.
I say to you, my friends, it is not only the Protestant churches today that oppose "Mormonism," but the great Mother Church, which has heretofore apparently kept her hands off, is now joining hands with Protestants, trying to come, some of them, to, one common platform on which they all can stand. Stand against what? let me ask you. It is, stand against the Church of God; that is what. You will find that the Church of Jesus Christ won't be asked to join with them when they get their platform fixed up. You say, "Well, what can you do?" We can do nothing, but continue to preach the principles of faith in God, in His Son Jesus Christ, and in the ordinances that He taught while He was in the earth. This thing, however, we may bear in mind, my brethren and sisters: "Blessed are ye when men shall revile you and shall persecute you and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake. Rejoice and be exceeding glad, for .Treat shall be your reward in heaven, for so persecuted they the prophets who were before you."
May God's blessing be with you, my brethren and sisters, and with all Israel, I testify to you that God's work is in the earth, and that He is seeking to redeem mankind through His gospel which He has established by divine revelation. And this light, this revelation, this living faith that is in the world today will redeem mankind, if they will listen unto its teachings and the voice of the servants of God. 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 takings
Of every action; do what is right!
Benediction was pronounced by Elder Heber J. Romney.
CLOSING SESSION.
In the Tabernacle, at 2 p. m.
President Joseph F. Smith called the meeting to order.
Fred Graham, and the Tabernacle choir, sang the hymn:
O Zion, when I think of thee,
I long for pinions like the dove,
And mourn to think that I should be
So distant from the land I love.
Prayer was offered by Elder C. E. Middleton.
A duet and chorus, "Christ Is Risen," was rendered by Rose Smithen, Carl Samuelson and the choir.
In the Tabernacle, at 2 p. m.
President Joseph F. Smith called the meeting to order.
Fred Graham, and the Tabernacle choir, sang the hymn:
O Zion, when I think of thee,
I long for pinions like the dove,
And mourn to think that I should be
So distant from the land I love.
Prayer was offered by Elder C. E. Middleton.
A duet and chorus, "Christ Is Risen," was rendered by Rose Smithen, Carl Samuelson and the choir.
ELDER GEORGE ALBERT SMITH.
"Get the Spirit of God, and Keep It." — Testimony of the truth of latter-day revelations.
I rejoice with you, my brethren and sisters, this afternoon, in the privilege that we enjoy of meeting in this sacred building, in conference assembled to receive the word of the Lord. I endorse, most heartily, the truths that have been taught from this pulpit during this conference, and I take to myself the admonition of our beloved president with reference to the conditions that maintain in our beloved country at the present time. I desire to repeat his admonition to us, that our Father is the source of inspiration in all things, both spiritual and temporal. We may petition the throne of grace in faith and our prayer will not be unanswered.
In the language of a great prophet of Israel I would say to the Latter-day Saints. "Get the Spirit of God in your hearts and keep It; it will guide us into all truth; it will be a panacea for all our ills; it will enable us to look forward to the coming of the risen Redeemer confident that He shall come again in the clouds of heaven." Possessing that Spirit, our ambition will not be a selfish one. but with charity in our hearts for all mankind, love for all our Father's children, we will min- Sfle with them day by day, and the influence we radiate will be one of love and kindness that will have its influence for good upon every child of our Father with whom we come in contact.
May the Lord add His blessing; may His peace be upon all Israel. I desire to add my testimony to those already borne. I know that the Book of Mormon contains the Lord of God, and that it supplements the other sacred scriptures of Jewish Israel, I know that the Doctrine and Covenants is the word of the Lord to us in this day; and I know that the same Power that gave the instructions contained in those volumes still is supreme. He will continue to feed us the bread of life as we need it from time to time, if we will but live in accordance with the teachings we have already received. God grant that we may evidence our faith and devotion to the cause with which we are identified, by lives of purity and righteousness, doing good to all men, is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
"Get the Spirit of God, and Keep It." — Testimony of the truth of latter-day revelations.
I rejoice with you, my brethren and sisters, this afternoon, in the privilege that we enjoy of meeting in this sacred building, in conference assembled to receive the word of the Lord. I endorse, most heartily, the truths that have been taught from this pulpit during this conference, and I take to myself the admonition of our beloved president with reference to the conditions that maintain in our beloved country at the present time. I desire to repeat his admonition to us, that our Father is the source of inspiration in all things, both spiritual and temporal. We may petition the throne of grace in faith and our prayer will not be unanswered.
In the language of a great prophet of Israel I would say to the Latter-day Saints. "Get the Spirit of God in your hearts and keep It; it will guide us into all truth; it will be a panacea for all our ills; it will enable us to look forward to the coming of the risen Redeemer confident that He shall come again in the clouds of heaven." Possessing that Spirit, our ambition will not be a selfish one. but with charity in our hearts for all mankind, love for all our Father's children, we will min- Sfle with them day by day, and the influence we radiate will be one of love and kindness that will have its influence for good upon every child of our Father with whom we come in contact.
May the Lord add His blessing; may His peace be upon all Israel. I desire to add my testimony to those already borne. I know that the Book of Mormon contains the Lord of God, and that it supplements the other sacred scriptures of Jewish Israel, I know that the Doctrine and Covenants is the word of the Lord to us in this day; and I know that the same Power that gave the instructions contained in those volumes still is supreme. He will continue to feed us the bread of life as we need it from time to time, if we will but live in accordance with the teachings we have already received. God grant that we may evidence our faith and devotion to the cause with which we are identified, by lives of purity and righteousness, doing good to all men, is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
PATRIARCH HYRUM G. SMITH.
Young people admonished to shun existing evils.
In the presence of this vast congregation, and in the presence of men much older than I, both in experience and in years, I certainly feel my weakness in standing before you, my brethren and sisters, and I pray that the Spirit of the Lord will continue to be with us.
I have enjoyed this conference above all others that I have ever attended. This to me is the first privilege of standing before so great a number of people. Without 'the Spirit and blessings of our Father in heaven, I feel that I will be unable to magnify the calling and position that has come to me. I desire an interest in your faith and prayers continually.
I know that this is the work of the Lord, and that we are His chosen people in these the last days. Where much is given much is expected; and I do earnestly pray that both young and old will take to heart the instructions that have been given by our prophet, and by those who have followed him, in teaching and warning us concerning these trying times, and in regard to our lives as Latter-day Saints. I do hope, and pray, that the young people especially will take the advice of those who are older, and not go into by and forbidden paths, and partake of the evils that exist in our midst, by following bad examples set before us by those who are not of us. Let us look to our leaders, those who hold the Holy Priesthood, and take their advice, and, in the spirit of humility and prayer, I feel sure that if we take this admonition we shall not go astray spiritually, but be raised up by the power of the Lord and made equal to the responsibilities as they come to us from our fathers.
Again I say, that in the presence of this vast congregation and those of experience in the work, I feel my weakness, but I testify that the Spirit of the Lord has been with us and we have been blessed. I pray that His spirit will go with us, and help us to put into practice the teachings given at this conference, and that when we go away we shall not say, "What a splendid conference we have had and then in a few days forget it. May the teachings given burn within our hearts that we may be given courage, and strength of mind and body, to serve the Lord and keep His commandments, that we may be His children in very deed, and be worthy of the blessings He has in store for us, is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Young people admonished to shun existing evils.
In the presence of this vast congregation, and in the presence of men much older than I, both in experience and in years, I certainly feel my weakness in standing before you, my brethren and sisters, and I pray that the Spirit of the Lord will continue to be with us.
I have enjoyed this conference above all others that I have ever attended. This to me is the first privilege of standing before so great a number of people. Without 'the Spirit and blessings of our Father in heaven, I feel that I will be unable to magnify the calling and position that has come to me. I desire an interest in your faith and prayers continually.
I know that this is the work of the Lord, and that we are His chosen people in these the last days. Where much is given much is expected; and I do earnestly pray that both young and old will take to heart the instructions that have been given by our prophet, and by those who have followed him, in teaching and warning us concerning these trying times, and in regard to our lives as Latter-day Saints. I do hope, and pray, that the young people especially will take the advice of those who are older, and not go into by and forbidden paths, and partake of the evils that exist in our midst, by following bad examples set before us by those who are not of us. Let us look to our leaders, those who hold the Holy Priesthood, and take their advice, and, in the spirit of humility and prayer, I feel sure that if we take this admonition we shall not go astray spiritually, but be raised up by the power of the Lord and made equal to the responsibilities as they come to us from our fathers.
Again I say, that in the presence of this vast congregation and those of experience in the work, I feel my weakness, but I testify that the Spirit of the Lord has been with us and we have been blessed. I pray that His spirit will go with us, and help us to put into practice the teachings given at this conference, and that when we go away we shall not say, "What a splendid conference we have had and then in a few days forget it. May the teachings given burn within our hearts that we may be given courage, and strength of mind and body, to serve the Lord and keep His commandments, that we may be His children in very deed, and be worthy of the blessings He has in store for us, is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
PRESIDENT JOSEPH F. SMITH.
I would like to say for the information perhaps of a great many of the Latter-day Saints who are present here today, that the last speaker is the great-grandson of the Patriarch Hyrum Smith, and who now holds the position of Presiding Patriarch in the Church.
I would like to say for the information perhaps of a great many of the Latter-day Saints who are present here today, that the last speaker is the great-grandson of the Patriarch Hyrum Smith, and who now holds the position of Presiding Patriarch in the Church.
ELDER DAVID O. M’KAY.
Strength of the Church is individual testimony.—Obedience the key to knowledge of truth. — Benefit of Church to individuals.—Church members advised to restrain contention.
I pray. for the inspiration of the Lord, that I may speak those things that will be in harmony with His will—that is the prayer of my heart this afternoon.
"Be it known unto you all and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by Him doth this man stand here before you whole. This is the stone which was set at naught of you builders which has become the head of the corner; neither is there salvation in any other, for there is none other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved."
So spake Peter, the chief apostle when he was arraigned before the judges for having healed the impotent man. He bore a strong testimony to those people who but a short time before had participated, directly or indirectly, in the crucifixion of the Savior. They warned Peter and John not to preach Jesus Christ and Him crucified, but when they perceived the boldness of Peter and John, and saw the impotent man standing before them whole, they counseled among themselves what to do. Then they returned and cautioned the apostles not to preach Jesus Christ to the people. At that point Peter and John, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, answered, "Whether it is right in the sight of God to harken unto you more than unto God judge ye, for we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard." On several different occasions the prophet Joseph Smith was asked by non-members, curious visitors to Nauvoo and other cities in the early history of this Church, what was the secret of the strength that seemed to be manifest in the Church in the early days. On one occasion, to be specific, he was asked how he governed this people and his answer was, "I teach them correct principles, and they govern themselves." People today wonder wherein lies the secret of the growth, stability and vitality of the Church of Christ. Those who are prejudiced when they come in our midst are convinced that there is something within the Church that those not of us do. not comprehend. Recently a young lady from the East spent a few weeks amongst us, visiting friends. Evidently her mind was previously filled with prejudice against the people of Utah, particularly against the Church. But she went around with some of her friends who were actively engaged in Religion Class work, some who were actively engaged in primary and others in Sunday School. One day when they returned from some of this regular work, she made this remark: "Well, there must be something in this Church or so many intelligent men and women would not be so actively engaged in it. Why, I almost feel that I want to enter in the work myself." You, no doubt, have met people who, seeing perhaps some such demonstration as this of the strength of Israel, wonder how it is that this Church manifests such vitality and growth. The secret is this, that every true Latter-day Saint possesses individually the assurance that this is the work of God, the same power that gave Peter and John strength to stand before their accusers and declare openly and boldly in the Sanhedrin that "Jesus whom ye crucified is the power by which this man was made whole," that His name is the only name given among men by which they can be saved.
The secret lies in the testimony possessed by each individual who is faithful in the membership of the Church of Christ, that the gospel consists of correct principles. It is that same testimony that was given to Peter, which he expressed when Christ asked His disciples "whom do men say that I am?" "Some say thou art this prophet, some say thou art that; some say thou art Elias." "But whom do ye say that I am?" And Peter answered, "Thou art the Christ the Son of the living God." "Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona; flesh and blood hath not revealed this unto you, but my Father which is in heaven; I say unto thee that thou art Peter, and upon this rock will I build my Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." This testimony has been revealed to every sincere man and woman who has conformed to the principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ, obeyed the ordinances and become entitled to and have received the Spirit of God, the Holy Ghost, to guide them. Every individual stands independent in his sphere in that testimony, just as these thousands of incandescent lamps which. have made Salt Lake City during the last week so brilliant at night, each one of which stands and shines in its own sphere, yet the light in it is produced by the same power, the same energy, from which all the other lights receive their energy. So each individual in the Church stands independently in his sphere, independently in the knowledge that God lives, that the Savior is the Redeemer of the world and that the gospel of Jesus Christ has been restored through the Prophet Joseph Smith. Now it is given unto some, says the Lord in the Doctrine and Covenants, to know by the Holy Ghost that Jesus is the Son of God and that He was crucified for the sins of the world. It is to these I refer who stand firm upon the rock of revelation in the testimony that they bear to the world. But the Lord says further there are others to whom it is given to believe upon the testimony of others' words, that they may also receive salvation if they continue faithful. To all these however, there comes the testimony also of daily experience. The Latter- day Saints throughout the world find confirmation of their testimony in every performance of duty. They know that the gospel teaches them to be better individuals; that obedience to the principles of the gospel makes them stronger men, and truer women. Every day such knowledge comes to them, and they cannot gainsay it; they know that obedience to the gospel of Jesus Christ makes them better and truer husbands, true and honored wives, obedient children. They know that obedience to the principles of the gospel makes them in every respect ideal home-builders; the ideal is there, they sense it in their minds, they cannot gainsay it, they know it, and they know that transgression of these principles will have the opposite effect upon their individual lives and upon their home lives. They know that obedience to the gospel fosters true brotherhood and fellowship among mankind; they know that they are better citizens by virtue of obedience unto the laws and ordinances. So, as they go through their daily acts, and apply religion in their vocation, the truth of the Gospel becomes exemplified in their lives. Thus, with the testimony of the Spirit, the testimony of reason, and the testimony of daily experience, the Latter- day Saints throughout the world must stand impregnable.
I was strongly impressed the other day in reading a book written by a man who is looking for a church that will eventually dominate the world. This is the church he describes, and I want to read it, having in mind the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints:
"The church that can say to the unchurched, Our way is best because it works best, our people are efficient, prosperous and happy because we are a body who aid one another in the productive life; we waste none of our substance in vice, luxury or ostentation; we do not dissipate our energy in brawling, gambling or unwholesome habits; we conserve our resources of body and mind and devote them to the upbuilding of the kingdom of God, which is not a mystical, but a real kingdom; it is a body of people dominated by ideals of productivity, which is mutual service. We do not strive for the things that satisfy but for the moment and then leave a bad taste; we strive for the things which build us up and enable us and our children to become strong: to flourish and to conquer. We strive to make ourselves worthy to receive the world by fitting ourselves to use the world more productively than others. We believe that obedience to God means obedience to the laws of nature, which are but the uniform manifestations of His will, and we try by painstaking study to acquire the most complete and exact knowledge of that will, in order that we may conform ourselves to it. We believe that reverence for God is respect for these laws; that meekness is teachableness and willingness to learn by observation and experience; by practicing this kind of meekness or teachableness we believe that we shall inherit the earth, whereas, the unmeek, the unteachable, who are dominated by pride of tradition shall not. We offer you hard work, frugal fare, severe discipline, but a share in the conquest of the world for the religion of the productive life. Such a church is founded upon the rock of economic efficiency and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it."
My testimony and yours is that this church of Christ can offer to the unchurched all the good things which this author is looking for, and more; because God has revealed more in the government and conduct of His church.
Now brethren and sisters, the testimony of the gospel is an anchor to the soul in the midst of confusion and strife. Cannot we afford, then, possessing that testimony, to manifest to the world another attribute of the Church of Christ, which is love ? Knowledge of God and His laws, means stability, means contentment, means peace, and with that a heart full of love reaching out to our fellow man offering the same blessings, the same privileges. Love will beget tolerance and kindness. Now I bespeak that during the next month or so, when our little towns and cities, and states will be more or less stirred up by political contention, that we remember to have charity and love for one another. Oh, let us not deal in personalities and tear down a brother's reputation and hurt his feelings. We are striving to establish the kingdom of God; let us hold to that fact as the anchor of our soul and then breathe forth charity and love to those who may not see just as we do. I mean that while we are urging our particular political belief, that we avoid dealing in personalities; we cannot afford to hurt a brother's feelings and wound him. I believe, with a western poet, that it isn't worth while:
"Is it worth while that we jostle a brother.
Bearing his load on the rough road of life?
Is it worth while that we jeer at each other --
In blackness of heart, that we war to the knife?
God pity us all in our pitiful strife.
"God pity us all as we jostle each other;
God pardon us all for the triumph we feel
When a fellow goes down 'neath his load on the heather
Pierced to the heart: Words are keener than steel.
And mightier far for woe than for weal.
****
"Is it worth while that we battle to humble
Some poor fellow down into the dust?
God pity us all! Time too soon will tumble
All of us together, like leaves in the gust.
Humbled, indeed, down into the dust."
Then, in conclusion, let us stand with our hearts centered and our minds firmly fixed upon this eternal truth—that the gospel of Jesus Christ is among men for the redemption and salvation of the human family. Let us go forth in the spirit of that, dealing with our fellows in the spirit of love and kindness. Let us work in our councils, in our quorums, guided by that same spirit, for the Church in the midst of political strife and social unrest will stand, to use Goldsmith's words,
"As some tall peak that lifts its awful form,
Swells from the vale and midway leaves the storm,
Though round its base the rolling clouds are spread,
Eternal sunshine settles on its head."
God grant that we remain true to this Church; that we may ever be found defending the men whom God has called to guide us and realize that harmony with them means that we are in harmony with God for He sustains them. Amen.
The hymn, "O, give me back my Prophet dear," was sung by James Moncar, Hyrum J. Christiansen, Howard Anderson and Walter Lamoreaux.
Strength of the Church is individual testimony.—Obedience the key to knowledge of truth. — Benefit of Church to individuals.—Church members advised to restrain contention.
I pray. for the inspiration of the Lord, that I may speak those things that will be in harmony with His will—that is the prayer of my heart this afternoon.
"Be it known unto you all and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by Him doth this man stand here before you whole. This is the stone which was set at naught of you builders which has become the head of the corner; neither is there salvation in any other, for there is none other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved."
So spake Peter, the chief apostle when he was arraigned before the judges for having healed the impotent man. He bore a strong testimony to those people who but a short time before had participated, directly or indirectly, in the crucifixion of the Savior. They warned Peter and John not to preach Jesus Christ and Him crucified, but when they perceived the boldness of Peter and John, and saw the impotent man standing before them whole, they counseled among themselves what to do. Then they returned and cautioned the apostles not to preach Jesus Christ to the people. At that point Peter and John, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, answered, "Whether it is right in the sight of God to harken unto you more than unto God judge ye, for we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard." On several different occasions the prophet Joseph Smith was asked by non-members, curious visitors to Nauvoo and other cities in the early history of this Church, what was the secret of the strength that seemed to be manifest in the Church in the early days. On one occasion, to be specific, he was asked how he governed this people and his answer was, "I teach them correct principles, and they govern themselves." People today wonder wherein lies the secret of the growth, stability and vitality of the Church of Christ. Those who are prejudiced when they come in our midst are convinced that there is something within the Church that those not of us do. not comprehend. Recently a young lady from the East spent a few weeks amongst us, visiting friends. Evidently her mind was previously filled with prejudice against the people of Utah, particularly against the Church. But she went around with some of her friends who were actively engaged in Religion Class work, some who were actively engaged in primary and others in Sunday School. One day when they returned from some of this regular work, she made this remark: "Well, there must be something in this Church or so many intelligent men and women would not be so actively engaged in it. Why, I almost feel that I want to enter in the work myself." You, no doubt, have met people who, seeing perhaps some such demonstration as this of the strength of Israel, wonder how it is that this Church manifests such vitality and growth. The secret is this, that every true Latter-day Saint possesses individually the assurance that this is the work of God, the same power that gave Peter and John strength to stand before their accusers and declare openly and boldly in the Sanhedrin that "Jesus whom ye crucified is the power by which this man was made whole," that His name is the only name given among men by which they can be saved.
The secret lies in the testimony possessed by each individual who is faithful in the membership of the Church of Christ, that the gospel consists of correct principles. It is that same testimony that was given to Peter, which he expressed when Christ asked His disciples "whom do men say that I am?" "Some say thou art this prophet, some say thou art that; some say thou art Elias." "But whom do ye say that I am?" And Peter answered, "Thou art the Christ the Son of the living God." "Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona; flesh and blood hath not revealed this unto you, but my Father which is in heaven; I say unto thee that thou art Peter, and upon this rock will I build my Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." This testimony has been revealed to every sincere man and woman who has conformed to the principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ, obeyed the ordinances and become entitled to and have received the Spirit of God, the Holy Ghost, to guide them. Every individual stands independent in his sphere in that testimony, just as these thousands of incandescent lamps which. have made Salt Lake City during the last week so brilliant at night, each one of which stands and shines in its own sphere, yet the light in it is produced by the same power, the same energy, from which all the other lights receive their energy. So each individual in the Church stands independently in his sphere, independently in the knowledge that God lives, that the Savior is the Redeemer of the world and that the gospel of Jesus Christ has been restored through the Prophet Joseph Smith. Now it is given unto some, says the Lord in the Doctrine and Covenants, to know by the Holy Ghost that Jesus is the Son of God and that He was crucified for the sins of the world. It is to these I refer who stand firm upon the rock of revelation in the testimony that they bear to the world. But the Lord says further there are others to whom it is given to believe upon the testimony of others' words, that they may also receive salvation if they continue faithful. To all these however, there comes the testimony also of daily experience. The Latter- day Saints throughout the world find confirmation of their testimony in every performance of duty. They know that the gospel teaches them to be better individuals; that obedience to the principles of the gospel makes them stronger men, and truer women. Every day such knowledge comes to them, and they cannot gainsay it; they know that obedience to the gospel of Jesus Christ makes them better and truer husbands, true and honored wives, obedient children. They know that obedience to the principles of the gospel makes them in every respect ideal home-builders; the ideal is there, they sense it in their minds, they cannot gainsay it, they know it, and they know that transgression of these principles will have the opposite effect upon their individual lives and upon their home lives. They know that obedience to the gospel fosters true brotherhood and fellowship among mankind; they know that they are better citizens by virtue of obedience unto the laws and ordinances. So, as they go through their daily acts, and apply religion in their vocation, the truth of the Gospel becomes exemplified in their lives. Thus, with the testimony of the Spirit, the testimony of reason, and the testimony of daily experience, the Latter- day Saints throughout the world must stand impregnable.
I was strongly impressed the other day in reading a book written by a man who is looking for a church that will eventually dominate the world. This is the church he describes, and I want to read it, having in mind the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints:
"The church that can say to the unchurched, Our way is best because it works best, our people are efficient, prosperous and happy because we are a body who aid one another in the productive life; we waste none of our substance in vice, luxury or ostentation; we do not dissipate our energy in brawling, gambling or unwholesome habits; we conserve our resources of body and mind and devote them to the upbuilding of the kingdom of God, which is not a mystical, but a real kingdom; it is a body of people dominated by ideals of productivity, which is mutual service. We do not strive for the things that satisfy but for the moment and then leave a bad taste; we strive for the things which build us up and enable us and our children to become strong: to flourish and to conquer. We strive to make ourselves worthy to receive the world by fitting ourselves to use the world more productively than others. We believe that obedience to God means obedience to the laws of nature, which are but the uniform manifestations of His will, and we try by painstaking study to acquire the most complete and exact knowledge of that will, in order that we may conform ourselves to it. We believe that reverence for God is respect for these laws; that meekness is teachableness and willingness to learn by observation and experience; by practicing this kind of meekness or teachableness we believe that we shall inherit the earth, whereas, the unmeek, the unteachable, who are dominated by pride of tradition shall not. We offer you hard work, frugal fare, severe discipline, but a share in the conquest of the world for the religion of the productive life. Such a church is founded upon the rock of economic efficiency and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it."
My testimony and yours is that this church of Christ can offer to the unchurched all the good things which this author is looking for, and more; because God has revealed more in the government and conduct of His church.
Now brethren and sisters, the testimony of the gospel is an anchor to the soul in the midst of confusion and strife. Cannot we afford, then, possessing that testimony, to manifest to the world another attribute of the Church of Christ, which is love ? Knowledge of God and His laws, means stability, means contentment, means peace, and with that a heart full of love reaching out to our fellow man offering the same blessings, the same privileges. Love will beget tolerance and kindness. Now I bespeak that during the next month or so, when our little towns and cities, and states will be more or less stirred up by political contention, that we remember to have charity and love for one another. Oh, let us not deal in personalities and tear down a brother's reputation and hurt his feelings. We are striving to establish the kingdom of God; let us hold to that fact as the anchor of our soul and then breathe forth charity and love to those who may not see just as we do. I mean that while we are urging our particular political belief, that we avoid dealing in personalities; we cannot afford to hurt a brother's feelings and wound him. I believe, with a western poet, that it isn't worth while:
"Is it worth while that we jostle a brother.
Bearing his load on the rough road of life?
Is it worth while that we jeer at each other --
In blackness of heart, that we war to the knife?
God pity us all in our pitiful strife.
"God pity us all as we jostle each other;
God pardon us all for the triumph we feel
When a fellow goes down 'neath his load on the heather
Pierced to the heart: Words are keener than steel.
And mightier far for woe than for weal.
****
"Is it worth while that we battle to humble
Some poor fellow down into the dust?
God pity us all! Time too soon will tumble
All of us together, like leaves in the gust.
Humbled, indeed, down into the dust."
Then, in conclusion, let us stand with our hearts centered and our minds firmly fixed upon this eternal truth—that the gospel of Jesus Christ is among men for the redemption and salvation of the human family. Let us go forth in the spirit of that, dealing with our fellows in the spirit of love and kindness. Let us work in our councils, in our quorums, guided by that same spirit, for the Church in the midst of political strife and social unrest will stand, to use Goldsmith's words,
"As some tall peak that lifts its awful form,
Swells from the vale and midway leaves the storm,
Though round its base the rolling clouds are spread,
Eternal sunshine settles on its head."
God grant that we remain true to this Church; that we may ever be found defending the men whom God has called to guide us and realize that harmony with them means that we are in harmony with God for He sustains them. Amen.
The hymn, "O, give me back my Prophet dear," was sung by James Moncar, Hyrum J. Christiansen, Howard Anderson and Walter Lamoreaux.
ELDER JOSEPH F. SMITH, JR.
John Taylor's hymn a loving tribute to the martyrs.—The Church continuously guided by a Prophet.—Counsels of inspired men should be heeded.
I have been deeply impressed and edified during the sessions of this conference in listening to the remarks of the brethren, and I rejoice with you, my brethren and sisters, in the counsel and instructions that have been imparted unto us by those who stand at the head, who are possessed of the Spirit of the Lord, and whose right it is to teach Israel. I have also been impressed this afternoon by the singing of this hymn, sacred to me, composed by President Taylor, who dearly loved the Prophet Joseph Smith. I never read this hymn or hear it sung without being touched in my soul and I shall take the liberty this afternoon, in my weak and imperfect way, to read it, for I realize that in the singing we do not always get the full comprehension of the words, which may not be impressed upon our souls, especially in a large gathering such as this, as we would like to have them:
O, give me back my Prophet dear.
And Patriarch, O give them back,
The Saints of Latter-days to cheer.
And lead them in the Gospel track!
But, O, they're gone from my embrace.
From earthly scenes their spirits fled,
Two of the best of Adam's race.
Now he entombed among the dead.
Ye men of wisdom, tell me why --
No guilt, no crime in them were found --
Their blood doth now so loudly cry.
From prison walls and Carthage ground:
Your tongues are mute, but pray attend,
The secret I will now relate.
Why those whom God to earth did lend.
Have met the suffering martyrs' fate.
It is because they strove to gain.
Beyond the grave a heaven of bliss.
Because they made the gospel plain
And led the Saints to righteousness;
It is because God called them forth.
And led them by His own right hand,
Christ's coming to proclaim on earth.
And gather Israel to their land.
It is because the priests of Baal
Were desperate their craft to save,
And when they saw it doomed to fail.
They sent the Prophets to their grave.
Like scenes the ancient Prophets saw,
Like these the ancient Prophets fell.
And, till the resurrection dawn.
Prophet and Patriarch, farewell.
My heart is always touched when I hear this beautiful hymn, or when I read it. I understand the spirit that rested upon President Taylor when he wrote it; but I rejoice, my brethren and sisters, in this fact— - although the prophet who stands at the head of the dispensation of the fullness of times, and the patriarch who stood with him have been taken from us, the Lord has not left us helpless. There has never been a time since the restoration of the Gospel when we have not had a prophet, some one to lead us, to direct us, to teach us the commandments of God that we might walk in the straight and narrow path. We are not without leaders; and the time shall never come when the Lord will not find some one that He can trust; in whom He has confidence, and who will be qualified to stand to represent Him among the people. This is my testimony and I rejoice in its truth. I do not feel that because the Prophet was taken and the Patriarch; because President Young was taken, or President Taylor and other leaders were taken, that the time has come when we have not an inspired leader to teach us the truth. The time will never come when we will not be able to put confidence and exercise faith in the teachings and in the instruction of those who lead us. I am satisfied of this for I know the promises of the Lord are sure. I know that these things are true; the Lord has not forsaken His people, and will be with them even to the end. Therefore it behooves us, as Latter-day Saints, to put our trust in the presiding authorities of the Church, in the Priesthood of God; and accept of their teachings. No man ever went astray by following the counsel of the authorities of the Church. No man who ever followed the teachings or took advice or counsel from the one who stands as the representative of the Lord ever went astray; but men who have refused to accept counsel have gone astray and into forbid-, den paths, and in some instances have even denied the faith. Others who went astray because they failed to understand and to heed the counsels that were given unto them for their eternal good, have humbled themselves and come back to the Church acknowledging their error. In connection with this I desire to read just a word or two from the revelation, known as the preface that the Lord gave to His book of commandments:
"Wherefore the voice of the Lord is unto the ends of the earth, that all that will hear may hear: Prepare ye, prepare ye for that which is to come, for the Lord is nigh; and the anger of the Lord is kindled, and His sword is bathed in heaven, and it shall fall upon the inhabitants of the earth; and the arm of the Lord shall be revealed; and the 'day cometh that they who will not hear the voice of the Lord, neither the voice of His servants, neither give heed to the words of the prophets and apostles, shall be cut off from among the people; For they have strayed from mine ordinances, and have broken mine everlasting covenant; they seek not the Lord to establish His righteousness, but every man walketh in his own way, and after the image of his own God, whose image is in the likeness of the world,, and whose substance is that of an idol, which waxeth old and shall perish in Babylon, even Babylon the great, which shall fall."
Therefore, we must put our faith in those whom the Lord hath called, if we want to have a standing before the Lord, and none of us desire, if we have the proper spirit, to be cut of? from among the people. But this punishment will befall those who do not prove faithful and will not pay that heed or give that attention to the counsel of those who are called and appointed and inspired of the Lord to teach and direct us in all things.
We should be first and foremost, as it has already been expressed, for the kingdom of God and His righteousness. Let us be true and faithful always, with a desire to keep the commandments of the Lord and honor Him and remember the covenants we have made with Him. This is my prayer in behalf of all Israel in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
John Taylor's hymn a loving tribute to the martyrs.—The Church continuously guided by a Prophet.—Counsels of inspired men should be heeded.
I have been deeply impressed and edified during the sessions of this conference in listening to the remarks of the brethren, and I rejoice with you, my brethren and sisters, in the counsel and instructions that have been imparted unto us by those who stand at the head, who are possessed of the Spirit of the Lord, and whose right it is to teach Israel. I have also been impressed this afternoon by the singing of this hymn, sacred to me, composed by President Taylor, who dearly loved the Prophet Joseph Smith. I never read this hymn or hear it sung without being touched in my soul and I shall take the liberty this afternoon, in my weak and imperfect way, to read it, for I realize that in the singing we do not always get the full comprehension of the words, which may not be impressed upon our souls, especially in a large gathering such as this, as we would like to have them:
O, give me back my Prophet dear.
And Patriarch, O give them back,
The Saints of Latter-days to cheer.
And lead them in the Gospel track!
But, O, they're gone from my embrace.
From earthly scenes their spirits fled,
Two of the best of Adam's race.
Now he entombed among the dead.
Ye men of wisdom, tell me why --
No guilt, no crime in them were found --
Their blood doth now so loudly cry.
From prison walls and Carthage ground:
Your tongues are mute, but pray attend,
The secret I will now relate.
Why those whom God to earth did lend.
Have met the suffering martyrs' fate.
It is because they strove to gain.
Beyond the grave a heaven of bliss.
Because they made the gospel plain
And led the Saints to righteousness;
It is because God called them forth.
And led them by His own right hand,
Christ's coming to proclaim on earth.
And gather Israel to their land.
It is because the priests of Baal
Were desperate their craft to save,
And when they saw it doomed to fail.
They sent the Prophets to their grave.
Like scenes the ancient Prophets saw,
Like these the ancient Prophets fell.
And, till the resurrection dawn.
Prophet and Patriarch, farewell.
My heart is always touched when I hear this beautiful hymn, or when I read it. I understand the spirit that rested upon President Taylor when he wrote it; but I rejoice, my brethren and sisters, in this fact— - although the prophet who stands at the head of the dispensation of the fullness of times, and the patriarch who stood with him have been taken from us, the Lord has not left us helpless. There has never been a time since the restoration of the Gospel when we have not had a prophet, some one to lead us, to direct us, to teach us the commandments of God that we might walk in the straight and narrow path. We are not without leaders; and the time shall never come when the Lord will not find some one that He can trust; in whom He has confidence, and who will be qualified to stand to represent Him among the people. This is my testimony and I rejoice in its truth. I do not feel that because the Prophet was taken and the Patriarch; because President Young was taken, or President Taylor and other leaders were taken, that the time has come when we have not an inspired leader to teach us the truth. The time will never come when we will not be able to put confidence and exercise faith in the teachings and in the instruction of those who lead us. I am satisfied of this for I know the promises of the Lord are sure. I know that these things are true; the Lord has not forsaken His people, and will be with them even to the end. Therefore it behooves us, as Latter-day Saints, to put our trust in the presiding authorities of the Church, in the Priesthood of God; and accept of their teachings. No man ever went astray by following the counsel of the authorities of the Church. No man who ever followed the teachings or took advice or counsel from the one who stands as the representative of the Lord ever went astray; but men who have refused to accept counsel have gone astray and into forbid-, den paths, and in some instances have even denied the faith. Others who went astray because they failed to understand and to heed the counsels that were given unto them for their eternal good, have humbled themselves and come back to the Church acknowledging their error. In connection with this I desire to read just a word or two from the revelation, known as the preface that the Lord gave to His book of commandments:
"Wherefore the voice of the Lord is unto the ends of the earth, that all that will hear may hear: Prepare ye, prepare ye for that which is to come, for the Lord is nigh; and the anger of the Lord is kindled, and His sword is bathed in heaven, and it shall fall upon the inhabitants of the earth; and the arm of the Lord shall be revealed; and the 'day cometh that they who will not hear the voice of the Lord, neither the voice of His servants, neither give heed to the words of the prophets and apostles, shall be cut off from among the people; For they have strayed from mine ordinances, and have broken mine everlasting covenant; they seek not the Lord to establish His righteousness, but every man walketh in his own way, and after the image of his own God, whose image is in the likeness of the world,, and whose substance is that of an idol, which waxeth old and shall perish in Babylon, even Babylon the great, which shall fall."
Therefore, we must put our faith in those whom the Lord hath called, if we want to have a standing before the Lord, and none of us desire, if we have the proper spirit, to be cut of? from among the people. But this punishment will befall those who do not prove faithful and will not pay that heed or give that attention to the counsel of those who are called and appointed and inspired of the Lord to teach and direct us in all things.
We should be first and foremost, as it has already been expressed, for the kingdom of God and His righteousness. Let us be true and faithful always, with a desire to keep the commandments of the Lord and honor Him and remember the covenants we have made with Him. This is my prayer in behalf of all Israel in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
ELDER JAMES E. TALMAGE.
Modern revelation essential. The latest news eagerly awaited.—The Bible not the only book of scripture.—Irrational to believe that God has not spoken to man since the Bible record closed. The Church is truly progressive and up to date.—True and false progressivism.— This nation a nation of promise.— This land a land of liberty. — True liberty and its spurious imitations.— Many counterfeits and adulterations on the market today.—Satan a clever imitator.—True liberty distinguished from license.—The right to seek advice.—False liberty is selfishness.— The present is built upon the foundation of the past.—The Constitution of our nation an inspired document.— The coming of the Christ near at hand.
In common with many thousands present, I too have rejoiced in the words to which we have listened during this conference, and more than in the words have I found joy in the spirit that has been manifest in the utterances of the speakers and in the receptive condition of the hearers. We cannot be oblivious to the fact that there has been manifest amongst this vast assembly this afternoon and in the assemblies that have marked the preceding sessions of this conference, a spirit of unanimity and harmony that testifies to the presence of the Spirit of God. I have never had any fear that discord would be preferred by the Latter-day Saints to harmony, and I know that the people are standing as a whole true to the faith, true to their covenants, true to their duty and obligations as Latter-day Saints,—that is to say, holy ones of the latter days. I am glad to have been present, to have heard the latest word, to be informed as to the most recent news m this great kingdom, of the Lord, for it is characteristic of the spirit of this work and of this people that we are not content with the news of the past but are ever listening for the ' latest and the newest news if you please.
Doubtless you were impressed as was I by the manner in which the article of faith relating to continuous revelation was read to you or quoted to you this morning. That is one of the fundamentals, one of the essential features of the Church of Christ, that we believe not only in what God has revealed, but in that which He does now reveal; and moreover we are living in confident assurance that He will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the kingdom of God. These bound volumes of scripture are necessary and essential to us, — the Bible, the Book of. Mormon, and more modern records,—absolutely essential for our instruction and guidance, but we want in addition something later and more nearly adapted to the times. This book known as the Holy Bible professedly ends as a historical record about one hundred years after the birth of Christ, and there be some who say that God hath not spoken since that time, that for nearly nineteen hundred years He has never uttered a word by way of direct instruction unto His people. I cannot believe it; I cannot accept any such creed, nor have I room in my heart for any such belief, for in every other field of human thought we are ever on the alert for the new. Not content with bound books we look eagerly for the issues of monthly magazines, weekly journals, and moreover we would not know how to get along without our daily papers, each one telling in part what God hath wrought since the last issue left the press: Nor are we content with such, for here day after day I see great crowds about the bulletin boards too eager to rest contented until the next issue, too eager to know what has been done —aye, what God hath done in forwarding His plans and purposes among men during the last few hours. And yet in spite of that, as the prevailing spirit of the times, I say there be some who say that God hath not spoken concerning the affairs of the kingdom since about one hundred years after the birth of His Son. He has spoken much in the realm of science and discovery; He has made known many great truths through His servants, the inventors, but He has not spoken concerning the way in which His people should walk to find their way back into His presence. I say again, it is unfitting, it is unsuited, such a belief as that, to the spirit of the times, to the modern day in which we live, and I rejoice in belonging to a church that is in a measure up, to date, and down to date, that gives me news of the present and that gives me the Word of God concerning the affairs of m}' life and the duties that lie immediately before me. I rejoice in the progressivism of this Church and more particularly in the fact that its progressivism is of the right kind. It is not that so-called progressivism that seeks to belittle or destroy the achievements of the past; it is not a progressivism that seeks to tear down, that says our fathers were wrong and we know more than they did; that they laid a foundation which in its way was good but not sufficient for' us to build upon. We have no such spirit of progression as that, for that is destruction. The spirit of advancement and progressivism in the Church of Christ is that which marks the progression from the seed to the blade and from the blade to the ripened ear. It is a constructive progressivism; the past is added to, and every new revelation doth but make the revelations of the past plainer and reveal their sanctity and their sacred origin the better. I ask you, have you yet discovered in this volume of modern scripture, the Doctrine and Covenants, one utterance that is in any manner opposed to the spirit of the scriptures of the past ? It will be time to raise objection to modern revelation when we find that such revelation is in opposition .to the spirit of the Word of God of past times; but when the modern utterances are plainly but later works of the same author, why need we complain? I rejoice, too, in the measure of liberty which is assured to us as members of this Church and I have been greatly edified and pleased in listening to what has been said respecting liberty and freedom. I believe that. we should give thanks unto God for our privileges of citizenship in this great nation, for mark you, this is a nation that shall stand for liberty, for it hath been so predicted. It has been prophesied and the prophecy has been proclaimed through the modern prophet, Joseph Smith, that centuries ago—aye. dating back five hundred years or more before the meridian of time,—it was declared that this land should in the latter days be a land of liberty and no king should rule here. I take it that means no king by name or by pretension; no one shall exercise imperial powers among the citizens of this great nation, until Christ, the King, shall come to rule and reign. But as I listened to my brethren expressing their joy and gratitude at this full measure of liberty which we seem to enjoy, I asked myself if we are always sure that we do not accept the imitation for the real. You know this is a day of imitations, a day of adulteration and counterfeits, a day when shoddy is palmed off for all-wool cloth, and gilded brass passes too often current for genuine gold; aye, a day when glass paste does duty as diamonds of the first water. Of all the imitators, of all the counterfeiters, Satan is the chief, for he has had the greatest experience and the longest training and he is a skillful salesman; he not only knows how to manufacture his spurious goods, but how to put them upon the market. And it is wonderfully attractive—the way in which he does up those little packages in bright colored paper, tied with tinsel string to attract; and we are very apt to pay the price asked before we open the package. And do you know of all the counterfeits and of all the imitations that the devil has put forth on sale, I know of none that is more dangerous than his spurious brands of liberty and freedom, such as are being offered on every hand. Some of them are so rank as to be a stench in the nostrils of a normal man. How .shall we distinguish between the genuine and the imitation, you may ask? Is it necessary that we get expert advice and call in a professional chemist to make the analysis? Oh, there are simple tests by which you can determine. You can always tell after consumption whether it was the genuine or not, for the imitation leaves a wretchedly bad taste in the mouth, but that test may not be as serviceable as one that may be applied before taking. Well, you will find that true liberty always works both ways, it never works one way alone, but is of universal application. For example, I hear some men say that they claim the right to speak out and say just what they like. They make that claim that they have the right to speak out and say just what they like to say. I grant you that is true if you will let it apply the other way as well. I have the right to be safeguarded against utterances which are offensive to hear. If a man says that he under the guise of his rights as a free citizen may swear and use vile and obscene language, and may profane the name of God, I say to you that is not liberty, that is a license that is illegal. I hear some men say that they are free citizens and the)^ are not going to be told what to do. I grant them that right, but by the same token I claim the right to seek advice if I want it and to go to whomsoever I choose for the advice and counsel which I desire. Now the men who sav that they don't want to be told, usually find fault with their brothers who are willing to be told, usually criticise them because they are willing to be advised and guided. I claim the right to give advice to my brother if I do it in a manner to cause him no offense. I claim the right, if I so choose, to publish my views in magazine or newspaper or book if I can make arrangements with the publishers. I have that perfect right as long as I say nothing in my publication inimical to the rights of men nor contrary to law and order, and you have the right to read my writings or not just as you choose. I cannot force them upon you, but if there be some who do choose to read them and who are willing to be influenced and guided by them, what business is that of others who refuse so to do? I believe that we are too apt to apply these so-called rules of liberty and of freedom in a one-sided way. There are men who say that they have the right to smoke tobacco if they want to, and in this State if they be of age they have that right legally and I know they exercise it (laughter), but I long to see the day when I shall have some rights too in that matter, and when I shall not be forced to breathe the foul emanations that come from smokers' mouths. 1 hope to see the day when women will no longer be offended as they board or leave street cars or as they pass along the streets, by having clouds of tobacco smoke blown into their faces. I believe we shall improve in the matter of liberty and come to see that there are rights that others have as well as rights that we claim for ourselves. The spirit of the Gospel safeguards the right of no man to the injury of another, but provides for the liberties of all; and I hope that I will never become so lifted up in egotism that I shall feel that I am the people and that I know it all. I hope that I shall ever be led to seek for those to whom I feel I can look with confidence for advice, for counsel, for guidance, and if I choose to follow the counsel and advice of those in whom I have respect, I claim that I have the right so to do as a citizen and a free man.
I trust that the spirit of charity will manifest itself in our souls and that we will be willing to allow unto others those privileges and rights that we ask for ourselves; that we may in very truth be worthy of the measure of liberty which belongs to the Church of Jesus Christ, for if it be what it professes to be, the repository of truth, there must be in it the elements of true liberty and not that false freedom of the spurious kind which is being put forth in an unceasing stream from the devil's factories. We have to scrutinize very carefully the goods that are offered in the markets today lest we be deceived. I rejoice in the fact that this people stand for the Constitution of the nation and I call to mind that the declaration of the people to that effect was made in a very early day and was reiterated at a very critical time. It was just when the Overland Telegraph wire from the east was approaching the end of the wire that was coming from the west, for you know it was within the boundaries of this state that those two ends were joined and the nerve of steel that connected the east with the west was made complete. It was just at that time that the great unpleasantness was at its height between the North and the South, when brother was rising against brother, and it was rumored that Utah had seceded from the Union, or, as represented by some, Utah was to become a separate and independent government, the seat of a separate power, and that in addition to a North and a South, which had already been declared, there was to be a West also. You know the first message that was sent through that metallic nerve, went from the West to Washington, from Brigham Young to the President of the United States and this was the purport of the message, "Utah has not seceded but is firm for the Constitution and laws of our country." That declaration has never been changed; it is as true in its application today as it was when it was flashed as the initial message across the overland telegraph wire. We stand for the Constitution and do not believe in any false notions of advancement and enlightenment and progressivism such as seeks to undermine that foundation of our liberties, for as a document we know that it was inspired and we believe that the men who framed it were raised up, as truly as was ever prophet raised up in Israel in ancient or modern times, to frame that instrument and thereby provide for the fulfilment of prophetic utterances regarding the freedom and the liberty that should prevail in this choice land. I am pleased to add my testimony to the many to which you have listened. The testimony which I bear to you is one of knowledge and assurance beyond doubt, that God has spoken in this, the dispensation of the fulness of times, and does speak today as of old through His servants, the prophets; that in very truth Christ the Redeemer of mankind lives and that His coming is near at hand. The cry is given today as in the wilderness of old, "The kingdom of heaven is at hand, therefore repent." May the spirit of earnestness, devotion, integrity, freedom, liberty ever prevail among the Latter- day Saints, and throughout the length and breadth of the land occupied by this great nation, the nation of promise, I ask in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Modern revelation essential. The latest news eagerly awaited.—The Bible not the only book of scripture.—Irrational to believe that God has not spoken to man since the Bible record closed. The Church is truly progressive and up to date.—True and false progressivism.— This nation a nation of promise.— This land a land of liberty. — True liberty and its spurious imitations.— Many counterfeits and adulterations on the market today.—Satan a clever imitator.—True liberty distinguished from license.—The right to seek advice.—False liberty is selfishness.— The present is built upon the foundation of the past.—The Constitution of our nation an inspired document.— The coming of the Christ near at hand.
In common with many thousands present, I too have rejoiced in the words to which we have listened during this conference, and more than in the words have I found joy in the spirit that has been manifest in the utterances of the speakers and in the receptive condition of the hearers. We cannot be oblivious to the fact that there has been manifest amongst this vast assembly this afternoon and in the assemblies that have marked the preceding sessions of this conference, a spirit of unanimity and harmony that testifies to the presence of the Spirit of God. I have never had any fear that discord would be preferred by the Latter-day Saints to harmony, and I know that the people are standing as a whole true to the faith, true to their covenants, true to their duty and obligations as Latter-day Saints,—that is to say, holy ones of the latter days. I am glad to have been present, to have heard the latest word, to be informed as to the most recent news m this great kingdom, of the Lord, for it is characteristic of the spirit of this work and of this people that we are not content with the news of the past but are ever listening for the ' latest and the newest news if you please.
Doubtless you were impressed as was I by the manner in which the article of faith relating to continuous revelation was read to you or quoted to you this morning. That is one of the fundamentals, one of the essential features of the Church of Christ, that we believe not only in what God has revealed, but in that which He does now reveal; and moreover we are living in confident assurance that He will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the kingdom of God. These bound volumes of scripture are necessary and essential to us, — the Bible, the Book of. Mormon, and more modern records,—absolutely essential for our instruction and guidance, but we want in addition something later and more nearly adapted to the times. This book known as the Holy Bible professedly ends as a historical record about one hundred years after the birth of Christ, and there be some who say that God hath not spoken since that time, that for nearly nineteen hundred years He has never uttered a word by way of direct instruction unto His people. I cannot believe it; I cannot accept any such creed, nor have I room in my heart for any such belief, for in every other field of human thought we are ever on the alert for the new. Not content with bound books we look eagerly for the issues of monthly magazines, weekly journals, and moreover we would not know how to get along without our daily papers, each one telling in part what God hath wrought since the last issue left the press: Nor are we content with such, for here day after day I see great crowds about the bulletin boards too eager to rest contented until the next issue, too eager to know what has been done —aye, what God hath done in forwarding His plans and purposes among men during the last few hours. And yet in spite of that, as the prevailing spirit of the times, I say there be some who say that God hath not spoken concerning the affairs of the kingdom since about one hundred years after the birth of His Son. He has spoken much in the realm of science and discovery; He has made known many great truths through His servants, the inventors, but He has not spoken concerning the way in which His people should walk to find their way back into His presence. I say again, it is unfitting, it is unsuited, such a belief as that, to the spirit of the times, to the modern day in which we live, and I rejoice in belonging to a church that is in a measure up, to date, and down to date, that gives me news of the present and that gives me the Word of God concerning the affairs of m}' life and the duties that lie immediately before me. I rejoice in the progressivism of this Church and more particularly in the fact that its progressivism is of the right kind. It is not that so-called progressivism that seeks to belittle or destroy the achievements of the past; it is not a progressivism that seeks to tear down, that says our fathers were wrong and we know more than they did; that they laid a foundation which in its way was good but not sufficient for' us to build upon. We have no such spirit of progression as that, for that is destruction. The spirit of advancement and progressivism in the Church of Christ is that which marks the progression from the seed to the blade and from the blade to the ripened ear. It is a constructive progressivism; the past is added to, and every new revelation doth but make the revelations of the past plainer and reveal their sanctity and their sacred origin the better. I ask you, have you yet discovered in this volume of modern scripture, the Doctrine and Covenants, one utterance that is in any manner opposed to the spirit of the scriptures of the past ? It will be time to raise objection to modern revelation when we find that such revelation is in opposition .to the spirit of the Word of God of past times; but when the modern utterances are plainly but later works of the same author, why need we complain? I rejoice, too, in the measure of liberty which is assured to us as members of this Church and I have been greatly edified and pleased in listening to what has been said respecting liberty and freedom. I believe that. we should give thanks unto God for our privileges of citizenship in this great nation, for mark you, this is a nation that shall stand for liberty, for it hath been so predicted. It has been prophesied and the prophecy has been proclaimed through the modern prophet, Joseph Smith, that centuries ago—aye. dating back five hundred years or more before the meridian of time,—it was declared that this land should in the latter days be a land of liberty and no king should rule here. I take it that means no king by name or by pretension; no one shall exercise imperial powers among the citizens of this great nation, until Christ, the King, shall come to rule and reign. But as I listened to my brethren expressing their joy and gratitude at this full measure of liberty which we seem to enjoy, I asked myself if we are always sure that we do not accept the imitation for the real. You know this is a day of imitations, a day of adulteration and counterfeits, a day when shoddy is palmed off for all-wool cloth, and gilded brass passes too often current for genuine gold; aye, a day when glass paste does duty as diamonds of the first water. Of all the imitators, of all the counterfeiters, Satan is the chief, for he has had the greatest experience and the longest training and he is a skillful salesman; he not only knows how to manufacture his spurious goods, but how to put them upon the market. And it is wonderfully attractive—the way in which he does up those little packages in bright colored paper, tied with tinsel string to attract; and we are very apt to pay the price asked before we open the package. And do you know of all the counterfeits and of all the imitations that the devil has put forth on sale, I know of none that is more dangerous than his spurious brands of liberty and freedom, such as are being offered on every hand. Some of them are so rank as to be a stench in the nostrils of a normal man. How .shall we distinguish between the genuine and the imitation, you may ask? Is it necessary that we get expert advice and call in a professional chemist to make the analysis? Oh, there are simple tests by which you can determine. You can always tell after consumption whether it was the genuine or not, for the imitation leaves a wretchedly bad taste in the mouth, but that test may not be as serviceable as one that may be applied before taking. Well, you will find that true liberty always works both ways, it never works one way alone, but is of universal application. For example, I hear some men say that they claim the right to speak out and say just what they like. They make that claim that they have the right to speak out and say just what they like to say. I grant you that is true if you will let it apply the other way as well. I have the right to be safeguarded against utterances which are offensive to hear. If a man says that he under the guise of his rights as a free citizen may swear and use vile and obscene language, and may profane the name of God, I say to you that is not liberty, that is a license that is illegal. I hear some men say that they are free citizens and the)^ are not going to be told what to do. I grant them that right, but by the same token I claim the right to seek advice if I want it and to go to whomsoever I choose for the advice and counsel which I desire. Now the men who sav that they don't want to be told, usually find fault with their brothers who are willing to be told, usually criticise them because they are willing to be advised and guided. I claim the right to give advice to my brother if I do it in a manner to cause him no offense. I claim the right, if I so choose, to publish my views in magazine or newspaper or book if I can make arrangements with the publishers. I have that perfect right as long as I say nothing in my publication inimical to the rights of men nor contrary to law and order, and you have the right to read my writings or not just as you choose. I cannot force them upon you, but if there be some who do choose to read them and who are willing to be influenced and guided by them, what business is that of others who refuse so to do? I believe that we are too apt to apply these so-called rules of liberty and of freedom in a one-sided way. There are men who say that they have the right to smoke tobacco if they want to, and in this State if they be of age they have that right legally and I know they exercise it (laughter), but I long to see the day when I shall have some rights too in that matter, and when I shall not be forced to breathe the foul emanations that come from smokers' mouths. 1 hope to see the day when women will no longer be offended as they board or leave street cars or as they pass along the streets, by having clouds of tobacco smoke blown into their faces. I believe we shall improve in the matter of liberty and come to see that there are rights that others have as well as rights that we claim for ourselves. The spirit of the Gospel safeguards the right of no man to the injury of another, but provides for the liberties of all; and I hope that I will never become so lifted up in egotism that I shall feel that I am the people and that I know it all. I hope that I shall ever be led to seek for those to whom I feel I can look with confidence for advice, for counsel, for guidance, and if I choose to follow the counsel and advice of those in whom I have respect, I claim that I have the right so to do as a citizen and a free man.
I trust that the spirit of charity will manifest itself in our souls and that we will be willing to allow unto others those privileges and rights that we ask for ourselves; that we may in very truth be worthy of the measure of liberty which belongs to the Church of Jesus Christ, for if it be what it professes to be, the repository of truth, there must be in it the elements of true liberty and not that false freedom of the spurious kind which is being put forth in an unceasing stream from the devil's factories. We have to scrutinize very carefully the goods that are offered in the markets today lest we be deceived. I rejoice in the fact that this people stand for the Constitution of the nation and I call to mind that the declaration of the people to that effect was made in a very early day and was reiterated at a very critical time. It was just when the Overland Telegraph wire from the east was approaching the end of the wire that was coming from the west, for you know it was within the boundaries of this state that those two ends were joined and the nerve of steel that connected the east with the west was made complete. It was just at that time that the great unpleasantness was at its height between the North and the South, when brother was rising against brother, and it was rumored that Utah had seceded from the Union, or, as represented by some, Utah was to become a separate and independent government, the seat of a separate power, and that in addition to a North and a South, which had already been declared, there was to be a West also. You know the first message that was sent through that metallic nerve, went from the West to Washington, from Brigham Young to the President of the United States and this was the purport of the message, "Utah has not seceded but is firm for the Constitution and laws of our country." That declaration has never been changed; it is as true in its application today as it was when it was flashed as the initial message across the overland telegraph wire. We stand for the Constitution and do not believe in any false notions of advancement and enlightenment and progressivism such as seeks to undermine that foundation of our liberties, for as a document we know that it was inspired and we believe that the men who framed it were raised up, as truly as was ever prophet raised up in Israel in ancient or modern times, to frame that instrument and thereby provide for the fulfilment of prophetic utterances regarding the freedom and the liberty that should prevail in this choice land. I am pleased to add my testimony to the many to which you have listened. The testimony which I bear to you is one of knowledge and assurance beyond doubt, that God has spoken in this, the dispensation of the fulness of times, and does speak today as of old through His servants, the prophets; that in very truth Christ the Redeemer of mankind lives and that His coming is near at hand. The cry is given today as in the wilderness of old, "The kingdom of heaven is at hand, therefore repent." May the spirit of earnestness, devotion, integrity, freedom, liberty ever prevail among the Latter- day Saints, and throughout the length and breadth of the land occupied by this great nation, the nation of promise, I ask in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
AUTHORITIES SUSTAINED.
Elder James E. Talmage 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.
Charles W. Penrose, 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, George F. Richards, Orson F. Whitney, David O. McKay, Anthony W. Ivins, Joseph F. Smith, Jr., and James E. Talmage.
Hyrum G. Smith, as Presiding Patriarch of the Church.
The counselors in the First Presidency, 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, Priscilla P. Jennings, Elizabeth S. Wilcox, Rebecca N. Nibley, Elizabeth C. McCune, Susa Young Gates, Edna May Davis, Sarah McLelland. Elizabeth C. Crismon, and Jennie A. Hyde. Lizzie T. Edward, musical director; Edna H. Coray, organist.
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. LTre, John F. Bennett, John M. Mills, William D. Owen, Seymour B. Young, George D. Pyper, Anthon H. Lund, George M. Cannon, James E. Talmage, Horace H. Cummings, Josiah Burrows, William A. Morton. Horace S. Ensign, Henry H. Rolapp, Harold G. Reynolds, Charles B. Felt, George H. Wallace, Howard R. Driggs, Robert L. McGhie. Sylvester D. Bradford, Nathan T. Porter, Milton Bennion, Charles W. Penrose. Edwin S. Woolley. Jr., and Hyrum G. Smith.
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, J Golden Kimball. Junius F. Wells. George H. Brimhall, Edward H. Anderson, Thomas Hull, Willard Done, LeRoi C. Snow, Rudger Clawson. Rulon S. Wells, Joseph W. McMurrin, Bryant S. Hinckley, B. F. Grant, Hyrum M. Smith, Joseph F. Smith, Tr., Lewis T. Cannon. Benjmain Goddard, George 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, George F. Richards, Nephi Anderson. John H. Taylor, Charles W. Penrose, James E. Talmage, Hyrum G. Smith, Henry C. Lund, George J. Cannon, Frank W. Penrose, Nicholas G. Morgan, and Claude Richards.
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; Margaret Summerhays, musical director; Mattie Read Evans, organist; Elizabeth T. Sardoni, assistant organist. Aids: Maria Y. Dougall, 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, 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, Clarissa A. Beesley, Sarah E. Richards and Lucy M. Smith.
Members of the General Board of Primary Associations: Louie B. Felt, president; May Anderson, first counselor; Clara W. Beebe, second counselor; Frances K. Thomassen, secretary: Ida B. Smith, librarian; Isabelle .S. Ross, physical director; Ann Nebeker, assistant physical director; Emma Ramsey Morris, chorister; Ivy Allen, organist. Advisors to the Board: Hyrum M. Smith and George F. Richards. Aids: Lillie T. Freeze, Josephine R. West, Aurelia S. Rogers, L, L. Greene Richards. Camilla C, Cobb, Eliza S. Bennion, Margaret C. Hull, Edna H. Thomas, Alice L. Howarth, Emma Romney, Rebecca N. Whitney, Zina Y. Card, Amy Lyman, Laura Foster, Edith Hunter. Erma Bitner, and Myrtle B. Shurtliff.
General Board of Religion Classes: Anthon H. Lund, superintendent; Rudger Clawson, first assistant superintendent; Hyrum M. Smith, second assistant superintendent; Edwin S. Sheets, secretary. Members of the Board: 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, 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. Penrose, 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 James E. Talmage 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.
Charles W. Penrose, 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, George F. Richards, Orson F. Whitney, David O. McKay, Anthony W. Ivins, Joseph F. Smith, Jr., and James E. Talmage.
Hyrum G. Smith, as Presiding Patriarch of the Church.
The counselors in the First Presidency, 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, Priscilla P. Jennings, Elizabeth S. Wilcox, Rebecca N. Nibley, Elizabeth C. McCune, Susa Young Gates, Edna May Davis, Sarah McLelland. Elizabeth C. Crismon, and Jennie A. Hyde. Lizzie T. Edward, musical director; Edna H. Coray, organist.
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. LTre, John F. Bennett, John M. Mills, William D. Owen, Seymour B. Young, George D. Pyper, Anthon H. Lund, George M. Cannon, James E. Talmage, Horace H. Cummings, Josiah Burrows, William A. Morton. Horace S. Ensign, Henry H. Rolapp, Harold G. Reynolds, Charles B. Felt, George H. Wallace, Howard R. Driggs, Robert L. McGhie. Sylvester D. Bradford, Nathan T. Porter, Milton Bennion, Charles W. Penrose. Edwin S. Woolley. Jr., and Hyrum G. Smith.
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, J Golden Kimball. Junius F. Wells. George H. Brimhall, Edward H. Anderson, Thomas Hull, Willard Done, LeRoi C. Snow, Rudger Clawson. Rulon S. Wells, Joseph W. McMurrin, Bryant S. Hinckley, B. F. Grant, Hyrum M. Smith, Joseph F. Smith, Tr., Lewis T. Cannon. Benjmain Goddard, George 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, George F. Richards, Nephi Anderson. John H. Taylor, Charles W. Penrose, James E. Talmage, Hyrum G. Smith, Henry C. Lund, George J. Cannon, Frank W. Penrose, Nicholas G. Morgan, and Claude Richards.
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; Margaret Summerhays, musical director; Mattie Read Evans, organist; Elizabeth T. Sardoni, assistant organist. Aids: Maria Y. Dougall, 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, 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, Clarissa A. Beesley, Sarah E. Richards and Lucy M. Smith.
Members of the General Board of Primary Associations: Louie B. Felt, president; May Anderson, first counselor; Clara W. Beebe, second counselor; Frances K. Thomassen, secretary: Ida B. Smith, librarian; Isabelle .S. Ross, physical director; Ann Nebeker, assistant physical director; Emma Ramsey Morris, chorister; Ivy Allen, organist. Advisors to the Board: Hyrum M. Smith and George F. Richards. Aids: Lillie T. Freeze, Josephine R. West, Aurelia S. Rogers, L, L. Greene Richards. Camilla C, Cobb, Eliza S. Bennion, Margaret C. Hull, Edna H. Thomas, Alice L. Howarth, Emma Romney, Rebecca N. Whitney, Zina Y. Card, Amy Lyman, Laura Foster, Edith Hunter. Erma Bitner, and Myrtle B. Shurtliff.
General Board of Religion Classes: Anthon H. Lund, superintendent; Rudger Clawson, first assistant superintendent; Hyrum M. Smith, second assistant superintendent; Edwin S. Sheets, secretary. Members of the Board: 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, 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. Penrose, 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.
Counsel to men and women holding responsible positions.—Indecent fashions in dress denounced.—Leaders should be examples of righteousness.—Missionaries who have died during last nine months.—Caution against being over-zealous.—Blessings invoked upon all good people.
I desire to thank the good brethren and sisters who have attended this conference, and if the time would permit, without interfering too much with your desire to return to your homes, I would like to make a simple suggestion or two to our Relief Societies, to our Young Women's Mutual Improvement Associations, Primary Associations, and our Sunday School, and Religion Class teachers, the presidents of stakes and their counselors, and the high counselors throughout Zion, and the bishops and counselors, and ward teachers throughout the Church, that they set their faces like flint against every spirit of apostasy, every kind of evil, intemperance, the violation of the Sabbath day; and hold in reverence that which is sacred in the eyes of the Lord, and should be held sacred by all Latter-day Saints; to hold sacred also all and every divine and human right; to do unto all men as we would that they should do unto us, and set an example, as members of the Church that will be worthy of emulation by all men and women in the world. I want to say to our Relief Societies, our Young Ladies' Mutual Improvement Associations and' our Primary Associations that I desire and sincerely hope they will set their faces like flint against every immoral thing, including the prevailing habit of card-playing, of unbecoming fashions in dressing, of indecent exposure of the human form divine to the lecherous gaze of men; that they clothe themselves in decency, both in public and in private, and that they keep sacred those things which have been conferred upon them in holy places. I ask this, and I would suggest to our Relief Societies, Young Ladies' Improvement Associations, and Primary Associations, that when you find members of your boards indulging in things which are not right, call them to order, admonish them; be gentle and kind, of course, and forbearing and patient; but unless they will conform to the rules of these associations to give out a moral and wholesome influence to the young people of Israel, let them be dropped and others who will be more exemplary chosen and put in their places. I expect that my sisters will listen to this counsel, for it is not mine; it is the counsel of the spirit and letter of the word of God as we have it in the divine records; it is God's will, and those who are entrusted with these important duties in the Church should be vigilant in guarding the welfare, the happiness, and good name and character of the daughters of Zion. I want presidents of stakes and their counselors to so live their religion that they can say, consistently, to the people of their stakes, "Come and follow me." I desire that the bishops in all the wards will set an example before their people that they will feel proud to emulate; and that when a man having authority in the Church stands up to teach his people that the people will know, "He practises what he preaches; and, therefore, his example and precepts are in force." We would like this: and we hope that you will honor the Sabbath day and keep it holy, that you will reverence the authority of the Priesthood, and magnify it by good works; that you will observe the covenants you have entered into in sacred places and keep them inviolate; that you will be Latter-day Saints in very deed; that you may be indeed the light of the world, that is not and cannot be hidden under a bushel, nor in some dark corner, and the salt of the earth. We are coming out in full sight of the world. The eye of God, and the eye of man, is upon this people. We cannot hide ourselves from them. It behooves us to speak right, to think right, to do right, and to work righteousness in every capacity in which we are called to act, in private and in public, that it may be said of us, "They are worthy of their standing and name, as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the highest honor that can be given to man.
We regret exceedingly that our beloved brother, George F. Richards, is prostrate on a bed of sickness, and has not, therefore, been able to attend this conference. We invoke the faith and prayers of the Saints in his behalf, that he may speedily recover and resume his duties as an apostle of Jesus Christ.
I will try not to take any more of your time than I can not help. I would like to mention the names, here, of some of our missionaries who have fallen in the mission field within the last six months, or since January 1, 1912:
Elder Mons P. Larson, of Spring City, died in the New Zealand mission, April 26, 1912, of typhoid fever;
John Leonard Hill, of Mapleton, Utah, killed by a train, at Dickson, West Virginia, January 8, 1912;
Nephi Robert Olsen, of Lovell, Wyoming, died in the Swedish mission, February 13, 1912;
George O. Blake, of the twenty-second ward, this city, died at Hamburg, Germany, April 18, 1912, of typhoid fever;
Joseph W. Maynes, of Waterloo ward, this city, died in the British mission, June 16, 1912, of heart failure;
Thomas J. Cove, of Thatcher, Arizona, drowned in Buchannan, Georgia, Southern States Mission, July 4th, this year;
Royal P. Oldham, of Paradise, Utah, drowned, at Charleston, West Virginia, October 2d, this month.
I am sorry to say it, but if these two boys, recently drowned, had kept away from those rivers, where they had no special duty, or calling, they would not have been drowned as they were. I would like it to be understood by the presidents of missions, and by the elders, that are out in the world, that it is not a good thing, neither is it at all wise for our elders to go out on excursions, on dangerous lakes, or streams, or bodies of water, just for fun. They had better keep away. The Lord will protect them in the discharge of their duty; and if they are more careful of their health, there will not be so many of them become a prey to disease. We know of some of the incidents that were the cause of the death of some of our brethren who have passed away in the mission field. They lacked caution. They did not exercise the best wisdom and judgment. They went too far for their strength, and were not as careful of themselves as they ought to have been. I do not speak this to blame these brethren. I have not the least doubt but they have done according to the best wisdom they possessed; but there is such a thing as overdoing. A man may fast and pray till he kills himself; and there isn't any necessity for it; nor wisdom in it. I say to my brethren, when they are fasting, and praying for the sick, and for those that need faith and prayer, do not go beyond what is wise and prudent in fasting and prayer. The Lord can hear a simple prayer, offered in faith, in half a dozen words, and he will recognize fasting that may not continue more than twenty-four hours, just as readily and as effectually as He will answer a prayer of a thousand words and fasting for a month. Now, remember it. I have in mind elders now on missions, anxious to excel their associates, each wants to get the most "red marks'' of credit, and so he will exert himself beyond his strength; and it is unwise to do it. The Lord will accept that which is enough, with a good deal more pleasure and satisfaction than that which is too much and unnecessary. It is good to be earnest, good to be diligent, to persevere, and to be faithful all the time, but we may go to extremes in these things; when we do not need to. The Word of Wisdom dictates that when we become weary we should stop and rest. When we are threatened with exhaustion, through overexertion, wisdom would caution us to wait, to stop; not to take a stimulant to urge us on to greater extremes, go where we can retire and rest and recuperate according to the laws of nature. That is the best way to do.
Now, I do not blame my dear brethren who have met with death abroad; yet, I wish that they could and would escape it.
(Notice respecting German meeting read by the President, after which he spoke as follows:)
I sincerely hope and pray that my German brethren and sisters will maintain the spirit of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, in humility, and faith, that it will help them to keep in good standing before the Lord, despite the efforts of some of their brethren to mislead them from the truth.
I thank God for our conference, for the good words that have been spoken, and for the honor that has been shown the cause of truth and the presiding authorities of the Church, on the part of the people who have attended; the good spirit that has pervaded our meetings, the joy that we have felt in looking upon your faces, and the pleasure that I trust you have also felt in being present during the conference. God bless this people and all the good of the earth, and overrule all the acts of men to praise Him and to ultimately bring to pass glorious results and His righteous will, is my prayer, in the name of Jesus. Amen.
An anthem, "The nations bow to Satan's thrall," words by John Nicholson and music by Joseph J. Daynes, was sung by Mrs. Delia Daynes Hills and the choir.
Benediction was pronounced by Presiding Bishop Charles W. Nibley.
Conference adjourned for six months.
Prof. Evan Stephens conducted the singing of the choir and congregation at 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.
Duncan M. McAllister,
Clerk of Conference.
CLOSING REMARKS.
Counsel to men and women holding responsible positions.—Indecent fashions in dress denounced.—Leaders should be examples of righteousness.—Missionaries who have died during last nine months.—Caution against being over-zealous.—Blessings invoked upon all good people.
I desire to thank the good brethren and sisters who have attended this conference, and if the time would permit, without interfering too much with your desire to return to your homes, I would like to make a simple suggestion or two to our Relief Societies, to our Young Women's Mutual Improvement Associations, Primary Associations, and our Sunday School, and Religion Class teachers, the presidents of stakes and their counselors, and the high counselors throughout Zion, and the bishops and counselors, and ward teachers throughout the Church, that they set their faces like flint against every spirit of apostasy, every kind of evil, intemperance, the violation of the Sabbath day; and hold in reverence that which is sacred in the eyes of the Lord, and should be held sacred by all Latter-day Saints; to hold sacred also all and every divine and human right; to do unto all men as we would that they should do unto us, and set an example, as members of the Church that will be worthy of emulation by all men and women in the world. I want to say to our Relief Societies, our Young Ladies' Mutual Improvement Associations and' our Primary Associations that I desire and sincerely hope they will set their faces like flint against every immoral thing, including the prevailing habit of card-playing, of unbecoming fashions in dressing, of indecent exposure of the human form divine to the lecherous gaze of men; that they clothe themselves in decency, both in public and in private, and that they keep sacred those things which have been conferred upon them in holy places. I ask this, and I would suggest to our Relief Societies, Young Ladies' Improvement Associations, and Primary Associations, that when you find members of your boards indulging in things which are not right, call them to order, admonish them; be gentle and kind, of course, and forbearing and patient; but unless they will conform to the rules of these associations to give out a moral and wholesome influence to the young people of Israel, let them be dropped and others who will be more exemplary chosen and put in their places. I expect that my sisters will listen to this counsel, for it is not mine; it is the counsel of the spirit and letter of the word of God as we have it in the divine records; it is God's will, and those who are entrusted with these important duties in the Church should be vigilant in guarding the welfare, the happiness, and good name and character of the daughters of Zion. I want presidents of stakes and their counselors to so live their religion that they can say, consistently, to the people of their stakes, "Come and follow me." I desire that the bishops in all the wards will set an example before their people that they will feel proud to emulate; and that when a man having authority in the Church stands up to teach his people that the people will know, "He practises what he preaches; and, therefore, his example and precepts are in force." We would like this: and we hope that you will honor the Sabbath day and keep it holy, that you will reverence the authority of the Priesthood, and magnify it by good works; that you will observe the covenants you have entered into in sacred places and keep them inviolate; that you will be Latter-day Saints in very deed; that you may be indeed the light of the world, that is not and cannot be hidden under a bushel, nor in some dark corner, and the salt of the earth. We are coming out in full sight of the world. The eye of God, and the eye of man, is upon this people. We cannot hide ourselves from them. It behooves us to speak right, to think right, to do right, and to work righteousness in every capacity in which we are called to act, in private and in public, that it may be said of us, "They are worthy of their standing and name, as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the highest honor that can be given to man.
We regret exceedingly that our beloved brother, George F. Richards, is prostrate on a bed of sickness, and has not, therefore, been able to attend this conference. We invoke the faith and prayers of the Saints in his behalf, that he may speedily recover and resume his duties as an apostle of Jesus Christ.
I will try not to take any more of your time than I can not help. I would like to mention the names, here, of some of our missionaries who have fallen in the mission field within the last six months, or since January 1, 1912:
Elder Mons P. Larson, of Spring City, died in the New Zealand mission, April 26, 1912, of typhoid fever;
John Leonard Hill, of Mapleton, Utah, killed by a train, at Dickson, West Virginia, January 8, 1912;
Nephi Robert Olsen, of Lovell, Wyoming, died in the Swedish mission, February 13, 1912;
George O. Blake, of the twenty-second ward, this city, died at Hamburg, Germany, April 18, 1912, of typhoid fever;
Joseph W. Maynes, of Waterloo ward, this city, died in the British mission, June 16, 1912, of heart failure;
Thomas J. Cove, of Thatcher, Arizona, drowned in Buchannan, Georgia, Southern States Mission, July 4th, this year;
Royal P. Oldham, of Paradise, Utah, drowned, at Charleston, West Virginia, October 2d, this month.
I am sorry to say it, but if these two boys, recently drowned, had kept away from those rivers, where they had no special duty, or calling, they would not have been drowned as they were. I would like it to be understood by the presidents of missions, and by the elders, that are out in the world, that it is not a good thing, neither is it at all wise for our elders to go out on excursions, on dangerous lakes, or streams, or bodies of water, just for fun. They had better keep away. The Lord will protect them in the discharge of their duty; and if they are more careful of their health, there will not be so many of them become a prey to disease. We know of some of the incidents that were the cause of the death of some of our brethren who have passed away in the mission field. They lacked caution. They did not exercise the best wisdom and judgment. They went too far for their strength, and were not as careful of themselves as they ought to have been. I do not speak this to blame these brethren. I have not the least doubt but they have done according to the best wisdom they possessed; but there is such a thing as overdoing. A man may fast and pray till he kills himself; and there isn't any necessity for it; nor wisdom in it. I say to my brethren, when they are fasting, and praying for the sick, and for those that need faith and prayer, do not go beyond what is wise and prudent in fasting and prayer. The Lord can hear a simple prayer, offered in faith, in half a dozen words, and he will recognize fasting that may not continue more than twenty-four hours, just as readily and as effectually as He will answer a prayer of a thousand words and fasting for a month. Now, remember it. I have in mind elders now on missions, anxious to excel their associates, each wants to get the most "red marks'' of credit, and so he will exert himself beyond his strength; and it is unwise to do it. The Lord will accept that which is enough, with a good deal more pleasure and satisfaction than that which is too much and unnecessary. It is good to be earnest, good to be diligent, to persevere, and to be faithful all the time, but we may go to extremes in these things; when we do not need to. The Word of Wisdom dictates that when we become weary we should stop and rest. When we are threatened with exhaustion, through overexertion, wisdom would caution us to wait, to stop; not to take a stimulant to urge us on to greater extremes, go where we can retire and rest and recuperate according to the laws of nature. That is the best way to do.
Now, I do not blame my dear brethren who have met with death abroad; yet, I wish that they could and would escape it.
(Notice respecting German meeting read by the President, after which he spoke as follows:)
I sincerely hope and pray that my German brethren and sisters will maintain the spirit of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, in humility, and faith, that it will help them to keep in good standing before the Lord, despite the efforts of some of their brethren to mislead them from the truth.
I thank God for our conference, for the good words that have been spoken, and for the honor that has been shown the cause of truth and the presiding authorities of the Church, on the part of the people who have attended; the good spirit that has pervaded our meetings, the joy that we have felt in looking upon your faces, and the pleasure that I trust you have also felt in being present during the conference. God bless this people and all the good of the earth, and overrule all the acts of men to praise Him and to ultimately bring to pass glorious results and His righteous will, is my prayer, in the name of Jesus. Amen.
An anthem, "The nations bow to Satan's thrall," words by John Nicholson and music by Joseph J. Daynes, was sung by Mrs. Delia Daynes Hills and the choir.
Benediction was pronounced by Presiding Bishop Charles W. Nibley.
Conference adjourned for six months.
Prof. Evan Stephens conducted the singing of the choir and congregation at 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.
Duncan M. McAllister,
Clerk of Conference.