Journal of Discourses

Volume 6

Delivered by President Brigham Young,

His Two Counsellors, the Twelve Apostles, and Others.

Reported by G. D. Watt, J. V. Long, and Others, and Humbly Dedicated to the Latter-day Saints in All the World

Liverpool: Edited and Published by Asa Calkin, 42, Islington.
London: Latter-day Saints’ Book Depot, 35, Jewin Street, City.

1859

Journal of Discourses, Volume 6. Kindle edition published August 2010 by Ben Crowder. Updated October 2011.

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Table of Contents

Original page numbers are in parentheses.

- Preface

- Character and Being of God — Creation — Salvation of the Dead — The Unpardonable Sin — Resurrection — Baptism of the Spirit, Etc., by Joseph Smith (1–11)

- The Work of Reformation — The United States’ Army — Labours of “Mormon” Missionaries — Judgments of God, Etc., by Orson Hyde (11–18)

- “The Kingdom of God or Nothing”, by John Taylor (18–27)

- Truth, Life, and Light — God Acts Through Agents — Obedience Produces Knowledge, Which Supersedes Faith — The Spirit of Man — Revelation and Obedience Thereto, Etc., by Heber C. Kimball (28–38)

- Source of True Happiness — Prayer, Etc., by Brigham Young (39–47)

- Injustice of the United States Government Towards the Saints, Etc., by Orson Hyde (47–50)

- Shedding Blood — God’s Provision for His Saints, by Heber C. Kimball (50–52)

- Opposition to the Gospel and the Work of God — Honesty, Etc., by Orson Hyde (53–60)

- Opposition to “Mormonism,” Etc., by George A. Smith (60–62)

- Faith and Works — Submission to Authority — The Lord’s Provision for His Saints, Etc., by Heber C. Kimball (63–69)

- Neglect of Sunday Meetings — The Saints Gathered From the Common Classes of Society — Dishonesty, Etc., by Brigham Young (69–77)

- Unity, Etc., by Amasa Lyman (78–83)

- Knowledge Obtained From History, by George A. Smith (84–88)

- Opposition of State Governments to the Saints, Etc., by Erastus Snow (89–92)

- Attention and Reflection Necessary to An Increase of Knowledge — Self-Control — Unity of the Godhead and of the People of God, by Brigham Young (93–101)

- Unison — Light of the Spirit — Capabilities of the Saints to Provide for Their Own Wants, Etc., by Heber C. Kimball (101–105)

- The Saints’ Need of the Spirit — The Priesthood — Vitality and Growth of the Work of God — Accomplishment of God’s Purposes and Designs, Etc., by John Taylor (105–114)

- Blessings of the Saints — Condemnatory State and Conduct of the Christian World, Etc., by Wilford Woodruff (115–121)

- Advancement in Gospel Principles — Order, Unity, and Authority of the Priesthood, Etc., by Heber C. Kimball (122–129)

- Enmity of Sectarian Priests Towards the Saints — Economy — Home Manufactures, Etc., by Heber C. Kimball (130–135)

- Blessings of the Saints, Etc., by Wilford Woodruff (136–142)

- Providence — Ignorance of Sectarian Priests — Free Agency — Recreation, Etc., by Brigham Young (143–149)

- Self-Government — Constitution of the United States — Church Government, Etc., by Orson Hyde (150–158)

- True Government, Union, and Progress — The Priesthood the Channel of Divine Revelation, by George A. Smith (159–162)

- Blessings of the Saints — Hindrances to Progress — Object and Benefit of Trials — Acknowledgment of God’s Hand, Spirit, and Priesthood, etc., by John Taylor (162–169)

- Judgment According to Works — Temporal Nature of Divine Revelations — Temporal Resources and Duties of the Saints, Etc., by Brigham Young (169–176)

- Mission to England — Reminiscences, Etc., by Ezra T. Benson (177–184)

- Increase in Saving Principles — Dedication — Home Produce and Manufacture, Etc., by Heber C. Kimball (185–193)

- Idolatry, &c., by Brigham Young (193–199)

- Testimony of God’s Servants Faithfully Borne to the Nations — Gentile Opposition — Judgments of God — Redemption of Zion, by Orson Pratt (199–206)

- Happy Prospects of the Saints — Persecution — Union, Etc., by Joseph Young (206–210)

- The Religion of the Saints and Its Rejection By the World — Training of Children — Home Manufactures, by Lorenzo D. Young (211–214)

- The Prosperity of the Saints Dependent Upon Their Being Right Before God — Prayer and Watchfulness, Etc., by Isaac Morley (214–215)

- Blessings of Obedience, Etc., by Daniel Spencer (216–218)

- Personal Feelings and Experiences, Etc., by Elias Smith (218–221)

- The Lord’s Providential Care and Protection of His People — Fulfilment of Prophecy, Etc., by Lorenzo D. Young (222–226)

- Unpopularity of “Mormonism” — Redemption of the Dead, Etc., by Joseph Young (226–229)

- Testimony to the Truth — The True Yoke or Christ — Modern Prophets — The World versus the Church, Etc., by John Young (230–234)

- Past and Present History of the Church — Trust in the Lord and His Priesthood, Etc., by Lorenzo D. Young (235–237)

- The Priesthood — The Second Advent — The Gathering — Spiritual Ministrations and Manifestations, by Joseph Smith (237–240)

- Personal Interest in the Kingdom of God — Endowments — Hints to Preachers, Etc., by Joseph Young (241–247)

- Liberty, Reform, Etc., by Ezra T. Benson (247–249)

- Education, by P. P. Pratt (250–253)

- Apostacy, &c., by Jedediah M. Grant (253–254)

- Instructions and Counsel to Departing Missionaries, by Heber C. Kimball (255–256)

- Responsibilities of the Priesthood, by George A. Smith (257–258)

- Condition of the World, &c., by John Taylor (258–261)

- Address to Departing Missionaries, by Ezra T. Benson (261–266)

- Building Up the Kingdom of God — How to Treat Immigrant Saints, Etc., by Brigham Young (266–270)

- Departure of Missionaries Without Purse or Scrip — Blessings of the Lord Upon His Faithful Servants, by Orson Pratt (270–272)

- Necessity of the Servants of God Being Pure in Heart and in Deed — Dependence on the Holy Spirit — Celestial Exaltations, Etc., by Brigham Young (273–277)

- The Sacrament — The Sabbath — Sectarian Opposition to the Doctrines and Ordinances of the Gospel, Etc., by Brigham Young (277–283)

- Extensive Character of the Gospel — Comprehensiveness of Divine Revelation, Etc., by Brigham Young (283–298)

- Dedication Prayer, by Willard Richards (298–306)

- Heirship, by Brigham Young (306–308)

- Heirship — Necessity of Adherence to the Instructions of the Priesthood — Counsel to Departing Missionaries, by Orson Hyde (309–314)

- The Lord at the Head of His Kingdom — Self-Discipline — Necessity of Cultivating a Knowledge of Science, and Particularly of Theology, Etc., by Brigham Young (314–322)

- Discernment — Importance and Necessity of Being Tested — Honesty of Conduct — Faithfulness — Discipline, Etc., by Heber C. Kimball (322–326)

- Proper Treatment of the Indians, Etc., by Brigham Young (327–329)

- Light and Influence of the Spirit — Power of Evil — Character of the Will, Etc., by Brigham Young (330–333)

- Parable of the Sower, Etc., by Orson Hyde (334–342)

- Human and Divine Government — the Latter-Day Kingdom, &c., by Brigham Young (342–349)

- Polygamy, by Orson Pratt (349–364)

- Celebration of the Fourth of July, by George A. Smith (364–367)

- Celebration of the Fourth of July, by Orson Hyde (367–371)

- Science of Grammar, Etc., by Orson Hyde (371–376)

Preface

In publishing the last two Volumes of the there have been more than ordinary difficulties to labour under. One of the effects of the wicked Expedition against the Saints in the Mountains was a suspension in the delivery of Discourses by the leading Elders of the Church. Nor was this all. As Jesus the Beloved Son was once left by his Father, that he might show forth the great integrity of his soul, so also it seemed at this time wisdom in the Father to leave his beloved Saints to manifest the vast integrity of their souls. Therefore the Lord and his Prophets and Apostles, for a moment, as it were, hid themselves and the voices of the Shepherds were not so often heard.

Of course, all this told upon the publication of the Journal of Discourses; for if there were no Discourses delivered, they could not be published; so that, to prevent the Journal from being discontinued, we were compelled to publish Sermons delivered in past years, Some of which had been already published in the Star. But although necessity compelled us thus to act, there are several good ends thereby reached. The Journal of Discourses will become a complete journal of all the Sermons delivered by the First Presidency and the Twelve. Besides this, in the Sixth Volume will be found published some of the choicest Sermons of the Prophet Brigham, and also many choice gems from others of the leading Shepherds of Israel. The Sixth Volume, therefore, cannot be other than a choice Volume to all its possessors, while many Saints have had the privilege of reading and possessing these gems of inspiration who were not in the Church when they were delivered.

We now respectfully offer to its readers the Sixth Volume of the Journal of Discourses. But we cannot close this Preface without expressing gratitude to our heavenly Father that the voices of the Shepherds of Israel are again heard, which gives us the prospect of publishing in the Seventh Volume many of their words of inspiration, power, and salvation.

THE PUBLISHER

Character and Being of God, etc.

Joseph Smith

A discourse, by President Joseph Smith, delivered at the Conference held near the Temple, in Nauvoo, April 6, 1844. Reported by W. Richards, W. Woodruff, T. Bullock, and W. Clayton.

Beloved Saints—I will call the attention of this congregation while I address you on the subject of the dead. The decease of our beloved brother, Elder King Follett, who was crushed in a well by the falling of a tub of rock, has more immediately led me to that subject. I have been requested to speak by his friends and relatives; but inasmuch as there are a great many in this congregation who live in this city, as well as elsewhere, who have lost friends, I feel disposed to speak on the subject in general, and offer you my ideas so far as I have ability and so far as I shall be inspired by the Holy Spirit to dwell on this subject.

I want your prayers and faith that I may have the instruction of Almighty God and the gift of the Holy Ghost, so that I may set forth things that are true and which can be easily comprehended by you, and that the testimony may carry conviction to your hearts and minds of the truth of what I shall say. Pray that the Lord may strengthen my lungs, stay the winds, and let the prayers of the Saints to heaven appear, that they may enter into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth; for the effectual prayers of the righteous avail much. There is strength here; and I verily believe that your prayers will be heard.

Before I enter fully into the investigation of the subject which is lying before me, I wish to pave the way and bring up the subject from the beginning, that you may understand it. I will make a few preliminaries, in order that you may understand the subject when I come to it. I do not calculate or intend to please your ears with superfluity of words, or oratory, or with much learning; but I calculate to edify you with the simple truths from heaven.

In the first place, I wish to go back to the beginning—to the morn of creation. There is the starting-point for us to look to, in order to understand and be fully acquainted with the mind, purposes, and decrees of the great Eloheim, who sits in yonder heavens as he did at the creation of this world. It is necessary for us to have an understanding of God himself in the beginning. If we start right, it is easy to go right all the time; but if we start wrong, we may go wrong, and it will be a hard matter to get right.

There are but a very few beings in the world who understand rightly the character of God. The great majority of mankind do not comprehend anything, either that which is past or that which is to come, as respects their relationship to God. They do not know, neither do they understand the nature of that relationship; and, consequently, they know but little above the brute beast, or more than to eat, drink, and sleep. This is all man knows about God or his existence, unless it is given by the inspiration of the Almighty.

If a man learns nothing more than to eat, drink, and sleep, and does not comprehend any of the designs of God, the beast comprehends the same thing. It eats, drinks, sleeps, and knows nothing more about God: yet it knows as much as we, unless we are able to comprehend by the inspiration of Almighty God. If men do not comprehend the character of God they do not comprehend themselves. I want to go back to the beginning, and so lift your minds into a more lofty sphere and a more exalted understanding than what the human mind generally aspires to.

I want to ask this congregation—every man, woman, and child, to answer the question in their own heart, what kind of a being God is? Ask yourselves; turn your thoughts into your hearts, and say if any of you have seen, heard, or communed with him. This is a question that may occupy your attention for a long, time. I again repeat the question—What kind of a being is God? Does any man or woman know? Have any of you seen him, heard him, or communed with him? Here is the question that will peradventure from this time henceforth occupy your attention. The Scriptures inform us that “This is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent.”

If any man does not know God, and inquires what kind of a being he is—if he will search diligently his own heart—if the declarations of Jesus and the Apostles be true—he will realize that he has not eternal life; for there can be eternal life on no other principle.

My first object is to find out the character of the only wise and true God, and what kind of a being he is; and if I am so fortunate as to be the man to comprehend God, and explain or convey the principles to your hearts, so that the Spirit seals them upon you, then let every man and woman henceforth sit in silence, put their hands on their mouths, and never lift their hands or voices or say anything against the man of God or the servants of God again. But if I fail to do it, it becomes my duty to renounce all further pretensions to revelations, inspirations, or to be a Prophet; and I should be like the rest of the world—a false teacher, be hailed as a friend, and no man would seek my life. But if all religious teachers were honest enough to renounce their pretensions to godliness, when their ignorance of the knowledge of God is made manifest, they will all be as badly off as I am, at any rate; and you might just as well take the lives of other false teachers as that of mine, if I am false. If any man is authorized to take away my life because he thinks and says I am a false teacher, then, upon the same principle, we should be justified in taking away the life of every false teacher; and where would be the end of blood? and who would not be the sufferer?

But meddle not with any man for his religion; and all governments ought to permit every man to enjoy his religion unmolested. No man is authorized to take away life in consequence of difference of religion, which all laws and governments ought to tolerate and protect, right or wrong. Every man has a natural and, in our country, a constitutional right to be a false prophet as well as a true prophet. If I show, verily, that I have the truth of God, and show that ninety-nine out of every hundred professing religious ministers are false teachers, having no authority, while they pretend to hold the keys of God’s kingdom on earth, and was to kill them because they are false teachers, it would deluge the whole world with blood.

I will prove that the world is wrong, by showing what God is. I am going to inquire after God; for I want you all to know him and to be familiar with him; and if I can bring you to a knowledge of him, all persecutions against me ought to cease. You will then know that I am his servant; for I speak as one having authority.

I will go back to the beginning, before the world was, to show what kind of a being God is. What sort of a being was God in the beginning? Open your ears and hear, all ye ends of the earth; for I am going to prove it to you by the Bible, and to tell you the designs of God in relation to the human race, and why he interferes with the affairs of man.

God himself was once as we are now, and is an exalted Man, and sits enthroned in yonder heavens. That is the great secret. If the vail was rent to-day, and the great God who holds this world in its orbit, and who upholds all worlds and all things by his power, was to make himself visible—I say, if you were to see him to-day, you would see him like a man in form—like yourselves, in all the person, image, and very form as a man; for Adam was created in the very fashion, image, and likeness of God, and received instruction from, and walked, talked, and conversed with him, as one man talks and communes with another.

In order to understand the subject of the dead, for the consolation of those who mourn for the loss of their friends, it is necessary that we should understand the character and being of God, and how he came to be so; for I am going to tell you how God came to be God. We have imagined and supposed that God was God from all eternity, I will refute that idea, and will take away and do away the vail, so that you may see.

These are incomprehensible ideas to some; but they are simple. It is the first principle of the Gospel to know for a certainty the character of God and to know that we may converse with him as one man converses with another, and that he was once a man like us; yea, that God himself the Father of us all, dwelt on an earth, the same as Jesus Christ himself did; and I will show it from the Bible. I wish I was in a suitable place to tell it, and that I had the trump of an archangel, so that I could tell the story in such a manner that persecution would cease for ever. What did Jesus say? (Mark it, Elder Rigdon.) The Scriptures inform us that Jesus said, “As the Father hath power in himself, even so hath the Son power”—to do what? Why, what the Father did. The answer is obvious—in a manner, to lay down his body and take it up again. Jesus, what are you going to do? To lay down my life, as my Father did, and take it up again. Do you believe it? If you do not believe it, you do not believe the Bible. The Scriptures say it, and I defy all the learning and wisdom and all the combined powers of earth and hell together to refute it.

Here, then, is eternal life—to know the only wise and true God; and you have got to learn how to be Gods yourselves, and to be kings and priests to God, the same as all Gods have done before you—namely, by going from one small degree to another, and from a small capacity to a great one—from grace to grace, from exaltation to exaltation, until you attain to the resurrection of the dead and are able to dwell in everlasting burnings and to sit in glory, as do those who sit enthroned in everlasting power. And I want you to know that God, in the last days, while certain individuals are proclaiming his name, is not trifling with you or me.

These are the first principles of consolation. How consoling to the mourners, when they are called to part with a husband, wife, father, mother, child, or dear relative, to know that, although the earthly tabernacle is laid down and dissolved, they shall rise again, to dwell in everlasting burnings in immortal glory, not to sorrow, suffer, or die any more; but they shall be heirs of God and joint-heirs with Jesus Christ. What is it? To inherit the same power, the same glory, and the same exaltation, until you arrive at the station of a God and ascend the throne of eternal power, the same as those who have gone before. What did Jesus do? Why, I do the things I saw my Father do when worlds come rolling into existence. My Father worked out his kingdom with fear and trembling, and I must do the same; and when I get my kingdom, I shall present it to my Father, so that he may obtain kingdom upon kingdom, and it will exalt him in glory. He will then take a higher exaltation, and I will take his place, and thereby become exalted myself. So that Jesus treads in the track of his Father, and inherits what God did before; and God is thus glorified and exalted in the salvation and exaltation of all his children. It is plain beyond disputation; and you thus learn some of the first principles of the Gospel, about which so much hath been said.

When you climb a ladder, you must begin at the bottom, and ascend step by step until you arrive at the top; and so it is with the principles of the Gospel: you must begin with the first, and go on until you learn all the principles of exaltation. But it will be a great while after you have passed through the vail before you will have learned them. It is not all to be comprehended in this world: it will be a great work to learn our salvation and exaltation even beyond the grave. I suppose I am not allowed to go into an investigation of anything that is not contained in the Bible. If I did, I think there are so many over-wise men here, that they would cry “treason” and put me to death. So I will go to the old Bible and turn commentator to-day.

I shall comment on the very first Hebrew word in the Bible. I will make a comment on the very first sentence of the history of creation in the Bible—Berosheit. I want to analyze the word. Baith—in, by, through, and everything else. Rosh—the head. Sheit—grammatical termination. When the inspired man wrote it, he did not put the Baith there. An old Jew, without any authority, added the word. He thought it too bad to begin to talk about the head! It read first, “The head one of the Gods brought forth the Gods.” That is the true meaning of the words. Baurau signifies to bring forth. If you do not believe it, you do not believe the learned man of God. Learned men can teach you no more than what I have told you. Thus, the head God brought forth the Gods in the grand council.

I will transpose and simplify it in the English language. Oh, ye lawyers, ye doctors, and ye priests, who have persecuted me, I want to let you know that the Holy Ghost knows something as well as you do. The head God called together the Gods and sat in grand council to bring forth the world. The grand counsellors sat at the head in yonder heavens, and contemplated the creation of the worlds which were created at that time. When I say doctors and lawyers, I mean the doctors and lawyers of the Scriptures. I have done so hitherto without explanation, to let the lawyers flutter, and everybody laugh at them. Some learned doctor might take a notion to say the Scriptures say thus and so; and we must believe the Scriptures; they are not to be altered. But I am going to show you an error in them.

I have an old edition of the New Testament in the Hebrew, Latin, German, and Greek languages. I have been reading the German, and find it to be the most correct translation, and to correspond nearest to the revelations which God has given to me for the last fourteen years. It tells about Jachoboy, the son of Zebedee. It means Jacob. In the English New Testament it is translated James. Now, if Jacob had the keys, you might talk about James through all eternity, and never get the keys. In the 21st verse of the fourth chapter of Matthew, my old German edition gives the word Jacob instead of James.

The doctors (I mean doctors of law, not of physic,) say, “If you preach anything not according to the Bible, we will cry treason.” How can we escape the damnation of hell, except God be with us and reveal to us? Men bind us with chains. The Latin says Jachabod, which means Jacob; the Hebrew says Jacob, the Greek says Jacob, and the German says Jacob. Here we have the testimony of four against one. I thank God I have got this old book; but I thank him more for the gift of the Holy Ghost. I have got the oldest book in the world; but I have got the oldest book in my heart, even the gift of the Holy Ghost. I have all the four Testaments. Come here, ye learned men, and read, if you can. I should not have introduced this testimony, were it not to back up the word Rosh—the head, the father of the Gods. I should not have brought it up, only to show that I am right.

In the beginning, the head of the Gods called a council of the Gods; and they came together and concocted a plan to create the world and people it. When we begin to learn in this way, we begin to learn the only true God and what kind of a being we have got to worship. Having a knowledge of God, we begin to know how to approach him and how to ask so as to receive an answer.

When we understand the character of God and know how to come to him, he begins to unfold the heavens to us and to tell us all about it. When we are ready to come to him, he is ready to come to us.

Now, I ask all who hear me, why the learned men who are preaching salvation say that God created the heavens and the earth out of nothing? The reason is, that they are unlearned in the things of God and have not the gift of the Holy Ghost. They account it blasphemy in any one to contradict their idea. If you tell them that God made the world out of something, they will call you a fool. But I am learned, and know more than all the world put together. The Holy Ghost does, anyhow; and he is within me, and comprehends more than all the world; and I will associate myself with him.

You ask the learned doctors why they say the world was made out of nothing; and they will answer, “Don’t the Bible say he created the world?” And they infer, from the word create, that it must have been made out of nothing. Now, the word create came from the word baurau, which does not mean to create out of nothing; it means to organize—the same as a man would organize materials and build a ship. Hence we infer that God had materials to organize the world out of chaos—chaotic matter, which is element, and in which dwells all the glory. Element had an existence from the time He had. The pure principles of element are principles which can never be destroyed: they may be organized and reorganized, but not destroyed. They had no beginning, and can have no end.

I have another subject to dwell upon, which is calculated to exalt man. But it is impossible for me to say much on this subject. I shall, therefore, just touch upon it; for time will not permit me to say all. It is associated with the subject of the resurrection of the dead—namely, the soul, the mind of man, the immortal spirit. Where did it come from? All learned men and doctors of divinity say that God created it in the beginning. But it is not so. The very idea lessens man in my estimation. I do not believe the doctrine. I know better. Hear it, all ye ends of the world; for God has told me so; and if you don’t believe me, it will not make the truth without effect. I will make a man appear a fool before I get through, if he does not believe it. I am going to tell of things more noble.

We say that God himself is a self-existent being. Who told you so? It is correct enough; but how did it get into your heads? Who told you that man did not exist in like manner upon the same principle? Man does exist upon the same principles. God made a tabernacle and put a spirit into it, and it became a living soul. [Referred to the old Bible.] How does it read in the Hebrew? It does not say in the Hebrew that God created the spirit of man. It says, “God made man out of the earth, and put into him Adam’s spirit, and so became a living body.”

The mind or the intelligence which man possesses is coequal with God himself. I know that my testimony is true; hence, when I talk to these mourners, what have they lost? Their relatives and friends are only separated from their bodies for a short season: their spirits which existed with God have left the tabernacle of clay only for a little moment, as it were; and they now exist in a place where they converse together the same as we do on the earth.

I am dwelling on the immortality of the spirit of man. Is it logical to say that the intelligence of spirits is immortal, and yet that it had a beginning? The intelligence of spirits had no beginning, neither will it have an end. That is good logic. That which has a beginning may have an end. There never was a time when there were not spirits; for they are co-equal with our Father in heaven.

I want to reason more on the spirit of man; for I am dwelling on the body and spirit of man—on the subject of the dead. I take my ring from my finger and liken it unto the mind of man—the immortal part, because it has no beginning. Suppose you cut it in two, then it has a beginning and an end; but join it again, and it continues one eternal round. So with the spirit of man. As the Lord liveth, if it had a beginning it will have an end. All the fools and learned and wise men from the beginning of creation, who say that the spirit of man had a beginning, prove that it must have an end; and if that doctrine is true, then the doctrine of annihilation would be true. But if I am right, I might with boldness proclaim from the housetops that God never had the power to create the spirit of man at all. God himself could not create himself.

Intelligence is eternal and exists upon a self-existent principle. It is a spirit from age to age, and there is no creation about it. All the minds and spirits that God ever sent into the world are susceptible of enlargement.

The first principles of man are self-existent with God. God himself, finding he was in the midst of spirits and glory, because he was more intelligent, saw proper to institute laws whereby the rest could have a privilege to advance like himself. The relationship we have with God places us in a situation to advance in knowledge. He has power to institute laws to instruct the weaker intelligences, that they may be exalted with himself, so that they might have one glory upon another, and all that knowledge, power, glory, and intelligence which is requisite in order to save them in the world of spirits.

This is good doctrine. It tastes good. I can taste the principles of eternal life, and so can you. They are given to me by the revelations of Jesus Christ; and I know that when I tell you these words of eternal life as they are given to me, you taste them, and I know you believe them. You say honey is sweet, and so do I. I can also taste the spirit of eternal life. I know it is good; and when I tell you of these things which were given me by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, you are bound to receive them as sweet, and I rejoice more and more.

I want to talk more of the relation of man to God. I will open your eyes in relation to your dead. All things whatsoever God of his infinite wisdom has seen fit and proper to reveal to us, while we are dwelling in mortality, in regard to our mortal bodies, are revealed to us in the abstract and independent of affinity of this mortal tabernacle; but are revealed to our spirits precisely as though we had no bodies at all; and those revelations which will save our spirits will save our bodies. God reveals them to us in view of no eternal dissolution of the body, or tabernacle. Hence the responsibility—the awful responsibility that rests upon us in relation to our dead; for all the spirits who have not obeyed the Gospel in the flesh must either obey it in the spirit or be damned. Solemn thought!—dreadful thought! Is there nothing to be done? No preparation—no salvation for our fathers and friends who have died without having had the opportunity to obey the decrees of the Son of Man? Would to God that I had forty days and nights in which to tell you all! I would let you know that I am not a “fallen prophet.”

What promises are made in relation to the subject of the salvation of the dead? and what kind of characters are those who can be saved, although their bodies are mouldering and decaying in the grave? When his commandments teach us, it is in view of eternity; for we are looked upon by God as though we were in eternity. God dwells in eternity, and does not view things as we do.

The greatest responsibility in this world that God has laid upon us is to seek after our dead. The Apostle says, “They without us cannot be made perfect;” for it is necessary that the sealing power should be in our hands to seal our children and our dead for the fulness of the dispensation of times—a dispensation to meet the promises made by Jesus Christ before the foundation of the world for the salvation of man.

Now, I will speak of them. I will meet Paul half-way. I say to you, Paul, you cannot be perfect without us. It is necessary that those who are gone before and those who come after us should have salvation in common with us; and thus hath God made it obligatory upon man. Hence God said, “I will send Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord and he shall turn the hearts of the fathers to the children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.”

I have a declaration to make as to the provisions which God hath made to suit the conditions of man, made from before the foundation of the world. What has Jesus said? All sins, and all blasphemies, and every transgression, except one, that man can be guilty of, may be forgiven; and there is a salvation for all men, either in this world or the world to come, who have not committed the unpardonable sin, there being a provision, either in this world or the world of spirits. Hence God hath made a provision that every spirit in the eternal world can be ferreted out and saved, unless he has committed that unpardonable sin which cannot be remitted to him either in this world or the world of spirits. God has wrought out a salvation for all men, unless they have committed a certain sin; and every man who has a friend in the eternal world can save him, unless he has committed the unpardonable sin. And so you can see how far you can be a saviour.

A man cannot commit the unpardonable sin after the dissolution of the body, and there is a way possible for escape. Knowledge saves a man; and in the world of spirits no man can be exalted but by knowledge. So long as a man will not give heed to the commandments, he must abide without salvation. If a man has knowledge, he can be saved; although, if he has been guilty of great sins, he will be punished for them. But when he consents to obey the Gospel, whether here or in the world of spirits, he is saved.

A man is his own tormentor and his own condemner. Hence the saying, They shall go into the lake that burns with fire and brimstone. The torment of disappointment in the mind of man is as exquisite as a lake burning with fire and brimstone. I say, so is the torment of man.

I know the Scriptures and understand them. I said no man can commit the unpardonable sin after the dissolution of the body, nor in this life until he receives the Holy Ghost; but they must do it in this world. Hence the salvation of Jesus Christ was wrought out for all men in order to triumph over the Devil; for if it did not catch him in one place, it would in another; for he stood up as a Saviour. All will suffer until they obey Christ himself.

The contention in heaven was—Jesus said there would be certain souls that would not be saved; and the Devil said he could save them all, and laid his plans before the grand council, who gave their vote in favour of Jesus Christ. So the Devil rose up in rebellion against God, and was cast down, with all who put up their heads for him.

All sins shall be forgiven except the sin against the Holy Ghost; for Jesus will save all except the sons of perdition. What must a man do to commit the unpardonable sin? He must receive the Holy Ghost, have the heavens opened unto him, and know God, and then sin against him. After a man has sinned against the Holy Ghost, there is no repentance for him. He has got to say that the sun does not shine while he sees it; he has got to deny Jesus Christ when the heavens have been opened unto him, and to deny the plan of salvation with his eyes open to the truth of it; and from that time he begins to be an enemy. This is the case with many apostates of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

When a man begins to be an enemy to this work, he hunts me; he seeks to kill me, and never ceases to thirst for my blood. He gets the spirit of the Devil—the same spirit that they had who crucified the Lord of Life—the same spirit that sins against the, Holy Ghost. You cannot save such persons; you cannot bring them to repentance: they make open war like the Devil, and awful is the consequence.

I advise all of you to be careful what you do, or you may by-and-by find out that you have been deceived. Stay yourselves; do not give way; don’t make any hasty moves: you maybe be saved. If a spirit of bitterness is in you, don’t be in haste. You may say that man is a sinner. Well, if he repents, he shall be forgiven. Be cautious: await! When you find a spirit that wants bloodshed—murder, the same is not of God, but is of the Devil. Out of the abundance of the heart of man the mouth speaketh.

The best men bring forth the best works. The man who tells you words of life is the man who can save you. I warn you against all evil characters who sin against the Holy Ghost; for there is no redemption for them in this world nor in the world to come.

I could go back and trace every subject of interest concerning the relationship of man to God, if I had time. I can enter into the mysteries; I can enter largely into the eternal worlds; for Jesus said, “In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.” (John 14th chap., 2nd v.) Paul says, “There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for one star differeth from another star in glory. So also is the resurrection of the dead.” (1st Cor. 15th chap., 41st v.) What have we to console us in relation to the dead? We have reason to have the greatest hope and consolations for our dead of any people on the earth; for we have seen them walk worthily in our midst, and seen them sink asleep in the arms of Jesus; and those who have died in the faith are now in the celestial kingdom of God. And hence is the glory of the sun.

You mourners have occasion to rejoice (speaking of the death of Elder King Follett); for your husband and father is gone to wait until the resurrection of the dead—until the perfection of the remainder; for at the resurrection your friend will rise in perfect felicity and go to celestial glory, while many must wait myriads of years before they can receive the like blessings; and your expectations and hopes are far above what man can conceive; for why has God revealed it to us?

I AM AUTHORIZED to say, by the authority of the Holy Ghost, that you have no occasion to fear; for he is gone to the home of the just. Don’t mourn; don’t weep. I know it by the testimony of the Holy Ghost that is within me; and you may wait for your friends to come forth to meet you in the morn of the celestial world.

Rejoice, O Israel! Your friends who have been murdered for the truth’s sake in the persecution shall triumph gloriously in the celestial world, while their murderers shall welter for ages in torment, even until they shall have paid the uttermost farthing. I say this for the benefit of strangers.

I have a father, brothers, children, and friends who have gone to a world of spirits. They are only absent for a moment. They are in the spirit, and we shall soon meet again. The time will soon arrive when the trumpet shall sound. When we depart, we shall hail our mothers, fathers, friends, and all whom we love who have fallen asleep in Jesus. There will be no fear of mobs, persecutions, or malicious law-suits and arrests; but it will be an eternity of felicity.

A question may be asked—“Will mothers have their children in eternity?” Yes! yes! Mothers, you shall have your children; for they shall have eternal life; for their debt is paid. There is no damnation awaits them, for they are in the spirit. But as the child dies, so shall it rise from the dead, and be for ever living in the learning of God. It will never grow: it will still be the child, in the same precise form as it appeared before it died out of its mother’s arms, but possessing all the intelligence of a God. Children dwell in the mansions of glory and exercise power, but appear in the same form as when on earth. Eternity is full of thrones, upon which dwell thousands of children reigning on thrones of glory, with not one cubit added to their stature.

I will leave this subject here, and make a few remarks on the subject of baptism. The baptism of water, without the baptism of fire and the Holy Ghost attending it, is of no use: they are necessary and inseparably connected. An individual must be born, of water and the spirit in order to get into the kingdom of God. In the German, the text bears me out the same as the revelations which I have given and taught for the last fourteen years on that subject. I have the testimony to put in their teeth. My testimony has been true all the time. You will find it in the declaration of John the Baptist. [Reads from the German.] John says, “I baptise you with water; but when Jesus comes, who has the power (or keys), he shall administer the baptism of fire and the Holy Ghost.” Great God! where is now all the sectarian world? And if this testimony is true, they are all damned as clearly as anathema can do it. I know the text is true. I call upon all you Germans who know that it is true to say aye. (Loud shouts of aye.)

Alexander Campbell, how are you going to save people with water alone? For John said his baptism was good for nothing without the baptism of Jesus Christ. “Therefore, not leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God, of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. And this will we do, if God permit.” (Heb. 6th chap., 1st to 3rd v.)

There is one God, one Father, one Jesus, one hope of our calling, one baptism. All these three baptisms only make one. Many talk of baptism not being essential to salvation: but this kind of teaching would lay the foundation of their damnation. I have the truth, and am at the defiance of the world to contradict me if they can.

I have now preached a little Latin, a little Hebrew, Greek, and German; and I have fulfilled all. I am not so big a fool as many have taken me to be. The Germans know that I read the German correctly.

Hear it, all ye ends of the earth—all ye priests, all ye sinners, and all men. Repent! repent! Obey the Gospel. Turn to God; for your religion won’t save you, and you will be damned. I do not say how long. There have been remarks made concerning all men being redeemed from hell; but I say that those who sin against the Holy Ghost cannot be forgiven in this world or in the world to come: they shall die the second death. Those who commit the unpardonable sin are doomed to Gnolom, to dwell in hell, worlds without end. As they concoct scenes of bloodshed in this world, so they shall rise to that resurrection which is as the lake of fire and brimstone. Some shall rise to the everlasting burning of God; for God dwells in everlasting burnings; and some shall rise to the damnation of their own filthiness, which is as exquisite a torment as the lake of fire and brimstone.

I have intended my remarks for all, both rich and poor, bond and free, great and small, I have no enmity against any man. I love you all; but I hate some of your deeds. I am your best friend; and if persons miss their mark, it is their own fault. If I reprove a man and he hates me, he is a fool; for I love all men, especially these my brethren and sisters.

I rejoice in hearing the testimony of my aged friends. You don’t know me: you never knew my heart. No man knows my history. I cannot tell it: I shall never undertake it. I don’t blame any one for not believing my history. If I had not experienced what I have, I could not have believed it myself. I never did harm any man since I was born into the world. My voice is always for peace.

I cannot lie down until all my work is finished. I never think any evil, nor do anything to the harm of my fellow-man. When I am called by the trump of the archangel and weighed in the balance, you will all know me then. I add no more. God bless you all. Amen.

The Work of Reformation, etc.

Orson Hyde

A discourse by Elder Orson Hyde.

Dear Brethren and Sisters—I am highly pleased with the privilege I now enjoy of speaking to you. I wish to call your attention to a subject which, to me, is of vast importance, and no less so to you.

The commencement of what has been termed our reformation was more than a year ago; and first attended with the desire only of correcting some irregularities among us and of awakening the Saints to righteousness, to purity of life, to sanctification, and holiness before the Lord. Our efforts were attended with results highly satisfactory to the upright and the good. We were led on by this spirit of reformation to expose and rebuke the evils of those among us who did not belong to the Latter-day Saints. This kind of preaching made them angry; yet their anger did not cause us to soften our speech or to modify the tone of high moral sentiment which we wished and were determined should be enforced. “Rebuke a wise man, and he will love you; but rebuke a wicked man, and he will hate you.” This truth we saw abundantly exemplified. Their pens were then set in operation against us, and many false accusations were sent to the States by them, over fictitious names, no names at all, and also over their own real names. But the latter class, not being fortified with truth and honesty, felt unable to endure the just frowns of a community so belied. They had recourse to flight; and then told the awful and pitiful tale in the States that they barely escaped with their lives—a fine cover for their unrighteous deeds. They hoped by this feint and hypocritical pretension to excite public sympathy in their favour, and to arouse indignation against the Saints. Jesus spoke plainly of just such persons, saying: “Ye are they who justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts; for that which is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God.”

For this very plain preaching, which they were compelled to hear or hear of, they threatened us with troops of the United States; and they left no stone unturned to excite the Government to send troops. This idea was a momentary damper upon some spirits; but sober second thought asked the question—“Shall I, through fear of an army being sent here, be guilty of collusion with sin and of failure to expose and rebuke it?” The noble-minded and fearless servants of God said, “No! No!! No!!!” The work of reformation and purification went gloriously on; and by-and-by the word of assurance and comfort came to us through our Prophet and Seer—the fearless Brigham, who dares to do right—“Sanctify yourselves before me; put iniquity far from you; assert your rights, and stand up to them; and behold, and lo! I will fight your battles, and the children of Zion shall be victorious; and the name of your God shall be magnified in the eyes of your enemies. Trust in me; be valiant and fear not, and the kingdom is yours.” I may not repeat the word of the Lord through his servant verbatim, but give it according to memory. I am not, however, far wrong.

On the 24th day of July last, rumour came to us that United States’ troops were actually being fitted out to come here to chastise us. Just ten years ago that very day, when the pioneers first entered the valley, brother Brigham said, in view of the injustice and cruelty inflicted upon us by our enemies, “If the United States will now let this people alone for ten years to come, we will ask no odds of them or any one else but God.” The saying passed out of his mind and out of the minds of the pioneers who heard it, until ten years from the very time, when he and some thousands of others were in Big Cottonwood Kanyon, celebrating the tenth anniversary of the Saints’ entrance into this valley.

This announcement of troops by the express brought the saying vividly to many of the minds of the old pioneers. No heart appeared sad—no countenance gloomy; but the lamp of joy was evidently lit in every heart and blazed in every countenance. We regarded it as an omen of deliverance by the arm of the Almighty. From that very hour the prayers of this entire people, old and young, male and female, by day and by night, have been and still are offered up unto the God of heaven, in the name of his son, Jesus Christ, that the army sent here by the United States may never be able to accomplish their design; for the design of the Government in sending them, and that, too, upon evidence known to be incorrect, proved to us that iniquity was to be sustained and righteousness suppressed. Will our prayers be heard and answered? I believe they will. I do believe that God is about to come out of his hiding-place and to vex the nation according to his word through the martyred Joseph. (See Book of Covenants, second European edition, page 282.) Do I believe that the United States will be divided? Yes, I do; and the prayers of all the Saints throughout the world should be to that effect; for they wage war against the kingdom of God, and have fallen upon that stone with an army; and let them be broken, even according to the words of Jesus.

“If the army now invading Utah should be overthrown,” says an unbeliever, “are you not fearful that a much larger one will be sent to chastise you?” No, sir; I am not. If we honour our God by keeping his law, no army of this world can ever prevail against us; and the greater its numbers, the greater and more complete its overthrow. If the Red Sea be not the trap in which the enemy will be caught, there will be a snow or hailstorm, a whirlwind, an earthquake, fire from above or from beneath, or the sword of the Lord and of Brigham. I only fear that we may not live so that God will hear and answer our prayers. If we get any important petition granted by any legislative body, we must have some, influence enlisted in its favour; and if we expect God to grant our petitions, we must so live before him as to have influence with him. To have influence with the king is next to being king ourselves.

We do not desire to shed the blood of our enemies. We have never desired it. But our prayers should be, that the power and strength arrayed against us may be broken by the providence of God, or by the arm of his power; that they may be smitten with confusion and darkness; that the means they may adopt for their success may be providentially overruled for their overthrow; that they may be wasted away like the early frosts, and be scattered about like chaff before the wind, until, as the martyred Joseph said, just before he was murdered by Governor Ford’s mob, there shall not be a potsherd of them left. This prayer should not be confined to our enemies on our immediate borders; for they are only the blind tools of a power that has decreed our overthrow; but should extend, with increased faith and zeal, to that very power that handles these tools.

Brethren, the army sent to operate against us has been stopped in the vicinity of the ruins of Forts Bridger and Supply. By what power or agency were they stopped? Col. Alexander assured Governor Young that he had abundant means or power at his command to come into Salt Lake Valley. Add to this the fact that one Mormon was taken prisoner by the Colonel’s order, and it is said that orders were found on his person to annoy the enemy in every way he could, but not to kill any or fire a gun. I know nothing of any such orders. Still the enemy claim that they found such orders upon the person of their “Mormon” prisoner. Now, if Colonel Alexander really believed his own statement to Governor Young, that he had abundant means at his command to force his way into the city, and if he believed the pretended orders said to be found with his “Mormon” prisoner to be genuine—that nobody was to be killed nor a gun fired, why did he not march in with his army? He had plenty of force to do it, and the assurance, according to his showing, that the “Mormons” were not to kill any nor fire a gun? What kind of reason or apology can he make to the Department for not marching directly into the city. That is his business, however, not ours.

It was not “Mormon” numbers, according to his views, neither “Mormon” bullets that arrested the progress of the army; but it really was the united faith and prayers of the Saints of God that set bounds to their progress. Having, therefore, this evidence that God hears and answers our prayers, it should inspire us with redoubled zeal, union, faith, and energy, to continue to call upon the Lord until every power that lifts an arm against his kingdom crumbles and falls like the mighty image that the Babylonish monarch beheld in the visions of the night.

Our enemies have eyes, but they cannot see. They may say that the tardy movements of the forces in concentrating, together with an unexpected snowstorm, in which many of their animals perished, were the causes of their hindrance on Ham’s Fork; but who caused the tardy movements of the collecting forces? and who sent the snowstorm? The same invisible hand that forced off the wheels from Pharaoh’s chariots that caused them to drag heavily. The prayers of the Saints by day and by night are more potent than the multitude of soldiers, armed with Sharp’s and the Minie rifle. Yet the Saints should be liberally endowed with both.

If we continue in all humility before the Lord, full of faith and diligent in prayer, with hearts full of integrity, and honour the words of our Prophets and leaders, and the United States continue their hostile movements against the Saints, it shall be with them as it was with the man upon the scaffold lifting at the granite rock, when the scaffolding gave way and fell, and with it the man; and the stone, falling on the top of him, ground him to atoms.

The United States’ army is sent by the President. He is the highest power which they know or recognize. Did they know any higher, they would never have come here. Has that army a chaplain Prophet that can obtain the word of the Lord for them, or one whose prayers the Lord hears? We say no, and they cannot say yes; neither dare they. The policy of the Government will not allow of a chaplain Prophet to lead its armies; and a man inspired of the Lord—one who can say, “Thus saith the Lord.”—would not lead them under their present policy.

The whole army and nation are blind enough to be led by mere men who lay no claim to the inspiration of the Almighty, and not one among them that can receive the word of the Lord. The man whose prayers the hears can obtain his word touching the duties of the sphere in which he is legitimately called to act. Yet the nation despise the “Mormons” because they are led by a man who can receive the word of the Lord for them, and whose prayers the Lord hears and answers: The evidence of this is before us, day by day, and year by year. A fashionable chaplain, who is master of much flowery language, may formally tell the Almighty how great and glorious he is—how high is his throne, and how vast are his dominions; and yet the God of Israel will never thank him for the information, neither praise him for his sweet rhetorical sentences. But the man that is chosen of God, and armed with the power of revelation and the visions of heaven, is the man to lead the Latter-day Saints. No less will satisfy them. To the rule of, no other will they willingly submit. Govern Utah who will, Brigham Young or his duly chosen successor can alone govern the “Mormons.” Freemen have the right to choose their own rulers. The world often kill the men whom God appoints; but the Saints choose them. Here is the difference. The Saints may be killed—that is, their bodies; but their spirits can never yield to the powers of this world. And our God says that, if we will be valiant, pure, and faithful, we never shall, worlds without end.

What is the real design of the Government in sending troops to Utah? This winter, or during this session of Congress, special legislation is contemplated; a stringent law against polygamy to be enacted; and the troops are sent here in advance of the passage of such an act to make themselves comfortable and strongly establish themselves in these valleys and hold themselves in readiness to enforce that law when enacted. Then they would say, “Now, Mr. Mormon, we have got you!” Anything for a lawful pretence to raise a fuss with the “Mormons,” to destroy them from the earth! But everlasting thanks to Zion’s God! He has said, “Sanctify yourselves before me, assert your rights, and I will back you up and fight your battles. You have long pleaded with the Government and people of this nation, and they would not hear you; and now, verily, saith the Lord, I will plead with the nation for you.”

According to our faith in God is our boldness to meet whatever may come. Brethren, let us be valiant. A mighty host may gather against us; but if God be with us, we may have a seven months’ job in burying their dead; and their weapons of war may furnish us fuel for years, so that we shall not have to go to the kanyons for this indispensable auxiliary to our domestic comfort and happiness. A mighty slaughter is to occur in the armies of the Saints’ enemies in some country where firewood is scarce, and a high value placed upon their weapons of war for that purpose.

It is said that a new Governor has been appointed for Utah, judges, secretary, &c. I do not pretend to know much about governmental usages or etiquette; but, to my coarse understanding, it would seem no more than proper for some department at Washington to have notified Governor Young of such appointments direct, and also of the object in sending an armed force with them, if, indeed, such force be really sent by the order of Government. The fact of our mail being unanimously taken away from us, in connection with the silence on the matters before spoken of, left us to conclude that death and destruction were determined on as the lot and portion of the” Mormons” in Utah, The public papers that happened to reach us seemed also to breathe this kind of spirit, which were our main index to the real intentions of the Government. If, therefore, persecution and death must come, we concluded that we might better make the job cost our enemies all in our power, by selling our lives and liberties as dearly as possible. These were and are the feelings of the masses. Our leaders speak for themselves. In this position we have been greatly encouraged from a source that we deem infallible, provided we live in obedience to the commands of Him who holds all power both on earth and in heaven. I deem it unnecessary, however, to argue the merits of the case, but patiently await its issue—at the same time to be active in the vigorous discharge of every known duty to God and man.

Our Elders and missionaries have laboured throughout the nations of the earth incessantly for the last twenty-seven years. We have endured and suffered shame. The great ones of the earth have generally spurned us from their presence. The holy and sanctified clergy have been most bitter against us. We have been very often like our Master, without a place to lay our head. We have slept by the wayside, under the trees of the forest, in sheds, and in barns, without money, and often without food; yet we have been cheerful, and in reality have lacked nothing. Our feet have bled with walking, and our hearts with sorrow over the blindness of the people: yet we have been joyful in our God. The four quarters of the globe and the islands of the sea have heard our voice and testimony. We have laboured and have not fainted. Though weak, combatting the world, the flesh, and the Devil, and though our enemies have reproached us with being a set of ignoramuses, dupes, villains, impostors, and fools, we have cried aloud and spared not.

In the midst of all this, our Prophets have been murdered, our brethren and sisters, friends, and families mobbed and driven from place to place, and from time to time living in tents, waggons, and in the open air. They have been maimed, crippled, and slain without mercy; and none have laid it to heart. “Your cause is just, but we can do nothing for you,” is the heartless sentiment of an unbelieving and persecuting world. These are some of the circumstances under which the “Mormons” and “Mormon” missionaries have carried the Gospel to the nations of the earth. But those few that have ministered to the wants and necessities of these labourers and of these persecuted people shall in nowise lose their reward.

These missionaries and labourers are now called home. The Lord says, “It is enough.” “Come out of her, my people,” is now the voice of God to his servants in every land and nation. The vials of his wrath cannot be poured out until you, like Lot, flee from the countries doomed to feel the vengeance of God. To you, my faithful brethren abroad, the Spirit of Christ has often whispered, during the last six months, “Go home—go home.” Your guardian angels have said it to you in dreams and in visions, and we expect to see you come. Scores have already arrived. God bless them and you too, if you listen to the whisperings of that voice that speaks truth to the heart.

What now remains to be done? Your testimony is borne—your words have gone into all the earth. Read in the Book of Covenants, and you will find the answer in part”After your testimony cometh wrath and indignation upon the people; for after your testimony cometh the testimony of earthquakes, that shall cause groanings in the midst of her; and men shall fall upon the ground and shall not be able to stand. And also cometh the testimony of the voice of thunderings, and the voice of lightnings, and the voice of tempests, and the voice of the waves of the sea heaving themselves beyond their bounds; and all things shall be in commotion; and surely men’s hearts shall fail them, for fear shall come upon all people,” &c.

Again, the sign given in the Book of Mormon, showing when the times of the Gentiles shall be fulfilled and they abandoned to the judgments and wrath of Almighty God, and showing also when the covenants of the Father with the house of Israel shall be fulfilled, is this important declaration—“I will take the fulness of my Gospel from among the Gentiles,” &c. It might be considered treason to quote further. With our Elders and missionaries comes the fulness of the Gospel from among the Gentiles, who, like the leaky ship, are abandoned to the mercy of the winds and the waves.

I, for one, care but little about the stoppage of the mails; yet it would afford me some satisfaction to have the current news of the day. There is, however, an upper telegraph which the powers of this world cannot cut, neither suspend in any way. By that we can know all the news that are really essential to us as a people, if we strive to be in communication with it. This upper telegraph is the revelation of God. All things that are really essential for us to know will be made manifest unto us by the Lord; “for he doeth nothing, but he revealeth his secrets to his servants and Prophets.” This is the sort of mail that we should patronize. It is conveyed with despatch and with safety. It goes at all times of day and of night, and is sure to bring an answer to our communications. The Government would think it strange to read from our records, made and penned more than twenty years ago, the very things which it is now doing in relation to us. But to read the issue, it would think stranger still. I read both more than twenty years since; and when I see things fulfilling every day and every year, it inspires me with assurance and joy. Have light in yourselves, says Jesus; and if our eye be single, our whole bodies will be full of light. God knows all things that are going on in the universe; and if we possess his mind, his Spirit, and his will, we may know at least some things that are going on in the world, even without a mail.

Brethren, the Lord is hearing and answering our prayers. The time to favour Zion is come. And now, I beseech you, let there be no contentions or disputations in your midst; for Jesus says, “Blessed are ye, if there be no disputations among you.” Dishonesty, covetousness, nonsense, and folly should all be purged from our hearts and purged from our wards; and if the guilty will not cast away such principles, let him go to the army, to the States or wherever he likes, so that he does not abide in our midst. “He shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend and that do iniquity.” Cleanse the inside of the platter or territory, so that God and angels may dwell with us for our defence. Bishops, High Priests, and Seventies, arise in the majesty of Jehovah’s strength, and cause the moral atmosphere that surrounds you to be pure and healthful, if you have to raise a storm of thunder and lightning to effect it. Fear not! only hurt not the oil or the wine. Be wise, and yet be strong. Remember that a good man does not steal, neither lie. He is not an idler, suffering his family to want. He does not take the advantage of his neighbour. He does not absent himself from your ward meetings, neither decline bearing his part of the burdens that are laid upon you. You will generally find a good man right where you want him, in person, in spirit, and in the means that he controls. He never has many excuses to make, but is on hand. He is always ready. A good man pays his Tithing, pays his devotions to God in all sincerity and faith, pays his just debts so far as he is able, is careful about contracting debts, lives well, yet prudently, and generally has something to bestow for charitable purposes. He never has much difficulty with his neighbours, readily yields to the counsel of his Bishop or other superior officer, worships no horse, ox, mule, ass, farm, or house, but worships the true God of heaven. Remember that all victory and glory that God is well pleased with are obtained by our diligence and prayers of faith.

Remember your fasts, your solemn assemblies, sacraments, and charities. Mark those in your wards that do not attend your meetings. Thieves and iniquitous persons do not, as a general thing, like to attend the house of worship. Slothful, prayerless, and worldly-minded persons often calculate to go to or return from the kanyons on the Sabbath, or go visiting on that day, or manage to hunt cattle on the range, or transact some business by which they can have a plausible excuse for not attending the house of worship. The flaming truths which they would be compelled to hear—the rebukes and chastisements there dealt out to such characters are not agreeable to their ears.

The persons that cannot profit by merited rebukes and chastisements cannot profit by blessings and communion with the Saints. Priests, Teachers, and Deacons, be active in the discharge of your duties. You are watchmen in your wards, and stand in a similar relation to your Bishops that the Apostles do to the Presidency. Great responsibility rests upon you. Every person in your wards should be known to you, and his business or occupation also. You should not only know the man or the woman and his business, but should likewise know his spirit and be able to weigh it in the balance of truth.

Shepherds of Israel, watch well your flocks. Keep them healthy and vigorous. Encourage good with kind and generous words, and fear not to deal with offenders or rebuke sin in a manner that corresponds with the nature thereof and also with the dignity of your high and holy calling. The great object is to be alive and awake to every duty, and to be “armed with righteousness and the power of God in great glory.”

Our enemies are trying to come here to teach this people civilization and pure Christianity by killing our men and sleeping with our women. It seems that we have been prejudged and condemned to death. The halters are prepared by the waggon-load, and knots already tied (so says report). If they had the chance, they would probably go through the forms of law trials with us, with great kindness and moderation affectedly; but death is in the pot, and we must eat it. As we have been foreordained in Washington to be hung or shot, we must suffer it, guilty or not guilty. If we repent, we must be damned; and if we do not repent, we must be damned. The ropes are all prepared! But if we do our duty, that proud Haman will yet see, the despised Jew in a position which he will have cause to envy. Though the course of our enemies stands in their power and not in their justice, yet they shall come to an inglorious end, and none shall help them; and let all Israel say, Amen.

May the blessings of the Highest be and abide with the upright in heart, now and for ever! Amen.

“The Kingdom of God or Nothing”

John Taylor

A sermon by Elder John Taylor, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, November 1, 1857. Reported by G. D. Watt.

I shall take the liberty, this afternoon, of selecting a text. In the Second Epistle and last verse of the Gospel according to St. Brigham to Colonel Alexander, will be found the following words:—“WE SAY IT IS THE KINGDOM OF GOD OR NOTHING.”

We revere the testimony of ancient men of God; as recorded in what are often termed “the Scriptures of divine truth;” and it is quite common for men to refer to what the Prophets have said and to reason from their words. Now, I have been of the impression, for some length of time, that the sayings of modern men of God are of as great importance as the sayings of ancient men of God and a great deal more applicable to our condition.

In looking at the Epistle to Colonel Alexander, and considering the important things said in it, I was particularly struck with the last words, which compose my text—“The kingdom of God or nothing.”

In other days, men have had their theories and their ideas about Christianity, Paganism, &c., which were referred to this morning. But we believe in living Priesthood—in present revelation—in the Church and kingdom of God as it now exists on the earth, as well as in things that were spoken of by ancient Prophets: consequently we believe in adapting our lives and actions to the position that we now occupy as servants of the true and living God—as God’s representatives on the earth—as those who are destined to lay the foundation of that kingdom which shall stand for ever.

What is the kingdom of God? This is a question that is in almost everybody’s mouth. Every Saint is interested in this question. We need not go into the nonsense of sectarianism: we will let it go entirely, hook and line; for we know enough about it to care nothing about it, nor about the absurd ideas entertained by sectarians of the kingdom of God.

The question is, What is the kingdom of God? How do we stand related to it? What is our position and what are the duties devolving upon us to-day, to-morrow, and every day of our lives, as servants of the living God?

In the Epistle I have referred to, there is something said about the struggles we have endured; the privations we have suffered, the difficulties we have passed through, the wrongs and indignities that have been heaped upon us continually, and the persecutions that have been multiplied upon us as a people, even from the day of the organization of this Church to the present. There was in it a strong, marked, and determined expression. It gave Colonel Alexander and whomsoever it concerned to understand that it was time that these things should cease—that this people as well as every other people should have their rights, and these rights they were bent upon having at all events, not fearing the result—that we, as a people, are determined to be free; for with us it is—“The kingdom of God or nothing.”

When we talk about kingdoms, we talk about governments, rule, authority, power; for wherever there is a kingdom, these principles exist to a greater or less extent. The kingdoms of this world have their powers, authorities, rule, regulations, law-givers, &c., according to the kind of government they adopt. Hitherto we, as a people, have been amalgamated to a great extent with other nations. It is true we have had a Church government, Church laws, Church discipline, and by the holy Priesthood associated with this Church we have governed the people. Still we have been subject to another government, power, and authority, to Gentile rule, Gentile dominion, Gentile laws, to Gentile usages and customs, to which we have been willingly subject, so far as they were righteous; and it was told us by the Lord, that if we observed the laws of God, we need not break the laws of the land.

The laws of man we have kept faithfully, adhering tenaciously to the principles of the Constitution of the Government, under which we have lived. We have not transgressed them in one iota, but have maintained our relationship honourably with the nation we have been associated with.

The first thing we did when we came to this land was to organize a government for our protection, which was according to the pattern set us by our neighbours—Oregon, for instance; then represented our case to the United States.

We came out here because we were disfranchised, exiled, robbed of our rights as American citizens, and forced to wander in the wilderness to seek among the savages of the forest that freedom denied us by Christianity. Did we in this transgress any laws of the United States, depart from any usage, or act contrary to any established custom or law of the Government? We did not. We applied for the sanction of Congress to our doings, and it was a matter of astonishment and surprise that we should take such steps, after the usage we had received. Our course was applauded by statesmen, senators, members of Congress, and the authorities of the United States generally; and all our transactions, constitution, and laws were approved gladly, considered right, and according to the usages and laws of the United States.

By-and-by we petitioned for a Territorial Government and obtained it. Our enemies have all the time been complaining of us that we have infringed upon the Constitution and laws of the United States. But I ask, Wherein have we done it? Who appointed our Governor? The President of the United States, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, according to the usage which exists, but indeed contrary to any right they possessed; still he did it. Who appointed our Judges, United States Marshal, Secretary of State, and Indian Agency? The President of the United States.

Has there been another Governor appointed? I suppose there has; but he has not yet been qualified. No man has authority to act in the gubernatorial capacity in this Territory at the present time, according to the laws of the United States, but Governor Young. No Governor has a right to act here, although he may have been appointed by the President of the United States, until he comes here and is qualified. No man has ever come yet to be qualified, and consequently Governor Young stands legitimately in that place.

What law have we transgressed? I have tried to find out. We have examined the Constitution of the United States and the laws pertaining to these matters; and if anybody here or elsewhere can point out any law that we have transgressed as American citizens, they know more about it than I have been able to learn; and I should like such a person to put me in possession of that information.

What next? Why, on the back of this, after lying about us, slandering, abusing, and imposing upon us, trampling upon our rights, and sending the meanest curses among us that ever disgraced the footstool of God—men they are ashamed of themselves, they have now sent an armed force contrary to law and right and to the principles that ought to prevail in the United States. They have no more right to do this than I have to cut any of your throats.

There is no authority guaranteed to the President of the United States to perpetrate so diabolical an act as the one he has engaged in. Why is it that this is done? Is it because we are worse than other people? No. After raking up everything they could, before I left the States, the only thing they could find against us as a people was that we had burned some books belonging to the United States’ Court; and since that I have seen published affidavits, totally denying any such thing, by the Clerk of that Court.

The President of the United States has now taken upon himself the responsibility of sending into this Territory an armed force to trample upon the rights of 100,000 American freemen, on purpose to subserve a political interest, for the benefit of his own party. It becomes a serious question with us what to do under these circumstances.

Shall we lie down and let those scoundrels cut our throats? is the first question. Shall we untie our neckcloths and tell them to come on and cut and carve away as they please, and knock down, drag out, and introduce their abominations among us—their cursed Christian institutions—to prostitute our women and lay low our best men? Shall we suffer it, I say?

There are certain things that are sacred to us and to every man and woman. If we submit to a thing of that sort, we submit to see the very institutions of our own nation trampled under foot—the Constitution of our country desecrated and rent in pieces. We submit to see the bonds severed that have bound this nation together, and blood, anarchy, and and confusion prevail.

If they have a mind to cut each other’s throats, we have no objections. We say, Success to both parties. But when they come to cut ours, without ceremony, we say, Hands off, gentlemen. We are not so religious as to sit down meekly and tamely submit to these things. We understand something of the difference between what some call treason, or treasonable acts, and base submission to the will of a tyrant, who would seek to bring us into servile chains—into perfect submission to his sway.

We are engaged here in protecting ourselves, our wives, and families—in guarding everything that is sacred and honourable among men from invasion and oppression of some of the most corrupt wretches that ever disgraced the footstool of God.

“This is pretty plain talk,” say you. I meant to talk plain: I do not wish to be misunderstood. I have lately been conversant with some of their proceedings, having been in their neighbourhood for some time recently. Some of our brethren, who went among them with messages, have said that such was the filth and obscenity of their language—cursing, swearing, and every meanness, that, rather than stay all night with them, they chose to go off some distance and lie on the ground. If these are the feelings of our brethren, some of whom are rough and uncouth in their manners, we know not how our sisters would feel in such delectable society.

We will not submit to such a state of things for ever. If you, our enemies, are determined to invade our rights, trample upon our liberties, snatch from us the rich boon we have inherited from our fathers, to make us bow in vile subservience to your will, we will resist you: we will not submit to it. We will say, Stand back and give us our rights. We will act the part of freemen, and we say it shall be “The kingdom of God or nothing.”

Why is it that we are persecuted? It is because we believe in the establishment of the kingdom of God upon the earth—because we say and know that God has established his kingdom—because the principles of righteousness are introduced among the the children of men, and they expose the evils, corruption, priestcraft, political craft, and the abominations that everywhere exist. They lay naked before all men the abominable acts of the human family. It is not because there is evil among us, but because there is goodness, truth, holiness. It, is because God has spoken, and his word has had effect on our hearts, to govern and influence our conduct.

It is because of these things that the present crusade has been set on foot against us, and no doubt it began to rage at the very time that you were humbling yourselves before God, when you commenced the reformation and were repenting of your sins and making restoration. At the time the Spirit of God began to be manifested among you, the spirit of the Devil began to rage among them against you, stirring them up to pluck you down, root you lap, and destroy you from the face of the earth.

Why was it that you had the reformation among you, that you were stirred up to repent of your sins and make restitution? It was because you had the holy Priesthood in your midst—the spirit of prophecy and revelation—because you had men among you who could commune with the Most High and contemplate his purposes and designs towards the human family. It was because they saw evils existing among you and dare tell of it, and the Spirit of God pointed the word at your hearts, which brought you to repentance.

If we had corruption, grog-holes, rowdyism, and every kind of pollution among us, and were this place permitted to be a perfect sink of iniquity, where the gambler, horse-racer, blackleg, and every evil character would be tolerated, then we should be hail fellows, well met, with our enemies. The wicked would bow and scrape to us all over the earth: they would call us gentlemen everywhere, and we should be respected. It would be as it was with a few of our brethren who had to play a ruse upon some of the Missourians. The “Mormon” boys were flying from a mob and had to pass a meeting-house when the people were coming out from their prayers. These pious souls suspected that the brethren were “Mormons.”

“You are ‘Mormons,’ damn you,” said they.

“We are not, damn you. Let go of my horse, or I will knock your damned head off.”

“Oh, we discover you are not ‘Mormons,’ gentlemen: we are under a mistake;” and they let them go.

Who is it that is acquainted with this people and does not know that they are better, more pure, more virtuous and true to their God and his laws, and more faithful to the laws and Constitution of their country than any other people? I know the difference, for I have been among others and seen their actions.

What is the cause, then, of the evil planned against us? It is because we are the Church and kingdom of God. Have we ever left our houses to interfere with other people anywhere? Did you ever hear of a crusade by a set of “Mormons” upon any other people? Did the “Mormons,” when in Nauvoo, go to Carthage, La Harpe, Warsaw, or to any place, and interfere with the rights of anybody? Have we done it here? Have we gone to Mexico, California, Kansas, Nebraska, Oregon, Minnesota, or to any of the surrounding districts, to interfere with their business or rights?

If there has been such a crusade, I have remained altogether ignorant of it, as to when it took place, who were engaged in it, and how many.

If we do not interfere with anybody else, what right has anybody else to interfere with us? I speak now as an American citizen. I speak, if you please, as a politician. On this ground I ask what right any people or number of people have to come and interfere with us? There is no such right in the catalogue, gentlemen.

They, however, do interfere with us; and what is the cause of it? It is because of the kingdom of God—because of the truth of God—because of the Spirit of God and certain principles that exist among this people. And what are they? It is polygamy that they are so incensed against. They need not draw down such a long face about that, for they themselves do a thousand times worse than that, were it even as heinous a crime as they say it is.

It is not polygamy that they are so horrified at. I know their meanness and abominations, and have told them of them scores of times. There have been from the foundation of the world two principles and powers—the principles of darkness and the principles of light, the principles of truth and the principles of error, the Spirit of God and the spirit of the Devil;—and there has been a mighty struggle between these two principles and powers.

Hitherto the good, the virtuous, the pure and upright, the men of God, the Saints of the Most High have been trampled under foot and cast out—have wandered about in sheep-skins and goat-skins, dwelt in deserts, dens, holes, and caves of the earth, of whom the world was not worthy; and the spirit and power of darkness have prevailed over the powers of light, error over truth, and the spirit of the Wicked One over the Spirit of God, to a certain extent; so much so, that truth, equity, and righteousness have always been at a discount, and men of God have been deprived of their rights and robbed of their inheritances.

God has had a certain design to accomplish, associated with the human family; and I suppose that everything which has taken place has been just. I am not going to find fault with God or the Devil. I suppose the Devil is as necessary as any other being, or he would not have been.

The righteous have been trampled under foot, but it is well with them. It was not their day. The time for them to reign and have dominion was not come. While wrapt in prophetic vision, they could view the events that were to transpire in the last-days, and prophesied of a kingdom that should be set up and stand for ever. They looked with joyful anticipation to this day. They expected a time when a certain power would exist on the earth, that would be more powerful than the powers of darkness, when the righteous should no more be trodden under foot, cast out; and oppressed—when the kingdoms of this world should become the kingdoms of our God and his Christ, over which he should rule for ever.

Men in our day have got hold of many odd ideas. The Millerites, for instance, have talked about Christ’s coming to reign on the earth at a certain time; and they were all going to be transfigured, changed, caught up, &c. In France and elsewhere, they had their social systems; but they knew no more about God, Christ, or anything of this kind than the Devil, I was going to say; but they did not begin to know as much as the Devil about God and his ways. These Socialists talked about a great millennium, and people went to them, expecting them to be a very righteous, praying people. They were something like the man whom the Indian thought was a “Mormon;” but when the Indian found out that he did not pray, that convinced him to the contrary. They did not regard God or his laws, but took up a little twig of Christianity and planted it on to their infidelity. They were going to ameliorate the condition of the human family and bring about the millennium.

In relation to the kingdom of God, what is it? Is it a spiritual kingdom? Yes. Is it a temporal kingdom? Yes. Does it relate to the spiritual affairs of men? Yes. Does it relate to the temporal of men? Yes. And when it is fully established upon the earth, the will of God will be done upon the earth precisely as it is done in heaven.

It is the will of God we are trying to do at the present time, in trying to fulfil his law, submit to his ordinances, and obey his commandments—not in one little item, but in every action of our lives, seeking to be perfectly submissive to the admonitions of the Almighty.

Was the kingdom that the Prophets talked about, that should be set up in the latter times, going to be a Church? Yes. And a State? Yes, it was going to be both Church and State, to rule both temporarily and spiritually. It may be asked, How can we live under the dominion and laws of the United States and be subjects of another kingdom? Because the kingdom of God is higher, and its laws are so much more exalted than those of any other nation, that it is the easiest thing in life for a servant of God to keep any of their laws; and, as I have said before, this we have uniformly done.

Who made this earth? The Lord.

Who sustains it? The Lord.

Who feeds and clothes the millions of the human family that exist upon it, both Saint and sinner? The Lord.

Who upholds everything in the universe? The Lord.

Who provides for the myriads of cattle, fish, and fowl that inhabit the sea, earth, and air? The Lord.

Who has implanted in them that instinct which causes them to take care of their young, and that power by which to propagate their species? The Lord.

Who has given to man understanding? The Lord.

Who has given to the Gentile philosopher, machinist, &c., every particle of intelligence they have with regard to the electric telegraph, the power and application of steam to the wants of the human family, and every kind of invention that has been brought to light during the last century? The Lord.

Who sets up the kings, emperors, and potentates that rule and govern the universe? The Lord.

And who is there that acknowledges his hand? Where is the nation, the people, the church even, or other power that does it? You may wander east, west, north, and south, and you cannot find it in any church or government on the earth, except the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

What is the cause of all the darkness, confusion, and misery that abound, the imprisonment and chains, and the thousand evils that afflict; mankind, embracing all the wars, bloodshed, and distress of nations? It is because they do not acknowledge the hand of the Lord in all things, nor understand his will. They pursue their own course, and do not seek the wisdom and intelligence of God.

Why is it that thrones will be cast, down, empires dissolved, nations destroyed, and confusion and distress cover all people, as the Prophets have spoken? Because the Spirit of the Lord will be withdrawn from the nations in consequence of their wickedness, and they will be left to their own folly.

Who has a right to rule the nations, to control kingdoms, and govern all the people of the earth? Are you a father? Have you wives and children? Do you feed, clothe, and provide for them? Yes. Have they a right to rebel against you? If they did, what would you think of such children?

Such is the position of the whole human family; such is the position of the whole world—of every society, religious, political, social, or otherwise; and none of them acknowledge God or are obedient to his laws.

Now, then, suppose you had a farm, and you put people on it to work—you fed and clothed them, and expected them to be obedient to you; but instead of that, while you were feeding, clothing, and taking care of them, they were abusing you, departing from your laws, transgressing your precepts, and listening to somebody else who was your enemy, instead of listening to you;—would you let them remain for ever on your farm, or would you by-and-by put somebody else in their place that would be more faithful to you?

The transactions of men are even more outrageous against the Lord, and the only excuse for them is their ignorance. What! are Christians ignorant? Yes, as ignorant of the things of God as the brute beast.

Let us look at it a little further. If you wished the welfare of your family, would you not chastise them? You would, if they did wrong. Would you not try to make them submit to your law? You certainly would; and if they would not, after you had pleaded with them and chastised them, you would disinherit them. The Lord said of Abraham, “I know he will fear me and command his children after him to do it.” It was this principle that recommended him to the favour of God.

What would you think of the conduct of a God who would let the human family continue for ever to transgress his law without interfering? You would think he was getting foolish and in his dotages—that he did not understand himself nor correct principles in allowing a lot of bad boys to rise up and increase around him, letting evil principles exist instead of righteous ones, and the wicked afflict and persecute the good with impunity.

The time was to come, and is now, that God has set up his kingdom upon the earth, and he is determined that men shall be in subjection to his laws. Can the Lord go to any other people but this and declare his will? He cannot. There is not a nation, kingdom, power, or people—there is not a political, moral, social, philosophical, or religious society in the world that would receive the word of God, except this people.

If there cannot be a people anywhere found that will listen to the word of God and receive instructions from him, how can his kingdom ever be established? It is impossible? What is the first thing necessary to the establishment of his kingdom? It is to raise up a Prophet and have him declare the will of God; the next is to have people yield obedience to the word of the Lord through that Prophet. If you cannot have these, you never can establish the kingdom of God upon the earth.

What is the kingdom of God? It is God’s government upon the earth and in heaven.

What is his Priesthood? It is the rule, authority, administration, if you please, of the government of God on the earth or in the heavens; for the same Priesthood that exists upon the earth exists in the heavens, and that Priesthood holds the keys of the mysteries of the revelations of God; and the legitimate head of that Priesthood, who has communion with God, is the Prophet, Seer, and Revelator to his Church and people on the earth.

When the will of God is done on earth as it is in heaven, that Priesthood will be the only legitimate ruling power under the whole heavens; for every other power and influence will be subject to it. When the millennium which we have been speaking of is introduced, all potentates, powers, and authorities—every man, woman, and child will be in subjection to the kingdom of God; they will be under the power and dominion of the Priesthood of God: then the will of God will be done on the earth as it is done in heaven.

This places man in his true relationship to the Most High; and while others are boasting of their own intelligence, powers, authority, rule, greatness, and might, our boast, glory, might, strength, and power are in the Lord. Do we have any temporal blessings? We acknowledge the hand of God in it. Do we have spiritual blessings? We acknowledge the hand of God in it. Do we do wrong and receive chastisement? We acknowledge his hand in it, and consider it a blessing. Are we in difficulties? We acknowledge the hand of God therein, and consider that it is necessary we should be tried and proved in all things, that we may be counted worthy to associate with the intelligences that surround the throne of God. Do we have prosperity? We acknowledge the hand of God in it, and pray him for wisdom to use properly what he has put in our hands. Do we possess scientific knowledge—knowledge on agriculture or any other kind of knowledge? We acknowledge his hand in it. Are we here in these mountains, surrounded, as a people, by the barriers of the everlasting hills, brought out from our enemies to inherit these valleys? We acknowledge the hand of God in it. Does an army come to make war on us? We acknowledge the hand of God in it. We feel that we are in his hands, and say, “It is the Lord; let him do what seemeth good unto him, and we will seek to do what is right on our part. Have we to go to war? We will acknowledge the hand of God in it. If we are told not to kill our enemies, we will not kill them, but cultivate a spirit of meekness and humility, doing what the Priesthood of God dictates—what the servants of the living God tell us. In peace and prosperity, war and adversity, we will lean on the hand of God, and acknowledge, it, and say, “Hallelujah! the Lord God Omnipotent reigneth.”

What is it we are seeking to do? Is it to get a farm, a house, or a possession of any kind? Who is anxious about such things, which are here to-day and gone to-morrow? They are well enough in their place.

Some of you are tried because you do not have many things you would like to have. If you had those things, you would not be tried in that point, and it is therefore necessary you should be placed in that position. It may be necessary, after awhile, that you should be tried with more of the things of this life than you know what to do with.

With none is the Lord God angry except those who do not acknowledge his hand in all things. What does it matter whether we are farming, building, planting, fighting, or anything else, if we are doing as we are told? Who cares? I do not. Let matters come in whatever way they have a mind to, it is all right, if we do right.

As eternal beings, associated with eternity that was and with eternity that is to come—beings that dwelt in eternal light before we came here, we are now seeking for salvation, preparing for celestial inheritances in the eternal worlds. This is what we are after: we are trying to lay a foundation for ourselves, for our progenitors, and for our posterity, that will endure and extend while countless ages roll; and we are taught the principles by which we may obtain this salvation by the holy Priesthood—by the revelations of God communicated to us through that Priesthood.

And now, having been forced from the United States, after having been driven time and time again from our homes by our murderous enemies—having fulfilled all the requirements that God or man could require of us, and kept every law necessary for us to observe—after all this, and more, I say, shall we suffer those poor, miserable, damned, infernal scoundrels to come here and infringe upon our sacred rights?

[“No!” resounded throughout the Tabernacle, making the walls of the building tremble.]

NO! It shall be “The kingdom of God or nothing” with us. That is my text, I believe; and we will stick to it—we will maintain it; and, in the name of Israel’s God, the kingdom of God shall roll on, and all the powers of earth and hell cannot stop its progress. It is onward, ONWARD, ONWARD, from this time henceforth, to all eternity.

[Voices of “Amen.”]

“Are you not afraid of being killed?” you may ask me. No. Great conscience! who cares about being killed? They cannot kill you. They may shoot a ball into you, and your body may fall; but you will live. Who cares about dying? We are associated with eternal principles: they are within us as a well springing up to eternal life. We have begun to live for ever.

Who would be afraid of a poor, miserable soldier—a man that gets eight dollars a month for killing people, and a miserable butcher at that—one of the poorest curses in creation? Mean as the Americans are, they will not, many of them, hire for soldiers. But the Government must hire foreigners for eight dollars a month to come out here to kill us! Who is afraid of them? Let them come on or stay and wiggle, it is all right.

We are the Saints of God; we have the kingdom of God, and the devils in hell and all the wicked men on the earth cannot take it from us. We shall rule and have dominion in the earth, and they cannot help themselves. They can take their own course. They may fight against us, if they like, or they can back out and leave us; but the kingdom will go on. They may take what course they please: the kingdom is ours, and we are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.

It is for us to live our religion, keep God’s commandments, and we shall be saved: we shall thus have the honour of doing something for the kingdom of God, in rolling back the flood of darkness that is enveloping the universe, and preparing ourselves for dominion on the earth and eternal exaltation in the kingdom of God for ever.

God bless you and preserve you in purity and holiness before him, that you may inherit all you anticipate, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ! Amen.

Truth, Life, and Light, etc.

Heber C. Kimball

Remarks by President Heber C. Kimball, made in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, Sunday morning, November 8, 1857. Reported by Leo Hawkins.

I have almost a good mind to talk a little—that is, if you want I should; but I certainly do not want to, without you want I should. And then again, if I felt really like it, I should talk, whether you wanted I should, or not. The reason I make that expression is because I am called to an holy calling, with our President, or brother Brigham. He is my leader, and I am his brother and servant. I am his fellow-servant—that is, I am one with him; and my calling actually requires me to talk, and to teach, and to instruct, and to exhort, and to invite all men to embrace the Gospel and plan of life and salvation.

Jesus, in the 1st chap. of John, 4th verse, says, “In him was life, and the life was the light of men.”

Also, in the 8th chap. and 12th verse, “Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world. He that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.”

And in the 14th chap. and 6th verse, “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by me.”

Well, you have heard me express, several times, that truth is life, and life is light. Well, it is true, because Jesus says, “I am the life and the light of the world; and no man that is born upon the face of this earth can obtain eternal life except they go by me. They must come by me or through me to obtain eternal life.”

Brethren, I want you to understand, if you will treasure up principles of truth as you would treasure up gold and silver and precious stones—if you will treasure up truth, every truth that you treasure up, that truth is life, and that life is light. Do you not see that if you treasure up the principles of truth in you, and you have your treasury full of them, then, of course, your treasury is saviour of all? Why? Because life is light, and light is life. Do you not see, if you have got the true principles dwelling in you, if you treasure up truth, you are bound to have life; and then, if you have life, you are bound to have light; and if those true principles dwell in you, and they abound, do you not see you cannot be unfruitful? You are bound to be fruitful in the knowledge of God and in the accomplishment of his purposes.

If you do not take a course to treasure up truth, you never will be prophets and prophetesses; for it is in treasuring up truth, and life, and light. If these principles be in you, and they abound, you will be like a well of water springing up into everlasting life. It will be everlasting, do you not see, if it springs up; and that will bring us back to the fountain of life, from whence springs life and light. Do you not see it springs from God. It emanates from him; and if it is in us and abounds, it will be in us as a well of water springing up into everlasting life, from whence it sprang.

Well, here are a few ideas before you—something I had not thought of before I got up. Well, I am called and ordained to be a teacher and to instruct; but if you do not receive my instructions and the principles of truth that emanate from me, then you are not profited; for the Lord says, “If a man offers you a gift, and you do not receive that gift with gladness and joy, then, of course, the man that offers the gift is not blessed; but if the receiver receives it with joy, then the man that gives the gift has joy in giving it. Do you not see it? Well, upon the same principle, if God confers gifts, and blessings, and promises, and glories, and immortality, and eternal lives, and you receive them and treasure them up, then our Father and our God has joy in that man. Do you understand me? I do not know whether you get my idea or not; but, to save my head, I cannot talk any plainer. You know I am called simple. Well, I wish I was simpler and could convey things with greater simplicity than I do. Why? Because I have not a spirit within me to wish to talk one word to you except good sense, and light, and information, and instruction to the child that sits before me to-day. Do you not see God is not pleased with any man except those that receive the gifts, and treasure them up, and practise upon those gifts? And he gives those gifts, and confers them upon you, and will have us to practise upon them. Now, these principles to me are plain and simple.

Do you suppose that God in person called upon Joseph Smith, our Prophet? God called upon him; but God did not come himself and call, but he sent Peter to do it. Do you not see? He sent Peter and sent Moroni to Joseph, and told him that he had got the plates. Did God come himself? No: he sent Moroni and told him there was a record, and says he, “That record is matter that pertains to the Lamanites, and it tells when their fathers came out of Jerusalem, and how they came, and all about it; and, says he, “If you will do as I tell you, I will confer a gift upon you.” Well, he conferred it upon him, because Joseph said he would do as he told him. “I want you to go to work and take the Urim and Thummim, and translate this book, and have it published, that this nation may read it.” Do you not see, by Joseph receiving the gift that was conferred upon him, you and I have that record?

Well, when this took place, Peter came along to him and gave power and authority, and, says he, “You go and baptise Oliver Cowdery, and then ordain him a Priest.” He did it, and do you not see his works were in exercise? Then Oliver, having authority, baptised Joseph and ordained him a Priest. Do you not see the works, how they manifest themselves?

Well, then Peter comes along. Why did not God come? He sent Peter, do you not see? Why did he not come along? Because he has agents to attend to his business, and he sits upon his throne and is established at head-quarters, and tells this man, “Go and do this;” and it is behind the vail just as it is here. You have got to learn that.

Peter comes along with James and John and ordains Joseph to be an Apostle, and then Joseph ordains Oliver, and David Whitmer, and Martin Harris; and then they were ordered to select twelve more and ordain them. It was done. Do you not see works were manifest? They received the truth, and thus you and I are here to-day; and if it had not been for the practice, you and I would not have been here, would we?

Well, practice makes perfect: it makes perfect men and perfect Apostles, and Prophets, and Elders, and Teachers, and Deacons; and how can you be perfect without it? It is by our practice and living up to our profession that we increase and grow in grace and in the knowledge of the truth.

There are a great many things, probably, that are taught you from this stand—that is, from individuals. They are taught to you; and you, probably, have not got faith and confidence in them. Well, now, I do not care whether you have or not: if you will go and do as you are told, you shall have a knowledge, although you had not a particle of faith when you began. That is curious religion; but there is no knowledge on any other principle, only by obedience.

Some time ago I brought up a figure. Say I, John, Timothy, Jack, Peter—I do not care who they are—you go up above the arsenal and dig a well, and dig ten or twelve feet, and you shall find a good spring of water. “Well,” says brother John, I have no confidence in that, that there can be water got there, neither have I any confidence in you as an Apostle.” Say I, I do not care whether you have or not: go and do as I tell you, and you shall be paid for it. You go and dig a well, and dig twelve feet, and find a good spring of water. Now, do you not get the knowledge of that water without a particle of faith or confidence? It is in the works.

Some say, “What is the use of my doing this, or that, or the other thing? I have no faith in it.” I do not care a dime for your faith. They produce the knowledge; and then, do you not see, knowledge swallows up faith before you ever had it?

Did you ever know anything to swallow a thing when it was not? Yes, the Methodists God has neither body, parts, nor passions; and yet they have swallowed him.

Well, now, this is a kind of curious doctrine, but it is true doctrine; for I never knew much faith in exercise in a man, except that man had good works, by going and doing as the servants of God say, to produce faith and knowledge.

Now, I will ask you a question—a scriptural question. I do not know where it is. It is in the Bible. I cannot refer to chapter and verse. I want to refer you to the case of Naaman, the Assyrian, who was smitten with leprosy. How much faith had he? He had not a particle; but his servant, who had faith, prevailed upon him to go down to Jordan. When the Prophet spoke to him and told him to go and dip himself seven times, and he should become whole, he had not a particle of confidence in it. He went down with his riches to buy health, but he could not buy it: he had to do as the Prophet told him. He went down and dipped himself seven times and was healed. Do you not believe, then, he knew things? Said he, “I know now they are the men of God. I know now that God lives, and their words are true; for I did as they told me, but I had not any confidence in them, and I was healed.”

Does not that agree with me? I merely bring that up that you may not find fault with my doctrine. Do you not see that is the principle that we must be actuated by? I care not whether you have any faith or not: you go and do as you are told to do, and that produces knowledge; and how long will it be before we shall be presented into the presence of Jesus Christ, the Son of God? It will not be but a little while. Now, there are a great many people, even to this day, with all the reformation that has been in our midst, who make a practice of telling lies. It is impossible for them to tell a story, except they put into the interstices of that story lies of their own manufacturing. Do you not see that destroys? They make a practice of it. They cannot transact business except they must lie a little. How long, do you suppose, it will take that man to get to heaven and to enter into celestial glory, where lies or anything that is impure cannot exist? It will take him as many millions of years as there will be millions of years to come.

Perhaps some people may think that if we do lie and are dishonest, and so forth and so on, when we die, the death that comes upon us and the change that comes upon us will change and take away those lies, and we shall find ourselves basking in truth. No such thing. I may tell a lie to you—I may be dishonest to my neighbours and ungodly, then I may get up and go out of doors; and I want to know what better am I when I go through that door than I was this side of it? Has it changed my nature? No—not one particle.

I will refer to brother Morley’s words. He says, “The mind makes the man.” That is true. What is the mind? It is that character that was made and fashioned after the image of God before these bodies were made—that is, our spirits. What is the mind? It is the spirit that was made before this body. Do you know it? Well, now let me tell you, it is that spirit that makes the man. I care not how humble he is—if his nose is three feet long and all his body was disfigured—I will tell you, if there is a good spirit in that man, and that spirit cultivates wholesome doctrine and lives to God, you love him. It is the spirit that is in the man that makes the man, which is the mind that you were speaking of, father Morley. You meant so, did you not, father Morley? [“Yes.”] Well, you did.

Well, our change from this state of existence does not change our character. The character must be made and formed before it goes through the vail, if he is going to continue with the servants of God, the Prophets.

Now, brethren, you have got a spirit in you, and that spirit was created and organized—was born and begotten by our Father and our God before we ever took these bodies; and these bodies were formed by him, and through him, and of him, just as much as the spirit was; for I will tell you, he commenced and brought forth spirits; and then, when he completed that work, he commenced and brought forth tabernacles for those spirits to dwell in. I came through him, both spirit and body. God made the elements that they are made of, just as much as he made anything. Tell me the first thing that is made on earth that God did not organize and place here in this world. Not a thing.

Well, it is the mind or spirit that is in the man that makes the man. Was that spirit a wicked spirit when it was organized and brought into existence? No—no more than our little children are sinners. But we have been led—that is, perverted, or rather led away from these true principles—led into evil principles by others. Well, then, of course, we are not exactly as we were when we were organized. No; we have taken other men’s books and reasonings, and fell into other principles—led away from nature—some say, “nature’s darkness.” I do not know anything about such a thing as nature’s darkness. If we were as we were in our first creation, we should be as innocent as little children, every one of us. Perhaps you do not see these things as I do; but I have not any notion of my own to communicate unto you.

You see I am the simplest fellow there is. I wish to God I was more simple than I am: I should be nearer to what I was in nature. I do not know how to use what they call big words. I never studied them. I have no taste particularly for them; and if I had, I should not know where to put them, and should be very apt to stick the head to the feet, and the feet to the head. I do not know where to apply them. Well, what are they? You may ask brother Taylor, and he will tell you they are conflabberation of all languages. Conflabberation! Well, that’s a good word, is it not? That is, they are French, English, Irish, Dutch, Hebrew, and Latin, and they are all kinds of words; and there are not many of them that have good sense. Well, they are a mixture: every language is a mixture. I have not studied them.

Do you want to blame me? Cannot you understand me in my simple way of communicating to you? After all my simplicity and simple words, and trying to simplify my words to the capacity of the people, there are lots of you who do not understand the words I use—the words I was taught from my youth in my simplicity.

Well now, brethren, I tell you I have said what I have said; and may God grant that it may inspire your hearts—that it may exalt your minds—that you may treasure up these truths, as far as they are truths; and I know nothing to the contrary but what they are truths; and if you do, or anybody else, I would be pleased to be corrected—that is, to have the real thing presented instead of them. Is it to my injury, because I did not happen to get it, and somebody steps forward and puts it there? Does it injure me? No: it communicates to me that I had not got—that is, a truth; and truth is life, and life is light. Do you not see what I get by it?

In regard to our situation and circumstances in these valleys, brethren WAKE UP! WAKE UP, YE ELDERS OF ISRAEL, AND LIVE TO GOD and none else; and learn to do as you are told, both old and young: learn to do as you are told for the future, And when you are taking a position, if you do not know that you are right, do not take it—I mean independently. But if you are told by your leader to do a thing, do it. None of your business whether it is right or wrong, You will get water, if you dig away. That is rather presumptuous doctrine with some people; but with me it is not.

I have heard men teach in this stand that I was under no obligation to do anything, except I had a revelation. I do not believe the doctrine at all. I don’t care who preached it. I am not the leader—I am not the Prophet, nor the chief Apostle. I do not hold the keys independently. I have no keys, only what I hold in brother Brigham; and then brother Brigham has the word of God the must do thus and so. He comes to me and says, “Brother Heber, I want you to do thus and so.” Wait till I go home, get into my private room, and ask God that I may get a revelation! Aint that pretty, brother Taylor? Well, I will not talk just as I think. If I did, I would knock this pulpit head over heels, when I think of such folly. Go and get a revelation, when God has spoken through my head!—and then the tail goes off, and gets down on his knees to get a revelation, when the head has got one!

Now, I have heard that doctrine preached here, that they must have a revelation before they are bound to receive that word and go and practise it, just as it would have been with those men I employed to go and dig that well by the arsenal. “Wait, sir.” I will not wait a minute. Go along, or I will employ men that will do it. “I am going to get a revelation to know if there is water there.” They do not know that by believing on any man’s testimony they increase in knowledge, wisdom, and the power of God. They forget that. Do you not see that I can learn more to be led than I can to lead, if I have the right man to lead me? Brother Brigham is my leader: he is my Prophet, my Seer, and my Revelator; and whatever he says, that is for me to do; and it is not for me to question him one word, nor to question God a minute. Do you not see?

I will tell you what it is right for me to do. If there is time, (and if there is not, it is not necessary,) go along and bow down before the Lord God. Say I, “Father, help me to be faithful and do the words of brother Brigham, my leader, that I may see glory in it, and that I may see immortality and eternal lives in it.”

I am teaching you, Elders. Now, if I am not right, I am wrong. I leave it to you to judge whether I am right or wrong. It is curious for me to talk, but it is not for me to question his words any more than it was Naaman, the Assyrian. Said he, “What better are the waters of Jordan? Why are not the rivers of Damascus and the water round Jerusalem just as good? Why is there not as much virtue in them as there is in Jordan? Why, there is; but the virtue is in the man of God telling him what to do. There was virtue in doing what the servant of God told him to do. If he had told him to have gone and got into a mud hole, it would have had the same effect as that water. It is in the words of the man of God, and God lets his angels go along wherever he goes, and the angel of God goes along and touches the man with the touch of his finger, and says, “Be thou made whole!” Why? “Because the servant of God says so, and I have come here to help to fulfil it.” Either side of the vail they are active to see that your words are fulfilled. If they are not, they are not with us, nor we with them.

What difference does the vail make? None at all. To us there is a vail, but to them there is no vail. They can see through the side of a house as well as through the air. I know that by experience. “Well, now,” some one says, “What good does it do for two or three thousand men to be in the mountains? Why, I don’t know that it is any of our business. It says “Uncle Sam cannot come. We are ready; we are on the spot.” Well, what else? It gives those men an experience that they cannot have on any other principle. They are getting an experience—for what? To cultivate them for something greater, which will come next year; and if it does not come then, it will come some time. I do not say it will come next year. You never heard me say it would; but you and I want to live our religion and do as we are told, not questioning a word for a moment. You have got to stop that. It is enough for others to do that, without our meddling with those things. I am speaking to the Elders of Israel.

Well, these things are all right. You learn to do as you are told; and those that have not been baptised into the Church, I say, Go and be baptised, and put on Christ by baptism, that you may receive the Holy Ghost and be one with us: that is all I have got to say to you.

Bless your souls, I pray my Father to bless brother. Brigham, with his Counsellors, that they may be one; to bless the Twelve, that they may be one, with us; to bless the Seventies, that they may be one with the Twelve, and the High Priests one with the Seventies, and the Elders one with the High Priests, and the Priests one with the Elders, &c.; that we may all be one and partake of the same Spirit and same power, and same Holy Ghost, and same religion. That is my exhortation to you: I cannot preach any other.

If that takes place, I want to know what any power has to do with us? As we relax our power and live our religion—do you not see, as we relax that the Devil will gain power upon us? Suppose, now, I was to take a rough-and-tumble with a man and wrestle with him: I wrestle a spell pretty valiantly, and almost gain power over my antagonist; I have almost gained power over him, and I begin to slack up to get a little breath: do you not see that that antagonist is bound to put me down if I slack up? Well, if you slack up your religion, living faithfully, praying, exhorting, and living to God, do you not see our antagonist is gaining power over us? But let me tell you, gentlemen, we will take it just as God dictates; and if he says rough-and-tumble, let us take it rough-and-tumble, and pitch them headlong where they belong.

Well, now, if you will do just as you are told, you will increase in knowledge ten thousand times faster than you will to pray six hours; and if you follow that course, you will not advance in your religion one-hundredth part so much as that man that will do just as he is told, no matter what.

If you are told to watch, watch. Can you pray when you are watching? I do: I pray all the time. Well, live your religion—that is, not your religion, but the religion of Jesus Christ, and serve your God. Cease all your contentions. Are there not contentions enough in the world? Are there not contentions enough with that army and with the devils in hell without there being any with us? These things should subside: they should take an avalanche, like the snow. You know the snow will take a slide down the sides of the mountains. They call, that an avalanche. I should call it a hell of a full of a fuss—that is, it is a convulsion. Well, excuse me for that language.

Well, there are those troops over yonder. They are not here, are they? Well, some of you thought they were coming here, and several ran away, supposing they were coming. Well, I am glad of that, and I wish every other one that feels so would put off. We will help them. Brother Brigham has fulfilled his word: he said if he could find any man or woman that wanted to go, he would send them to that happy place. Well, he has sent Mrs. Mogo. No doubt she will die a happy death.

This great Mr. Johnson, the Commander of those troops has come, I suppose. Brother Groesbeck has come in with his company from the States. God gave him wisdom, and he is here, and he escaped those troops. Mr. Johnson says he is going to obey the President’s orders, and says he will come in; but by the time he goes up and down Ham’s Fork a few times, it will take away his strength. If you do not believe it, try some other Ham’s Fork. I had as lieve sit on a bayonet as a fork. He has had a fever all the way, and will have a chill when he has lost his strength. He will have an all-killing chill. He will not come here. We have told you all the time they will not come. But he may attempt to come, and then he may not. That is just as God has a mind to.

I feel the Lord designs the thing should move along and no blood be shed, because I do not consider God is so anxious that we should be bloodthirsty men as some may be. God designs we should be pure men, holding the oracles of God in holy and pure vessels; but when it is necessary that blood should be shed, we should be as ready to do that as to eat an apple. That is my religion, and I feel that our platter is pretty near clean of some things, and we calculate to keep it clean from this time henceforth and forever, and, as the Scripture reads, “Lay judgment to the line and righteousness to the plummet.” We shall do that thing, and we shall commence in the mountains. We shall clean the platter of all such scoundrels; and if men and women will not live their religion, but take a course to pervert the hearts of the righteous, we will “lay judgment to the line and righteousness to the plummet,” and we will let you know that the earth can swallow you up, as it did Korah with his host; and as brother Taylor says, you may dig your graves, and we will slay you, and you may crawl into them.

I do not mean you, if you are not here. I mean those corrupt scoundrels. Well, this is just as brother Brigham has said here hundreds of times.

If those troops could have come in here, let me tell you, all the finest and smartest devils would have entered into the smartest bodies and come here to overturn us. You will not catch a mean, low, inferior, stupid devil in a smart man. I will tell you the Devil has his smart men. Says he, “You get into a smart body.” Smart spirits do not get into inferior bodies. Would you? No. Well, then, do you suppose they would do what we would not do under the same circumstances?

Was not Lucifer a pretty smart lad? Just look at it—son of the morning—when all heaven wept when he fell. He was a smart man. It takes a smart man—that is, one who thinks he is, to act the devil. Well, I merely speak of these things.

Well, they would come from Dan to Beersheba, and from California to France—that is, wicked and abominable spirits would have come into this valley when those troops came, do you not see? The blacklegs, and highway robbers, and whoremongers, and whores would have gathered into this place, if those troops could have come into this place to have slain our leaders. Let me die an honourable man living my religion rather than to bow down to their cursed yoke again, as the Lord God liveth. They have made us stiffen our upper lip, and now we have got to keep it stiff—I mean the upper lip; and if you grow as you ought, five years will not pass away before your lips will be five times as thick as they are now. Joseph had a high lip, and he was a beautiful man—one of the most lovely men I ever saw, especially when the Spirit of God was in him; and his countenance was as white as the whitest thing you ever saw.

Let all these domestic broils and family difficulties cease, ye Elders of Israel; and if you have got things that will not sleep and, will not rest, live your religion, and I would take my johnny-cake and go into the mountains and spend my days defending the house of Israel, before I would stay at home and quarrel one moment. Is it not better for you? Well, now stop these little broils at home in your families: that is the end of all trouble with us; and God will bless us and will bless the earth, and the air, and the elements, and we shall be blessed with fruits and grain, and with every other thing that our hearts can desire.

Is there anything that we ever saw or thought of but what is in the elements, the air we breathe, and the earth we walk on?—and blessing be to God that I live on an earth that lives. Well, that is a curious idea. I heard a Methodist preacher preach that once at Miller’s Corners, in Bloomfield, Ontario County, New York, and thought it was a curious idea. Well, it is truth.

Now, I will prove this to you, if any of you doubt it, by true philosophy—by natural philosophy. Do you believe that a dead woman can conceive from a live man and bring forth a live child? Do you believe it, any of you mothers? Do you believe it, any of you fathers? No, you know better. Well, if a woman will not produce when she is dead, then the earth cannot produce living things if it was dead.

Does the earth conceive? It does, and it brings forth. If it did not, why do you go and put your wheat into the ground? Does it not conceive it? But it does not conceive except you put it there. It conceives and brings forth, and you and I live, both for food and for clothing, silks and satins. What! satin grow? Yes. What produces it? The silkworm produces it. Does the silkworm produce except it conceives? No, it eats of the mulberry tree. Where does the mulberry tree come from? It comes from the earth. Where did the earth come from? From its parent earths.

Well, some of you may call that foolish philosophy. But if it is, I will throw out foolish things, that you may gather up wise things. The earth is alive. If it was not, it could not produce: If you find a piece of earth that is dead, you cannot produce anything from it, except you resurrect it and restore it to life. If that is not true philosophy, it is nothing that I have produced. It is what every man knows; if he can only reflect. But I thought it was curious doctrine when that Methodist spoke of it.

How could my head produce hair, if it was dead? Neither can the earth produce grain, if it is dead. Now, brethren, do you not see the propriety of our blessing the earth—the earth that we inhabit and cultivate? If you do not see the propriety of it, for heaven’s sake do not bless the sacrament again. Do not take a bottle of oil to the prayer-circle to be blessed, when you do not believe the earth can be blessed.

If you have got half-an-acre, you can bless it, and dedicate it, and consecrate it to God, and ask him to fill it with life. Well, then, if you can bless half-an-acre, why can you not bless a whole acre? And if you can bless an acre; why can you not bless all this Territory? Just reflect for a moment, If you can bless a gill of oil, then you can bless a pint. When you bless a pint, you can bless a quart, and so on until you can bless a bottle of oil as big as this valley.

Bless God! Yes, I bless my Father and my God pertaining to this earth; I bless his Son; I bless everything in heaven and on earth. Now, you may call that improper, when you do it, all of you, indirectly. Bless my Father! Suppose I had an earthly father here, and he had received the Gospel and was a Patriarch, I would bless him and put all the blessings on him that I had power and strength; that is, I would put all I had on to him; then I could get it back: then I could bless his father, and he could bless his father, and his father his father, and the blessings I would put on my father would go clear back until it came to the Father and God from whence it came, and then it comes down to us again, just as the sap and nourishment in the tree: if it does not go into the root, it never would go into the top; and every limb and branch pertaining to that tree has to give up a portion of the nourishment they receive, and then we are all impregnated with the roots.

Well, I am talking these things as plain as I can: Perhaps some of you do treasure them up. But we live on an earth that lives: if we do not, we cannot produce nor get produced from it. You never will get peaches if you do not plant and let the earth conceive; but if the earth conceives, and you nourish it, you are bound to have peaches, and apples, and currants, and plums. If you cultivate and partake of the elements that God has made, you will have houses, and barns, and granaries, and everything else. God has made it. All we have to do is to take it from the earth. But you say it is all dead, do you? Oh folly! There is nothing that is dead that lives, nor shall we ever die temporally nor spiritually; for that tabernacle that I live in is life; and when it goes back to the earth, it goes back into a living creature, For what purpose? To become analyzed, and cleansed, and purified, that I may receive it again, more glorious than this body. How can I obtain it? On no other principle only to do just as I am told. You have got to learn that lesson. I have got to learn it; and if I have got to learn it, I can prove that you have got to do as I do.

You are very exact in military tactics. Here is Squire Wells, and he is under the direction of our Governor; and then every other officer in his turn must be dictated and governed as he is dictated. Does Squire Wells run to every man? No: he gives his order to the officer next to him, and so on till it goes down to the fourth corporal. See how accurate you have to be in that discipline. Should not you be more so in the kingdom of your God?—and if you do not, you are not making progress.

Why are you not wide awake? Cultivate, make, take, and increase, and bring forth those things that you need. You do not believe the gate is going to be shut down, do you? Mr. Johnson says there shall not an article or a train come in, except the Governor lets him come in. The Governor will not, except he grounds arms; and if he will ground arms, he will ground arms; and if he no ground arms, then he no ground arms, and he cannot come here. Gentlemen, your leaders all say he cannot come here. Why, if he wants to come here himself, with a few of his council—if they really want to come to see the Governor, they have the privilege; but they would have to ground arms. I am not going to take that word back. They have got to ground arms from this time henceforth. But we have shouldered arms, and it is present arms; and do you not see that the next thing is to take aim?

Joseph, when he was in Nauvoo, on the house top, drew his sword from the sheath and said it never should be sheathed again. Brother Brigham has said the same, and brother Heber will back him in it, and so will every officer in the kingdom of God. What say you, brethren, will we go it? If so, raise your right hands and say Aye.

[One loud “AYE” rang through the congregation.]

We are not going to bow down to the wicked any more. I had rather die as I am and fight my way than ever to go into their hands again. They probably, if they had had only sense enough, might have caused us to bow down our heads and got the bow on Old Bright’s neck. They will not pay the debts contracted by their own officers. They send the most damnable and contemptible scoundrels that they could to rule over us, and they abused us all the time, and God wanted they should. If they had not perhaps we should have bowed down and got the yoke on our neck. Now, perhaps, they will try to draw back and say, “Let us give them a State Government and a few hundred thousand dollars, and see if we cannot pet them.” When you see a thing of that sort, look out for the Devil: he will be behind that curtain. When I see anything of that kind, I am suspicious.

We shall prescribe a course for the United States to take after this. Well, you do not believe that, do you? Do as you are told, and see if it does not come to pass. You cannot tell whether I am a true man, unless you listen to me.

Well, these are my feelings, God bless you, brethren; God bless you, sisters; God bless this earth, and these valleys, and every honest person that comes into these valleys! If their soldiers desert and come in here, may the Lord God bless them, that they may have the Spirit of God on them while they stay here! We live to let live, and we will treat them with kindness and gentility, if they stay here and behave themselves. But they cannot whore it here; for, gentlemen; if there is anything of that kind, we will, slay both men and women. We will do it, as the Lord liveth—we will slay such characters. Now, which would be the most worthy to be slain—the woman that had had her endowments and made certain covenants before God, or the man that knew nothing about it? The woman, of course. She must be guilty according to her knowledge. These little officers that were brought up as pets at West Point boasted all the way what they were going to do with our leaders: they were going to take our Governor and hang him, and take his wives and use them at their leisure; and they were going to serve Heber in the same way, and all others that lifted their tongues against our enemies. They have not yet done it, have they?

Well, these are my feelings. They are out there: they have been sitting on Ham’s Fork so long, it has begun to ulcerate, as that nasty fop, Douglas, uses the term—that little nasty snot-nose: you cannot call him anything half so mean as he is—the nastiest of all nasties that God could suffer on the earth. We have been a friend to him and everybody else, and we have not done any harm. We mind our own business. We came to this land because we were just obliged to do so; and I have been broken up and driven five times; but, as the Lord God liveth, I do not go again, nor any other man or woman that will live their religion. Let us do right, as a people, and we never will go from this place until we please and God pleases to have us.

We were brought here for a purpose to secure us, and for us to stand to our rights and privileges as citizens of the United States, and claim protection. What are they coming up here for? To kill your leaders; and when they kill us they will kill every man and woman that will sustain those men. Well, they are not here—God be praised! Hallelujah! Glory to God in the highest, peace on earth, and goodwill to all good men! My soul says Hallelujah! Praise the Lord, my soul, and give glory to him, and let all Israel say Amen!

[The assembly responded, “Amen.”]

Am I not happy? These are the people of God. They shall live and they shall prosper, and everything that is attached to the righteous shall be righteous and grow righteous. Yes, I bless the earth and everything that is on this earth; but I feel, in the name and by the authority of Jesus Christ and my calling, to curse that man that lifts his heel against my God and his cause and kingdom; and the curse of God shall be upon him: the angels of God shall chase him, and he shall have no peace. The President of the United States and his coadjutors that have caused this thing shall never rest again, for they shall go to hell.

Brother Morley says he has no right to teach. I am blessing them with the power that is on your head. Why do you not do it? That is the blessing of a Patriarch, to bless the house of Israel. I bless you as a people—not only this people here to-day, but I bless all that are in the east, west; north, or south. God bless our head and every member that is attached to it! Bless the house of Israel, with the head of the vine, and with every vine and every branch that pertains to it, with every particle of fruit, that it may be choice in the house of God in these mountains! Amen.

Source of True Happiness—Prayer, Etc.

Brigham Young

A sermon by President Brigham Young, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, November 15, 1857. Reported by G. D. Watt.

I am happy for the privilege of standing before the Saints. It is a great pleasure to me to associate with those whose feelings are concentrated in the establishment of peace and righteousness upon the earth.

Before I heard the Gospel as again revealed in its purity through Joseph the Prophet, I was tolerably well acquainted with the spirit, disposition, tact, and talents possessed by the children of men; and though I was then but about thirty years of age, I had seen and heard enough to make me well acquainted with the people in their acts and dealings one towards another, the result of which was to make me sick, tired, and disgusted with the world; and had it been possible, I would have withdrawn from all people, except a few, who, like myself, would leave the vain, foolish, wicked, and unsatisfying customs and practices of the world. Sorrow, wretchedness, death, misery, disappointment, anguish, pain of heart, and crushed spirits prevail over the earth; and apparently, the whole of the intelligence of mankind is directed in a way to produce cruel and unnatural results.

Since I have been in this Church and kingdom, I have endeavoured to learn and treasure up wisdom and good understanding, and then not to forget them. I have endeavoured to gather to myself every principle that would promote righteousness in me and those who would hearken to my counsel.

Read the history of any kingdom or nation, and trace through all the channels from the history of nations and kingdoms to that of families and individuals who have not known God nor observed his commandments, and you will find that sorrow and disappointment have been intimately mingled in all the gaiety, luxuries, and pretended enjoyments of their mortal lives. They have found a bitter sting in their happiest moments and a deadly poison in their cups. There is no man or woman on the earth who can enjoy solid satisfaction—unalloyed peace and comfort, but in the holy spirit of our religion—in the Gospel of salvation: that is the only source of true happiness. Read the history of those who can command the wealth of the world to minister to their happiness, and they find it not in authority, station, nor wealth. From the monarch upon his throne to the most degraded beggar upon the streets, all who enjoy not the Gospel are destitute of the source of true happiness. It is not to be found among them.

When the portals of heaven are opened and the Priesthood of God is given he so blesses the people that they can truly understand the principles that tend to peace, to glory, immortality, and eternal lives. That and that alone can give true satisfaction to our spirits, which are organized to receive and continue to increase in principles of light, intelligence, power, and glory—organized to be preserved to eternally associate together—to have the privilege of beholding each other’s faces—of enjoying each other’s society and the society of holy beings who have been tried as we have and have to be, and to enjoy, love, converse with, and look upon the faces of those beings who have been glorified throughout all ages that are countless to us. Their identity has been preserved, and they enjoy the smiles of their friends and associate with their companions who have in a mortal state passed through the same ordeals they endured while in this existence. Fathers and mothers associate with their children, children with their parents, brothers with sisters, and sisters with their brothers—all in their family circles dwelling in the midst of the glorified. What else can satisfy a truly intelligent human being—the immortal spirit that is tabernacled in a mortal tenement? Nothing.

What would induce an intelligent individual to suffer his eyes to be put out and to live without seeing objects around him—the faces of his family, friends, and connections? Would money? What would hire an intelligent person to be deprived of the sense of hearing? Could money buy his hearing? What would hire you to suffer the destruction of the organ of speech, or to be deprived of any of the more important members of your organization? The things of this world could not induce you to suffer the destruction of any of the vital powers of your organization; yet the world are seeking after the paltry, perishable things of time and sense. They are their glory—their pretended comfort—their god, and their daily study and pursuit. But the members which God has placed in our tabernacles are worth all the world to us. We have the power of seeing, hearing, tasting, smelling, and feeling, enabling us to converse and associate with each other; and money cannot buy these blessings from us.

Stop then, and consider what use you will make of these powers. Will you go wild after the things of this world, as do the majority of the inhabitants of the earth, with whose ways you are well acquainted? How long will they endure? Their breath is in their nostrils: to-day they are—to-morrow they are not. What prospects have they for futurity? Have they any promise? Yes. What is it? Death. Have they the promise of life eternal? They have, upon certain conditions; but they care no more about those conditions than did certain characters that Paul wrote about: they are even like the dumb beasts that are entirely ignorant of futurity. Fatten an ox and lead him to the slaughter, and he knows nothing of what awaits him. So it is with the great majority of the inhabitants of the earth: they have no knowledge of their future condition; they merely know that death will terminate their present career. We are blessed with the words of eternal life, with the everlasting Priesthood, and the keys thereof, with principles that, if rightly acted upon, will secure to us those blessings we now enjoy, and which you hear the brethren often speak about.

I am happy; I am full of joy, comfort, and peace: all within me is light, for I desire nothing but to do the will of my Father in heaven. I delight not in unrighteousness, but in righteousness and truth. I seek to promote the good and happiness of myself and those with whom I am associated. We have the privilege of securing to ourselves that eternal bliss that can never fade away, and of preserving our identity, that, when millions of ages have rolled away, we can then behold each other as we do today, and can converse together. One thousand years hence, probably many of this congregation will talk over difficulties we are now passing through.

You hear some of the brethren surmise that we are going to have trouble. You need not expect any trouble, except you take a course to bring it upon you. You need never expect to see sorrow, unless your own conduct, conversation, and acts bring it to your hearts. Do you not know that sorrow to you can exist only in your own hearts? Though men or women were in the mountains perishing—though they be in overwhelming depths of snow, freezing to death, or be on a desolate island starving to death for want of food—though they perish by the sword or in any other way, yet, if the heart is cheerful, all is light and glory within: there is no sorrow within them. You never saw a true Saint in the world that had sorrow, neither can you find one. If persons are destitute of the fountain of living water, or the principles of eternal life, then they are sorrowful. If the words of life dwell within us, and we have the hope of eternal life and glory, and let that spark within us kindle to a flame, to the consuming of the least and last remains of selfishness, we never can walk in darkness and are strangers to doubt and fear. Yet we see people among us who are still selfish, and that principle we must abandon: we must strip off selfishness, and put covetousness far from us. We must become of one heart and mind, in order to fully enjoy the blessings we anticipate.

Brother Phineas correctly observed, in his remarks, that if ten men are united in these mountains, they are not to be overcome by their enemies. Are this whole people perfectly united? I fear not. When I undertake to present before this people the true principles of the Priesthood, I almost shudder, because so many do not yet understand them and cannot receive them. I go into my room where we have our prayer-circle, and among twelve men there will perhaps be twelve different prayers offered up—one praying for one thing and another for another thing. You may reduce the number to three, and let them be clothed for secret prayer; and while one is praying aloud, each of the others will be praying for that which the one that is mouth is not praying for, unless they are better taught in regard to prayer than is the Christian world. Ask the people if they understand the principle of prayer, and many reply. We do not know: we pray with all our might;” and at the same time it is a scene of confusion and distraction of mind.

We are in a land of liberty; and our fathers have taught us—especially those born in America, that every man and woman and every child old enough to speak, argue, read, reflect, &c., must have minds of their own, and not listen to anybody else. They are taught to shape their own opinions, and not depend upon others to direct their thoughts, words, or actions. That system of teaching reminds me of the old saying, “Every man for himself, and the Devil for them all.” Such views, though entertained by the human family at large, must be checked in this people. Yet when I undertake to strip off the garb of erroneous tradition, and to teach the people true principles of faith, prayer, and obedience, there are many who cannot receive those principles in their understanding and hearts. I have told you, and will now tell you again, that you have to bring your minds right to the authority of the Gospel—to the true Gospel line. Let an Elder pray here, and then ask a brother in the congregation what has been prayed for, and he cannot tell you. Ask a sister what has been prayed for, and she cannot tell you. She may say, “I was so fervent in prayer myself that I did not hear what was prayed for.” And so it is with hundreds of people who congregate here. And I think that I may venture to say that you will scarcely find an individual in the whole congregation that can tell what the person who prays has prayed for. Do you not know that to be a fact? I will appeal to your own minds.

When a man opens or closes a meeting with prayer, every man, woman, and child in the congregation who professes to be a Saint should have no desire or words in their hearts and mouths but what are being offered by the man who is mouth for all the congregation. If all would follow out that principle, where would it lead the people? They would act with one heart and mind in all their acts through life, and promote the kingdom of God on the earth.

How many times I have attended prayer-meetings among the Methodists, in my youthful days, when perhaps one hundred men and women would all be praying aloud at once? I did not then know but that it was all right. I neither said nor cared anything about it. It often used to be father Joseph Smith’s custom, when he took the lead of a fast-meeting, to request all present to pray aloud at the same time, and there would be as many different prayers as there were persons. Where was the concentration on a single and united thread of faith? It is like the cable that holds the ship. Unwind a cable, and you will find several hundred small cords; unwind the small cords, and you will find fourteen strands in each cord; unwind each strand, and there are thousands of fibres; and you have parted the cable of a ship fastened to a sure anchor, and the ship is free and wafting unmanageable before the furious tempest. So it is with prayer. You say you want to be united and want the blessings of heaven.

How many times have I said here, within the last three months, I pray that God would so lead us and our enemies that there will be no blood shed? And how many have come to meeting and prayed in their hearts that “our enemies would come on, for we want to slay them, for we have been mobbed and hunted enough;” and another would pray the same prayer, with a disposition to desire the spoil. One of the brethren prayed in camp that the snow might fall 40 feet deep on our enemies. I am satisfied if it falls only four or five feet deep.

I will tell you my faith in regard to the brethren now in the mountains. General Wells takes the charge; and when I write to him, I counsel him to do as the Holy Ghost shall dictate him, and inform him that whatever he may order and perform, he has my faith and influence to sustain him.

I pray God to turn away our enemies, to put hooks in their jaws and turn them wherever he will, with their gold, their horses, and all they possess. They do not know the “Mormons;” they are strangers to this people, and are full of wrath and malice towards us; but they know not why. They know not that they are stirred to anger against us by the enemy of all righteousness. Should those who instigated the sending of this army undertake to come here, there will be another scenery, for they are more or less acquainted with us and know that we are the most upright people on the earth; and they will not be able to shield themselves in the garb of ignorance. I will not talk about them, for you know their history, and you know and have seen much of the squalid wretchedness of the wicked inhabitants of the earth. Is there honour or virtue among them? Where is the man or woman among them that is to be trusted? If there is here and there any semblance of goodness or virtue, it is at once overcome by every fiendish art in their power. Women are overcome by sycophants, by those who rule the nation, and those who have power and influence in the various States, parties, and religious sects. Man is overcome by man; they cuddle, and wink, and gamble, and run to-and-fro in abominations of every grade, and lift their voices for and against each other, as did the Paddy in his petition to the king for an office, wherein he stated that he would vote for or against him, fight for him or fight him, just as he wished it.

Colonel Alexander—probably one of the best men in the army now near Bridger ruins, told one of our messengers, when replying to a piece of advice I had given him to resign his commission rather than be found operating against an innocent people, that he was compelled to remain in the army; for, if he resigned, he knew not how to manage to sustain his family. He said, “I have no other means of support: I cannot throw up my commission, for then I should have no means to support my wife and children.” As an American, shame and confusion would overwhelm me, were I to even think of trying to sustain my family by siding with tyranny and oppression. That is the only circumstance I wish to name. They are sent ostensibly to civilize this people. But I do not wish to talk much about such nonsense. The whole world are wrapt up in the garment of corruption, confusion, and destruction; and they are fast making their way down to hell, while we have the words of eternal life.

How ought we to live? Look at yourselves and see whether your faith is concentrated with those who are appointed of the Lord to lead you and have rule over you. See whether all your desires are one with theirs. If not, it must come to that point. Let every Saint, when he prays, ask God for the things he needs to enable him to promote righteousness on the earth. If you do not know what to ask for, let me tell you how to pray. When you pray in secret or with your families, if you do not know anything to ask for, submit yourselves to your Father in heaven and beseech him to guide you by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, and to guide this people, and dictate the affairs of his kingdom on the earth, and there leave it. Ask him to put you just where he wants you, and to tell you what he wants you to do, and feel that you are on hand to do it. These are a few of my reflections upon that point, and only a very few of them.

Let this people be brought to the straightforward thread of the Gospel; and what more have we than what has been taught us from the beginning of this work? Nothing. And the only difficulty there has been is, that we were not prepared to receive it. Do you know how to direct your own minds? Where is there an honest man or woman on the face of this earth—one who has any knowledge of the Supreme Being, any feeling of the operation of an invisible agency, but what pleads with that God, whether they know him or not, to dictate their minds, affections, and conduct? Where is there an honest man or woman on the earth, but what that is their desire?

Many do not know what to pray for. They need some one to dictate them. Will the Lord come and personally dictate them? You know that he will not. Will he send his holy angels to talk with you? You could not endure their presence: you are in a sinful world. What do you need? That invisible agency, called the Spirit, to dictate your minds.

The whole world are sadly in want of what they call a master-spirit. That is what the Government of the United States are deprived of. There is not one to be found among them, neither in the Cabinet of the President nor in the Senate of the United States. They are all gone, and there is no one in their midst competent to lead and dictate in the affairs of our General Government; but, as they say, it is with them a period of mediocrity. It has been acknowledged by Great Britain that the master-spirits are fled: there are none in the British Parliament, and they know not what to do. Let this people come to that condition, and say that they have no person capable of dictating and leading them, and you will be in the whirlpool of delusion.—It will be every man for himself, and you would not know what to do: you would not know how to dictate your own affairs. It is this which overwhelms the world in confusion and makes it Babylon, while the Priesthood elevates mankind and dictates the husband, the wife, and the children, and all they have.

A feeling exists in the minds of many of this people that they would be glad to submit to their presiding Elder or Bishop, but they do not think that he has knowledge sufficient to lead them. Says a wife, “I would be glad to submit to my husband; but I wish I had a husband that I could look upon as my superior—that I could look up to and receive his words and counsel: that would be my highest delight. O that I had a husband capable of dictating me; but, alas! I have not.” Go among some of the children, and they say, “I would be glad to mind my parents in all things, but I believe that I know more than they do.”

Go into one of our cities, and you find somebody on the whiz, whiz, like the wind passing through a broken window in December; and so it goes throughout the settlement. Somebody has imagined that the President does not understand his duty and is not capable of dictating, and that is all the Devil wants to begin with. If he succeeds in getting one toe into the stocking, he will work until he gets his whole foot in, and confusion and discord will reign predominant. How many times have you observed such instances? You have not lived in the Church one year without seeing them.

In such cases a presiding Elder may not always know but what he has done something wrong, and may be suspicious that this or that is not right. My maxim is, and it is a rule I have established in the Legislature of this Territory, never to oppose anything unless the one making the objection can present something better. Do not oppose when you cannot improve. If you are not capable of dictating your brethren, do not say that you will dictate them until you have found out a better path than the one in which they are walking. Before you oppose your Bishop as a man unworthy of your best feelings, first point out a better path to him; and then you shall have the right of going to the higher authorities to show that you know more than your Bishop.

Is there a fault in some of the presiding Elders? Yes. What is it? Some of them are subject to a feminine, pusillanimous feeling. A man rises up, and says, “I will dictate and oppose my Bishop,” and some of the Bishops will dodge, and say, “I do not know but that I am wrong: wife, am I right or wrong?”—and say to every brother they meet, “What do you think about it?” and run round and get the opinion of everybody, to know whether they will sustain him or not. When men learn their duty and calling, and walk up to the best light they have, then, if they do not know precisely how to guide to the best advantage, they are right, if they do the best they can, and can tell all who find fault, “I ask no odds of you: I have, done as I have, and have done the will of God, according to the best of my knowledge.” And let every man treat his wives and children in the same way; and when a wife says, “O no, my dear, I think I understand this matter as well as you do, and perhaps a little better; I am conversant with all the whys and the wherefores, and am acquainted with this little circumstance better than you are, and I think in this case, my dear, that I know better than you;” reply, “Get out of my path, for I am going yonder, and you may whistle at my coattail until you are tired of it,” That is the way I would talk to my wives and children, if they intermeddled with my duties. And I say to them, If you cannot reverence me, tell me where the man is you can reverence, and I would speedily make a bee-line with my carriage and servants and place you under his care.

I told the people in Nauvoo, before they wished me to stand as their President, that if there were any Latter-day Saints that did not wish to take the counsel of the Twelve, they could go to hell their own road: we asked no odds, of them, for the Twelve were capable of building up the kingdom of God on the earth. You know whether I here ask much odds or not. I also told them that if they were not Saints at that critical juncture, they ought to repent of their sins, and get the Holy Ghost, and not live another twenty-four hours without the spirit of revelation within themselves, for who knows but what you are the elect; and you know that false prophets were to arise in the last days, and, if possible, deceive the very elect, and that many false shepherds would come and pretend to be the true shepherds. Now, be sure to get the spirit of revelation, so that you can tell when you hear the true Shepherd’s voice, and know him from a false one; for if you are the elect, it would be a great pity to have you led astray to destruction. But if you are not the elect of God through the sanctification of the Spirit of truth upon your hearts, then you can go as quickly as you please, for we do not want you.

We feel just the same now. Every man and woman that will not strive to sanctify themselves before the Lord God, and to possess within themselves the spirit of revelation to know the voice of the true Shepherd from a false one, the quicker they go out of the Territory the better it will be. Take ten men whose hearts, when they pray, are upon one sentence and upon one idea at a time, when they ask God for anything, or to bring this or that to pass, do you think that the powers of hell can hinder what they ask for? No. It is as true as the heavens—as firm as the mountains that rest upon these valleys—as sure as eternity, that nothing can fail which they agree upon; for God will grant it.

What is our difficulty? When I go to my prayer-room, among men who have been with me for years, there is too great a diversity of feeling and desires to be in accordance with the Gospel. There is too much of Babylon in that. When that is the case, and when I am praying for one thing and others for another, our faith comes in contact and we do not receive what we ask for. How many times have I said that I would, rather have one hundred true Saints in the mountains than five millions that are not Saints, if I had to contend against the whole world? What, with the sword? Yes. Let me have the Gideonites that can kneel down and lap the water, and one will chase a thousand, and two put ten thousand to flight. Whether the Lord will require this people to use the sword, or not, I do not know, neither do I care; but I believe that if the faith of this people were united, all hell cannot get armies in here to disturb our settlements.

How gladly I would tell the people what to pray for. But if I tell them in ten minutes afterwards they pray for something else. It is too much so in the Quorum of the Twelve and among my Counsellors. Go into meetings, and you may hear thirty different prayers, if there are so many offered up, for everything but what I tell them to pray for. You may think I undervalue, you. I do not. I tell you that if we strive with all our powers, by-and-by the time will come that we will be Saints indeed. I have not said that we are Saints. We are trying to be, and we profess to have the keys that will lead us in the path of eternal life. When we become so advanced that we are no more in darkness and doubt, nor in any way under the power of the Devil, then we have a certain victory over ourselves and over every foul spirit; the Lord God is sanctified in our hearts, and we are his servants and handmaids—his children, that can never be destroyed.

Take the congregation now before me, and they pray a thousand different prayers. To-night, mothers, wives, and little children, observe how the head of the family prays, and see if he does not pray for nearly everything but what he should pray for. Perhaps I am wrong, but I think that he will be sure not to pray for the things he ought to. He will pray that himself and family may have plenty to eat and live in peace, and probably stop at that. His prayer will be something like a certain old man’s blessing at his meals: “O Lord, bless me and my wife, my son John and his wife, us four, and no more: Amen.” You will hear the brethren pray, “O Lord, Bless me, and my wife, and children; but the rest I care nothing about.” When you pray, pray for the things that the kingdom needs, and be not so very careful about yourselves. Your selfish notions ought to be out of sight. Pray God to promote his kingdom and preserve you in it, and not as I have known a tolerably good man to pray. He was so ignorant that he would cheat a widow woman out of her last cow, and then go down on his knees and thank God for his peculiar blessings to him! Do not be so abominably ignorant. Instead of thanking God that you have been able to wrong one man out of a horse, another out of a yoke of cattle, &c., pray that he will give you the disposition to make the most righteous use of the property he has entrusted to your care. Pray that this people may be preserved—that the kingdom of God may roll on—that our Elders on the islands in the Pacific, in the United States, and in foreign lands may be so blessed as to come safely home. Pray for the honest in heart, and that the ungodly may be so filled with fear and trembling that they may leave us, that we may live here as Saints, and build up the kingdom of our God, and prepare for the return of this people to the centre stake of Zion, where we can lay the foundations for a New Jerusalem. Pray for the promotion of this cause and kingdom, instead of praying that you may be able to wrong somebody out of something.

All eternity is before you, and every thing you can ask for will be given to you in due time; for the heavens and the earth are the Lord’s, and the fulness thereof. If I have horses, oxen, and possessions, they are the Lord’s and not mine; and all I ask is for him to tell me what to do with them. A great many say that the Lord takes, and gives as he pleases, and I think that if I act as the Lord does I shall do pretty well. Again, some say that the Lord is going to fight our battles, and enquire, “What is the use of our brethren being out in the mountains?” He will use his people as he pleases; and in the sequel you will find that God fought the battle, and not we.

It has also been observed that God will provide for you. Still many want to shade a little, rather than to work hard for an honest living. Such practices must be put away, and this people must become sanctified in their affections to God, and learn to deal honestly, truly, and uprightly with one another in every respect, with all the integrity that fills the heart of an angel. They must learn to feel that they can trust all they possess with their brethren and sisters, saying, “All I have I entrust to you: keep it until I call for it.” The world have no confidence in each other; but that principle must prevail in the midst of this people: you must preserve your integrity to each other.

Live your religion. How much you are exhorted—how much have we pleaded with you to live your religion—to live in the light of God’s countenance—to live with the Holy Spirit so reigning in you as never to be led astray, that you may know how to promote the kingdom of God on the earth. Let selfishness be out of sight, and ask the Lord to preserve you in the truth, and do with you as he pleases, and dispose of you to his glory.

May God bless you. Amen.

Injustice of the United States Government Towards the Saints, Etc.

Orson Hyde

Remarks by Elder Orson Hyde, made in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, November 1, 1857. Reported by J. V. Long.

Dear brethren and sisters—I arise to address you for a short time this day. I shall be as brief as possible and detain you but a very short time.

The last Eastern mail, I think, brought me a pamphlet or tract written by Elder Orson Pratt, of Liverpool, England. Subject—“Gathering of the Saints and building up the kingdom of God.” The whole matter is handled in a masterly way, free from blind obscurity, unchecked and unrestrained by fear, and untramelled by the religious or political dogmas of the age. It is the product of a clear head, of a strong heart, and of an unflinching hand. In short, it is Heaven’s eternal truth. I do exceedingly regret having mislaid it, for I would like to send it to Senator Douglas, with a request that he read it faithfully before he applies the knife to “cut out the loathsome ulcer.” Having read it, then, if he shall be disposed and able to cut, cut away and carve up to suit his own peculiar appetite and that also of his friends. Will some person having said tract or pamphlet be kind enough to mail it to Honourable Stephen A. Douglas, Washington City, D.C.?

But, let all men, however, know, that if what the honourable gentleman calls the “loathsome ulcer” be cut out according to his views and suggestions, the United States will be cut off from being a nation, and her star of empire set, and set in blood!

The “Mormons” can hardly be made to believe that the United States intend to set in good faith towards them until they hang the murderers of Joseph and Hyrum Smith, and punish the murderous incendiaries that killed our men and burned our grain and houses on Green Plains, Illinois. Nor yet, until they punish Missouri and cause the wrongs of the Saints in that State to be redressed. Whenever the United States Government shall begin its work of justice, at that end of the “Mormon” question it will find it not so vexed nor yet so knotty as many complain of its being. And moreover, such a course pursued by the Government would tend to convert the “Mormons” to the belief that sincerity, good faith, and even-handed justice towards them were the paramount considerations and rules of action of the Federal Government.

A few officials, so notoriously corrupt that they became frightened at their own shadow, ran away, having greatly feared that what they justly merited might come upon them. An army is raised at their instigation to force them back upon us again, or some others, not the men of our choice, and to aid them to punish us for alleged crimes which they have trumped up. But it will be hard for the “Mormons” to bring their feelings to accept any federal officers at the point of the bayonet or at the cannon’s mouth, nor yet while troops are about them or on their borders. The contest appears very unequal, it is true; yet a wasp may worry a bear; and God, by his providences, has sometimes overthrown the strong by the agency of the weak. In that God do we hope for succour and trust for strength and deliverance.

When we were driven from Missouri and Illinois, leaving all our property, except what little we could take in the hurry, there was no army sent to reinstate us, neither to punish our persecutors. Then thousands of our men, women, and children were forced away from their homes at the point of the bayonet, at mid-day and at mid-night, in the burning rays of a scorching sun, and in the gloomy shades of a wintry night. Our judges, magistrates, and civil and military officers were all forced to go, and no army was sent to reinstate them or to punish the persecutor and the oppressor. Oh, ye rulers of the land, look at your injustice! When the innocent cried to you for help—when the persecuted for conscience sake implored your fatherly interference, and, with tears of blood, said to you, “Help us, lest we perish,” you then said that our cause was just, but you had no power. But now that the wicked and guilty profligate cries to you to protect him in his corruption and force him upon us contrary to our wishes, you find yourselves invested with all the power necessary to urge an unhallowed warfare against the very people whom you refused to protect. O Lord God Almighty, in the name of thy Son, Jesus Christ, I ask thee to let the arm and sword of thy justice interpose, and decide this matter according to thy righteousness, and get to thyself honour and a name that shall never be forgotten.

It may be said that sovereign, independent States are different from a dependent Territory. This is a door through which many specious technicalities are sought to be introduced in justification of the present action and former neglect of the General Government. But “Mormons” care nothing about such technicalities. They hold the Government responsible, and so also does the God of nations and of armies. Therefore, however strongly it may be urged that the General Government’s intentions are good towards us, this singular people will not believe a word of it until said Government shall redress their wrongs in Missouri and Illinois. Whatever explanation may be given to the present movement of troops for Utah is immaterial. It will stick to the present Administration, in its true light and character, like the mark of Cain, Nero, and Herod—a religious persecution against an innocent patriotic people who know their rights and dare assert them! Though every “Mormon” in America should be slain, it will only add to the enormity of the present Administrations.

As well might we be made to believe that the student could solve every problem of Euclid, who had never learned simple addition, as to believe the Government our impartial friends while they decline to redress our wrong. The conduct of the “unjust judge” towards the “poor widow” might raise the blush of shame upon our national cheek, if the nation possessed as fine sensibilities and as much discernment as that “unjust judge.” He saw that his own peace, ease, and happiness depended upon his avenging the “poor widow.” And if the peace, ease, and happiness of these United States, in future, do not depend upon their redressing “Mormon” wrongs, (though they may not fear God, neither regard man,) then the Lord does not speak by me. The nation will soon find out whether “wrath and indignation come upon the people in the shape of earthquakes, thunderings, and lightnings, tempests—the waves of the sea heaving themselves beyond their bounds; and all things being in commotion, while fear comes upon all people.” The nations may have occasion to consider the treasures of hail and snow reserved for the last days—even the day of battle for the controversy of Zion. They may yet learn that the nation and kingdom that will not serve Zion shall perish; yea, that such nations shall be utterly wasted.

The prophetic glass before the eyes of the ancient Seers brings the rays of Jehovah’s power to a focus on this earth, in these our days. For kings and rulers to manage their responsibilities in these critical times is an affair which no servant of God, truly enlightened, covets or desires. It will soon be known who are guilty of treason and rebellion against the only true Sovereign of earth and heaven. It may be necessary for the alien enemies to establish a precedent in relation to treason. Then the judgment with which they judge may be dealt out to them in equal measure, pressed down, &c. Woe unto the world because of offences! They must come to try the Saints and to establish a rule by which the Saints, in turn, may judge the ungodly.

The kingdom and government of God are the only legitimate jurisdiction that ever did exist. And other kingdoms and jurisdictions stand before God in the same light that many divorces stood in the days of Moses, “For the hardness of your hearts, Moses wrote you this precept; but from the beginning it was not so.” For the hardness of men’s hearts, God has suffered them to exercise temporary jurisdiction. But does this temporary jurisdiction authorize them to oppose him when he begins to take to himself his great power and to reign? No. The little stone cut out of the mountain without hands will roll and fill the whole earth, while the great image will be broken and fall, and the kingdoms of this world become the kingdoms of our God. Now, therefore, O ye kingdoms of this world, resist the decree of Jehovah, if you can and if you will. Fall upon this little stone cut out of the mountain without hands, and be broken, if you wish. But know ye that the way of the transgressor is hard, and his final cup is bitter God bless the meek and pure! Amen.

Shedding Blood—God’s Provision for His Saints

Heber C. Kimball

Remarks by President Heber C. Kimball, made in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, November 15, 1857. Reported by G. D. Watt.

If this people will live up to their profession—that is, every Elder, High Priest, Teacher, Apostle, and every person in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, they never will be troubled; that is, we shall never be under the necessity of shedding much of the blood of our enemies. You have heard me say often that I do not believe God designs that we should delight in shedding blood.

In a revelation which God gave to Joseph Smith, he says, “It is not pleasing in my sight for man to shed blood of beasts, or of fowls, except in times of excess of hunger and famine.” Go and read it for yourselves. If he is not well pleased with us when we shed the blood of beasts when we have no need of it, would it not be much more displeasing to him were we to shed the blood of man unnecessarily? It is not the Spirit of God that leads a man or woman to shed blood—to desire to kill and slay. When the time comes that we have need to shed blood, then it will be necessary we should do it, and it will be just as innocent as to go and kill an ox when we are hungry or in the time of famine.

Brother George A. referred to one revelation where the Lord says, “It is my business to provide for my Saints.” Some people rest assured that God is going to open the heavens and rain down manna, or send the nations of the Gentiles in here and let us take the spoil, because he has said he will provide for his Saints in the last days.

Many have not even planted a peach tree, an apple tree, a plum tree, nor a currant bush in their gardens. There are many gardens, within half-a-mile of this Tabernacle, destitute of fruit trees of any kind. And again, you may see many city lots that are not cultivated nor planted with corn, wheat, potatoes, or any other vegetable; but the people who own them expect that God is going to provide for them without their co-operation.

I will ask you a question, you that have not raised even a kernel of grain on your gardens—What is the reason of this? Is it not because you have not planted it? You have not had a peach nor an apple. Why? Because you have not planted the trees; and do you ever expect to? No, not while the earth stands, water runs, and grass grows. Such people never will be provided with these necessaries, except some other man provides them.

Here is the earth, the air, the water, and you have been exhorted to cultivate these valleys and raise grain, and provide for yourselves individually and collectively. But, say you, God said to Joseph, “It is my business to provide for my Saints in the last days.”

“Behold, it is said in my laws or forbidden to get in debt to thine enemies; but behold, it is not said at any time that the Lord should not take when he please and pay as seemeth him good: wherefore, as ye are agents and ye are on the Lord’s errand, and whatever ye do according to the will of the Lord is the Lord’s business; and he hath set you to provide for his Saints in these last days, that they may obtain an inheritance in the land of Zion. And behold, I, the Lord, declare unto you, and my words are sure and shall not fail, that they shall obtain it; but all things must come to pass in their time. Wherefore, be not weary in welldoing, for ye are laying the foundation of a great work. And out of small things proceedeth that which is great.”—Doc. & Cov., sec. xxi. par. 6.

We have been driven from our native land and birthplace, many of us, and God has brought us into these rich valleys, and says he, “Go to and cultivate, and raise grain, and provide for yourselves seven years’ provisions. That is the way he is going to provide for you—to tell you, like a good father tells his sons, how to provide for yourselves. “Here I will provide land for you, and seed,” &c. Now, go to and cultivate the soil, increase the seed, and provide for your wants. Now, that is good logic—good reasoning: it is not vain philosophy.

In this congregation there are hundreds of men who have not a mouthful to eat, only as they get it from their neighbours from day to day, or from week to week; and if others had not gone to and raised provisions, they would have perished, every one of them, for a temporal subsistence. Is God going to rain down manna? He will not do it until we are brought into circumstances to require it. Will he remove a mountain? No—not until the house of Israel are brought into such straitened circumstances that there is no way for their escape, except God removes a mountain for their deliverance.

The Lord says, “In the last days it is my business to fight the battles of my Saints.” If it is his business, he will take his children to do it; and we are his children. You may think that comes right in contact with the revelations of Jesus Christ; but it is not so. Why does our President, our Governor, order out three thousand men to be in the mountains? To fulfil your prayers. What do you pray for? “O Lord,” say you, “I ask thee, in the name of Jesus Christ, to hedge up the way of our enemies, that they may never come here.” We had to send some three thousand men to fulfil your prayers. Who is going to fight the battles of the Lord, if not his people? They have got to stand in defence of this kingdom and Church of God in the last days.

If our enemies are prevented from coming here, they are prevented because of the Saints of God. Would they have been prevented from coming here if our brethren had not gone out there and hedged up their way? God will take his few valiant servants in the last days, and with them use up the world and bring every kingdom and dominion into subjection to the kingdom of God.

Do you suppose you are going to sit here on your seats and in your habitations, and never step forth to the help of the Lord? Nearly one year ago, the last who came in with hand-carts were brought in out of the mountains. Would they have been in our cities and congregation to-day, had we not gone out and brought them in? Through our faith and works they were saved from death; and many of them have brought forth sons and daughters unto God in the valleys of the mountains. Would they have done this if we had not stepped forth and manifested our faith by our works in delivering them from death?

I think there is a Scripture somewhere that says, “By your works you are justified;” and again, “Obedience is better than sacrifice.” It is the works that God expects. I may have faith as much as I please, and sit in my house and keep my boys at home, and exhort this people to stay at home; but will that hedge off the way of our enemies? No.

Will our enemies come here? No, except we let them. God gives us that privilege. We have the right to let them in here or keep them out; and we choose to keep them out, and we shall do it by the help of God, and we shall prevail over every nation, tongue, and people; and every president, king, governor, judge, and every Latter-day Saint that lift their hands against this Church and kingdom shall be confounded and frustrated in their attempts. What! a Saint do this? Yes, a Saint that turns back unto the Devil takes into his tabernacle the worst spirits, which make him many times worse than he was at the first.

When pigs are washed in soap-suds, they look clean, and you would think them almost nice enough to live in the house; but no sooner have you washed them than they will go into the nastiest mud-hole they can find and muddy themselves all over from head to foot. Now, do they not look worse than before they were washed? It is just so with you, when you turn from your righteousness: you are worse than before you entered into the Church of Christ.

Make your preparations this present season to go to and cultivate the soil, and raise everything you can, and then we shall have plenty. We have done the best we can; and if our enemies come upon us, God will throw them into our power, and they will become subject to us. “Now,” says the Lord, “Take that spoil and consecrate it unto my people.” The Lord will provide for his Saints when necessary, and in his own way.

Are these things interesting to you, brethren? They are what you have to do, every man of you that belongs to the house of Israel. Are there goats in our midst? Bless your souls, if there were not, there would be more diseases than there now are. It is said that goats, because of their strong smell, have power over diseases. Take a little assafoetida and put it on a child’s stomach, and certain contagious diseases will not come unto it, probably because the assafoetida stinks so much worse than anything else.

I do not say there are many goats now. There is, however, one goat—I do not know whether it is in the congregation or not. His face is longer than Lorenzo Dow’s; and when you see such a man as that, you may know who I mean. Amen.

Opposition to the Gospel and the Work of God—Honesty, Etc.

Orson Hyde

A sermon by Elder Orson Hyde, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, November 15, 1857. Reported by G. D. Watt.

A question arises in the minds of some few, and perhaps in the minds of a great many—“How will our present difficulties terminate? I would like to know the sequel. We have been kept in suspense for a length of time, and I would like to know the final issue.”

In my opinion, there is no person that can know the final result of the present movements until it is seen. We have faith in relation to it, and the assurance of the Almighty that all will be well; but the exact how and manner in which it will be brought about we cannot tell; for it is by faith that we move, and not by sight. But in the course of some remarks which I may make, you may, perhaps, be led to a satisfactory conclusion as to what the final issue may be, and not only the final issue, for we are already satisfied about that, but with regard to the progressive stages leading to it.

It is said in the good Book that “Not many wise, not many mighty, not many learned are called; but God hath chosen the poor of this world and rich in faith to be the heirs of his kingdom.” We are furthermore told that he has “chosen the weak things of this world, and things that are not, to bring to naught the things that are, that no flesh should glory in his presence.” Now I will quote from a modern writer:—

“Say first of God above, then man below, How can we reason but from what we know?”

I will go back to the days of the commencement of this Church, when a young man of no particular literary qualifications was called upon to bring to light truths that have been hid for ages—truths in themselves grand and sublime; yet, when brought forth, they were clothed in language not so eloquent as might please the ears of many of the learned. They were not dressed up in the style of modern oratory; and because of this, they were rejected by the fashionable and religious world. The religious world had been taught and completely moulded after the fashion and learning of this world, so that a man could not be considered a qualified orthodox preacher, unless he had been through college and acquired the learning of the age.

Here, then, an illiterate youth rises up with a system of true religion, that lays the axe at the root of every other system in Christendom. Look at the odds that were apparently against this young man, even Joseph Smith, the martyr, the Prophet of the Most High—without learning—without resources or friends to back him up—with the whole tide of popular sentiment arrayed against him, backed up by all the learning of the world. If we look at him through a worldly eye, the odds were materially against him.

You are acquainted with the history of the Church, and well know how matters went on. You know the many trials to which Joseph the Prophet and his friends were subjected, and the difficulties with which they had to contend. But was there ever an instance when the enemy gained an advantage over the truth of heaven or thwarted the purposes of this illiterate young man? No. Did they not call to their aid all the learning and craftiness of the world in proportion as the cause he advocated increased? And did they succeed any better? When the cause became more extensive among men, did opposition succeed any better than at the commencement? Not at all.

In process of time, the Elders went forth preaching this Gospel; and remember, there were not many learned—not many mighty that were called, and I may say, none at all. With the limited abilities they possessed, they went forth to proclaim a system of truth that laid the axe at the root of the false religions and false philosophy of the world; while the learning, popularity, and resources of the world were arrayed against us, which we had to meet; poor and limited in abilities, in learning, and worldly qualifications, we were despised and regarded as a set of outcasts.

With all the powerful odds against us, the truth greatly gained ground. Let me appeal to the experience of all present, while I ask you if you have ever known an instance where a faithful Elder, who has kept his garments clean and unspotted from the world, has ever been confounded while administering the word of life as proclaimed through that illiterate young man, Joseph Smith? To be sure, a few who may have got the “big head,” or been puffed up in their own imaginations, have been foiled, or those who have been in transgression. God despises a victory gained by such characters. He will not acknowledge or own a victory gained in this cause by a corrupt and wicked member of his Church. I do not know positively how that is, however, and I will not stop to investigate it. Suffice it to say, it is the pure in heart that God delights to work with. Just like any good mechanic, when he wishes to make a nice piece of work, he wants tools that are sharp and clean to do it with. He will not work with dull and rusty tools to execute a nice job of work.

So it is with our heavenly Father: although he may use seemingly awkward instruments, yet they are polished after his mind and will; and he, being the master-builder, knows what pleases him best.

Has the greatest champion against “Mormonism” ever been confident enough in his own success and triumph in any debate with the Elders of this Church to publish his own arguments with those of his opponent? I do not know but there have been such instances, but not one now occurs to my mind; while, on the other hand, our faithful Elders have not been afraid or ashamed to publish both sides of the question for all eyes to look upon.

Often we have seen pieces in public journals, and also books published against us in burning zeal, and flaming with vengeance against us, and seemingly calculated to overthrow us, exposing what they called the wickedness of the “Mormons,” beguiling and duping their hearers with cunningly-devised falsehoods. Very many cases of this kind we have seen, and have also seen their end. The Almighty has put his hand over them, and they have sunk so low that the strongest prejudiced hand against us will not now reach down to bring them up. Their power has become weakness, and their influence is blasted for ever by the breath of the Almighty.

Does the everlasting Gospel lose its influence with the good and pure of mankind? Upon those who are not disposed to work righteousness alone is its influence lost—upon those who shout, “Great is Diana of the Ephesians;” but with the honest, simple-hearted sons of men it is just as sweet now as ever it was; and to them its charms increase, notwithstanding all the trials and difficulties they endure for its sake.

“This Gospel of the kingdom shall be preached for a witness unto all nations, and then shall the end come.” Was it the Gospel of the kingdom that was preached in ancient days—in the days of the Apostles, that went into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world? It was the Gospel, but I conclude that it was not the Gospel of the kingdom; for that was to be revealed at the time when the kingdom of God, should be established on the earth, to stand for ever. “And this Gospel of the kingdom shall be preached as a witness unto all nations, and then shall the end come.”

Where has this Gospel been preached? Through the United States of America, in Europe, Asia, and Africa. I do not say that it has been sounded distinctly in the ears of everybody living; but I do say that the sound has gone into all the earth, and their words to the ends of the world.

I recollect a certain saying in a revelation that was given to the Saints in the early days of this Church. The Lord said, through Joseph Smith, that it became every man, after being warned, to warn his neighbour, that all may be without excuse. If all the people who have heard the word had been as faithful in warning their neighbours as the few Elders who are now under the sound of my voice have been in warning those with whom they have been associated, and to whom they have been sent, and among whom they have laboured, would not the whole world have been fully warned at this time? Yes.

In another revelation to the first Elders of this Church, who had been forth preaching in their weakness. (being called in at Kirtland, Ohio,) the Lord told them to wash their feet in testimony that they were clean from the blood of this generation, and goes on to say, “Let those who are not of the first Elders of my Church remain in the vineyard, for their garments are not yet clean,” Those first Elders had laboured but a short time in the vineyard—perhaps one or two years, when it was said, “Your garments are clean.”

There are Elders who have laboured from sea to sea, from island to island, from country to country, and have spent the vigour and strength of their days in the work of proclaiming the Gospel. May we not say, upon the same principle, that their garments are clean from the blood of this generation? If so, what does it imply? That we shall not be held under condemnation if we never preach to them again. And there is another thing implied in this: If this generation shall rise against you to slay you for your religion, and because you are righteous, your garments being clear of their blood, and you slay them, their blood is upon their own heads. This is what I understand by being clear from the blood of this generation. It is an important saying. In my opinion, it means more than a casual observer would attach to it. It is a deep saying. If you have warned them—have called upon them to repent—offered them the blessing of eternal life through the Gospel, and they thrust it from them, let what will happen to them, your garments are clean from their blood.

Now we see that the Gospel has gone into all nations, countries, and kingdoms; for the man that has been warned should have warned his neighbour, and the nation that has been warned should have warned its neighbouring nation, &c.; so they are without excuse before God, whatever excuse they may plead before man.

We can see the unabating success of the Gospel from the time Joseph got the plates until now, and the defeat and downfall of every opponent that has risen up to oppose its progress. If there had been any purpose in God that this work should be overthrown, would he not have suffered it to be done before this? For all means that could possibly be invented by the powers of earth and hell have been brought to bear against it, and every man who has risen up against it has gone down, and his published works have become a stink in the nostrils of even this wicked generation, to say nothing of the Saints. The wicked themselves are even ashamed of their sayings and of their writings against the cause of truth. Their expositions of “Mormonism,” as they call them, are hardly cold from the press until they are dead, their influence killed, and there is no sale for their books. The words of the Apocalypse very appropriately apply to their case—“No man buyeth their merchandize any more.”

I will venture to say that no publication has ever been issued against this work, only for the purpose of getting gain. Men have not been inspired to oppose it for the sake of the souls of men, but to save their craft, their salary, their party, their honour, and their credit in the sight of men.

The system of truth revealed through Joseph Smith is not clothed in language so eloquent as this literary generation would desire. As a general thing, you know, a real polished scoundrel wears the finest cloth—the most fashionable garb, that he may be looked upon as an honest man by those who judge from outward appearances and not righteous judgment. The truth is not always clothed in the nicest style, or according to the ideas of this world; but the Lord sends it forth in the shape of a stone of stumbling and rock of offence. He is not pleased to conform to the views of this generation. They have got to take salvation just as he offers it to them, or else take damnation: they can have their choice. It is not for them to serve up the dish they shall eat; but it is for the Almighty to dress it as suits himself; and if the sinner take it, it will heal him.

The patient does not prescribe nor tell the doctor what he wants of him—that is, supposing the doctor to be what he ought to be. He examines the patient, knows the nature of the disease, and prescribes accordingly. The patient takes the medicine, and asks no questions for conscience sake.

So it is with our heavenly Father. The world is diseased, and he has prepared a remedy, and served it up as suits himself, not consulting the vitiated appetites of this consumptive generation to whom he administers it. It is like a root out of dry ground: it is without form or comeliness, without beauty, that men should not desire it. Awkward and unclothed as it is with worldly wisdom, behold, the illiterate Elders of Israel are sent with it, and they have marched through the colleges and literary institutions of the learned world, and have defeated those who dared to come out to oppose and put them to flight; and all their learning, iniquity, cunning, and worldly wisdom were turned into foolishness.

A little boy, filled with the Spirit of the living God throws out an idea that completely knocks in “pie” all their calculations. A simple sentence from the mouth of an uneducated youth often dissipates their profound wisdom into folly and nonsense. They know not what to do. They attempt to grasp a thing without form or comeliness. They know not where to get hold of it; and when they think they have hold of it, it slips through their hands. Such has been the great success of the preaching of the word.

Now, then, if they resort to force of arms or to brute force to overpower us, may we not safely calculate that the results will be similar to those in the mental contest?

“Say first of God above, then man below, How can we reason but from what we know?”

So far, we do actually know and understand. It is demonstrated by our experience, and we are prepared to say that it is truly so. Behold, the wicked are unwilling to be converted by the gentle means the Lord God of Israel has introduced. They are satisfied that they cannot prevail against us by argument; and even polygamy, in all the glaring forms they may please to give it, offers obstacles too formidable for them to encounter by argument, Scripture, philosophy, or truth. But “overcome it must be,” say the enemy; and “we will not rest until we have resorted to the last extremity. We will try the force of arms!” “Very well, if that is your mode of warfare,” says the Almighty, “I do not desire it; but I will show you that I am not only a man of reason, Scripture, and truth, but a man of war too. If force of arms is your plan and mode of attack, you will find me ready to meet you in that and in every method you may adopt.”

Behold, they rise up in war against the Saints. The Saints heretofore, when attacked on moral and Scripture principles, have stood up to oppose the enemy. If they had not done this, the enemy would have overpowered us. We have always met him with the truth and the simple arguments which God has furnished us with, and have always been successful; and perhaps, had we stood up to oppose him with force of arms, we might have been equally successful: but I cannot say how that is. The time, probably, had not come for us to take that position; and consequently, when it came to force of arms, the enemy must needs be made the aggressor. He was permitted to prevail against us for the time being; and whether that was not the very means of putting us in a position whereby we could successfully oppose him in that way, when the time did come, we can easily judge. I guess it is all right and has worked for our good; and herein we can discern that our heavenly Father has exemplified a glorious truth to us, that all things shall work together for good to them that love God and are the called according to his purpose.

If we had taken this position in Missouri or in Nauvoo, before breakfast they could have ordered their affairs and come upon us, and it would have required a standing army of the angels of God to defend us. But the time had not yet come; therefore the Lord suffered them to prevail until he should get us where he wanted us: “And then shall the prophecies of my servants be fulfilled in the scenes that shall transpire with you.” It never could have been said, “The mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established in the tops of the mountains,” if we had remained in the valley of the Mississippi.

The Lord considered it necessary that we should be removed into the chambers of the Almighty, or to some place prepared to receive us, where he might display his power, and get for himself a name and honour that shall never be forgotten. Sometimes a defeat is equal to a victory. I recollect of reading an account, the saying of a celebrated General, after he had gained a victory and lost a great portion of his men. One of his officers congratulated him on his victory. “Ah!” said he, “Another such victory would entirely ruin me.”

Sometimes victory is worse than defeat. I consider that the defeat the Saints have suffered is tantamount to victory, and better than victory, because we have come to a place which the Lord wanted us to occupy.

We say, against all the learning, science, skill, talent, &c., of this world, which were arrayed against us, making the odds almost enough to discourage any people but the Latter-day Saints, We have prevailed; and when they come to force of arms, this must also be overcome. They will use the force of arms; for, say they, “The ‘Mormons’ must be overcome, or they will take away our place and nation, and we shall be overthrown, and there will be no stopping these people, if we let them go on any further.” And some think it has gone so far now that they cannot stop it. I endorse the sentiment. They have let it go too long for their purpose.

I believe, when the Almighty conceives a work to do, he will carry it through in some way or shape. Behold, we are here, a little people collected together in the mountains, and are short of the munitions of war, while on the other hand the whole world is full of them. We are short of clothing, but tolerably plenty of food. And then look at the terrible odds that is arrayed against us. See their thousands of well-trained troops and the millions of money at their command. They can bring any sized army into the field, all armed and equipped with a splendid outfit. This is a powerful odds against us.

The science of war has been studied by them from the beginning. They have kept a school at West Point, in which they have trained and qualified their officers to take command, and they are schooled in all the tactics of modern warfare, except ours.

At the call of the President of the United States, there are thousands who will enrole as volunteers, and will be all armed and equipped, with money in their pockets and grub in their sacks, and no end to it either.

Are all these any worse for us to overcome, in our present condition, than it was to overcome the learning, strength, and moral influence and power that were arrayed against us when we were but a handful, and called to go and preach the welcome message of the Gospel? Is the odds any greater? I say not. The God who taught and sustained us in proclaiming this Gospel in its simplicity will also sustain us in whatever opposition may arise against us, provided we have the Spirit of God in our hearts. When we went to preach the Gospel, and had the Spirit of God in our hearts, and were not in transgression, we could handle them without mittens, because the Lord was with us.

Just so sure as we as a people are pure and undefiled before God our heavenly Father, there is no power that can prevail against us. I do not care if they have all the paraphernalia of war the world can produce, the Almighty has got weapons of warfare they never thought of, and means of defence for his people, and he delights to throw his shield over those who serve him and keep his commandments. The odds may appear against us in the eyes of the world; but when we contemplate that God is for us, and that all the holy angels in heaven are enlisted in our behalf, and we have purity, and sincerity, and truth in our hearts, these are bulwarks which they cannot scale. God grant that we may be shielded with this kind of armour!

I want now to speak in relation to a few things that pertain more particularly to individuals. You know, to be honest, when there is no temptation to be otherwise, is no particular credit to us. For me to have a chance to put forth my hand and steal my neighbour’s food, when I have plenty, and I do not do it, is no particular credit to me for being honest. Suppose I am clad with all the clothing I desire, and my family also is well provided for in this article, for me to go and steal clothing would be outrageous in the extreme, and there would be no credit due to me for refraining from such an act. The time to test our real merit and integrity is when we are pinched with hunger and thinly clad: then is the time to test us. I do not say that a person going to steal under those circumstances would be any more justified. For a person to be forced to steal food, to save his life, is a circumstance that very rarely occurs with a just and righteous man. Should a good man, however, be reduced to such extremes, there is generally, among the Saints, provision made against such emergencies, rendering stealing unnecessary under any circumstances. We have heard of some instances where garments have been washed and hung out, and have been taken by some person in the day time, and shirts and other articles not necessary to mention.

Brethren and sisters, I wish merely to say, Let our hands be clean, and try to the utmost of our power to get what we really need, and get it in an honourable and lawful way. We do not want to spoil the victory that lies right before us by dabbling in things that are not our own, neither convenient. If I were to apologize for such acts upon the principle of scarcity and want, it would be a license for everybody to “pitch in” that had a disposition to do so, and nobody would be safe. Let us be on the watch—watch ourselves, and suffer not any unlawful act of ours to tarnish the glorious victory that awaits us. Let us hold on and do the best we can, and let our neighbour’s things alone, unless we can persuade him to sell them to us, or give them to us. Do not let us weaken our own confidence before God. But we need to march, shoulder to shoulder, upon the principles of purity and integrity; and as we have stood shoulder to shoulder heretofore, and carried this Gospel to the nations of the earth, and been pure in heart before God, have we ever failed in accomplishing the purposes of Heaven? No. And I tell you, inasmuch as our hearts are pure as a people, full of integrity and the Holy Ghost, no power shall ever prevail against us from this time henceforth and for ever. I feel in my soul and pray God to bless the pure in heart, who seek to do his will, live their religion, and honour their God; and we shall yet see the desire of our souls and be satisfied.

The priests of Christendom now say, “We cannot stand before this man,” and they warn their flocks to keep away from the Latter-day Saints. “Are you reading that ‘Voice of Warning?’ Lay it out of your hands and put it out of your houses, for it is a dangerous book. Put away from you their tracts and books, for they are dangerous; and keep away, keep away from those dangerous men that are turning the world upside down.” That is the cry throughout the world. What will be the cry when they come up against us and try the force of arms? It will be—“Let us not go up against Zion, for the people thereof are terrible: keep away, keep away.” The one cry follows in the wake of the other. What makes the people of Zion terrible? Answer: Strict honesty and integrity before God. That is what will bring the cloud by day and the shining of a flame of fire by night; and upon all the glory there shall be a defence. God will surround the people of Zion as it were with a wall of fire, and he will make bare his arm in the eyes of the nation that wars against her, and she will be like a beacon light to seafaring men; and men will come and bring their clothing and their treasures, and we shall have an abundant supply of such things Let us take care of what we have, keep it clean and patch it up, take care of our sheep and raise all the flax and wool we can, and the Lord will make up the balance; and if we do right we shall find that we have an overflowing treasury of every good thing; which may God grant, for Christ’s sake. Amen.

Opposition to “Mormonism,” Etc.

George A. Smith

Remarks by Elder George A. Smith, made in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, Sunday morning, November 15, 1857. Reported by J. V. Long.

We have been very much interested, brethren and sisters, by the address of Elder Hyde; and no doubt the value of the sentiments advanced have been duly appreciated. As a people having a knowledge of the first principles of the Gospel of salvation, we are qualified above all others to appreciate the value of the truths of heaven when they are revealed to us. It is of the utmost importance that we divest ourselves of every corrupt and selfish principle and of every species of “covetousness, which is idolatry.” To live before the Lord with honesty is a matter of so much importance that it cannot fail to be duly appreciated by the Saints of the Most High.

Whenever these principles are presented before them, the contrast between the situation that we have hitherto been placed in and our present condition is also very striking, as has been shown us by the contrast drawn by Elder Hyde.

When we had to face the science; the learning, the eloquence, the skill, and the intellect of the entire world—a single handful of us against the whole world—God bore us off victorious. His hand has preserved us. His Spirit inspired us, so that the mighty were confounded, the eloquent were put to silence, and the learned were constrained to say to their fellow-men, “Do not listen to it; do not read their books; do not hear them, nor go where they are. You may be deceived.”

In almost every instance, what has been by all philosophers and wise men considered the worst argument that ever was used has been resorted to—that is, brute force. You convince a man by brute force, and he is of the same opinion that he was before. You force a man to accede to your laws and rules, and his mind is only enslaved; and then, when it breaks loose, it is ten thousand times worse than if no brute force had been used. Notwithstanding this, the world cry, “Extermination and destruction.”

In looking over the papers that have been brought from the States, we find that a great proportion of them have been speculating on the cost of exterminating the “Mormons;” and there is one very uncomfortable speculation about it. One of them, in estimating the cost of a war of extermination against the “Mormons,” said, “We shall have to expend from fifty to a hundred millions, and then we shall have nothing to show for our pay but naked, barren rocks.” This is the condition of affairs; but it is a war of principle, and “Mormonism” must be exterminated, though it is not at all a profitable business.

Now, there never was a man, from the time that this work commenced, that ever made himself popular by opposing it; and in future, whatever may be their attempts, it will be the ruin of every man that undertakes it; and this has been the case with every man that has attempted to make such a speculation. It never did and never will pay political expenses.

The God of heaven has raised up this people. He has carried them, as it were, in his arms. He has cradled them in adversity and has brought them into these mountains; and here he wishes to nourish and preserve them. I never lift my heart to the heavens without praying to the Almighty to gather out of the midst of his people all those who do offend and work iniquity, and to gather out of the midst of Zion every corrupt heart—every man that will not turn from his sins, forsake his wickedness and love the Lord his God with all his heart and his neighbour as himself.

Such a people will have the blessings of God: such a people can be protected by the Almighty: such a people cannot be overthrown by all earth and hell combined. Then let us be such a people; and if corruption exists in our hearts, let us cut it out; for I can tell you we shall be sifted as with a sieve; and while our enemies are endeavouring to destroy us and desiring to murder us, to exterminate us, to deprive us of our existence, to wipe us from the earth, to blot out the name of the kingdom of God, they are only suffered to crowd upon us that we may be tried and purified.

We should not desire the shedding of blood; but we are required by every law of nature, by every principle of righteousness, and by every constitutional principle upon the face of the earth, whether civil, political, or military, to defend ourselves and prevent our being broken up by others. This is a naturally inherited right, and God requires us to defend ourselves. And inasmuch as we have to defend our sacred rights, we should do it in the name of the Lord, with all humility, with a desire to sustain his kingdom; and, let what will come trust in God for the result and be satisfied with it.

Elder Hyde, in drawing the comparison in reference to the millions of our enemies—to the great wealth that they possess, showed their advantages in numbers and wealth. But let me ask this question, Have they got a thing that the Lord did not give them? Have they got a solitary farthing that the Lord did not bestow upon them? If they use that which he has given them for evil, they will have to give a minute account of that stewardship.

The boasted national surplus funds are directly calculated to produce extravagant and unprincipled legislation and will have a tendency in the end to strip them of funds and leave them in poverty, while the straitened circumstances of the Saints will only be the means of purifying, driving away, and scattering from their midst those who do offend and work iniquity.

I feel to rest satisfied that the Almighty will control all those things for the good of this people. The Lord has said it is his business to take care of his Saints. If you are taking care of a child and are rearing it up to manhood, you have to look after its education, correct its morals, regulate its conduct, and inflict punishment when necessary, that the child may realize the difference between good and evil—between doing right and doing wrong. Peradventure the Lord wishes to have a tried people, and he has determined to try the Saints sufficiently, and he will protect them in his own way. The Lord will apply the rod. Sometimes he has scourged the people of Israel in one way, and sometimes in another. Sometimes he has scourged them with pestilence, with wasting, and destruction, and sometimes with famine, or by delivering them into the hands of their enemies; and in all these ways he has scourged his people that they might know and realize that God is over them, and that he controls all things.

There was a sheriff that came to an old lady and said to her, “Well, old woman, I have taken your son Jim, and I have locked him up in jail, where he never will do any more mischief.” “Oh,” says she, “is it possible that Jim has gone to jail?’ “Yes,” the sheriff replied; “I have put the little whelp where he never will do any more mischief; and I thought I would come and tell you what had become of him.” The old lady felt sorrowful and mortified at the bitter way in which the sheriff told it. “Well, Mr. Sheriff,” said the old lady, “I hope, when the Lord has punished poor Jim all that he deserves, that he will burn the rod!”

This is the sentiment that I have with regard to the means made use of for the purpose of punishing and sifting us, or turning those who are corrupt and causing them to flee away, or of waking us up to our duty. When the Lord gets through with them, like the old woman, I would be obliged to him if he would burn the rod. Doubtless he will look after this matter, if we do our duty. It is only for us to look to the right—to live our religion, and all will be well.

I know that this is the work of God, and that he will sustain his servants; and if we will love truth, though few, compared with our enemies, we shall have light, life, power, and dominion, while our enemies will lift up their eyes in hell, where there is no water. May God prepare us for all that we have to encounter, is my prayer, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Faith and Works, etc.

Heber C. Kimball

A sermon by President Heber C. Kimball, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, Sunday morning, November 22, 1857. Reported by G. D. Watt.

I can say for one, that that is a beautiful hymn which brother Dunbar has just sung: [“DESERET dedicated to Governor Young by W. W. Phelps.”] And what has been said to-day by brothers Albert Carrington and George D. Grant is good, and their words, as far as I have heard, are salvation to all who hear and practice, because they are true.

You all the time hear me talking about truth. Truth is light, and light is life. If these principles are cultivated by us, with our families, what is there to hinder us from walking into the presence of God, or into the presence of those who stand between us and him? I do not believe that we can emerge right into the presence of God, although we may see him, not in the flesh, but we can in the Spirit, if he touches the eyes of our understanding; but we cannot see him with these bodies of flesh. Joseph always told us that we would have to pass by sentinels that are placed between us and our Father and God. Then, of course, we are conducted along from this probation to other probations, or from one dispensation to another, by those who conducted those dispensations

If we are, as some are, guilty of doing wrong, and treasuring up and practising principles that lead to death, we cannot attain to principles of exaltation. It is for me to do right and to do as I am told. Still, when brother Brigham tells me to do a thing, I may have that in me that would equivocate and say, “Will not such and such a thing do better?” I know he is interrupted in that way continually. Supposing I say, “Yes, that is true,” when he speaks, and every man in Israel says the same, what has the Devil to do with us then? As brother Brigham says, “The Devil can do no more than stand and grin at us.” For a man or woman to try to frustrate his purposes is not true philosophy, but it is the Devil in our camp. He says the enemies on our borders cannot come in here, and I say the same.

Good works produce good faith, and faith without works is dead. Do not tell me about your faith, when you have not a particle of works with it: it is all of no account. Our works must be good: they must be confined to truth and the knowledge of God; and how can you get that knowledge without good works? Such doctrinal as this is according to the words which God has given to his servants, ancient and modern.

When the Lord spoke through Joseph Smith, it was “the word of the Lord to my servant Orson, to my servant W. W. Phelps, or to my servant Oliver: Go and do thus and so, and you shall see my glory.” If they do not go, they do not see his glory, nor obtain his favour, do they? Because their works did not correspond with the word of God.

You never will see glory and happiness, angels, nor anything else, except the angels from beneath, if your works do not correspond with your faith and with what you are told to do. No man will ever enjoy the presence of Angels, Prophets, Apostles? Patriarchs, Jesus, and the Father, and the sanctified who have passed beyond the vail, that does not live up to these principles.

It is well enough for me to throw out what light and knowledge I have upon any matter, and brother Brigham can judge as to its correctness or incorrectness; but it is not for me to equivocate, when he has given the word of decision. That is the course I have tried to learn; and if I am not right in this matter, I stand here ready to be corrected by any person who knows better. If we all were to take that course, our enemies never—no, never would have power over us.

It is the head that governs the body, the same as thee helm guides the ship; and if the captain does not manage the helm in person, he puts a man there that will run the course that he dictates. Says he, “It is blowing a heavy gale: make calculations to steer to such a point of the compass, that you may have a little lee-way.” The captain of the ship does not take the helm, but he directs the one who has hold of the helm the course to steer.

“And verily I say unto you, the rest of my servants, Go ye forth as your circumstances shall permit in your several callings unto the great and notable cities and villages, reproving the world in righteousness of all their unrighteousness and ungodly deeds, setting forth clearly and understandingly the desolation of abomination in the last days; for with you, saith the Lord Almighty, I will rend their kingdoms: I will not only shake the earth, but the starry heavens shall tremble; for I, the Lord, have put forth my hand to exert the powers of heaven. Ye cannot see it now; yet a little while and ye shall see it, and know that I am, and that I will come and reign with my people. I am Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End. Amen.” (Doc. and Cov., sec. iv., par. 24.)

With you, mine Elders, my servants, I will rend the kingdoms of this world, and with you I will provide for my Saints in the last days.

That may be a new idea to many of you. Is he going to take the world and by them provide for his Saints? No; but he will take his Elders. The righteous have got to provide for, the righteous in the latter days, as Joseph in Egypt provided for his father’s house and those that believed on him, like a good father providing for a good family, for good wives, and good children.

When I have provided for my wives and children, that is my business, is it not, although I dictate them to do the work? I bring this up as a comparison. Says the Lord, “That is my business. When you have done all things according to my word, you need not further trouble yourselves.”

Now, the Elders of this Church have been forth and exhorted, invited, and persuaded the world to embrace the Gospel. I have travelled myself hundreds of thousands of miles, and others have travelled more than I have, and some of you hare not travelled any, only from your native land to this, which is but a trifling journey. We are now a thousand miles away from our enemies in the United States, and the President of the United States is over three thousand from us, and at the same time he has his myrmidons over the mountains there. What are they sent here for? To destroy us—to kill your leaders—to kill the Prophets, Apostles, and Patriarchs, with every man and woman that will sustain those men.

I have seen the day when it was as much as our lives were worth to sustain Joseph Smith—the apostates were so thick around us, and persecution was so great. The day was when brother Brigham was the only Apostle on the earth, with the exception of Joseph, and Sidney, and Hyrum, that could say to brother Heber, Go, and you shall be blessed. I am reckoning brother Hyde with us, for he went with me on that mission to England. In connection With brother Joseph, brother Hyrum, and brother Sidney, brother Brigham said, “Go, brother Heber, and in the name of Israel’s God you shall be blessed, and it shall prove the salvation of thousands.”

John Boynton, one of the Twelve, came to me and said, “If you are such a damned feel as to listen to Joseph Smith, the fallen Prophet, and go to England under these perilous circumstances, if I knew you were shipwrecked on Van Dieman’s Land I would not assist you to get you from that land.”

I will speak to Lyman Johnson’s credit: I will give every man credit for the good he does. Lyman Johnson steps up and says, “Brother Heber, I do not feel so. I am sorry you are going, and consider you are foolish; but if you are determined to go, I will help you all that is in my power; and he took from his shoulders a good, nice camlet cloak and put it on to mine; and that was the first cloak I ever had. This was in the month of June, 1887. [Voice: “He shall be blessed for that.”]

I was then destitute of the comforts of life, and that cloak I were three times across the sea, and Parley P. Pratt wore it four times; and in all it crossed the sea seven times. It seemed as though it would never wear out.

Those circumstances were the most trying circumstances that ever I was brought into. Joseph had to flee from that land to save his body from being slain, and so had brother Brigham and every other man who would sustain the Prophet, the apostacy was so great; and they were most hellish in their wickedness.

I went and performed the mission according to the words of the Prophet of the living God, and was gone eleven months and two days from Kirtland, being on that land eight months and two days, in which time there were about two thousand souls added to the Church and kingdom of God, with the help of Elders Willard Richards, Orson Hyde, and Joseph Fielding.

When I came back from England there were but a few left in Kirtland. There was one little society of men that pretended to take the lead and oversight of the people, and they were guided by a peep-stone.

God had blessed and prospered me exceedingly, and the words of Joseph, Hyrum, Sidney, and Brigham were all fulfilled to the letter, which you all know. I was poor and weak, and did not know but a little in regard to this work in the latter days. My knowledge was in proportion to my experience. At the same time, I knew enough, by the help of the Holy Ghost, to confound the wise and to bring to naught the foolish things of this world. God has taken just such weak instruments as myself to bring to pass his great purposes. And you need not find fault with them: if you do, you find fault with God, who sent them.

Now, I will tell you what I am going to do. I have heard my leader express himself, and I am going to do as near like him as possible. I am going to do what is right, whether you like it or not; for I would rather have I the favour of my leader, and Joseph, and Peter, and Jesus, &c., than of all the world besides. I am going to flour up my wheat, put it into boxes and cache it, right straight, whether you do it or not. Now, you need not go to brother Brigham and ask him where he is going to put his, nor where I am going to put mine; for we shall not tell you.

There are tens of thousands in these valleys that would not touch or meddle with those things, if they knew where they were; and then again, there are others that would: There is now and then an individual that is dishonest. They made a practice of stealing in the Old and New World, where they came from, and they think it is no harm. If they go to work for a man and do a little job on his house, and he has flinty nails or screws, and there are twenty left, he will put them into his pocket and take them home, and kneel down and thank the Lord that he has got a few nails or screws, and thinks it is the providence of God that has thrown them in his way and that there were a few left. Such practices bring evil and destruction upon us, I was telling you what I should do—that I should flour my wheat and cache it, and perhaps I shall lay some of it by in the wheat: but I shall flour it chiefly; for if it comes a tight time, I shall cache some portions of my mill, and then I shall not have a mill to grind any. I will have it made into flour and put it where it will keep seven years. And, I am also going to cultivate the earth more throughly and efficiently this present year to come than I ever did in my life, and so will every other man that does right. I told you I am going to do as brother Brigham did. Those who think it is not good philosophy, try the opposite. You will never get me to contend against him while I have my senses. I will cultivate my trees—my apple trees and plum trees, and set out currant and rose bushes, though I would rather put in a plum tree or some kind of tree that will yield something for the sustenance of the body. I will also repair and re-repair, and take care of what I have got. I mean to take my sons, from the oldest to those who are old enough, and I will qualify them to cultivate the soil, and will fit them out and put them into the mountains to watch for, and, if necessary, to fight for the interests of the house of Israel from this day forth, until the Lord God Almighty upsets their kingdoms. I never will put them to the plough again when they are required to stand against our foes. I will say, “Boys, take that team and plough, and that hoe, and put in the grain to provide for you while you are there;” and then, if they come home relieved by the manager, they can help to harvest it and take care of it. I will support my sons in the mountains to sustain this people, and in the vineyard, while I live, if it is necessary, as fast as they come to maturity, or to mechanism, cultivating the earth, &c., so as to know and understand all branches of business and be qualified to teach their children; and so will every other good man and woman who live their religion. For, says the Lord, with you, mine Elders, I will rend their kingdoms: with you I will provide for my Saints in the last days.

We have invited the nations to receive the truth, but they will not, nor let us go to them; and now God is going to compel them to come in by famine, war, and every kind of desolation; and they will come faster than we can provide for them. Then let us awake, and not lie down and sleep, and go home and act as though we had not heard anything.

I am telling what I am going to do: I have heard our leader talk so. Then I will do as he says. I would not give a dime for a man that would not. Get out of my way, you poor stinking curses that would pursue a course contrary to the word of the living God! I am at war with such spirits. I want to know how we can be one, unless we are one with the head? When the head speaks, let every man and woman listen and obey.

I do not care so much about the women obeying as I do the men. I am not talking about them, but you, Elders of Israel, that have the Priesthood. Women have not a particle of Priesthood, only what they hold in connection with their husbands; neither have the men, except that which they hold in connection with those who hold the keys of the kingdom at head-quarters. Do not step out on one side and say you have Priesthood independent. You have not a particle in that way. I was ordained to be an Apostle under the hands of Oliver, and David, and Martin; and then it was confirmed by, Joseph of the First Presidency. Now, I want to know what authority of Priesthood I have only as I act in concert with those who gave it to me? They are God’s agents and had power to ordain me.

Brother Brigham is my head; therefore that power is all in him. I act in oneness with him in all things, and sanction his purposes; and in so doing I sanction the purposes of God, of angels, and all heavenly beings. But, let me turn away and be independent of him, and where is my Priesthood, or where is my authority?

What power has one of my wives to act independently of me? She has not a particle of power. She must act in connection with me, as I do with my head, or the limb acts in connection with the tree from which it springs. You see dead limbs on trees. Will they ever come to life again, after they are dead? No. They must be cut off and thrown back into the earth, to return back to their mother element, and become again quickened by the law they were ordained to keep; and if they are not quickened by that power, they will never be restored again to that tree. No more will you. You have got to keep that law pertaining to that tree, limb, or government, or you will never be restored again—never, no never, while the earth stands.

Will any man ever be redeemed upon any other principle than what we are redeemed upon? No. Men must abide the same law, or God Almighty will never redeem them. If they violate that law, they bring damnation upon themselves, and must suffer the consequences of it. Still, I believe the greater part of the inhabitants of the earth will be redeemed; yea, all will be finally redeemed, except those who have sinned against the Holy Ghost or shed innocent blood; and they never can be redeemed until that debt is paid. And I do not know any way for them to pay it, unless they are brought back again to a mortal existence, and pay the debt where they contracted it.

God will make every man pay off the debt he contracts; for a restoration must take place, which has been spoken of by the mouth of all the holy Prophets since the world began.

When a man breaks a law of God, he must pay that debt, unless God forgives him; and he has a right to do that, the same as I have. Still, my forgiving him does not pay the debt; for if he has stolen ten dollars from me, and he comes to me and asks my pardon for stealing the ten dollars, I forgive him. But does that restore the ten dollars of stolen money?

How does it look for a man holding the Priesthood to be dishonest? When a man is employed by me, he has no business to meddle with a thing, unless I tell him to. Still, he may do many good things I do not tell him to do. God says he is not pleased with a man that has to be commanded in all things.

I have had men work for me, who, if there was the least thing left after the job was done, would take it to themselves. This is done in the public works by some few individuals. I do not like such things. Brother Brigham has lost, from time to time, thousands of dollars’ worth of property in this valley. I have chastised men for taking things from him myself, when I have seen them do it—men old enough to be my father, and men of middle age, and those sweet delicate females. How do I look upon you? You rob me of the most precious gem when you rob me of the confidence I have in you. And I am that kind of a being, it seems, that it is very hard to have that confidence restored again.

Let me do a dishonest act towards brother Brigham, and it is a hard case for him to overlook that, or to regain the same confidence in me he formerly had. I am not a man that goes to him to prejudice his mind against any person; no, I never do such a thing. Still there are a great many things I could lay before him that would hurt his mind against some. I do not do it. No: I make you appear well before him. Others take the opposite course. Do I like it? No: I have no friendship for such; for, say I, “You would injure me, if you could, as well as any other man.”

I remember the teaching Joseph gave me. My policy is to be honest and virtuous; and the wives and children and property of the Elders of Israel are held as sacred in my bosom as I would wish them to hold mine; and that man who is not of that character is not a friend to the kingdom of God, and they cannot enter there; for the liar, hypocrite, whoremonger, and those that love to make lies, the sorcerer, and dishonest person are without the gate, according to the word of God. Such things have got to be done away.

I wish I could live the remaining portion of my life among a people where everything I had would be as safe as in my own possession; and when my wife goes into a neighbour’s house to visit, she may not come home with seven devils more than she took away with her. That gives the Devil and his emissaries power over us. You will see sorrow, if you do not stop this chin-music, and tattling, and speaking evil one of another. Here are troops over here: they want to come in; but it has been said from the beginning that they will not come in. And they will not, for we will not let them. We have sent our boys out there, and they are going to keep them back; and they will do it from this time forth, if you will do right. Now, supposing you go to cache your wheat, corn, flour, service berries, dried fruit, &c., and a little sugar made from the cane of our own raising, some may say this time is all lost, if our enemies are not coming in. Well, is it not all the better to spend our time digging holes and caching our stuff than to spend it in being in the mountains?

Brother Brigham says he does not intend to burn up the houses, and cut down our fruit trees, and push over our walls, and this thing and that, until we come to the last pinch; and then you will see a flame, such a one as you never saw in Salt Lake. I will burn up my houses, my barns, and granaries, should the Lord require it. You have heard me say, many a time, I would have more joy to see my family in the mountains—to see them in rags, in sheep-skins, and goat-skins, than to see them enjoying: all the pleasure God ever gave to man and serving the Devil withal; and I would rather do it, if it is to be next year, than ever to succumb to the acts of such an ungodly, pusillanimous President, with his coadjutors, as those that govern our nation.

These are some of my views: you are welcome to them, and I charge you nothing for them. I received them from God, and they cost me nothing. And, as far as they are correct, receive them in your hearts, and they shall be unto you as a well of water springing up into everlasting life; and every man, woman, and child will grow and increase by observing them.

If you do not do these things, you will see sorrow. My heart says, “O Lord God, have mercy on this people, and help them to do thy will, and keep them in thy truth. I pray and weep, lest the unrighteous among us lead away the righteous. Is it better for them to die? Yes; it is better for you to die according to your covenants a thousand times than to turn to wickedness and then lead away the righteous. But I doubt very much if you can lead away a people that are inclined to righteousness. You cannot lead away the elect; “For they will hear my voice, and strangers they will not follow.”

There will always be a majority of this people that will stand while all hell boils over, and they will overcome; and I bless them, in the name of Israel’s God, with the blessings of life and with the blessings of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob for ever; and I bless all those that bless and protect Israel. Amen.

Neglect of Sunday Meetings, etc.

Brigham Young

A discourse by President Brigham Young, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, November 22, 1857. Reported by G. D. Watt.

Much has been said here to-day with regard to that class who are unruly and forward—who are subject to do evil. I presume the great majority of this congregation have concluded to place all those remarks upon those who do not come to meeting. Doubtless the few—yes, the very few characters that have been referred to by the brethren to-day are at home studying mischief. It is very seldom that you will find a thief in this house—a person that plunders his neighbours. But if you will go into the streets, you will find certain persons in the different Wards who have an excuse for not attending meeting. Some are so very industrious that they cannot attend meeting. I would not doubt much but what we could now go to several houses and find women at work; they are so very industrious. And it is often the case that some men are so industrious that they cannot find time to get a load of wood without going for it or returning with it on Sunday. That is really the case with those who do not love “Mormonism:” they have embraced it because they know it is true and think it will shield them in their iniquity. It is seldom that such persons come to meeting. I conclude that the remarks which have been made to-day are designed for those persons who are disposed to do evil; but there is probably only a very few or none of that class present, and we shall have to depend upon you to tell them what has been said about them. I am thankful that it is my honest conviction that there are but a very few of that class in our community.

There are a great many people who do wrong because they have not the standard of right and wrong within them, but permit themselves to be governed by the prejudices and education they have received among the different nations and neighbourhoods where they have been trained. You may find some persons who have within them the standard of right and wrong: they can tell when they do right—what is right, and judge themselves as easily as they can others; but of this class there are but a very few. And were I to say that there are none who are entirely free from the prejudices and prepossessed ideas gathered in their youthful days from their parents, teachers, and friends, I should say what is strictly true. Still, we are studying and trying to learn how to discern between the evil and the good, the right and the wrong—between that which is of God and that which is not of him.

This people are mostly gathered from what are termed the labouring and middle classes. We have not gathered into this Church men that are by the world esteemed profound in their principles, ideas, and judgment. We have none in this Church that are called by them expert statesmen. How frequently it is cast at the Elders, when they are abroad preaching, that Joseph Smith, the founder of their Church and religion, was only a poor illiterate boy. That used to be advanced as one of the strongest arguments that could be produced against the doctrine of salvation by the wise and learned of this world, though it is no argument at all. The Lord should have revealed himself to some of the learned priests or talented men of the age, say they, who could have done some good and borne off the Gospel by their influence and learning, and not to a poor, ignorant, unlettered youth. Not many wise, not many mighty, not many noble, speaking after the manner of men, are called; but God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise, the weak things of the world to confound the things that are mighty; and base things of the world—things which are despised by the world; hath God in his wisdom chosen; yea, and things which are not to bring to naught things that are, that no flesh should glory in his presence.

Men were too wise in the days of the Saviour to receive the Gospel, and we see the same disposition exhibited in our day. The world spurn the idea of receiving truth from a person they look upon as inferior to them in the talent, learning, and cunning of the present generation. Perhaps they might bow to the requirements of Heaven were an angel to personally visit them individually, and exalt them to high places, and give them the influence, power, and glory that are of this world. We have none of those men here: we are all of the labouring and middle classes. There are but few in this Church who are not of the labouring class, and they have not had an opportunity to cultivate their minds, to search into the history of the nations of the earth, to learn the prejudices that are upon the people, their education, feelings, and customs. We have mostly come from the plough and the furrow, from the mechanic shops and the loom, from the spinning-jenny, the kitchen, and wash-room. This people have not been educated in the devilry and craft of the learned classes of mankind, and consequently possessed honesty enough to embrace the truth. That is the character of the class of people before me to-day.

Who is capable of judging? We do not look for that talent and great judgment from the common people that we would naturally expect from those who are called the refined and educated. There must be an opportunity given them for improvement before we can expect the same refinement and classical attainments which the higher classes, so called, boast of. The higher classes have nothing to do only to study the nature of man, their own dispositions, and those of their fellow-beings. We can look upon them as they really are, and truly we are compelled to conclude that the devilry, mischief, dishonesty, craft, corruption, &c., that are taught and practised among the higher classes, have prevented them from receiving the Gospel. But the poor, half-starved labourers, those who feel as though they want a friend, who look around for some source of happiness, for some arm to lean on, for some eye to pity them, are the ones who have honesty enough to receive the truth.

What should we expect from such a class of people? I have my reasons for justifying and my reasons for condemning; I have my reasons for liking this people and my reasons for disliking the conduct of some; and I believe that I look upon them very much as the Lord does. He pities the human family; they are objects of his mercy and commiseration. There are men in this community who, through the force of the education they have received from their parents and friends, would cheat a poor widow out of her last cow, and then go down upon their knees and thank God for the good fortune he had sent them and for his kind providences that enabled them to obtain a cow without becoming amenable to any law of the land, though the poor widow had been actually cheated. We see that trait of character in mankind. Are such persons capable in all things of rightly discerning between truth and error? No. But they, through their traditions, can judge every person but themselves: they can weigh every person in their scale of justice; but they never think of trying themselves. That proceeds from the force of education and false tradition upon their minds, and some still remain ignorant of many of the true principles of right and wrong, although they have embraced the Gospel.

Brother Kimball told the truth this morning with regard to many of our mechanics. I have not built a house since I have been in this place but what I have furnished many more pounds of nails than I would have to do for the same piece of work in the States. I knew that some of the workmen took them, and I told them so. They need not undertake to deceive me, for I know precisely what they do. Since the days of reformation, I have had many a one come to me—honest men to all appearance—men that you would almost have sworn were as holy as an angel, and confess that they had stolen nails from me, or a waggon, &c. But they have not yet become honest enough to bring the stolen articles back. In what condition are they, after such a confession, without making restitution, compensation, or some kind of satisfaction? Just as they were before. To me, taking and keeping another’s property, without leave, is stealing; but to many, they consider it a godsend to have another’s nails to carry home in their pockets. That often is the consequence of tradition, rather than an innate disposition to steal. I will relate a circumstance to corroborate that statement. I once knew a man in this Church who told me that, when he was in the old country, he would, if possible, spoil his work, in order to be employed to do it again. He was a plumber and glazier. As soon as he had finished a fine window or a large sash for a hothouse in a gentleman’s garden, he would place it in a situation where it would be sure to be broken to pieces, that he might thereby secure employment; and when he received the second job, he would thank God for his kind providences toward him: To him, in his tradition, and amid the oppression of the labouring classes, that was just as honest as anything could be. But here they are not so oppressed.

To this day, if you employ masons to do a valuable piece of work, many will so do it that the wall or building will last only a few years, and then believe that to be honesty, whereas I believe it to be dishonesty. And joiners, with few exceptions, will so hang doors, put up mantelpieces, put on roofs, and lay floors, that in a short time all their work is out of repair or good for nothing. Very many, through the power of erroneous education, do not know what honesty and dishonesty are, and are not capable of judging Observe the artisans in any branch of mechanism, and you will learn that what I have stated is true. Then you may take the class called merchants, also the doctors, the priests in the various sects, the lawyers, and every person engaged in any branch of business throughout the world, and, as a general thing, they are all taught from their childhood to be more or less dishonest.

Those who have their eyes opened to see and understand where honesty and uprightness are, what righteousness is, and to discern between that which is right and that which is wrong, often rise here and talk about it. I do so myself; and when I speak of dishonesty among the people, I look at them as they are, whether I tell it or not. This is the most honest people on the earth. There is more honesty in this community than in any other community on the earth—that is, that we have any knowledge of. The great majority of this community are as honest as they know how to be. I have stated that I had not found a man honest enough to bring back what he had taken from me; but those persons are poor and can make a reasonable excuse. One of the best men I ever hired to labour for me—one whom I paid well for all he did for me, took some of my tools; that is to say, he borrowed them and never brought them back. Well, he is poor. Will I forgive him? Yes. They may steal from me as much as they please, and I will forgive them as far as they ought to be forgiven. They may say, “You have plenty, brother Brigham.” That is true; and, so far as I can remember, I have never stolen a pin’s worth in any way, shape, or manner, except the taking a few melons or a little fruit, once in a while, when I was a boy. Have I cheated any of you, or wronged any of you in any way? If I have, I would be glad to have you tell me wherein. Have I oppressed the labourer in his wages? If I have, let the man come and tell me of it.

Some think that I am very close and economical. I am; and I will tell you wherein. When a man comes to labour for me—one who will only leisurely do two or three hours’ work in a day, and wants as much pay as a man who will do six times as much, I am not willing to pay him for idling away his time. If I have a man labour for me who can do six days’ work in one, did I ever refuse to pay him for the amount of labour he performed? Ask Isaac Hunter if I ever refused to pay him wages to the full amount of labour he could perform in a day. In this valley we have estimated laying rock in a wall to be worth one dollar a perch. Ask any mason, when he laid ten perches in a day, if I ever refused to pay him ten dollars. But if a man wanted three dollars and a half for laying one perch, I am not willing to pay him at that rate. I will suppress dishonesty, but I never oppress honesty.

I have tried to suppress dishonesty in individuals, and have tried thereby to make them honest. If I hire a carpenter and pay him three dollars a day, and he is three days in making a six-panel door that a good workman can make in one, or even a door and a half, I do not want to pay him three dollars a day for that labour. Yet some who are here have no more judgment, discretion, or idea of right or wrong, than to want to be paid for labour they do not perform; and that they consider to be honesty: but it is just as dishonest as anything in the world.

I am willing to pay men for what they do. I am anxious that all should have that which belongs to them, and wish them to let that which belongs to me alone. If I furnish nails to build a house, the workmen have no right to carry them off. When using nails, the mechanic often has more or less in his pocket. At quitting-time he forgets to take them out, and carries them home. He goes out to chop a little wood and says, “Dear me, these nails”—some twenty or thirty, or perhaps more—“are quite a burden to me,” and he puts them out of his way. By-and-by he wants to build a pig-pen, or to build a little addition to his house, and feels quite thankful that he has the nails to do it with, and will praise the name of the Lord for the manner in which he has blessed him. I do not want blessings on such grounds, and I never expect them in that way, because I have the natural sense to know better. Others also will have it, if they will continue to try to find out how to judge between right and wrong in themselves as they do in another individual.

You may go to High Councils, though we do not have many in these days, and to Bishops’ Courts, and hear a trial between parties that have quarrelled with each other, and you will readily perceive that if those individuals could judge themselves as they judge each other, there would have been no difficulty between them; they would have settled their affairs between themselves, and the best of feelings would have been established for each other. But people cannot judge themselves as they can others, nor look upon their own conduct as they do upon the conduct of others. We must learn to look at ourselves, to judge ourselves, and know how to deal with ourselves, and that will enable us to bring ourselves into perfect subjection to the law of Christ.

Are the people striving to do right? Yes, they are. It has been observed that we are pretty clear from those unruly spirits that have been in our midst. So we are; but you need not flatter yourselves for a moment that the Devil has left us. You will find that he marshals his forces more particularly against this people; and if we are now clear from those unhallowed spirits and the tabernacles they occupied, you may expect that he will, if possible, find somebody here in whom he can have a resting place. You will learn that the wicked disembodied spirits have not left this people, though the most of those wicked persons who sought to destroy the Saints have left us. There are myriads of disembodied evil spirits—those who have long ago laid down their bodies here and in the regions round about, among and around us; and they are trying to make us and our children sick, and are trying to destroy us and to tempt us to evil. They will try every possible means they are masters of to draw us aside from the path of righteousness.

Do you not think that we need to watch and pray continually—that we need all the time to keep a guard over ourselves, that we may preserve ourselves in the love of the truth? We do. It should be our constant study to guard ourselves on every side against every attack of the enemy of all righteousness.

Cease looking at others. Cease to judge each other. Go into a family where there are two women belonging to one man, and from that to as many as you can find, and you will soon learn that almost every woman can judge all the family but herself; and that she thinks that whatever she does is just right: she would not do a wrong for the world. Then go to the next woman that was said to be so out of the way, and with her it is, “I am exactly right, and the other is wrong.” They do not rightly look at their own failings, views, and passions. If they were all capable of straightening themselves, they would not come in collision with each other, but would all conclude to walk together in the straight and narrow path, whereas now they are at times almost diametrically opposed to each other. Is that the case? Judge ye for yourselves. That is not the case with every family, to my certain knowledge; but it is so with too many. It is just so with the brethren. You find more or less of the same difficulty everywhere you go. It is, “I am right, and you are wrong.”

You have been taught the standard of right. Now subdue your rebellious passions, dismiss everything that you know or consider to be wrong, and embrace that which is better. Get wisdom and all the light you possibly can, and never live another twenty-four hours without the Holy Spirit of the Lord, and that will give you joy, peace, comfort, light, and intelligence, by which you can grow in grace and in the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. I cannot reach these attainments, neither can you, only by the light and intelligence which flow from heaven. You may say, “Brother Brigham, you are like the rest of us: we see our faults, but we do not like to acknowledge them; we like to have them covered up and kept out of the sight of our neighbours.” If you find a secret fault, dismiss it secretly. Let your faults go behind you; turn them overboard, and for ever disown them. If no person but yourselves has seen your faults, you are blessed. You may then get rid of them without their being made manifest to others.

If men and women, and more especially women, for they love chit-chat, when they feel in any way bad, or a little cross, or feel as though somebody is out of the way, and feel like finding fault with their neighbour and exposing this one’s fault and the other one’s fault, would only be as secret on the faults of others as they are on their own, it would be beneficial to their welfare and that of their neighbours. When a person opens his mouth, no matter what he talks about, to a person of quick discernment, he will disclose more or less of his true sentiments. You cannot hide the heart, when the mouth is open. If you want to keep your heart secret, keep your mouth shut.

Some say, “I feel as though I must boil over, and I must talk to relieve myself.” All hell is boiling over; but does that make it any better? No. If you let your tongue run, and it scatters the poison that is in you, it sets the whole being on fire. The Apostle James says, “And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity; so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature, and it is set on fire of hell.” And again, “But the tongue can no man tame: it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.” Are you aware of this, sisters and brethren? If you keep silent, you can master your feelings, can subdue your passions, and ultimately become masters of them and banish them from you. If you give way to your unbridled tongues, you increase anger within you, and the first you know your blood is boiling with wrath. That is what the Apostle meant when he wrote, “It setteth on fire the whole course of nature, and it is set on fire of hell.” It is hell that sets it agoing. If you find that you cannot keep your tongue still, get some India-rubber and chew it with all your might. Do as brother Joseph Sharp did when he assisted in conveying Mrs. Mogo to the soldier’s camp. He considered that the soldiers rather imposed upon him and his brother Adam, and he was for fight; but Adam, who is not so impetuous, coaxed him into the waggon, where he laid down on his face, and in two hours chewed up almost a whole plug of tobacco. In such cases a good piece of India-rubber is better cheaper, and will last longer; though it would be better for you to chew up a whole plug of tobacco than to have a real quarrel with your tongues. You would not in a long time get over the effects of a quarrel: it would be like a cankerworm to your souls.

There is not a person on the earth, that has sense enough to know what experience is, but what, if they would bridle their tongues and subdue their passions, could say, “I have not injured anybody—no, not even myself.” It is no matter how you are tempted, if you do not give way to temptation; but if you give way to temptation, it carries you to destruction. If you give way to your angry feelings, it sets on fire the whole course of nature, and is set on fire of hell; and you are then apt to set those on fire who are contending with you. When you feel as though you would burst, tell the old boiler to burst, and just laugh at the temptation to speak evil. If you will continue to do that, you will soon be so masters of yourselves as to be able, if not to tame, to control your tongues—able to speak when you ought, and to be silent when you ought.

Let the mechanics and all others try to improve as you have. There has a great improvement taken place in the midst of this people, and we will still continue to improve. Let us seek unto the Lord for wisdom, until we can rightly judge all matters that come before us—until we can judge ourselves and our neighbours with equal justice, and so continue to improve, until we come up to the standard of truth in all our acts and words; so that when I employ a mason to lay me up a wall, he will do it honestly, and so on with every other workman. Then if a man does not earn his wages, he will not ask them or take them. Now it is—“I want all I can get.” Honesty never comes into the hearts of such persons; their rule is to keep what they have got, and to get all they can, whether honestly or not, and pray for more.

When the eyes of your understandings are opened to deal righteously with each other, then my axes, shovels, &c., will all be safe, if they are left in the barn. But it has been so that my harness was taken, my picks and shovels, my waggon, wheels, and tire, and everything else that could be was carried off. When we have attained the improvement I anticipate, I can lie down in peace at night and enquire, “Wife, have you brought in those clothes that were hung out?” “No.” “All right—no person will meddle with them.” I would rather persons who are destitute would come to me and say, “We need a pair of pantaloons, a hat,” &c., and give me a chance to assist them. But when they steal, I cannot trust them.

I would rather give a woman a dollar than have her come to my house saying, “Do you want to buy a pound of butter?” “Yes. What do you want for it?” “Twenty-five or thirty cents,” as the case may be, and then stop with my family and eat a great deal more butter than she sold to me. If they would come to me and say, “Brother Brigham, I want to sell this butter, for I have no way of living only by my labour,” it would be another thing. If a poor woman should come to me and say, “I want fifty cents to purchase dye stuffs,” here it is; you are welcome to the money, but do not undertake to sponge on me.

Let my nails, tools, and other property remain where they belong. Work honestly and deal honestly one with another. Evil practices in a great degree spring from the traditions of the people; they are so educated. They have been taught, in different parts of the world, that if they found a thing, though not many yards from the door of the owner, it belonged to them. “This belongs to me now, for I have found it.” Did you earn it? “No; I found it.” That and a thousand other traits of human life tend to lead the people astray. They seldom stop to think whether they are right or wrong.

We need to learn, practise, study, know, and understand how angels live with each other. When this community comes to the point to be perfectly honest and upright, you will never find a poor person: none will lack; all will have sufficient. Every man, woman, and child will have all they need just as soon as they all become honest. When the majority of a community are dishonest, it maketh the honest portion poor, for the dishonest serve and enrich themselves at their expense. You know that I think that this people are the best people that there are; yet we need to train ourselves, to study ourselves, and study the principles of truth and righteousness, until we can discern that which is right from that which is wrong in the least particular within ourselves; and you will find that to answer every purpose, without judging our neighbours as much as many do.

As to this people being a good people, I say, God bless you all the the time! Who else will do as this people do? Nobody else. All you have is on the altar, ready to be offered up for the kingdom of God. You could hardly find a man or woman in this congregation but what would take the clothing from their backs to promote this kingdom.

We are telling you all the time to do as you are told; but do you do it to that extent which you will in a few years to come? No. Why? Because you do not know how. I know that this people are doing a great deal better than they did years ago. Could Joseph do with this people as I and my brethren now can? No. Were this people in the situation they now are when Joseph was alive? No. Joseph was running the gauntlet among his wicked enemies all the time. He hardly knew a man in the kingdom that he could put confidence enough in to call for a dollar to help him out of a difficulty. He did not know how many would stand by him when a mob gathered against him. He had a few faithful, tried friends; but he had many around him who would betray him into the hands of his enemies.

I am not afflicted with such persons in the midst of this people; but there is confidence and a concentration of faith; and we will so improve, that, when a man rises here to pray, there will not be a desire from the heart of a man or woman but what is uttered by the one who is mouth. When we come to understanding, there will not be as many desires and prayers as there are people, while one is officiating as mouth for the whole; but when he who is mouth prays, every heart will wait until he utters a sentence, and that embodies what they also desire. When the sisters meet together and appoint one of their number to pray, they will never let a desire escape from the heart until they know what the mouth is praying for. Then they all will desire the same and pray for the same. This people are hastening to that degree of perfection.

I thank the Lord all the time, and I bless the name of Israel’s God that I live in this day and age of the world, and that I am associated with such a people. Is there any misery, sorrow, and affliction here? I do not know what trouble or sorrow is. Do I feel for others? Yes, all I ought to feel.

I know what the sorrow of the world is. It works death, and I have long ago bid good-bye to it. If I am sorry for anything, I try to have a godly sorrow to benefit me. My heart is cheerful; I am happy and thankful all the day long; and I believe that I am in the light. I have not asked for a lantern, only from the Almighty; and I know that the whole people are daily progressing, ascending, and increasing in good works and in faith and knowledge, even the knowledge of God; and we are doing the works he desires at our hands.

It would do you good to look out yonder in the mountains and see our brethren warmly clad and well provided for. The brethren and sisters here and in the neighbourhoods round about have liberally answered to our calls, and every time have supplied more than was called for. Will they part with everything, if it is called for? Yes. I have heard but of one man, since the brethren went out to watch the enemy—a man up north, who really wished the brethren to spare his ox; but they butchered him before his eyes. I said amen to it. If his god can be slain as easily as that, it is an excellent thing for him. If any of you have gods in horses, or in oxen, make an offering of them forthwith, and tell the boys who are going out that they are welcome to them. They are welcome to all mine. If you don’t believe it, try it.

We are a blessed people, and we shall be preserved from our enemies, if we will continue to do right, and the Lord will sustain us. And I can tell you that this people will do right and God will sustain us. Ere long Zion will triumph and the glory and knowledge of God will cover the earth, and we will still be in the old ship Zion and ride all wicked opposition down to destruction. May God help us so to do. Amen.

Unity, Etc.

Amasa Lyman

Discourse by Elder Amasa Lyman, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, Sunday afternoon, Nov. 22, 1857. Reported by J. V. Long.

I can say, my brethren and sisters, in truth to my own feelings, that I have been gratified to-day in what I have heard. I have been edified; and, what is more, I feel that there is only one great reason why we do not realize more fully the blessings that would accrue to us, if we were sufficiently faithful, or as faithful as we might be to the principles inculcated in the remarks that have been made; and that reason is, we do not, to the extent that we might, “live our religion.”

We are not as perfectly united as we might be. I think that this is true. It is as certainly true as it is true that, if we could keep the law of God perfectly, we should realize a corresponding degree of happiness, peace, and affection in everything that should be made the subject of conversation or of thought, or that should become a matter of principle with the people. It is for us to cultivate that principle within us that should unite us together—that should cause our affections to be one, our feelings to be one, our interests to be one; for in this is our strength.

It may be truly said of us, as it is in the world, that we are united; and they say all the time that, whatever our leaders say or propose, we all go to work and sustain them therein. I would to God that it was true to a greater extent even than that to which our enemies may consider it to be true.

When we are compared with other communities in the world, it might be said of us that we are a united and happy people, for we enjoy a degree of union and the blessings resulting from that union that other communities do not enjoy. But this does not show that we do not fall far short of the perfect union that should cement the Saints of the Most High together.

If we could discover and be made sensible of any means by which we could become more perfectly united—more perfectly one, that would be a matter of importance to us. It would be of value to us, as it would lay a foundation with us for an increase of our intelligence; it would increase our chances of success—our chances of victory in the great struggle with the enemies of our God—with our foes within and our foes without. If we could but cultivate these principles with all our hearts, with all our faith, with all our souls, then our struggles would be barely begun when we should be able to rejoice in the enjoyment of victory.

“Well,” says one, “If we are influenced by the same Spirit—if we all do as the Spirit dictates, shall we not be one? If all the people—the individuals that compose this community, were individually to be operated upon by the Spirit of God—were all enlightened by that Spirit that reveals the will of God, that makes known his purposes, and that imparts to the benighted soul an understanding of the purposes of the Almighty, so that we could appreciate them, there is no doubt in my mind but that the people would all see alike, and consequently act alike. But is this the case? With all our advantages with all the instructions that have been given—with Heaven’s kindness in the continued, unremitting stream of revelation that has been poured out upon us for a score of years and more, have we become so enlightened—got understanding so that we all see alike, that we all understand alike? We have but to look and contemplate what we see exhibited around us to become satisfied at once that this is not the case with us as a people. If it were so, such admonitions as are called out from the Presidency of the Church would be uncalled for; they would be unnecessary; the people would not be admonished to be more united, to be more diligent and strict in remembering the principles and in practising the instructions that are from time to time imparted unto them.

Now, while we cannot sufficiently comprehend the things of God by the Spirit of God to save us from error, and from mistakes, and from disunion, what shall we do? Why, let us humbly adopt the advice, or similar advice to that which is given by the ancient Apostle to his brethren in addressing them. He says, “We have also a more sure word of prophecy, whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day-star arise in your hearts.”

Now, I do not quote that Scripture to direct you to be over anxious to learn all that the ancient Apostles may have said that might be adapted to the Saints in that time and under those circumstances; but I want you to act in this as they were admonished to act in that time; and if you cannot judge perfectly by the portion of the Spirit of God that you possess, remember that you have a more sure word of prophecy that is imparted unto you from day to day, from Sabbath to Sabbath, from month to month, and from year to year, unto which you do well that you give heed. And the sequel will be, if you give heed unto it, that by-and-by the day will dawn, and the day-star of experience, of heaven, and of truth; and of God, will arise in your own hearts, and the fountain of light and life will become established within you.

Well, then, until this is the case, adopt the maxim inculcated in the song of one of our poets, who writes—

“We’ll mind what Brigham says.”

Pay attention to the inspiration of the Almighty from those in whom it lives and dwells—in whom it is a living fountain, as it must be in you, individually, before you will be saved from sin, Let us remember, if we cannot comprehend, by the Spirit that is living within us, all the truth in relation to what we should do and how we should act as we travel along, that we should attend to their instructions, and do what they say. If they instruct us to pray, let us pray; and if they instruct us what to pray for, let us pray for that; and when the fountain of inspiration is opened within us and becomes a living part and parcel of ourselves, then we will know for ourselves and comprehend for ourselves, and the President of the Church, will not have to say from day to day and from time to time; “Wake up from your slumber.” He will not have need to tell us of our diversity of sentiment and feelings. There should exist among us a perfect unanimity of feeling.

If we wait for the Spirit of God to do everything, what are we doing the while? We are idling away our time; we are neglecting to use the means placed within our reach for our benefit and improvement: God has raised up in his Church Apostles, Prophets, and Teachers—for what purpose? Simply that you might be instructed—simply that you might be taught and brought to the knowledge of the truth. What truth? Why, the same truth the Apostles and Prophets understand—the same truths that the Seventies, High Priests, Elders, and the servants of God comprehend. It is to bring you to the same inspiration—to the knowledge of God, which is eternal life.

This is all the purpose that is to be accomplished in all this labour. It is the object of these ordinances, the institutions of heaven, to bring us from our ignorance, our want of knowledge, our lack of understanding, to a comprehension of the truth; and when we are brought to that point and place, no matter if we are counted by thousands and tens of thousands, the blessings of the Gospel are ours, if we are united; for we all occupy the same ground, we understand the same truth, and we are all in the same relationship with truth and with God, which make us one. It causes us to feel alike, to think alike, and to act alike.

If this is the case when we pour out our supplications to the heavens, what will be the character of those supplications? They will all be marked with the same consistency: the same understanding of the truth will dictate them. Our will will simply be the will of our President. Well, then, what will we pray for? We, will pray for nothing but what will subserve the cause of righteousness; we will ask for nothing but what is consistent with the principles of truth and our own advancement in the comprehension of those principles. Would we ask for anything that the heavens would deny? No, we would not. Would our prayers ascend up without hindrance? Yes, they would. For what reason? Because they were marked with union, with truth, with consistency, and righteousness; consequently, they must be acceptable unto our heavenly Father.

What is the reason our prayers are not all answered? The reason is simply because we ask for things that our Father in his wisdom knows would do us no good. They are not answered, because we should cause our Father to defeat himself, if he were obliged to answer all our petitions, all our prayers and supplications. To have our prayers acceptable, they must be consistent; we must ask for nothing but what is pleasing in his sight, in order that our Father may hear and answer our prayers; and in this way we receive that for which we ask.

Now, to gain this point, it is desirable, because of the advantages that we shall secure when it is once gained.

It is possible that it may be the case that some may think there are other matters of greater importance to us and that should possess a higher interest to us than for us simply to become united through the truth. But if there is anything of greater importance, it is something that I do not know—that I have not learned. Victory has been promised unto us, upon the condition that we do right.

If there are any things connected with our present circumstances that are, to some, more than usually alarming or exciting, I do not know any good reason why they should be so; for if the work with which we are connected is the work of God, as we feel, and as most of us are often saying that we understand it, why should we be more excited this year than we were last year? Why should we feel any more uneasy when there are a few United States’ troops in the hills than if there were not? This is no less the work of God for their being there. Our Father is as near to us—his care and his protection is as much over us and round about us as it was before; and it is no more so, unless we get a little closer by observing more perfectly his requirements.

I fear that if the clouds were now all dissipated and driven away, and if the sunshine of prosperity should begin to shine upon us, some would forget God and the duties they owe to him and to one another: I fear that we should forget the sacred obligations which we are under.

I have never seen any time since I have been connected with the Church when I felt as much freedom, as much liberty, or as much of the Spirit of truth—the blessings of freedom and peace that it inspires, as I have since I have known that our enemies have been in our borders. The reason why I feel this way I suppose to be because of the great blessings that are pending at the present time; and I suppose that which would be a reason for my feeling so well should be a reason for the same good feelings with all Saints, if they only possessed the same Spirit.

“Well,” says one, “Do you think that you are more holy than the rest of the people?” I do not know whether I am or not; but I am fortunate, at any rate, if it is any piece of good fortune to feel at ease and free from trouble and perplexity. Are you not troubled? No. Are you not miserable? No. I am not troubled nor miserable. Why? Because I am happy.

If the people all felt so, they would not be very much troubled about anything. I do not say that I feel to pray with any more interest; with any more earnestness, with any more zeal, than I did before we heard the news that this army was on its way to Utah. I am no more disquieted in my feeling; and why? Because it is a settled conviction with me that this is the work of God, and I have no idea that there will be any failure, only that which is on the part of the people. The only anxiety that I have is that I may keep myself firmly bound to “Mormonism”—to the car of the kingdom of God and the work of God; and if God rolls on his work, as we have been told he would, during the last few weeks, we shall soon see his kingdom spread and extend to an amazing degree.

As the Lord has said it is his business to provide for his Saints, I have the promise of being provided for, if I only so conduct myself as to merit the title of a Saint. As to the way and the means how it is to be accomplished, that is none of my business. Whatever the Lord wants of me, he will let me know, because, if I keep myself right and straight, I shall always be on hand to respond to the directions of those that lead me and dictate me, and who should direct my movements.

Well, then, I am happy; I am as easy in my feelings as I well could be, unless I knew something more to feel well about; and I expect, when I know and understand more, that my happiness will be increased; for I expect that I shall understand many things that are now no source of joy and pleasure to me, simply because I know nothing about them. But so far as I have a knowledge of truth, that truth makes me happy and contented; and if I can be contented, I feel as though I would like to see all the people contented. If you cannot feel contented by the spirit that dwells within you all the time, adopt the old Apostle’s maxim—“We have also a more sure word of prophecy, whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn and the day-star arise in your hearts.” (2nd Peter, chap. i. 19.)

Listen to and carry out the instructions of brother Brigham, of brother Heber, and of all that speak the words of life and salvation unto you. If they tell you to go home and cultivate peace in your family, go and do it; and if they tell you to go home and cease your stealing, go home and be honest, and quit your stealing.

This is the way to be united; and if you will be honest and united, you will get the Spirit of God; and the more you have of the Spirit of God, the better you feel and the better you will act. Talk about people feeling well that act as mean as the Devil!—it is nonsense. Does a man or woman feel well that will steal, that will traduce a friend, speak evil of a neighbour, and seek to stir up strife? No; they cannot. Does an individual feel well that will lie and cherish opposition to the advice, the counsel, and instruction that is given us from the Prophets that God has placed in his Church to rule and dictate us? If I were to judge others as I feel myself, I would judge that they could not feel well. Why? Because I feel well in acting with them—in saying amen to what they say. I feel and find the happiness that I enjoy by doing this, and no man or woman can find happiness in pursuing an opposite course; and if you are unbelieving, it is because you do not comprehend the truth with all your hearts—you do not understand it.

Well, how are you going to get better? Why, commence to do better. If you have indulged in lying, you know it is a sin; therefore, cease your lying. If you have stolen, quit it, and die unto sin. The reason you do not dwell in the life of righteousness is because you are not yet dead unto sin: the reason you do not live is because you are not dead; you are neither living nor dead.

You are instructed to pursue one course, and you will take another: you are instructed to subject yourselves to the will of Heaven, and you are all the time imagining and thinking, and something is in your minds that unsettles your faith and divides your affections. Hence, you do not enjoy the Spirit of truth to the extent that you would, if you would subject yourselves to the will of Heaven. Do as the men do who instruct you and lead you, and do it, with your whole hearts. As the President said in reference to praying, do not hunt up any sentiments in your own souls; do not hunt up something to pray for when another is praying; but listen to the man who is mouth, and pray as he prays, and let your whole soul go out in the energy of his expression. Then what will be the result? You will become imbued with the same energy that he has; and if he feels well and is right, you will feel well.

Take this course, and the fountain of knowledge and eternal life will by-and-by be established within you. This is what we are seeking for. It is the rich boon of heaven that we are striving for; and why is it that we do not get it? It is here; it is all around us. We can look—we can travel to the place where it is. Why do we not enjoy it? Simply because you will not enjoy it. This is all the reason. How much do you enjoy? Why, all that you are willing and capable of enjoying—all that you prepare yourselves to enjoy—just all that you render yourselves worthy of in the sight of God; and if you would enjoy more, live better—apply your minds closer and closer to the principles of the Gospel.

If you live your religion in going to meeting on Sunday, live it also on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and every day and every night, until everything adverse to the truth is expelled from your household—until your family circle becomes a sanctuary where the Spirit of God abides—where it imparts its life-giving influence to all that come within that circle.

If this were the case, it would constitute the Zion of our God. We should have Zion within, whether we were at home or abroad, or in whatever circumstances we might be placed.

“Why,” says one, “I suppose that I must do some great thing.” Let me tell you to try to do some small thing; and if you attend to the little things, when you become men and women in understanding and in the knowledge of the truth, it will be time enough for you to undertake the work of men and women in Christ.

How much can we do? If we were to be judged by our conduct and the course that we take, it would appear that our capacity is not very great; and if we do not know enough to attend to the simple instructions that are given to us here—if we cannot attend to things that are thus simple, how could we get along with greater questions, should they come before us? We have now as much as we know how to get along with and manage properly, without grasping after things beyond our present comprehension.

Brethren and sisters, I hope, and I not only hope, but am certain that, as a people, we shall adopt the principles that have been taught us, and practise them to so grant an extent that our Father will accept of us—that he will not forsake us—that he will not turn his hand against us, but that it may be over us in mercy continually, and that victory, through his goodness, may perch upon the banner of Zion from this time forth and for ever.

I want that we should be good enough—sufficiently meek and faithful before our Father and his servants, that we shall find acceptance with him continually. That we may be so wise as to pursue this course in our lives, is my prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Knowledge Obtained From History

George A. Smith

Discourse by Elder George A. Smith, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, November 29, 1857. Reported by J. V. Long.

It is, as usual, with a degree of satisfaction that I arise before you this morning for the purpose of offering a few reflections, hoping that my brethren and sisters will exercise faith to that degree that I may be able to speak freely and communicate such sentiments as may be pleasing in the sight of our heavenly Father and a benefit to ourselves.

From my childhood, history has been a favorite theme. I have loved to read historical works; and for the little time I have been enabled to devote to reading in my younger days I acquired some general knowledge of what is termed “profane history,” but only a limited knowledge of what is termed “ecclesiastical history.” It did not please me to read the quarrels of the Popes and the cruelties that were inflicted by the dominant powers upon the weak. Those matters never pleased me so much as to read the movements of nations for the purpose of establishing dominion and extending empire; consequently, I am not prepared to speak as readily of the history of the religious world as I would upon that portion of history that is generally denominated profane—of the political conditions of different nations at different ages of the world.

A revelation given in the early history of this Church requires the Elders to acquire a knowledge of countries, of things present, of things to come, of things that have been, and so forth. In perusing the histories of Persia, Arabia, India, China, and the nations of modern Europe, I have felt myself more or less actuated in accordance with the instructions given in that revelation.

At the time I could not conceive why it was that the Lord required his servants to acquire a knowledge of those nations and of political subjects; but experience has taught me that he had in it a design of no little importance; for, from the time that the Gospel was first preached, baptism administered, and ordination first conferred the Priesthood upon the heads of men, we have been constantly and continually upon new ground. The officers of the country in which we have lived could never find a law to fit our case; they could never discover any law that would answer their purpose in relation to us.

There was one principle laid down by them, however, that was simple; and that was, that we had to be used up.

The most honourable of all the mobs that have ever been raised against us was that of Jackson County, Missouri; for they came right straight out and plainly acknowledged that the civil law did not afford them a guarantee against the “Mormons;” therefore they would drive them from their county—peaceably if they could—forcibly if they must.

From that day to this, our persecutors have been pretending to act under colour of law so far as to hold men while they could be murdered. They would employ a few troops or a mob, under the pretence of legal authority, and hold men still while the assassin could do his work. This has been the course pursued by our enemies all the time up to the present hour.

Inasmuch as we observed the laws of God, we had no occasion to violate the laws of our country; and, as a matter of course, pretexts were sought in vain from the beginning to the end, and the hue-and-cry of treason has been raised from one end of the country to the other. Hence we see the importance of our Elders understanding the national force of laws of kingdoms, the laws of empires, the rules of nations, the relationship of institutions one to another, and the relationship of subjects to their rulers.

An old principle, laid down from the earliest ages of British jurisprudence, from which we received our national institutions, is that allegiance is that ligament or thread which binds the subject to the sovereign, and that, for this allegiance, the sovereign, by an implied contract, owes, in turn, protection to the subject; and the very moment that the Government withholds its protection, that very moment allegiance ceases.

This is as old as the British Constitution, and it is recognized as natural and eternal both in America and Great Britain; and you may trace this principle back through history to the earliest ages of man. The very moment a government ceases to protect its subjects, that moment they are at liberty to protect themselves.

Whenever national powers were exerted to crush the rights of their own subjects, then the right was founded in nature that they should stand up in their own defence; and the principle of self-preservation is in a greater or less degree binding, and it has been acknowledged from the earliest ages that all governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed.

For something like a hundred years the kings of Great Britain, as you will see in King James’s translation of the Bible, claimed the title of Kings of Great Britain, France, and Ireland—a power which they could not exercise and maintain, so far as the kingdom of France was concerned; and finally, in the reign of George III., they saw fit to disclaim it.

The assumption of this right was a mere burlesque. Could they control the organization of France and regulate its internal policy? No—they could not. The only thing was to go to war, and then France could resist and sometimes menace the very existence of the British Empire, and yet the kings of England could claim to be kings of France. But were they kings of France? Not unless the people of France said so; for the people choose their kings to reign over them.

This system of claiming authority from some distant claim has been practised, and is at the present time: and there is now an individual who claims to be king of France, who assumes that title—an individual who does not live in France: he is expelled, but yet he claims to be the sovereign of France. At the same time the people have, by their unanimous voice, placed Louis Napoleon upon the throne, and they carry out his decrees, while a fugitive claims to be king of France, but without the consent of the people, and has not power enough to pull an old setting hen off her nest.

Circumstances might change so as to throw Napoleon from his rather uncertain seat, and might place some other individual there; but no Government can exist there only by the consent of the people, or such a portion of them as is sufficient to awe the rest and preserve peace, union, and harmony.

Tyrants have attempted to resist this principle, and hence almost every man that has got into power has immediately gone to work to lay plans to conciliate the great and mighty sovereign people, and to perpetuate that authority in their families.

History shows us that some of the Roman Consuls attained power and wealth by their military exploits, and then assumed the title of Emperors and rulers over the commonwealth. We find that they assumed that title by the consent of the military power, and that they enlarged themselves by the aid of the military, till they finally gained the supreme power over the people.

All officers and authorities that depend upon the bayonet are very uncertain; hence very few of the Roman Emperors ever came to a natural death. They who hold millions in subjection by the sword are slain as tyrants whenever opportunity affords. These characters have not all the peace and happiness that might be wished for.

Rulers have assumed to control the people by the power of the bayonet, and many who have attempted to do so have fallen in the attempt, and many have fallen into political disgrace and been destroyed because they attempted to crush down the feelings of a free people. It was in consequence of this that the American •evolution was brought to pass.

The American revolution was simply the result of attempting to coerce, by the point of the bayonet, measures that the people of the colonies were unwilling to consent to. The Parliament wished to impose, without their consent, rulers, taxes, and laws which they themselves had no voice in making; and this brought about a revolution, which ended in establishing the present Government of the United States.

The Constitution of the United States was only a little enlargement of the freedom guaranteed under the British Constitution, our revolutionary fathers not thinking any other position or principle as safe or as good; and they made it to surround them with a degree of security, as their fathers did in the British Constitution, forming it somewhat after its model and style. Instead, however, of an hereditary King, they elected a President to hold office for four years; and instead of a House of Lords, they elected a Senate, composed of members or representatives elected by the several State Legislatures; and instead of a House of Commons, they elected the House of Representatives by an apportionment of the people; and in fact, the organization is very similar to that of the mother country. The President represents the hereditary Sovereign, the members of the Senate representing the States, and the House of Representatives the people of the United States, instead of having the members of the House of Commons who represent the property of the realm.

In tracing these things down, and examining and well considering them, they show us, as it were in a glass, our real position.

Now, I do not suppose that there was a man scarcely in the whole assembly who anxiously desired in his heart to move a thousand miles into the middle of a desert with his family, to live in this barren, desolate, cold country. I do not suppose there was an individual but would have preferred to inhabit the vacant prairies of Illinois, Iowa, or Missouri, than to have been under the necessity of wandering into a desert, surrounded by mountains, in the midst of sage plains, where nothing could be raised except by artificial irrigation.

We were willing to come here, simply because we were forced to go somewhere where we could enjoy our religion, which we could not do where we were. This is the principle that brought us here. This is the reason that we were willing to forego the ten thousand comforts that could surround us in the world, and come and turn the wilderness into a fruitful field. Of necessity, I say, we came here willingly, because we were forced to. There was no place else for the Apostles and Prophets to go to.

We petitioned the several States and also the United States for an asylum where we could enjoy ourselves; and all our petitions were answered with coldness and indifference, and there was not a place in the United States where a man that professed to be a Latter-day Saint could have peace. There was nothing but to be mobbed, driven, his houses burned, wherever he might be; and no governor, no legislature, no authority would extend any better prospect than the repetition of the murder, robberies, and persecution we had suffered in Missouri, and that we were then enduring in Illinois.

Under these circumstances we came here, and silently and quietly continued coming away from every part of the Union, and our friends from other nations flocked here from various parts, until we had conquered the desert, and turned the mountain streams, and caused vegetation to grow, and produced grain of considerable variety and of excellent quality. We had begun to make ourselves comfortable, and we had the prospect of peace, as there was nobody upon the face of the earth that would have inhabited this sterile country—a thousand miles from civilized society, where there were no inhabitants but a few naked, savage Indians, whom we cared for and befriended.

The gold fever broke out, and thousands of the gold miners from all nations passed through our settlements. We fed them, for they came here naked and destitute, and we enabled them to proceed on their way, or they would have starved to death in the desert. But although we did this, scarcely an individual desired to stay in this barren country. They could look around and then say, “You are a pack of damned fools to stay in this barren desert;” and they would ask, “Why do you stay here in such a barren country?” It was for something more precious than gold: it was for the privilege of worshipping God under our own vine; and it was with the greatest difficulty that we could raise a vine to worship under, and there was scarcely a tree grew in the valleys. Here we could worship, and here we remain, and what is the result? The moment that our settlements had extended far to the south and to the north—the moment that we were placed in a position that starvation did not stare us in the face, and that a man dare eat as much as his appetite craved, without thinking that he would have to go without tomorrow, that moment the great nation, of which we are a part, rich in gold and silver, powerful in numbers, wealth, and learning, place themselves in a position to annihilate us, to drive us from our homes in the fastnesses of the mountains.

Now, my brethren and sisters, we remember that all good governments are by the consent of the governed; we remember the old principle that allegiance is the thread which ties the subject to the governor; we remember the thread which ties the subject to the Government, and for which the Government owes the subject protection. I ask, did the Government of the United States ever extend its protection to us? Did it protect us in Missouri? Did it protect us in Illinois? Did it protect us in Iowa? Did it protect us in Nebraska? No, never. We had to protect ourselves or perish and share the fate that lambs share in the paws of wolves. This is the principle as it is presented to us. Have they ever protected us in these mountains? No: we protect ourselves. We made the roads, we explored the country, and we have protected them whenever they passed here; and we have fed, clothed, and aided them on their journeying, and extended every kindness; but have they protected us? No; but they have stirred up the savages of the desert to destroy our weak settlements. This has been the result, and yet we have not been ten years upon this soil. We have not been scarcely able to acquire the comforts of life. A man has scarcely dared to eat as much as would satisfy his appetite. We had scarcely done this, I say, until they sent their armies by thousands to dragoon this people into subjection, with the avowed aim and object, as published in every paper that comes from the States, to deprive us of our religious rights, and to establish and inflict rights or practices which we abhor, and which we have moved a thousand miles to avoid. I ask them, Shall freedom depart? And, in the language of a Roman, I ask which you prefer—slavery, or death? Shall they be left to trample upon the rights of free men? Who will not consider which is to be preferred—FREEDOM or SLAVERY? Shall this people be left to the mercy of men who come here with armies to enforce principles that are as degrading to us as degradation can be?

I presume, brethren and sisters, that there is but one feeling upon that subject. I presume that we are willing to dispense with our tea, with our coffee, our tobacco, our finery, and a hundred other comforts that we might have had, had we remained in the States as others have done, rather than be subject to this degradation and cursed dominion.

May God enable us to hold up our heads, and with all our might, mind, and strength, and our reliance in the Most High, live our religion and be prepared to inherit his glory, is my prayer. Amen.

Opposition of State Governments to the Saints, Etc.

Erastus Snow

Remarks by Elder Erastus Snow, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, November 29, 1857. Reported by G. D. Watt.

I am satisfied that that portion of the citizens of Utah who first sought out this mountain retreat have seen and experienced enough of the actions of State Governments and of our National Government—have suffered enough at the hands of officers of State, and by the treatment they have received from mobs organized to operate against them, independent of all law, or nominally under the colour of law, to discern clearly the tendency of that spirit which pervades this people and the spirit of opposition which pervades our enemies.

The unbelieving world, which have rejected the Gospel revealed unto us, and a large portion of this people—those who have immigrated to this Territory within a few years past, have not had the benefit of the experience which the minor portion of this people have had; consequently, they have not had forced upon them that series of reflections so well calculated to mature their minds and enable them to contemplate with great precision the final result of all efforts brought to bear against us by our enemies for the overthrow of the work of God in the last days. I presume there is not one of the early members of the Church but what fully anticipated the crisis which has now come upon us. The spirit of prophecy and revelation has been in the midst of this people from the beginning, and has continually foretold this event; and one who was no more than the son of a Prophet, with the benefit of past experience and an observation of the spirit of this people and that of our enemies, could not fail to see that such must be the result, sooner or later.

At every step this kingdom has advanced, the opposition of the ungodly has also advanced. Their hate of the truth has never been laid by. It has seemed to slumber at times, only to wake up with renewed vigour and fresh determination and strength to operate against the truth; while on the other hand the Lord has given this people seasons of rest, that they might take breath and have an opportunity of sending their missionaries to preach the Gospel, that the honest in heart might be gathered out from among the wicked, who are struggling to crush out of existence the last vestige of truth and righteousness upon the earth.

That portion of the citizens of this Territory who were personally acquainted with the history of this Church and with the Prophet Joseph Smith in his last years are now able to view, in the present movement of the United States troops, in the measures of the General Government and Governmental officials, and in the spirit of the people at large, an attempt to carry out, if possible, the same policy that was enacted in the last days of Joseph, which resulted in the expulsion of this people from Illinois.

There is, however, some little difference. Since that period this people have grown a little more numerous; and, instead of being within two hours’ ride of Carthage and Warsaw, they are a thousand miles from the frontier settlements of their enemies. Instead of a military encampment in a corn-field just on the outside of the city of Nauvoo, it is now on the other side of the mountains, about 115 miles from the City of Great Salt Lake.

The pretended designs of our enemies towards us remind me of the speech of Rolla in the play of “Pizarro.” Descanting upon the promises of the bloody and treacherous Spanish conquerors of his countrymen, he says, “They offer us protection. Yes, such protection as vultures give to lambs, covering and, devouring them.”

To their unsought and uncalled for protection, our answer should be—“When the State of Missouri, in obedience to her own laws, shall have hung up by the neck ex-Governor Boggs, Austin A. King, old Generals Lucas, Clark, and Wilson, and about twenty-five hundred of her citizens, who were engaged in murdering the Saints, plundering them and driving them from their homes;—when they have repudiated the acts of their corrupt Legislature and returned fourfold to all whom they have robbed, with the lawful interest thereon until the time of payment, reinstating those who have been driven from their homes and possessions, making good, as far as money and means can do it, their losses;—when Illinois shall have done the same, and the General Government shall take action to maintain the citizens of this Territory in the rightful possession of all the land they have purchased of them, from which they have been driven by the force of mobs, and then admit this people, without a groan or complaint, but with brotherly love, kindness, and fatherly care, to the free and undisturbed enjoyment of life, liberty, and all those political rights that belong to American citizens in common, of which the chief is the right of being governed by men of their own choice and of worshipping God according to the dictates of their own consciences, the principle thing for which our fathers fought;—when our Government shall do all this and cease their threats and menaces to intimidate free men, call home their “dogs of war,” and set them to administering justice on the scoundrels at home, and keep away their mean, dirty sycophants, whom they wish to force on this people for their rulers at the point of the bayonet—then we may begin to think of having a little confidence in their high pretensions; then they may talk to us about their boasted protection and their regard for the rights of mankind.

Until they have done all these things and are willing to pay this Territory some portion of the few hundred thousand dollars which it has expended to preserve peace with the savages around us, we shall have no reason to think that they are honest or sincere in their intentions. Otherwise, we shall be compelled to regard them and their armies as we now look upon Governors Ford of Illinois and Boggs of Missouri, and their murderous clan of mob forces, even as whited sepulchres, fair without, but within full of dead men’s bones, rottenness, and all uncleanness. Until then, we shall have no guarantee for trusting one particle to them or their promises.

When we have trusted in the Lord our God, kept his commandments and revered his laws, he has not betrayed us nor forsaken us in trouble; but he has ever stood by us and led us forth out of affliction, and has given unto us Governors and Judges and Counsellors after his own heart, to feed this people with knowledge and understanding—to lead them forth in the paths of peace, unity, and love.

We are satisfied with our present rulers. When we have trusted in our God and his servants, we have been happy and blessed; but when we have trusted to the enemies of our God, we have been pierced with many sorrows.

If any of the citizens of this Territory have not as yet experienced enough of the tender mercies of this generation and the promises of corrupt officials of the United States Government, and they wish still to trust in them a little further, they have the privilege. The way has been kept open for them to leave. Although martial law has been declared in this Territory, and persons are not allowed to pass through, into, or out of it, without a permit from the proper officer, yet it has been declared by our Governor, published abroad, and has been repeatedly acted upon, that all persons feeling dissatisfied, unwilling to remain in their present position, and wishing to go to our enemies, and place themselves under their protection, and accept of their proffers, shall forthwith be furnished with a passport and escort. If they wish to leave for other climates, and will pay their honest debts, and not steal their outfit, they can have the privilege. Two or three small parties have started this fall, embracing the few remains of our Gentile traders who remained in our midst for purposes of speculation; and I have heard that one or two small families who once counted themselves Saints went with them. The road is still open for others to follow who wish to do so.

My own feelings, and I believe the feelings of all the authorities of this people, are, that we want no disaffected or indifferent ones to remain among us. We will not lay a straw in their way, if they will depart in peace, if they do not wish to remain with the people of God and share with them in their joys and sorrows.

The principles of our holy religion claim from us the exercise of our own judgment, and inculcate the largest degree of freedom of soul, and will extend to every soul of man like privileges. The union which exists in the midst of this people, and of which our enemies have ever complained so much, has never been the result of coercion. It has not been created by iron bands placed around the outside of this people, only so far as the Lord has made use of the wicked to persecute and drive them together. That union has been the legitimate result of the principles of truth revealed unto us from heaven and adopted as the guide of their conduct by the people.

Although many of those who have left this people and returned, like the dog to his vomit, and like the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire, and who have gone down again to the filth and degradation of Babylon, have reported that they narrowly escaped with their lives—that efforts had been made to prevent their departure; yet all this people do verily know that they were of their father the Devil, who was a liar from the beginning, and that their tales were base and wicked falsehoods, as an excuse for their own mean and traitorous course. The only tyranny and oppression that ever existed among this people (if, indeed, any virtuous person would call it so,) has been the sharpness of the word o[f] God reproving the wickedness of the people, holding the vile and wicked from riding over and trampling under foot the weak and innocent, saying to the people, “If, you wish to do wickedly—to oppress each other—to bite and devour each other—if it is your nature to gouge out your neighbour’s eyes, to purloin his property, seduce his wife and daughters—in fine, if you wish to practice wickedness and abomination after the order of the Gentile world from which you have been gathered, retire from the midst of the Saints, return to the hole from whence you have been dug, and wallow again in the filthiness from whence you have been taken, and not attempt to carry on your wickedness in the midst of this people, who love righteousness and desire to put away all unholiness from them.” This is the only oppression which any individual has been able to complain of, in truth and justice, in the midst of this community.

“Mormonism” does not coerce, but all the time persuades, teaches, enlightens, instructs, and invites by the beauty, excellence, and virtue of those holy principles which God has revealed to us, gradually drawing the people together, cementing their feelings, and bringing them, by common consent, to act upon the principles of truth and righteousness.

There is but one alternative for this people: it is our religion, our God, our liberty, or slavery, the Devil, and death. There is no drawing back. The wedge has been entered. Our God has led us forth and directed our course from the beginning to the present hour. “Shall I cause to come to the birth,” saith the Lord, “and not bring forth?” No. Although the woman in travail and in pain to be delivered suffers anxiety, mingled with fear, yet soon her sorrow is forgotten, for joy that a man-child is born into the world. So it will be with this people, and our enemies cannot hinder it. The Devil and all the hosts of hell cannot prevent the consummation of the desired object that God has in view.

The kingdom of God is established, no more to be thrown down; and in it we shall live and reign, and every righteous man and woman who love God and his truth more than their own lives and the treasures of this world shall be exalted in the kingdom of God: they shall see the triumph of truth and righteousness, and the kingdom of God shining on the earth as the sun in the firmament. But the time will come when the fainthearted and the wicked, whose knees tremble and who cannot endure the contradiction of the ungodly world, and choose rather to hide their heads and retire, making lies their refuge, will lift up their eyes in hell, being in torment: they will look back, and they will try to repent as it were in sackcloth and ashes: they will seek repentance carefully with tears, but will not find it, because there will be no chance left for them to regain what they have lost. If the Lord has compassion upon them and hears their cries, their weeping, and their bitter lamentation in the day of their degradation and misery, it will be to give them the privilege of becoming, in a future day, the servants of those who maintained their integrity.

The state of my lungs is such that I shall be under the necessity of closing. I pray to God to bless all Israel and help us to keep our covenants to the end. Amen.

Attention and Reflection Necessary to An Increase of Knowledge, etc.

Brigham Young

Discourse by President Brigham Young, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, November 29, 1857. Reported By G. D. Watt.

I have the same diffidence in my feelings that most public speakers have, and am apt to think that others can speak better and more edifying than I can. There are but few public speakers but what feel more or less timidity. That is probably not so much a man-fearing spirit as it is a natural delicacy or timidity. All of you have doubtless to some extent realized the same feeling, either in large or small assemblies, and also in social conversation. People generally are more or less disturbed and thrown off their balance by the sound of their own voices, especially when speaking to an audience, even after being much used to addressing assemblies. Some of our most eloquent and interesting speakers would rather do almost anything than speak to the congregations that assemble here. That diffidence or timidity we must dispense with. When it becomes our duty to talk, we ought to be willing to talk. If we never exhibit the knowledge within us, the people will not know really whether we have any. Interchanging our ideas and exhibiting that which we believe and understand affords an opportunity for detecting and correcting errors and increasing our stock of valuable information. I have frequently thought that I should be very happy if I could hear the Elders of Israel speak their feelings and impart their knowledge pertaining to their fellow-beings, to earthly things, to heavenly things, to godliness, and God.

I am sensible that people are not gifted and capacitated alike. There is not that depth of understanding and intensity of thought in some that there is in others, neither is there the same scope of perception. Some are quick to apprehend, while others are slow. Also while a speaker is communicating his opinions, views, and feelings, a portion of so large a congregation as this will perhaps be giving the most strict attention, while the minds of the other portion are wandering at the moment he may be advancing rich ideas, clothed in language choice and eloquent. That inattention by some leads to a difference of understanding among the people, through a misapprehension of the speaker’s meaning. True, some persons may use language that a portion of the congregation are unacquainted with; consequently, they could not be expected to readily apprehend the idea designed to be communicated, though that is by no means a common incident in teachings from this stand.

If a congregation wish to be instructed so as to understand alike and alike receive an increase of wisdom and knowledge, their minds must be intent on the subject before them. They must not suffer their thoughts to be roaming over the earth; they must not permit their minds to be scanning and traversing their every-day duties and avocations. If they do, they are not blessed with that store of knowledge they otherwise might obtain through paying that attention necessary to enable them to clearly understand. I acknowledge that it is a masterwork to school our minds so as at all times to exercise complete power over them. If the people would so educate themselves as to control their thinking powers, they would derive a great advantage from it. They could improve much faster than they now do.

Many years ago, the Prophet Joseph observed that if the people would have received the revelations he had in his possession, and wisely acted upon them, as the Lord would dictate, they might, in their power to do and understand, have been many years ahead of what they then were. Experience has taught us that it requires time to acquire certain branches of mechanism, also all principles and ideas that we wish to become masters of. The closer people apply their minds to any correct purpose the faster they can grow and increase in the knowledge of the truth. When they learn to master their feelings, they can soon learn to master their reflections and thoughts in the degree requisite for attaining the objects they are seeking. But while they yield to a feeling or spirit that distracts their minds from a subject they wish to study and learn, so long they will never gain the mastery of their minds. So it is with persons who yield to temptation and wickedness.

There are individuals who yield to that unruly member, the tongue; and after yielding once, they have not the same strength to resist as at first. They become more and more weakened every time they yield to temptation, until they are unable to control themselves, when they are tempted either to speak unadvisedly or to run into any species of wickedness. So every faculty bestowed upon man is subject to contamination—subject to be diverted from the purpose the Creator designed it to fill. If a man permits himself to make use of language calculated to wound his spirit and infringe upon his better judgment, and aces not try to resist that practice, when he is again tempted upon the point he is more likely to give way and to have less compunction of conscience than before. If he continues day after day to yield himself a servant to the uncontrolled whims of his own nature and the evil influences that may be exercised upon him from without, in a few years he will be so steeped in sin as to be entirely given over to the error of his ways. The sooner an individual resists temptation to do, say, or think wrong, while he has light to correct his judgment, the quicker he will gain strength and power to overcome every temptation to evil.

Let the people study to bring their thinking or reflecting faculties into subjection. We are preaching principles that belong to this subject every day of our lives. Last Sabbath I spoke upon the concentration of faith, of action, of feeling, of reflection. That is a matter I often reflect upon, because I am called into circumstances that bring it before me every time I hear a man pray. Am I as yet so master of my thoughts and reflections that no thought or desire of my heart is trying to forestall the speaker in uttering his sentiments and wished? Have I the power to hold my mind directly upon his words and desires, asking continually that he may be directed by the Holy Ghost? I acknowledge that I am not yet perfect in this point. I have not yet that power over myself; but, to the praise of the name of the God I serve, I do actually gain upon it. When my mind has betrayed me, and I detect a desire different from that which is uttered by my speaker, I feel to retract and offer my desire to the throne of grace, that I may have power to hold my faith with the malt that is appointed to pray. Those who think and reflect upon this matter can realize what I wish of myself and what I wish of the people. Unthinking persons may not fully realize the importance of these remarks; but every person who has a realizing sense of the duties devolving upon him—of the way of life and salvation—of what we are called to in the holy Gospel, must be aware of the importance of this subject to all who are determined to live their religion.

You are all acquainted, or profess to be, with the Gospel of salvation. You have entered into covenant with God—have received the ordinances of the Gospel; and if you have not received the Holy Ghost, you should have received it. You have the history of the administration of the Holy Ghost as given by the Apostles in the days of Jesus, and it is referred to in all sacred writings. This people profess to be more or less acquainted with the principles developed by the administration of the Holy Ghost. We will admit that you understand it. Now, ask yourselves whether you believe that the Holy Ghost ever commenced to produce a work or an effect before it was in the heart and mind of that Being we call our heavenly Father. Do you think that the Holy Ghost ever thought of dictating that Being we call our God? This whole people have learned enough upon this subject to answer at once, that we do not believe that the Holy Ghost ever dictated, suggested, moved, or pretended to offer a plan, except that which the Eternal Father dictated.

With regard to this particular point, I will say that you shall judge the matter and be my witnesses. Have we not learned enough with regard to the character of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, to at once believe, admit, and affirm that the Holy Ghost always has and always will operate precisely according to the suggestion of the Father? Not a desire, act, wish, or thought does the Holy Ghost indulge in contrary to that which is dictated by the Father. We all sense this in a degree, because it has always been taught to us. It is taught in the Bible, in the revelations given through Joseph, and in the preaching by the Elders of Israel. It is our tradition, education, and experience in the kingdom of God. The Holy Ghost, we believe, is one of the characters that form the Trinity, or the Godhead. Not one person in three, nor three persons in one; but the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost are one in essence, as the hearts of three men who are united in all things. He is one of the three characters we believe in, whose office it is to administer to those of the human family who love the truth. I have stated that they are one, as the hearts of three men might be one. Lest you should mistake me, I will say that I do not wish you to understand that the Holy Ghost is a personage having a tabernacle, like the Father and the Son; but he is God’s messenger that diffuses his influence through all the works of the Almighty.

We believe that we have a correct idea of the character of the Son from the writings of the Apostles, so far as they learned it. But while he was tabernacling in the flesh, he was more or less contaminated with fallen nature. While he was here, in a body that his mother Mary bore him, he was more or less connected with and influenced by this nature that we have received. According to the flesh, he was of the seed of Adam and Eve, and suffered the weaknesses and temptations of his fellow-mortals. He was hungry and thirsty, weary and faint, and had to eat, drink, and sleep. In him were developed all the traits pertaining to mortal man. According to the scanty history that we have of the Saviour, as near nothing at all as well can be from the time of his birth to the time of his entering on his ministry at the age of thirty years, he administered his Gospel for about three years and a half among the people, and raised up his Church, ordained his Apostles, and established his kingdom; and of that limited time we have but a scanty history. According to that history—according to all you have learned, and to all the Holy Ghost has ever borne testimony of to you concerning him, let me ask you the same question in regard to him as I did concerning the Holy Ghost; and what would you say? That he did nothing of himself. He wrought miracles and performed a good work on the earth; but of himself he did nothing. He said, “As I have seen my Father do, so do I.” “I came not to do my will, but the will of Him that sent me.” We must come to the conclusion that the Son of God aid not suggest, dictate, act, or produce any manifestation of his power, of his glory, or of his errand upon the earth, only as it came from the mind and will of his Father. Do you not all firmly believe that the whole soul, heart, reflections, thoughts, and all the being of the Son of God were operated upon and did show forth that all be did manifest and bring forth pertaining to his mission was according to the word and will of his Father? Certainly you do.

Jesus offered up one of the most essential prayers that could possibly be offered up by a human or heavenly being—no matter who, pertaining to the salvation of the people, and embodying a principle without which none can be saved, when he prayed the Father to make his disciples one, as he and his Father were one. He knew that if they did not become one, they could not be saved in the celestial kingdom of God. If persons do not see as he aid while in the flesh, hear as he heard, understand as he understood, and become precisely as he was, according to their several capacities and callings, they can never dwell with him and his Father. That same principle stands out as the most prominent item of teaching in all the teachings and revelations that have ever been given from heaven to men on the earth. That thread of faith, of feeling, of hope, of joy, and of action may be found through all the instructions that have ever come from heaven to earth, in order to bring the children of God—that is, the whole of the human family—the children of our Father, and we as brethren and sisters, parents and children, all emanating from one parentage, back again into the presence of the Father and the Son, to bring up the whole posterity of father Adam and mother Eve to enjoy the light, glory, intelligence; power, kingdoms, thrones, and dominions that are prepared for exalted beings, which could not be until they had taken upon them tabernacles. They could not be exalted unless they were prepared for an exaltation; and upon no other principle could they be prepared, without taking tabernacles of flesh and being made subject to vanity. The whole of the Divine teachings, from the days of Adam until now, have been to teach the human family to yield to the teachings, dictations, influence, and power of the holy Gospel to make them one. Without that oneness, there is no salvation for us in the celestial kingdom of God.

Were we to particularize in regard to the different organizations of the human family, we would learn that some are not capable of the same exaltation as are others, arising from the difference in the conduct and capacities of people. There is also a difference in the spirit world. It is the design, the wish, the will, and mind of the Lord that the inhabitants of the earth should be exalted to thrones, kingdoms, principalities, and powers, according to their capacities. In their exaltation, one may be capable of presiding over ten cities, while another may not be capable of presiding over more than five, another over only two, and another over but one. They must all first be subjected to sin and to the calamities of mortal flesh, in order to prove themselves worthy; then the Gospel is ready to take hold of them and bring them up, unite them, enlighten their understandings, and make them one in the Lord Jesus, that their faith, prayers, hopes, affections, and all their desires may ever he concentrated, in one. That is the design and the wish of the Father.

You may ask, “Did he foreknow that they would be saved?” I have seen many in the world that never have been able to discern the difference between foreknowledge and fore-ordination. I thought that I could always discern the difference. If I know that an act will transpire tomorrow, it by no means follows that I had decreed it. It is the design, wish, desire of our Heavenly Father that every soul in this congregation should be crowned in the celestial kingdom. Will they be? No. I know that some will not. But does it follow that some are ordained to go to hell? No. It is the design of the Gospel to save this congregation, all the Latter-day Saints, and all the world besides that will believe the testimony of Jesus and become obedient to the Gospel of salvation. And none need to turn round and say, “If it is the design of the Lord, I shall be saved;” for its being the will and design of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, and of every Saint that ever was or ever will be, that you should, be a Saint, will not make you one, contrary to your own choice. All rational beings have an agency of their own; and according to their own choice they will be saved or damned.

Inasmuch as the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost are one, the desire of the Saviour, as manifested in his sayings and teachings, is that his people should also be one, even as he and his Father are one. If we had the heart, feeling, and faith within us that Jesus had while here in the flesh, should we be scattering in our faith?—should we be divided in our interests? No: we should become one. I have not time to tell you why this people are not identically one; but to the discerning mind the Holy Spirit will manifest the reason in a moment—will lay it before you like an open vision, and you will at once be able to discern thousands of reasons for it. Are they capable of being one? Yes, if they will in all things bring their wills into subjection to the will of the Father.

If any are in the habit of taking the name of God in vain, cease doing so to-day, to-morrow, and throughout the coming week, and so continue, and you will soon gain strength to entirely overcome the habit; you will gain power over your words. Some are in the habit of talking about their neighbours, of vending stories they know nothing about, only that Aunt Sally said that Cousin Fanny told Aunt Betsy that old Aunt Ruth said something or other, or somebody had had a dream; and by the time the story or dream reaches you, it has assumed the semblance of a fact, and you are very foolishly spending your time in talking about things that amount to nothing, or that you have no concern with. A report is started that such a one has done wrong, and, by the time it has gone its round, has become anointed with the salve of the backbiter and talebearer—become endowed with their spirit. One and another falls in with it and says, “That is true—your cause is just, you are exactly right, and the other is surely wrong,” when they know nothing about the matter; thereby engendering entirely groundless ill feelings against each other. Before we condemn, we should wait until the Heavens clearly indicate a fault in a father, brother, sister, wife, husband, or neighbour. And if Heaven declares a fault, wait until the Holy Ghost manifests to you that such is a fault. Let the Father reveal to you that the person you are thinking or talking about is actually wrong. Traduce no person. When you know what right is, and are capable of correcting a person that is wrong, then it is time enough for you to judge.

I have but recently told you that some people think they are capable of judging everybody but themselves. Let us judge ourselves. And if any are disposed to let that unruly member, the tongue, do that which will wound the heart, darken the spirit, and bring us into subjection to an evil practice, resist such a disposition—throw it from you. If you will do that, you will find that the wicked will forsake their wickedness, and those who are inclined to think evil will cease doing so, and those who are inclined to utter evil words about their neighbours will cease that habit, and it will not be long before the people have perfect control over themselves. If you first gain power to check your words, you will then begin to have power to check your judgment, and at length actually gain power to check your thoughts and reflections.

By close application and study with regard to ourselves and the requirements of Heaven upon us, we shall be able to school ourselves, until, when we call upon an Elder to open our meetings, there will not be a desire, word, sentence, feeling, or impulse? of spirit one hair’s breadth in advance of the one selected to be mouth. Do you believe that we can do that? We can. I have already told you that I am yet imperfect in that point; but I am trying to make myself perfect in that particular, so as to become fully master of my thoughts.

I will now ask a question. Do you think that a man can pray wrong, when the hearts of perhaps over two thousand persons are ascending to God, in the name of Jesus Christ, to dictate the man who is praying, and desiring the Lord to let them know his will, and they will strive to do it? Could a man pray here for things he ought not, when the faith of two thousand is concentrated in the sincere desire that God will dictate in all things pertaining to his kingdom? He cannot ask amiss, for the faith of this people is concentrated through him to the throne of grace. That is a true principle—as true as the heavens.

Our faith is concentrated in the Son of God, and through him to the Father; and the Holy Ghost is their minister to bring truths to our remembrance, to reveal new truths to us, and teach, guide, and direct the course of every mind, until we become perfected and prepared to go home, where we can see and converse with our Father in heaven. That is what we want to attain—that we can all the time have the word of the Lord for ourselves.

You have often heard me and my brethren say that if the people in the capacity of a Ward, for instance, would let their faith be perfectly united, and their whole desires rise to the Father, through the name of Jesus Christ, and hold their Bishop in his calling between God and them, it would hardly be possible for that Bishop to do wrong, for he would be filled with wisdom. Some of the brethren, in conversation, this morning, were likening the ministrations of the Holy Ghost to the mode of distributing gas throughout a city. The gas is led through a main pipe from the gasometer or reservoir, and thence through side-pipes and lesser and lesser branches, until it is so distributed as to furnish light to all who require it. I will liken the Bishops to some of those side-pipes laid down to conduct the gas. Take a joint of one of those pipes up, which in the comparison we will call a Bishop, and how are the inhabitants of that Ward to receive the light? Place him on one side—despise his connects, and how are you to be taught? Will you teach each other? You are not called to do it in that capacity. Your Bishop is laid down by the master workman as the conductor of the Holy Ghost to you. If you put that conductor out of its place, the connection is broken between you and the fountain of light. If you see a Bishop and his Ward in contention and confusion, you may understand that the pipe or conductor which conveys the light of that people is out of its place. Instead of the Bishop’s being wrong, and the people right, or the people wrong, and the Bishop right, they are all wrong: there is little or no right there.

Take any man in this kingdom, and if the people say that they will make him a President or a Bishop, or elect him to fill any other office, and the faith of the people is concentrated to receive light through that officer or pipe laid by the power of the Priesthood from the throne of God, you might as well try to move the heavens as to receive anything wrong through that conductor. No matter whom you elect for an officer, if your faith is concentrated in him through whom to receive the things which he is appointed to administer in, light will come to you. Let a presiding officer or a Bishop turn away front righteousness, and the Lord Almighty would give him the lock-jaw, if he could not stop his mouth in any other way, or send a fit of numb palsy on him, so that he could not act, as sure as the people over whom he presided were right, that they might not be led astray.

If we wish to be taught, to receive, and understand, we must train ourselves. We are looking forward to the period when we shall be in the presence of the Father and the Son—when we shall realize that we are indeed the sons of God, and be crowned with glory, immortality, and eternal lives. “Then,” you say, “we shall be perfect.” You will be no more perfect in your sphere, when you are exalted to thrones, principalities, and powers, than you are required to be and are capable of being in your sphere to-day. The man that may be called a perfect man is perfect in every calling and sphere, as the Father, the Son, and Holy Ghost are in theirs, and as the angels are in theirs, which makes a perfect order from first to last—from beginning to end.

In this probation, we have evil to contend with, and we must overcome it in ourselves, or we never shall overcome it anywhere else. Were you to let your minds stretch out, you would learn that the whole kingdom, with its principles, powers, authority, glory, and everything pertaining to it, is combined in the organization of man ready to be developed. We must commence and school ourselves, and so bring our reflections into subjection, that we can make our minds one in faith. Then, let me ask you, when you pray God to so hedge up the way of our enemies that they never shall be able to come to this Territory, will not your prayers be very likely to be answered? If the faith of this people, called Latter-day Saints, had been united in one, as it should have been four months ago, when they asked the Father, in the name of Jesus, to stop our enemies on the other side of the South Pass, I can assure you as the Lord God lives, they never could have seen this side of it. But they are in the Territory. When we are united and ask God to let the wicked slay the wicked as they ripen in iniquity, it will be done, and they will not have power to overcome this handful of people in the mountains. He will place between them and us a barrier which they cannot surmount. He will build a wall between us such as they have never thought of, and they will fall upon each other and slay each other.

I know where the difficulties are, but I have not time now to explain them. If we are one and are concentrated in the Father, through the Lord Jesus Christ, and through the chain and thread drawn out for us to follow up, we will find the fountain head; and then, if I should ask this people to pray for a certain thing, they would pray for it. But do they now? No: they pray for everything else. I have made that request until I am tired of making it. Many will pray for this, that, and the other, different from what I had advised them only twenty minutes before. Their faith is not concentrated, as I have frequently told you, though they are improving and will come to a knowledge of the truth.

The First Presidency have of right a great influence over this people; and if we should get out of the way and lead this people to destruction, what a pity it would be! How can you know whether we lead you correctly or not? Can you know by any other power than that of the Holy Ghost? I have uniformly exhorted the people to obtain this living witness each for themselves; then no man on earth can lead them astray. It is my calling and office to dictate in the affairs of the Church and kingdom of God on earth. That is what yea have chosen me to do for many years, with brother Heber and others for my Counsellors, two of whom have passed behind the vail; and I now have a third—brother Daniel H. Wells, who is as good a man as ever lived. You have asked me to tell the people what to do to be saved—to be the mouth of God to this people. Does your faith agree with your profession? Let me continue to exhort you, until you can train your hearts, your feelings, and your affections to such a degree, that when I ask you to pray for a certain object, you can think of it when you go home.

Brethren and sisters, may God bless you! I bless you all the time. Hallelujah! Praise the name of Israel’s God; for my soul exults in his name. We are happy and free from the yoke of bondage. The breath of the Almighty can scatter our enemies to the four winds and blow them into oblivion, if we have the faith. You can read how the kings, prophets and mighty men in Israel used to slay their fellow-beings—required so to do, because of the wickedness of those very men who stood at the head of Israel. If they had been sanctified and holy, the children of Israel would not have travelled one year with Moses before they would have received their endowments and the Melchisedec Priesthood. But they could not receive them, and never did. Moses left them, and they did not receive the fulness of that Priesthood. After they came to the land of Canaan, they never would have desired a king, had they been holy. The Lord told Moses that he would show himself to the people; but they begged Moses to plead with the Lord not to do so. Moses was angry at the sins of the people and did wrong, insomuch that when the Lord showed himself to him, he hid him in a cleft in a rock, and only let him see his hinder parts.

Through the conduct of the people, Moses sometimes felt like fighting. After he had been with the Lord forty days in the mountain, he came down and saw the idolatry of the people, and smashed to pieces the tables that were written by the finger of God, and ground up the golden image they were worshipping, and scattered it to the four winds; and the Lord slew many of the idolaters.

I want to see this people so full of the power of God that they can ask and receive. God help us so to do! Amen.

Unison, etc.

Heber C. Kimball

Remarks by President Heber C. Kimball, made in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, Sunday evening, November 29, 1857.

What we have heard from our President is most heavenly, and it is truth. We many times say it is “God’s truth.” I want to know if there ever was any truth that was not him? Now, just reflect and see if ever there was a truth that we received or heard, or if there ever will be, except what is God’s truth. No—there never was; for truth proceedeth from him.

Those ideas are according to my feelings—my desires, and they are according to the Spirit that has been given unto me. I have sought in my simplicity to produce the most simple things that I possibly could, to show this people the propriety of becoming one. You know I have brought up the apple tree, the peach tree, the grape and all the variety of vines the cucumber, the water-melon, and every other simple thing, to show unto this people that we have to become like those vines and those various bodies which I have mentioned—like unto the apple tree, for instance, which is a corporate and independent body, just as you and I are independent, inasmuch as we act in concert with the truth and with the personage that produced us.

Did God produce us. He did, and every son and daughter of Adam upon the face of this earth; and he produced us upon the same principle that we produce one another. And so it is with the fruit of creation.

The ideas advanced by brother Brigham about the manufacture and conducting of gas afford a good illustration of the operations of the Holy Ghost through the Priesthood. The place where the gas is manufactured may be called the fountain head; then, by a power at head-quarters, it is carried by pipes and propelled through every avenue, even to the extremity of the city.

When that gas is conveyed to a city, it gives light. It is so also with the Holy Spirit. There is sufficient of it to be conveyed to every man and woman according to their necessity; for Jesus says that every son and daughter that cometh into the world receiveth of his light, and it proceeds from head-quarters.

I have spoken upon these things before, not using this figure in particular, but upon the same principle.

A Bishop has power to dictate and control his Ward, even as he is dictated by those over him. When a family or that portion of the city who receive their light from him, reject that pipe, or that authority, they reject the authority, or the pipe, that conveys the light to them. It is so with the Seventies and also with every Quorum in this Church

There are seven Presidents of the Seventies; then there is one man that presides over the six. Are the six to be subject to the first of their number? They are; for he is the head of that limb; and if the six reject that man they reject the authority or the pipe that conveys light to them.

If the Quorums of the Seventies reject their limbs or Presidents, who are, even to the seventieth Seventy, connected to the main limb of the Seventies, they also shut off the light which would flow to them: Whom are the Seventies amenable to? They are amenable to the men that preside over them; and it is so with every department of the Priesthood, from the authority of the Apostleship down to that of the Teacher.

“What a strange doctrine,” says one, “that we should be taught to be one!” I tell you there is no way for us to prosper and prevail in the last day only to learn to act in union.

As to the holy Priesthood and the government of this Church, I can say that we shall, as a people, prevail in the name and by the authority of Jesus. If we will take this course and be one, we shall rule the house of Israel, and everything on the earth will be subject to us. This is the doctrine that has been taught us all the time.

I will acknowledge that I am sometimes eccentric. There is no man who has not, at some periods, eccentric feelings. These feelings correspond with the feelings of this people; and I believe and know that they control me in my speaking, or else I should not say a great many things that I do. I have heard brother Brigham say a great many times, “Why, I have spoken thus and so, and I believe that the people feel as I have spoken.”

To be eccentric in speaking means to occasionally depart from the point of argument—to run off to the east and then come back—to run off to the north, to the south, to the west, and return again to the centre. This feeling is in every man at times, and the Elders who speak from this stand have to speak so as to answer the queries and dispositions of the people, otherwise they would talk right in a bee-line.

Am I afraid that we shall be overcome? No, I am not. I never have, to my knowledge, had a feeling in my heart, from the day that I came into this Church unto the present time, that this kingdom would be overcome; neither have I now. But there are people here; and a people will grow out of this people that will stand for ever.

I never was more joyful in my life than I am now. I thanked my Father this morning, I thanked him last night, and I thank him every day of my life that the time has come when he has said to his servant the Prophet, “Shut down the gate, and never—no, never admit those men here who would take your life and the lives of the brethren, and seek to lead my people to destruction.” Am I not glad at this? I am; and that man or that woman who is not glad is not blest—is not a Saint. Those who do not rejoice at this time are not living their religion.

[President B. Young: “They are all glad.”]

Some say there is no tea in the stores, and that is verily true. There is no coffee, factory, calico, satins, silks, thread, needles, bonnets, nor any luxuries; and I am glad of it.

Have we needle-makers here? Yes we have men here who can make the finest needles as well as the largest and the best, and every kind of cutlery, and every kind of satin, just as good as there is in the world.

Can we make linen? Yes. Why can we not make linen just as well as they can in England? I have seen some of the sisters now before me in the old countries, throwing the shuttle, weaving cotton, linen, silks, satins, ginghams, woollen plaids, &c., &c. You can do it here as well as you could there.

Can we make sugar here? Yes, just as good as ever was made in the Southern States. Can we raise hemp? Yes—just as good as ever grew.

Brother W. C. Staines raised some Chinese sugar-cane on brother Brigham’s lot down here. There was about one of those Chicago waggon boxes full of stalks: I suppose one of them will hold 25 or 30 bushels. He sent that down to brother Hugh Moon’s, and he made 14 gallons of as good molasses as ever came from any portion of the world. Brother Brigham did not expect that it would make over three or four gallons.

If we can make molasses, by boiling it a little more, we can make good Muscovado sugar. I have got beet molasses by me now of last year’s make, and at the bottom of the keg it is good grained sugar.

It is like unto making maple sugar. I know how to make it; I know how to boil it, make it into molasses, and into sugar; and these men who are now sitting on the stand, and who have lived in the United States, all know how to make maple sugar. The boiling and cleansing is all the art there is in it. The sooner we go to work to produce these things the better, for we have got to go without tea, coffee, and tobacco until we raise them. I see no chance only for us to go to work as we have been instructed.

Years ago, in the days of Joseph, the Lord gave a revelation instructing this people to produce what they wanted for their own use by their own labour; and you have been taught it from that day to the present time, and the Lord has brought us into these mountains to bring to pass these very things, that we may become a free and independent people. To produce these things ourselves is necessary for our temporal and spiritual salvation.

You say you are going to work to cache up your grain, and so am I. I am going to work to raise a better crop next year than I have this, and I am going to work to make boxes to put it in; then I will dig holes and cache them, and the next year after that I will do likewise. And how long will it be before we shall have seven years’ provisions on hand, if you all do likewise?

A great many do not know the meaning of the word cache. Well, Cache Valley up here—almost the first company that passed through there, afraid of being overtaken by the wintry storms, cached some of their articles, and the mountaineers cached their furs; and from these circumstances, Cache Valley took its name; for they dug holes and buried their substance, and this is caching.

I, am going to begin to collect all the wheat I can, flour it, and put it in good, dry boxes; and if it is well pressed down, I think it will keep longer than wheat: besides, the mice will not then be able to make such ravages upon it.

When we have done all this, shall we put it in the ground? No. Put it in your granaries, and have it ready for caching. We shall not cache our substance until it is considered necessary.

It is the duty of the Bishops to plan for the people in their Wards. Let every Bishop take a course to design for his people. This is the way for them to do, and this is their calling; and in so doing they will be blest, and this whole people will be sustained, and God will bless us and will hold our enemies; yes, he will hold them a great deal easier and far more secure than you can hold a horse with the Spanish bits. He is not going to let this people be overcome, if we do as we are told from time to time. Let us do as we have been told here to-day—lay aside our foolishness, our vanity, and bad habits, and I just know that all will be well.

Suppose I yield to the practice of drinking liquor, one draught gives me a greater thirst for another; my appetite increases as I nourish it, till by-and-by, I will want it regularly, and I am finally overcome. Let a man do an evil to-day, and the temptation will be stronger for him to do it to-morrow.

Brethren, let us take a course to keep the commandments of God, and do just as we are told from this time henceforth, and never cease our operations in everything that is good. Never let us cease our mechanical operations, and let us be diligent in cultivating the earth and accumulating everything we can think of that will be useful. If you will take this course, you will not be obliged to put for the mountains next year, nor the year after, and so on, if we will do exactly right.

I would prefer to go into the mountains; and see my family go there, and live on roots, wearing sheep-skins, and goat-skins, and dwelling in tents and caves, as the ancient Apostles did, rather than to see the troops of the United States come into this Valley, and to suffer, and see the sufferings of this people, as we have hitherto. [The congregation responded, Amen.] I have seen myself, with many of this people, broken up and driven five times, and robbed and plundered; and they have suffered in such a manner as I never want to see them suffer again.

I calculate, by the help of God, to do as I am told, to make preparations for peace and for war, for plenty, for hard times, and for every emergency—to arm myself and my sons with the armour of peace and righteousness, and then with the armour of death, and to carry the means of self-defence in one hand, and cultivate the earth with the other, and having the righteousness of Christ in my heart, and execute righteousness with the sword of the Spirit, temporally and spiritually.

Now, here is peace, here is prosperity, here is happiness, here is life, here is repentance, and baptism for the remission of sins, and the way to obtain eternal lives. Accept of it, if you please; and if you will not, you will suffer the consequences. I intend to take the right course, and to help to arm my boys and my brethren, and to do the best that I can for the welfare of the house of Israel.

You probably recollect what Jesus said to his disciples when Peter took up the sword and cut off the fellow’s ear: he designed to cut off his head, but missed it. Jesus said, “Those that take up the sword shall perish by the sword. If my kingdom was of this world, then my servants would fight.” Let me tell you, the kingdom that we are in is of this world and also of the world to come, and will stand for ever; and we will fight, if our enemies come upon us to slay us—not only the men, but the women and the children.

Well, let us think of these things, and not get angry. I know that I am a stronger man when the Spirit of God is resting upon me than I am at ordinary times; and I know, when I get angry, that it makes me weak—it takes away my strength.

This is the way you feel; for that Spirit makes you mighty and powerful, and fear leaves you. Fear has torment, and torment makes a person weak, and vexes him, and perplexes him, because it is the principle of death.

Keep the Spirit of the Lord and learn to govern your tempers, just as a smith when he goes to work to make a knife or any other kind of edged tool. When he takes it from the fire, he almost always makes it harder than he wants, it; and then he has to take the temper down again, until he gets it so that the edge will bend. It is better to bend than to break.

Let us make our passions bend, and become one with our head as every limb and branch pertaining to a tree becomes one with its head, and with the roots from which it springs. God bless you all! Amen.

The Saints’ Need of the Spirit, etc.

John Taylor

A discourse by Elder John Taylor, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, December 6, 1857. Reported by G. D. Watt.

Having been called upon this morning to address you for a short time, I arise with very great pleasure to do so; for I always love to meet with the Saints, to gaze upon them, and to contribute my mite in offering instructions to them, so far as the Spirit of the Lord shall give me utterance. I conceive that, without the aid of his Holy Spirit, we as Saints can do very poorly either as speakers or as hearers. For, unless the Spirit of the Lord directs and guides us, we are all of us in a very poor position indeed. In fact, it is very difficult for any of us to understand really and positively what would be for our best good without its aid. In the world they know comparatively nothing about this. They call evil good, and good evil. They call darkness light, and light they call darkness.

Mixed up as we have been with the Gentile world, and having formed our habits and customs among them—having been accustomed to feel as they feel, to reason as they reason, and to associate with them, it is sometimes very difficult for us to understand what would really be for our benefit and advantage, whether pertaining to this world or to the world which is to come.

I presume as we obtain more of the Spirit of God—as we receive faith and intelligence that flow from him and the revelations that he imparts and will continue to impart to those who are faithful, we shall begin to understand things in a very different light from what many of us at the present time understand them. Even in temporal things there is a great difference among men in regard to their judgment, capacities, reasoning powers, and their comprehension of justice, equity, the rights of man, the duties that we owe to each other, and the various responsibilities that devolve upon us. But when we come to contemplate the things of God, the end of our existence, our origin, the position that we occupy in relation to our families, to each other, and to the Church and kingdom of God, it is very difficult sometimes for us to understand things correctly in relation to the position of the world, to the things that have been, to the things that are, and to the things that are to come—to the purposes of God in relation to the human family, and how these purposes will be best advanced. We shall find, in reflecting upon all these matters, that there is a very great difference between the reasoning of the human family upon these matters and the plan that God would adopt for the accomplishment of his purposes and for the bringing to pass the things that have been spoken of by the holy Prophets since the world began.

There is not a position that we can occupy in life, either as fathers, mothers, children, masters, servants, or as Elders of Israel holding the holy Priesthood in all its ramifications, but what we need continually wisdom flowing from the Lord and intelligence communicated by him, that we may know how to perform correctly the various duties and avocations of life, and to fulfil the various responsibilities that rest upon us. And hence the necessity all the day long, and every day and every week, month, and year, and under all circumstances, of men leaning upon the Lord and being guided by that Spirit that flows from him, that we may not fall into error—that we may neither do anything wrong, say anything wrong, nor think anything wrong, and all the time retain that Spirit, which can only be kept by observing purity, holiness, and virtue, and living continually in obedience to the laws and commandments of God.

There was a people to whom one of the ancient Apostles said, “But ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things and need not that any man should teach you, because of the anointing that dwelleth in you, which is truth, and no lie.”

When men obey the Gospel with pure hearts—when they are baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and have hands laid upon them for the gift of the Holy Ghost, and they receive that Spirit and live in obedience to the dictates of that Spirit, it will bring things past and present to their remembrance, lead them into all truth, and show them things to come. This is part and parcel of our belief.

What is the reason we do not always comprehend things right? Because, in many instances, we give way to temptation. We let our old prepossessions, feelings, and influences, by which we have been governed heretofore, predominate over the Spirit of God, and we fall into error and darkness; and “If the light that is within us becomes darkness, how great is that darkness!” It is not enough, then, that we are baptised and have hands laid upon us for the gift of the Holy Ghost. It is not enough even that we go further than this, and receive our washing and our anointings, but that we daily and hourly and all the time live up to our religion, cultivate the Spirit of God, and have it continually within us “as a well of water springing up unto everlasting life,” unfolding, developing, making manifest the purposes and designs of God unto us, that we may be enabled to walk worthy of the high avocation whereunto we are called, as sons and daughters of God to whom he has committed the principles of eternal truth and the oracles of God in these last days. It would be found very difficult for any individual left to himself to do right, to think right, to speak right, and to fulfil the will and law of God upon the earth; and hence the necessity of the organization of the Church and kingdom of God upon the earth, of the properly organized Priesthood, of the legitimate channel, check, bounds, laws, and governments that the Almighty has introduced into his Church and kingdom for the guidance, instruction protection, welfare, upbuilding, and further progress of his Church and kingdom upon the earth. As in a school it requires a man more competent to be a teacher than those who are taught, so in the Church of God; and hence the various grades and positions of the Priesthood. When a President, Bishop, or those having authority live up to their religion and cleave unto God, it is expected by us at all times that they will comprehend things under their immediate jurisdiction—things that they control, know the wants of the people and the best course for them to pursue, better than the individuals they teach; and this extends throughout all the various ramifications of the Church of God, from the first Presidency down. And indeed, between the first Presidency and the Lord of Hosts there is a regularly organized channel through which the blessings of his kingdom flow unto his Saints, when they are found in obedience to his laws.

It is something like the streams that water our city. At first they come out in large streams from the mountains; then they are divided off into sections, which spread and diminish into smaller sections: but they all flow through the legitimate channel.

How could any of you water your gardens, if the City Creek should be stopped? It would not only stop the leading channel, but all the little channels. We are made thus to depend upon one another in the order and kingdom of God. Where is the necessity of all this? Because of the things I first mentioned. But have not we all the Spirit of God? We ought to have. Well, then, can we not all understand? Yes, if we live our religion, we can understand the various duties that devolve upon us as individuals—as fathers, mothers, and children, or as Elders of Israel. We can understand those several and distinct duties to a certain extent; but we cannot lead the Church and kingdom of God—we cannot point out the path for it to walk in. Why? Because that does not belong to us. It belongs to the head. One of those little streams that you get to water your garden cannot supply all this city. No: but it can supply your garden, if it flows through the proper channel.

Suppose that little stream should say, “I am independent of the fountain,” would it be so? You know it would not. It is like the branches of a tree and the root and stock of a tree. The branches flourish on a healthy stock, and one little twig on the outside, with a few green leaves upon it and a little fruit, is very productive, beautiful, and pleasant to look upon; but it is no more than a portion of the tree. It is not the tree. Where does it get its nourishment from? From the root and the stock or stem, and through the various branches that exist on the tree. It is only a small portion of the tree. It is all the leaves, twigs, branches, stem, and roots that comprise the tree. The branches do not support the tree, the root, or the stem; but the stem supports the branches, and the roots the stem; and it is through that that life and vivacity flow to the branches.

As a Saint you say, “I think I understand my duty, and I am doing very well.” That may be so. You see the little twig: it is green; it flourishes and is the very picture of life. It bears its part and proportion in the tree, and is connected with the stem, branches, and root. But could the tree live without it? Yes, it could. It need not boast itself and get uplifted and say, “How green I am and how I flourish! and what a healthy position I am in! How well I am doing! and I am in my proper place and am doing right.” But could you do without the root? No: you bear your proper part and position in the tree. Just so with this people. When they are doing their part—when they are magnifying their calling, living their religion, and walking in obedience to the Spirit of the Lord, they have a portion of his Spirit given to them to profit withal. And while they are humble, faithful, diligent, and observe the laws and commandments of God, they stand in their proper position on the tree: they are flourishing; the buds, blossoms, leaves, and everything about them are all right, and they form a part and parcel of the tree and conduce to its life, health, symmetry, beauty, and general appearance.

But if we do not magnify our calling, what then? We become like withered branches. And what is done with them? A good gardener will cut them off, because they disfigure the tree: they are not pleasant, lovely, and beautiful to look upon. But does the most flourishing branch in the tree sustain the tree? It helps to do it; but it is not the tree: it is dependent on the larger branches through which the sap or nourishment flows until it comes to the little twig and fruit on the outside of the tree.

This is a fit similitude of the Church and kingdom of God. We are cemented together—united in the bonds of one common covenant. We are part and parcel of the Church and kingdom of God which the Lord has planted on the earth in the last days for the accomplishment of his purposes and the establishment of his kingdom, and the bringing to pass all those things which have been spoken of by all the holy Prophets since the world began. We all stand in our proper places.

While we magnify our callings, we honour our God; while we magnify our calling, we possess a portion of the Spirit of God; while we magnify our calling, we altogether comprise the tree; while we magnify our calling, the Spirit of God flows through the proper channels by which and through which we receive our proper nourishment and are instructed in things pertaining to our welfare, happiness, and interest pertaining to this world and the world to come.

But as it is very difficult to enter into all the minutia pertaining to a tree, a shrub, or herb, so it is difficult to enter into all the duties, responsibilities, and influences brought to bear and weigh upon the Saints of God and upon his Church and kingdom on the earth. For instance, the tree requires water and good soil to nourish it; it requires congenial atmosphere and the hand of the pruner sometimes, in order to keep it right. So does the Church and kingdom of God. There are various influences that are brought to bear on it, in order that it may flourish and grow. How can we grow, as a Church and kingdom, unless we are taught of the Lord through some medium that he has appointed.

Who is there that can rise up and tell the destiny of this Church and kingdom? Who is there, for instance, that can point out the bearings and the operation of the soldiery that are now on our borders? Who can tell the Lord’s design in relation to these matters, and why it is that we are thus situated?—why we are called upon to resist them, few as we now are? Could not, the Lord control it otherwise? He could. Has he not the hearts of all men in his keeping? Could he not roll them back very quickly? Yes; or he could cause them to come on here. Why is it that he has allowed them to come to a certain distance, and kept them there, placing them like some of you mothers sometimes do, when you hang up a rod, that the children can see it, and that you can point to when they are naughty?

Why is it that we have been driven and afflicted and persecuted, and our names cast out as evil, and that we have had to endure so many privations, sufferings, toils, and hardships for the last twenty years? Who can solve these questions? Who can enter into the secrets of the Most High and unravel the mysteries that dwell in mind of Jehovah?

Who can tell why these things are brought to operate as they do, and why we are placed in those peculiar circumstances in which we so frequently find ourselves as we travel through this vale of tears? Does that belong to the little twigs and branches? No. It may be a secret in the mind of the great God which is not fully developed unto us. We may comprehend a part of it, and realize in some degree the position we occupy and the dealings of God towards us; but who can tell it in its full bearings? Who can comprehend the end from the beginning? Who can see what the Lord designs towards us as individuals and towards us as a people? Or rather and more directly, who can tell what he has destined concerning his Church and kingdom upon the earth—when and how and by what means it shall progress, whether by affliction or prosperity, whether by passing through scenes of trouble and difficulty, or by elevating us and giving us peace and the prospect of a great deal of good according to our ideas of things?

Who can tell what means the Lord may make use of to benefit you or me? Does it remain for the outside twig or the little stream flowing from the fountain to unravel these matters? No. Who can point out the position we shall take in a Church capacity, in the capacity of the Priesthood, in the capacity of heads of families, in a military capacity, or in any other capacity, in relation to all these matters?

It needs a great controlling, directing influence to sustain, govern, direct, enlighten, and dictate. It needs that every branch of the tree and every twig should be in its proper place, and should receive that nourishment from the proper source, and that spirit, and that intelligence, and that direction which God has ordained according to all the laws of nature and that is interwoven in all his transactions with the human family—that there should be a great directing, controlling influence to guide and direct his affairs.

Furthermore, why is it that there is so much confusion in the world—that we have imbibed so many incorrect principles while living among them, which we find is so difficult to rid ourselves of at this time? It is because men have not been under that influence and power, but every man has done that which he has considered to be right, without any respect to the great fundamental principles of government and the laws that ought to regulate and control the human family. This has been one great cause of the calamities that have afflicted the world in a social, in a family, and in a national capacity; for nations, like individuals, have all corrupted themselves, have forsaken God, and have never been under the great governing influence that ought to regulate and control the affairs of the world.

And why is it that we sometimes feel so much of the spirit of rebellion in our bosoms and the spirit of independence, falsely so called, and feel so desirous to pursue our own course, and a latent principle within us which is so reluctant to render obedience to the laws of the kingdom of God?

In the first place, it is because of our early associations—of our former habits of thought and reflection. In the second place, it is because we do not cultivate sufficiently the Spirit of the Lord, which, if we did, would show unto us the right way and enable us to appreciate the privileges we enjoy. It is, perhaps, one of the hardest things for those associated with the Church and kingdom of God, or for the human family, to render obedience to the laws that regulate that kingdom and to the Priesthood which God has placed in his Church to govern it. Why? Because of our former associations and habits, and because of the power of the prince and power of the air who rules in the hearts of the children of disobedience, and goes about as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.

We are apt to look at things in too narrow a compass, like a little twig on the end or furthest branch of a tree. It is very flourishing; its buds and blossoms are very elegant and fragrant, because it is in a healthy position. But then it would be very foolish for that little twig to say it knew all about it, when you could not cut it from the tree a single day but it would wither and die, and all its beauty and fragrance would depart.

Have we any light, any intelligence, any knowledge? Have we advanced in the principles of truth communicated to us? Yes. How did we get our intelligence? Tell me, ye wise men of the world—you that have mixed with the world and have studied their laws, principles of government, usages, habits, and customs, and have made yourselves familiar with their erudition. What do you know of the relation and fitness of things, of the position man occupies to his Maker? What do you know in relation to yourselves as individuals? What do you know in relation to the purposes and designs of God? What do you know about the first principles of the Gospel of Christ? I do not think you know anything about them. If you do, you are wiser than men I have come across in my travels through the world. Just as that little twig is indebted for its life and vigour to the tree, so are you indebted entirely to the Lord for the light and intelligence you have received on every subject. You are indebted to the Spirit of God for your wisdom and intelligence, as much as the little twig is indebted to the tree for its vitality, leaves, buds, and fragrance.

If that is the case so far, how much more will it be so in the future? Who is there that can contemplate the mind of God and unravel the designs of Jehovah? Who can foretell the destiny of the human family? Who can point out the path that we as a people shall walk in? Who shall say, in regard to any of the dealings of God with us, that this is right and that is wrong—that such a thing is for our benefit, and another thing is for our injury? Who can mend, alter, or change these events, and make them better than they are? If we cannot tell all these things, let us be reminded of another thing—never to find fault with things as they transpire—with things that we cannot improve. Some of us may say, “Well, it is a little hard that we should be placed as we are at the present time; and if we had been in Egypt, it might have been better with us. However, if we were now in Egypt, we could not say we were eating the leeks and onions, for we are now eating them. Our enemies are on the outside. But we might say we are thrown into awkward circumstances. We have had to go out in the inclement season of the year to face a foe, because of our religion; and if we had been somewhere else we might have avoided it.” You might, and you might have not: that would altogether depend on circumstances.

If you had been among those fellows out eastward, you would have been worse off a great deal. I would rather be in our position than be in theirs. “But the future!” say you: “How do we know but next spring they will come in here and swallow us completely up?” Brother Brigham says, “We shall have to be greased first.” And there is no grease on their cattle to do it at present. What do we know about these things? I speak so that we may reflect upon them. “We would a little rather those men were away somewhere else.” I do not know that I would. I feel, notwithstanding our inexperience, and the many blunders we make, and the various evils many of us fall into, that we are the best people under the face of the heavens, and that God has called us, and set us apart, and placed his name among us, and given unto us the oracles of God to reveal unto us his mind and will, that by us he may establish his kingdom on the earth.

In relation to anything that has or may transpire, I feel that we are in the hands of God, and all is right. “But we would like to have whipped those fellows out”—so say some of us. “We would like to see them turn tail too and go off their own way.” But I would not, because the Lord would not. I feel perfectly easy that I am in the hands of God, and everything I have; and so are you. We are his people, and he is our God, and his Spirit dictates, rules, controls, and governs; and while we do right, and keep the commandments of God, and live up to our privileges, we have a right to claim the Spirit of God and live in the enjoyment of it every moment of our life.

As it regards his kingdom and purposes, I would rather risk his judgment and plan than my own. I feel myself so incompetent, and I believe you are the same, and know so little about the future designs of God and his purposes pertaining to the human family, and what will most conduce to our individual welfare and to our welfare as a people, that I do not want to put my hand to steady the ark.

I will say, “It is the Lord, and let him do what seemeth him good.” If he has a mind to let the Devil send up one thousand, ten thousand, or five hundred thousand men against us, all right. I was going to say, Who the devil cares? We are in the hands of God. And while we are willing to do his work and fulfil the duties that devolve upon us, it is his business to take care of his Saints. He has said it is, and I feel like saying amen to it.

I want to learn what my duty is, not only for one day, but every day, and then to try to do it. This is a feeling we ought all to have, as I understand it. A great work has to be established on the earth.

We read and talk about things and reflect upon what the Lord is going to do. He is going to build up his kingdom, and all kingdoms, powers, and dominions will be brought into subjection to the kingdom of our God; and “every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb, for ever and ever.”

These are very nice words, and the prospect is very pleasing indeed. But, the question is, Can we acknowledge the hand of God? Can I acknowledge his dealings with my family? If you reflect back, some of you were in better circumstances than you are now: you were better clad and provided for in many respects. While you reflect on this, and find that you have many hard things to cope with, can you say, “It is the hand of God; let him do as seemeth him good?” If you have to go out into the cold storms and snow, and if your wives are troubled about it, you sisters, can you say, “It is the hand of God, and let him do as seemeth him good?”

Can you feel that you are the children of God, associated with his kingdom, and that it is one thing to talk about a thing, and another to do it? Can you feel that you are willing to do your duties, magnify your callings, submit to whatever the Lord places upon your shoulders, and say, “It is the Lord; let him do what seemeth him good?” If we, who profess to be Latter-day Saints—we, who have taken upon us the name of Christ—we, who have been baptised in his name for the remission of sins and had the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost—who have received our washings, and anointings, and teachings from the mouthpiece of Jehovah—we, who have lived under the sunshine of the light and intelligence that flowed from the mouth of God—if we, who have partaken of so great and precious privileges and blessings, cannot do these things, how long will it be before every creature in heaven, on the earth, and under the earth will be heard to say, “Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power be unto him,” &c.? It is necessary for us to reflect upon these duties and responsibilities, and try, each one of us, so to live, act, move, and obey, and so to fulfil the laws, commandments, and ordinances of God, that in every position we occupy we shall move along like a well-organized piece of machinery, or like a tree whereon every branch, stem, leaf, twig, and blossom will be found to flourish, that we may all magnify our God and flourish before him.

Do you not think the Lord will take care of his own tree or people? and do you not think he will do just what is right? Some of us would have liked to have killed a lot of those soldiers. I would, if the Lord had said so; and if he did not want it, I did not. It is rather a dirty business anyhow; and if he has a mind to use some other means and let them wiggle themselves out their own way, I have no objections to it. I would rather go out in the kanyon and live on bread and beef than go to work at killing men. If the Lord can make use of us in that way, it is all right.

I do not remember having read in any history, or had related to me any circumstance where an army has been subjugated so easily, and their power wasted away so effectually without bloodshed, as this in our borders. If this is not the manifestation of the power of God to us, I do not know what is. Has any man’s life been lost in it? No—not one. It is true our brethren have been fired upon; but their balls failed of doing the injury that was expected. Our brethren were told not to retaliate, and they did not do it. Where is there such a manifestation of the power of God?

Suppose you or I had had the dictation of this matter, we should have been firing clear away on the Sweet-water, and killed a lot of them before they got here. It was not we, then, that directed this matter. No. Who was it? Why, it was those who are placed over us; and those very things that seemed hard for us to do at that time have really accomplished one of the greatest things that history has yet developed. The power of God never was made more manifest.

Where did it take place, and how? Out of the fountain head. It flowed through the stem of the tree: it came from City Creek kanyon, to go to one of our former figures, and through the proper channels. My judgment would have said, “Go and kill them off,” long ago. I should have said, “Holloa, here!—150 men drive those teams in here that are on Ham’s Fork before the soldiers arrive, and then we will kill off the scoundrels by piecemeal.” And that would have been the judgment of most men: it would have been according to natural reasoning. But God does not see as men; he reasons not as man. Although we may partially comprehend our individual duties, we do not understand how to regulate the Church of God. It needs the regular organization and the Spirit to direct through the proper channels; and hence the result of these events that are manifest now before our eyes.

Would you like the soldiers away? I do not know that I would; I do not care anything about it. Perhaps the Lord may have hung them up there, like the mother hangs up the rod and points to it. Does the mother want to hurt the child? No, Neither does she want to be continually scolding. The Lord may not be angry at us, but he does not want us to be continually disobeying his authority and going contrary to his law.

Suppose Uncle Sam should rise up in his red hot wrath, and send 50,000 men here—[President Brigham Young says his own fire would burn him out]—who of us can tell the result? I speak of these things that we may reflect. Who can tell what will come next? Who knows about the future? You see the position we are placed in—that we are dependent on the Lord, and on his counsel, and all that we can do or say will be according to that from this time henceforth and for ever. Zion begins to rise, her light being come. The glory of the Lord is rising upon us.

Will the law of God go from Zion, and his word from Jerusalem? Will he rebuke strong nations afar off and manifest his power through his Priesthood? How, when, and in what manner will these things be brought about? Who can say? Do you not see that we are just as ignorant to-day in regard to many of the events that pertain to the kingdom of God as we were on the day we were baptized? At the same time, we were then ignorant in relation to many principles that are now plain and familiar to us. And so it will be from this time forward. It needs a guiding hand—a man filled with the Spirit of God, and not only that, but the Lord to communicate with, that he may comprehend the designs of God and lead forth Israel in the paths they should go.

What shall we do, then? Shall we begin to fret, and whine, and grunt, and groan about this and that, and because we think things are in a very bad fix? We ought to feel that we are in the Church and kingdom of God, and that God is at the helm, and that all is right and will continue to be. I feel as easy as an old shoe.

What if we should be driven to the mountains? Let us be driven. What if we have to burn our houses? Why, set fire to them with a good grace, and dance a jig round them while they are burning. What do I care about these things? We are in the hands of God, and all is right, Brother Brigham says we are used to it, and we shall not feel it hard.

Brethren, we are eternal beings and are associated with eternal principles: we are in the Church and kingdom of God upon the earth, and that kingdom is an eternal kingdom, and we are bound by and associated with eternal principles: we are beginning to live for ever, and are acting not only for time, but for eternity. And as our minds expand and the things of God unfold themselves unto us from time to time, we shall see the fitness of things and the wisdom, guidance, and protection of Jehovah, just as much as it has been manifest unto us in the events that have lately transpired. And if we go to sleep or die, it is only the starting point to live for ever.

We have, got within us the principles of eternal life. If our bodies shall crumble into the dust, we shall move in another sphere and associate with other intelligences that are connected with the same kingdom and government, and continue to live and roll forth the purposes of God. And if we should have a war and a few things like this, never mind: who cares? Just grin and bear it. Do right and cleave to God, and all will go off well.

These ideas lead us to reflection and to consider the designs of God; and if we are faithful, they will tend to purify us. No trouble for the present is joyous, but grievous; yet it yields the peaceable fruits of righteousness to those who are exercised therewith; while we look not at the things that are seen, but things that are not seen; for the things that are seen are temporal, but the things that are unseen are eternal.

How many evil propensities yet yet remain in our bosoms! How prone are we to depart from the right path! How liable are our spirits to rebel against the order and government of God! How many feelings are in us that do not accord with those principles that dwell in the bosom of Jehovah and cannot associate with those intelligences that are associated with him in the eternal world! How necessary it is that we should have faith, teaching, instruction, and a whole train of events to keep our minds awake to the subject of our existence as eternal beings, that we may honour our calling on the earth, honour our God, fulfil our destiny, to prepare us for a celestial exaltation in the eternal world! Do you not see the necessity of these trials and afflictions and scenes we have to pass through? It is the Lord who puts us in positions that are the most calculated to promote the best interests of his people. My opinion is, that, far from these things that now surround us being an injury to us and the kingdom of God, they will give it one of the greatest hoists that it has ever had yet; and all is right and all will be right, if we keep the commandments of God. What is the position, then, that we ought to occupy—every man, woman, and child? Do our duty before God—honour him, and all is right. And concerning events yet to transpire, we must trust them in the hands of God, and feel that “whatever is is right,” and that God will control all things for our best good and the interest of his Church and kingdom on the earth. If we live here and prosper, all right; if we leave here, all right; and if we have to pass through affliction, all right. By-and-by, when we come to gaze on the fitness of things that are now obscure to us, we shall find that God, although he has moved in a mysterious way to accomplish his purposes on the earth and his purposes relative to us as individuals and as families, all things are governed by that wisdom which flows from God, and all things are right and calculated to promote every person’s eternal welfare before God. May God bless you and guide you in the way of truth continually. Amen.

Blessings of the Saints, etc.

Wilford Woodruff

Remarks by Elder Wilford Woodruff, made in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, December 6, 1857. Reported by G. D. Watt.

I esteem it a privilege at all times to join with my brethren in bearing testimony to the work of God. I am satisfied that we, as a people, have great reason to rejoice for the privileges and blessings granted unto us in these valleys of the mountains by our Father in heaven. We are in a great school; and it is a profitable one, in which we are receiving very important lessons from day to day. We are taught to cultivate our minds, to control our thoughts, to thoroughly bring our whole being into subjection to the Spirit and law of God, that we may learn to be one and act as the heart of one man, that we may carry out the purposes of God upon the earth. Yes, we are taught many principles which tend to our exaltation and glory, which could not be made manifest unto us only as they are revealed unto us by the inspiration of the Almighty, through the mouth of his servants the Prophets.

The principles of the Gospel of Jesus Christ are made plain to us by the figures and illustrations which have been made to-day, and which are made from time to time so plain that a child could not misunderstand—also to impress upon our minds our duties. Those principles are not surrounded with that mystery that shrouds the doctrines taught by the sectarian world.

We, as a people, have long been praying for the kingdom of God to come, and his will to be done on the earth as it is done in heaven. We have been taught this prayer from childhood; but neither we nor our parents understood what we were praying for, only we made a practice of uttering those words from tradition, and never understood the meaning until we were made acquainted with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Since we have become acquainted with brother Joseph and the Gospel, we have looked forward with much interest to the day when the kingdom of God should be established upon the earth in the same light, power, and glory in which the Apostles and Prophets saw it by vision and revelation; and that all which God has promised concerning it should have its fulfilment.

During the last twenty or twenty-five years, many things have been prophesied; and the Lord, through his servants, has made many promises which have been revealed unto us concerning the blessings that are in store for us if we faithfully do our duty. I can say, with my brethren, that I rejoice that I am in these valleys of the mountains associated with the people of God a thousand miles from Christianity, civilization, and the fruits thereof—at least such as are now manifest throughout the Christian world; and I feel to prize this blessing and to acknowledge the hand of God in leading us here; for the hand of God has been plainly visible in delivering us from the hands of our persecutors and planting us in a land of health, peace, and safety; and the more my mind is enlightened by the Holy Spirit the more precious and glorious do these principles appear unto me.

I am satisfied that all is right in Zion. All is right with those who lead us. All is right as far as we do right. We have enjoyed many blessings during the past year. The Lord has in his mercy poured out his Holy Spirit upon us as a people, and there is a great change with the inhabitants of Zion during the past year. We were in a great measure asleep; and the Lord, knowing the things which lay before us, poured out his Holy Spirit abundantly upon our leaders who called upon us to wake up, and the Spirit of God was poured out upon the people; and they have, in a great measure, endeavoured to repent, forsake their sins, and unite themselves together to carry out the counsels of his servants. I have never seen the hearts of this people so united as during the past year. No person who has listened to the words of the Presidency of this Church during a few months past, and has seen the fulfilment of their sayings, but can clearly see the hand of God with them and his Spirit guiding them continually.

The day that many of us have anticipated, since we have been made acquainted with Joseph Smith and the Gospel, has begun to dawn upon us. The revelations of Jesus Christ are fast fulfilling before our eyes. We see the kingdom set up, and the time has come when the nation that has given many of us birth has entered the field as our open enemies and persecutors, and commenced an unhallowed persecution against us, with a determination to destroy us from off the earth. The same as cities, towns, counties, and states have done before them, they have united together to crush and destroy this people, and remove them, if possible, from the earth.

Ever since I have been made acquainted with the Gospel and the progress of this people, I have always believed that the United States would take this course, and, in a national capacity and under the form of law, seek to destroy the Church and kingdom of God from off the earth. For the light has come unto them and the Gospel of salvation has been offered unto them, and they have rejected it and killed the Prophets. Hence, the light and Spirit of God is taken from them, sin abounds, and they are filled with anger against all that is good. Their course is unconstitutional and contrary to every principle of law, righteousness, justice, judgment, and truth. In all our persecutions, our persecutors have had no just cause for pursuing the course against us they have, only they were stirred up by the Devil. Darkness, wickedness, and abominations of every kind are increasing in the minds of the wicked nations of the earth, because the Spirit of God is withdrawing from them. They have had the fulness of the everlasting Gospel offered unto them, but they have rejected it.

There has never been a set of men since the Lord made the world who have laboured more diligently than the Twelve Apostles and Elders of this Church in preaching the Gospel to the world. They have rejected the message sent to them, revealed by an angel from God, which leaves them now under condemnation. Brother Joseph would have embraced the whole circle of the human family in the principles of salvation, if he had possessed the power. He had that greatness of soul never seen in the human breast unless it was inspired by the power of God. That same Spirit has rested upon the present Presidency of this Church: they have laboured incessantly for years to save the children of men. And what have we received in return from the hands of the Christian world? They have driven us from our homes and firesides, and smitten and robbed us of the rights that are dear and most sacred to man, until we have at last been driven from the borders of civilization, so called, unto the wilderness, by the nation that has given us birth, whose boasted freedom exists only in name. Here they expected we should perish; but we still live, grow, and flourish in these mountains, through the mercy and goodness of God, without the aid or assistance of our persecutors.

Our nation was under no condemnation in this respect until the light came and they heard the Gospel, rejected it, and cast out the Saints from their midst, slaying their leaders and depriving thousands of the Latter-day Saints, who were American citizens, of every blessing, right, and privilege guaranteed unto them by the constitution and laws of the United States. Many of our nation have been guilty of crimes, in their persecutions against us, that would cost the lives of presidents, governors, senators, legislators, and many thousands of men, if law and justice were executed in righteousness against them. I do not know what more they can do to fill up the cup of their condemnation than to carry out the course they have begun. There is more crime, wickedness, and abomination committed now throughout the United States, according to the population, in 24 hours—a thousand times—than there was thirty years ago. I do not suppose there has been a generation more wicked and corrupt than the present Christian world.

We have been told to-day that we are under great obligation to God, and that we ought to acknowledge his hand in all things. That is true. We had no knowledge of the plan of salvation until God revealed it unto us. We are dependent upon God and his servants for light and truth and blessings that are in store for us.

We are told that the kingdoms of this world will become the kingdoms of our God and his Christ. Daniel of old says this, and pointed out the establishment of that kingdom in the last days which should stand for ever and not be thrown down. He also pointed out the effects which would follow. The Lord has already revealed great and glorious truths and principles concerning the government of the children of men in the establishment of his Church and kingdom upon the earth. Does it not require as much wisdom and revelation from God to govern the nations of the earth in a way to bring men into subjection to righteous laws, light, privileges, and blessings which they are now deprived of in the organization of temporal governments of the world, as is required in the spiritual government of the Church of Christ upon the earth? Where is that knowledge to flow from? The spirit to do men good and relieve the sufferings of mankind does not dwell in the breasts of monarchs, kings, presidents, and rulers among the nations of the earth at the present day; but sorrow, crime, poverty, tyranny, oppression, and starvation prevail throughout the world.

The rulers of mankind have not sought for the Spirit of God and the light of eternity to show them the responsibility they are under to Him who has raised them to power and authority and given them dominion over their fellow-beings. They have not exercised their power and authority to honour God and redress the wrongs of the poor and oppressed over whom they preside.

The misery and evils which now exist throughout the world have got to be corrected, in a great measure, through the power of God, before the kingdoms of this world will become the kingdoms of God and his Christ. It is a great and mighty work to establish the kingdom of God on the earth, that the law may go forth from Zion to rule the kingdoms of the world. The light, knowledge, truth, and wisdom to do this has got to come through the holy Priesthood, which is the government of God upon the earth.

Our temporal and eternal salvation is all connected and linked together, as we have been told to-day. The Lord has raised up unto us fathers leaders, and counsellors after his own heart: they possess his will, and they are leading the people to exaltation and glory. If we take their counsel, we shall receive all the salvation men can desire in time and in eternity. I thank God that I have lived to see the dawn of this glorious day.

With regard to the dealings of the Lord with us this present season, President Young has been as calm and serene as a summer’s morning, and so have his Counsellors; and that spirit in a great measure has been diffused among the people. When there was every appearance, outwardly, of our enemies coming upon us, the spirit with them has been all the time, “We do not believe we shall have to go to battle or shed the blood of our enemies this season.” This has been the feeling when, to all human appearance, it would seem that we should have to shed the blood of our enemies, or they ours. There is not such an example on history as the way in which our enemies have been stayed from fulfilling their hellish designs. It is the first time the American army has been stayed in their course. They got as far as Ham’s Fork, and there they stuck. We have heard read their gracious proclamation. Many of the brethren wonder that they have not wisdom enough to make out a decent document; but I do not wonder at it, for this whole people have prayed that their natural wisdom might be taken from them. I should wonder if they had wisdom to make out a sensible document, or one that would pass an examination.

The Lord so far has fought our battles and has proved his people. When men have been called upon to go out and lie in the path of the enemy, I have not known one instance of a man’s refusing to go. All have been willing to go and do as they were told. The Lord has proved you in this and has accepted your offering. The prayers of the Saints of God have been heard, and they will never fail of being heard and answered, if we do our duty; for we have a ruler who can do something for us, when our cause is just. I feel as brother Taylor said to-day: it matters not to me what the Lord designs of us; we should be passive in his hands.

When different opinions were expressed as to the course to be pursued this fall with our enemies, the Spirit has said to me at the time, “Be still and passive, and pray that wisdom may be given to President Young to dictate and lead just right.” There is where our prayers should centre. We should continually call upon the Lord to inspire him with wisdom sufficient to lead forth the Church and kingdom of God unto exaltation, glory, and victory.

It is different with us to what it is with the world. We have a main channel through which to receive our light, knowledge, and blessings, as was beautifully illustrated by the President in the figure of the gas-pipe. You may take the smartest men that talent and learning ever made, and put them in the Church of God, and they never can get ahead of their leader. Their wisdom would be turned into folly. Why? Because they are not called to lead. If a man has never learned a letter of a book, if the Lord calls upon him to lead the Church and kingdom of God, he will give him power to do it. We have had these lessons laid before us day after day, calling upon us to be united, and our hearts to become as the heart of one man, that our prayers and works may be centred to one point in carrying out the counsel of our head.

The Lord will lead President Young where he wants him to go. We know God is with him and has led him all the time; and he led Joseph while he lived. The Quorum of the Twelve may exhaust their talent and acquirements in exhibiting principle upon any matter which belongs to the head to reveal, and yet the Prophet has to point out the error and set us right. The whole Church may unite to carry out any point that ought to come through the head, and we could not effect it. It requires brother Brigham to tell us what is right and what is wrong in many things, because that is his place and calling. There is a perfect channel existing between the Lord and him, through which he obtains wisdom, which is diffused through other channels to the people. That we know. We have got to learn to bring this knowledge into practice.

Let this people go to work and sustain the head of this Church all the time, and let their prayers continually ascend in his behalf, that God may give him wisdom for our guidance; then, no matter if armies approach us, or all hell boils over. Let the people be perfectly passive in the hands of God, live their religion, and learn and profit by the daily lessons they receive; then you will find that glory, victory, and prosperity will abide with this kingdom.

I do not believe that any General, since the Lord made the world, has been the subject of more earnest prayers than General Wells has since he has been out in the mountains. He has been well sustained, and so has President Young. I hope we may increase in this until we arrive at perfection. Then you will see clock—work, perfect harmony, and the effects of it wherever it is manifest—whether it be in a Bishop over his ward, in the Twelve Apostles, in a President over a Branch of the Church, or in a father over his family. You will obtain blessings, by thus sustaining every man in his place and calling, which you cannot get by any other principle. But cross a Bishop, a Prophet, or a father over his family in their track, and you will see a friction immediately: you will see trouble, difficulty, darkness, and affliction; and nothing will go right. This is the principle that will save this kingdom and lead it forth to glory, victory, and salvation.

We have been driven and afflicted for 25 years, and gained an experience we now begin to profit by, that we might attain power to judge properly of contrasts and of right and wrong. Had President Young and this people remained undisturbed in Kirtland from ‘34 till this time, we could not have gained the same experience we now have; therefore I believe the hand of God has been in all that we have passed through. The experience of the First Presidency of this Church has been very great. No man that lives has passed through the same school: hence their great knowledge and wisdom, aided by the inspiration of the Almighty.

I do not know what the intention of the Lord is as to us in the future, but victory is promised unto this people.

The kingdom of God is in the Valleys of the Mountains, and we enjoy its blessings. That should be sufficient for us. As to outward losses, they are of little consequence. The law of God is in the mouths of those who are set to lead us. If the Lord should give a revelation through them that would appear contrary to our traditions—our customs, or reveal new principles—things which have been hid from the foundation of the world, it should not try the faith of the Saints. The Lord has given revelations according to the capacity of the children of men.

If there was a point where man in his progression could not proceed any further, the very idea would throw a gloom over every intelligent and reflecting mind. God himself is increasing and progressing in knowledge, power, and dominion, and will do so, worlds without end. It is just so with us. We are in a probation, which is a school of experience.

It is a blessing to breathe the element that is in this place—to behold the unity of the people in trying to bring their wills into subjection to the will of the Lord their God. I am glad we are here, and our enemies where they are. Those of us who, have been here for some ten years cannot realize the great contrast between Utah and the rest of the world. We hardly know how to prize our privileges. Were we placed in any of the large cities of the United States and Europe, we should hardly believe we were in the same world. The sounds of blasphemy are not heard in our streets: rioting, drunkenness, whoredom, rape, and murder, and the black catalogue of crime practised in the Christian world do not meet the eye or salute the ear of the passer-by in Utah The contrast between the City of Great Salt Lake and the cities of the nations abroad, touching the order, decency, virtue, and moral character of the people here, cannot be told.

Having been made acquainted with the Gospel, we have been trying to improve ourselves. We have a good degree of faith in our leaders, and tried to follow the word of God from their mouths. We have improved in these things, and my prayer is that we may continue so to do and prize the blessings, privileges, freedom, and spirit and power of the Holy Ghost that are poured upon us in these peaceful valleys. We need not any longer thirst for the things that are in the world. We are the best off of any people. If there is any peace, safety, or salvation, it is here.

The day is not far distant when nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and State against State, and there will be sorrow such as never was among men. Watch the signs of the times, for we are living in an important age. The prophecies relating to our time are rolling in upon us. Are we prepared to meet them? It is important for men and angels to note the events of this age. We live in the commencement of a new era of the dealings of God with the world. The earth has been under the dominion of the Devil almost from its creation. But in our day the Lord has set up his kingdom, never to be destroyed.

The Lord has planted his Church and kingdom upon the earth in other ages; but those that undertook to maintain it were soon destroyed, through the power of wicked men and devils. Righteous men were not permitted to live upon the earth. Even the Son of God was not permitted to preach righteousness but a short time before he and his followers were crucified and slain. But the day has now come when he has begun to prepare the way that he may come and take possession of the earth himself, and reign King of nations, as he does now King of Saints. The day of the Devil’s power to prevail against the kingdom of God has passed away. The kingdom is within you, in the valleys of these mountains. Brothers Joseph, and Hyrum, and Willard, and Jedediah, and Parley, and a host of others who have gone behind the vail, are as much engaged in the establishment of this kingdom, and in our welfare as a people, as we are.

We should prize and not abuse the blessings God has put within our power, and improve upon the lessons we learn, and obey the teachings given to us, through the inspiration of the Holy Ghost to the servants of God set to lead us. We have everything to encourage us. We are favoured of God; and whom the Lord favours who can successfully oppose? Would President Buchanan have sent an army here to lay a foundation for our destruction, if the eyes of his understanding had not been darkened? No. If he had been enlightened by the Holy Spirit and could have foreseen the reward he will meet, he would sooner have suffered his blood to have been spilled; and it would have been better for him. The nation does not know what they are doing, nor comprehend the fearful results of the course they are pursuing. They are turning the last key to rend the nation asunder, and they will be broken as a potter’s vessel, and cast down as a nation, to rise no more for ever. For whenever the rulers of any nation trample their own constitution and laws under foot, and oppress, and destroy the weak, because they have the power and the people love to have it so, they sow the seeds of their own dissolution, and they will reap their own destruction.

We have nothing to fear. The Lord is with us, and will sustain and nourish his Church and kingdom, as he has done from the beginning. He sustained it when it was surrounded by the bowels of hell in Warsaw and Nauvoo, in Jackson, Clay, and Caldwell counties, when it was small as a mustard seed; and he can sustain it here when it is surrounded by the munition of rocks.

The heathen may rage and imagine a vain thing; but the Lord will hold them in derision and guide them as with a bit and a hook in their jaws, while his people shall flourish like a watered garden upon the mountains. All the promises of God will be fulfilled unto us. A little one shall become a thousand, and a small one a strong nation, and the Lord will hasten it in its time. Amen.

Advancement in Gospel Principles, etc.

Heber C. Kimball

A discourse by President H. C. Kimball, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, December 13, 1857. Reported by G. D. Watt.

Brother Spencer has given you most excellent doctrine. If the Father in heaven should come here and speak to us, he probably would not speak anything better to this people than what has been said this morning; for he would speak according to your capacities. The Gospel of salvation is very simple; but everything is constituted therein; everything is comprehended in the first principles of the doctrine of Christ. We have preached a great many times and used the words of Paul, where he tells us to leave the first principles of the doctrine of Christ and go on unto perfection. But if we do that we shall slide off the foundation, and would have to return and do our first works. There is the Father, and the Son, who was given up, that his blood might be shed upon Calvary, that our sins might be forgiven, on condition that we repent and forsake them.

“Well,” you say, “I believe: what shall I do to be saved?” Repent, every one of you, and then go and be buried in water, like unto Jesus Christ’s burial in the sepulchre, and you shall receive the remission of your sins. What next? Receive the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost. These are some of the first principles of the Gospel.

Now, can we live our religion unless we are in possession of the Holy Ghost all the time? We cannot. First, there is the Father, then the Son, and then the Holy Ghost; and then come faith, repentance, and baptism for the remission of sins, and laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost.

Do you not see, then, that it is just as necessary to lay aside the Holy Ghost as to lay aside any other principle of the Gospel? No man can please the Lord God, only as he is dictated by the Holy Ghost; and he will not stay with you unless you keep in view the Father and the Son. We partake of the sacrament every Sabbath to bear in remembrance the Son of God. Then, shall I say, leaving all these principles, go on unto perfection? No. They are the fundamental principles of our religion, the same as the 26 letters of the English alphabet are the roots of the written and printed form of our language.

Are these principles the celestial law? I know no other. And how can you keep the celestial law without the Holy Ghost? You cannot. When you partake of the sacrament, you do it in remembrance of Jesus Christ, and of the Father, and of the Holy Ghost, and in remembrance that you have forsaken your sins and been baptised for the remission of them. Some may say, “How long will it be before the celestial law will be put into force?” Never, until you put it into force and execute it on yourselves.

I will use a comparison. Here is the English alphabet, that you learned when in childhood, so that you were perfectly acquainted with the 26 letters: but do you leave that alphabet when you go on unto perfection in your education? No. But when you have learned those letters, you then learn how to join them to make syllables, words, and sentences, and go on till you can read the First Reader, and then the Second, and the Third, &c, and all by means of the same letters. You also learn geography and history, and rise from one class to another, and from one grade of exaltation to another. To gain all your knowledge in English literature, you must use the first principles of the language all the time. Do I exhort you to leave the first principles of the doctrine of Christ? No: but I want you to learn them more thoroughly, that you may keep them in view continually. There are some who do not understand the alphabet of “Mormonism,” and never did: Some that profess to be the smartest men and women in our midst know the least about it.

Brethren, we have all got to learn one thing, and that is, to be one with our leader; and this oneness should extend from the least member up to Prophet and Seer—every man standing in his order and place, just as the branches of a tree are one with the stock and root.

We will say there are a thousand limbs forming the top of a tree, and all have sprung out of one, or out of the body of the tree. From the main stock we will say that twelve limbs shoot out, and from them a thousand, which are dependent on the twelve limbs for their nourishment, as the twelve limbs are dependent upon the stock and roots for theirs. Should any of the twelve limbs be rotten in the pith or marrow, all the limbs receiving their sap and nourishment therefrom must be affected, more or less, with the same disorder, and they also affect the root. If the limbs are thrifty, they give to the roots a healthy action to gather more abundant nourishment for the whole tree.

Sometimes you may see a gardener cut off a whole top that is snarly and unhealthy, and insert thrifty grafts. You read in the Book of Mormon about the master of the vineyard taking thrifty grafts and putting them into the wild olive tree in the nethermost part of the vineyard, that it might bring forth good fruit. Brother Joseph was that man. Moroni, Peter, James, and John, and the angels of God came and placed their power upon him, and we grew out of the graft; and if we continue in the graft, we shall produce the same fruit.

In Nauvoo, about a year before we started to come here, do you not know the Gentiles were cut off entirely from the tree, that the new grafts might grow more thriftily in the tree? None can be saved unless they are grafted in as we were, by repentance, baptism, and the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost. These are the grafting principles, and you are required to live up to them faithfully, going on to perfection.

My desire and prayer is to teach you in simplicity. Anything that cannot be understood is not worth a dime. Like the limbs of a thrifty tree moving in unison with the stock, so we should, when brother Brigham says move this way or that.

I am talking to the men that hold the Priesthood. And I cannot but think that the little boys before me will have that Priesthood which we hold, and many of them will see the day when they will have power to raise the dead. They will have power to do many things we do not have power to do.

As the leaves and branches of a tree administer to the roots, and we are depending upon them for support and strength, so the members of this Church are amenable or subject to the President of the Church, and, being subject, should administer to him. The tree cannot administer to the branches unless they administer to the roots.

According to the philosophy of the day, my blood passes through the heart, where it is refined or purified, and from thence it is sent back into the body by means of the veins and arteries, so that every portion of it partakes of the nourishment which the blood affords and is impregnated with the principles sent forth from the head and stomach. After the refined blood has penetrated every part, it returns again to head-quarters to receive a fresh supply of nutritious principles. So it is with the sap that circulates through the limbs and branches of a tree: every branch and leaf becomes impregnated with the principle that is in the root. And so it ought to be with the kingdom of God: every member of it should partake of the principles of virtue and truth that are in the leader of that kingdom, and be as perfectly one with him.

Why do we see dead limbs on a tree? Because they refuse to receive the nourishment which the root affords. Why do people become dead to their own interests and the interests of the kingdom of God? Because they refuse to obey the will of God through their leaders: the gate of communication is shut down between them and the source of their life and strength in the way of life and salvation.

Can a child enjoy the Spirit of God who refuses to obey his father, who is a man of God? No. He partakes of the spirit of apostacy, which is the spirit of death. I will ask you women of good understanding, Did you ever disobey your husband and live in rebellion to him, but what you felt like the Devil? I have heard you say you never did. My wives acknowledge they cannot enjoy the enlivening Spirit of God when they rebel against my counsel; but their minds are as dark as Egypt. Why? Because I design to rule in righteousness.

The spirit of disobedience is the spirit of apostacy; and if you do not look out, it will upset you, and you will go overboard before you are aware of it. Every branch should be interested for the root from whence it springs; for if the root perishes, the branch must perish also.

I hope you understand my meaning in the figures I have used. But there are many people here more ignorant than our little boys of five and six years of age. If they were not ignorant, they would not take the course they do. Do I allow my little boys to touch a thing that is not their own? No. Have they a right to touch a thing that belongs to me? Not without my sanction. Have you a right to interfere with the things of God? No—not without the consent of the man that presides over you. Has my wife a right to meddle with anything that belongs to me? Not without my consent; and over that which I have committed unto her she is a stewardess. Have I a right to call her to an account for what I have committed to her, to see whether she has taken good care of it? I have. There is not a thing on this earth that is given to us of God that is to be ours independently of him, and never will be, until we prove ourselves worthy.

There is a comparison in the Bible where it speaks of committing talents to men and of calling them to account. “I visited,” said the Lord, “one this year and another next year, until I visited the last one, and I reckoned with them and called them to an account of that which I had ceded up to them.” It is just so with us.

If I cede up any power to one of my boys, for instance, saying, Here is a horse, Heber, for you to use; I require you to take good care of him and not abuse him. Why? Because I am going to call him back. Supposing the horse is not as good as when I gave it to him, then Heber is in debt to his father, and has to pay it.

We receive the Priesthood and power and authority. If we make a bad use of that Priesthood, do you not see that the day will come when God will reckon with us, and he will take it from us and give it to those who will make better use of it. My advice to my brethren is to rise up, from this time forth, and let your light shine, that others may see your good works and be led to glorify God.

How holy men ought to be who hold the authority of the Priesthood. And again, how pure and angelic females ought to be who are sent here to bear the souls of men! If you pollute those souls and bodies; God will call you to an account for it.

And these little boys, I want them to honour their calling. Here are lots of them. Have they the Priesthood on them? Yes. Have they all been ordained? Not directly; but their fathers have been, and that ordination tells on their seed after them. They are legal heirs to the Priesthood of God, without an ordination. They receive it from their fathers; and when they were blessed, their seed was blessed in their loins, like Abraham’s; and when that seed is committed to an angelic woman, she is accountable whether she degenerates that seed or not. It is for her to train up that child, and nourish it, and cherish it, and restore it to the Father as pure as it was when she received it.

If you have the Priesthood, you are in the same condition that I am. These things are serious to me; they are essential to me and to this people. After receiving the Priesthood, when a person receives his endowment, he is an heir to the Priesthood—an heir of God, and a joint-heir with Jesus Christ; that is, he has commenced his heirship.

The Father waited until the meridian of time—that is, till the time was half up, before he came on the earth and begat in the flesh the Son of God, who was to be our Saviour. Was every woman qualified to raise that child? No. You will find that Mary was of the Royal Priesthood, which is after the order of God; and he was particular who raised that child, that it might be trained according to his dictation. Should not we be cautious? I tell you we ought, and not fool and play with the things of God as a cat would with a mouse.

Many of you are trifling with your own existence—with your own salvation—not with mine. Brother Brigham, myself, brother Daniel, and the Twelve Apostles cannot grow or increase, only in proportion as the limbs and branches of this Priesthood and the whole tree increase. If it is a thrifty top, then the roots partake of that thriftiness, and they all grow together. That is what makes us take a course to cut off the dead limbs.

Jesus said to his disciples, “Ye are the salt of the earth; and if the salt loses its saving principle, it is then good for nothing but to be cast out.” Instead of reading it just as it is, almost all of you read it just as it is not. Jesus meant to say,” If you have lost the saving principles, you Twelve Apostles, and you that believe in my servants the Twelve, you shall be like unto the salt that has lost its saving principles: it is henceforth good for nothing but to be cast out and trodden under foot of men.” Judas lost that saving principle, and they took him and killed him. It is said in the Bible that his bowels gushed out; but they actually kicked him until his bowels came out.

“I will suffer my bowels to be taken out before I will forfeit the covenant I have made with Him and my brethren.” Do you understand me? Judas was like salt that had lost its saving principles—good for nothing but to be cast out and trodden under foot of men. It is just so with you men and women, if you do not honour your callings and cultivate the principles you have received. It is so with you, ye Elders of Israel, when you forfeit your covenants.

Brethren and sisters, as the Lord liveth, and as we live and exist in these mountains, let me tell you the world is ripe, and there are no saving principles within them, with a very few exceptions; and they will gather out, and the rest of mankind are ready for destruction, for they will have no salt to save them. I know the day is right at hand when men will forfeit their Priesthood and turn against us and against the covenants they have made, and they will be destroyed as Judas was.

Ye Elders, Apostles, Seventies, High Priests, Bishops, Priests, Teachers, and Deacons, never be guilty of that which you have been guilty of once before. If it were not for your ignorance, you would have been cut off from the earth; but, in consequence of your ignorance, I feel as though God would forgive you, if you will never do it again. But if you do it again, your time for repentance is past, and you do not again get pardon.

I do feel bad to think that men will enter into the new and everlasting covenant of our God, and then defile themselves with uncleanness. Is there a woman in this city that could have committed the sin of debauchery, if there had been no person to debauch her? No. Who is guilty? The man, who should have the saving principles of God Almighty in him; and he is the man who must pay the debt.

Again: If the woman would never consent, the man could not accomplish his vile purpose. You have been taught different all the day long. You have been taught, from your mother’s womb that these things are wrong. Would the Devil have power to make you tell a lie, if you did not yield to him? No. When you consent to it, the Devil then has seduced you, debauched you, just as much as a man goes to work and debauches a woman after she has consented to him. We are agents to refuse or to accept. Who is the most to blame? The man holding the Priesthood of God.

I talk about these things because I am led so to do. They may be considered small things, but they are the things that destroy this people—that is, all that will be destroyed. You can lose your saving principles as much as salt or sugar can. Sugar can be placed in a state that it will become sour—have no sweetness about it; and bread will become sour through the power of leaven put into it; and if the leaven was not sour, it could not sour the bread. When sugar becomes sour, it has lost the saving principles of sugar, just the same as salt. Be cautious that you do not receive filthy leaven. Stop your tattling, your lying, and mischief-making. You never saw persons that are trotting from house to house but what are apt to be tattlers, unless they are ordained and set apart to visit. You never saw a woman that is continually parading the streets but what was a tattler. Her face may be as smooth as an onion; but the beauty of a woman is in the spirit she possesses and in the principles of righteousness she cherishes.

You Elders of Israel, have you not entered into covenant that you never would betray one another? And you mothers of Israel, have you not entered into covenant not to speak against each other, or run about the neighbourhood and talk about this one and that one, and about their husbands? Do you not despise such a woman as that? Yes, you do; and so do I, and so does every good man and angel, and so does Jesus Christ. He has told you not to do it.

I want you to understand that you make covenants with God, and not with us. We were present and committed those covenants to you, and you made them with God, and we were witnesses. When you got your endowments, did you not make a covenant not to speak against the anointed? And every woman that received this ordinance made a covenant with her husband that she would be true and faithful to him, be a guardian angel to him, and watch over his pillow by night and by day, and be true to her God and to the anointed.

I told you the other Sunday that I never made a practice of going to my President and speaking against any one. I am cautious how I take a course to tell him this, that, and the other; for, if I am a man of truth, he is bound to believe me. Are there men that will come to me and try to injure somebody? Yes. Is it right, when you have sworn not to do it?

In Kirtland, Jared Carter, Dr. Cowdery, and others tried to ruin the Twelve in the eyes of Joseph. The very first mission the Twelve took we went forth like men of God and travelled to the East and back again, without purse or scrip, and held Conferences through all the New England States, and exhorted and taught the people to go to Jackson County and purchase that land; and those men so prejudiced the mind of the First Presidency that two of the Twelve were suspended. But there were enough left to form a Quorum and do business.

Jared Carter, Dr. Cowdery, and others fell through taking that course. They tried to run in between the Twelve and Joseph, and they stepped between the bucklers of the Almighty. Had they a right to do it? No. Have I a right, although I am brother Brigham’s First Counsellor, and have been ever since he was the President of the Twelve—have I a right to prejudice his mind against Daniel? No. I have sworn not to before God. Or have I a right to prejudice his mind against the Twelve? No. Because I am sworn not to, by the most sacred covenants that man can make.

Have the Twelve a right to step in and prejudice the First Presidency against the Seventies? No. If there is a difficulty, it is for the Twelve to settle it, and never tell it and destroy the head against the feet, nor the arm against the eye.

And here some men and women run from Dan to Beersheba breaking their covenants. If I could have my will, they never should step into the Endowment Room again and administer in sacred things, when they take this course. And some women, who think they know everything, go home and abuse their husbands and raise the devil in a man’s family.

I have no allusion to the righteous, the good, the wholesome, pure, and virtuous, but to those it belongs to. What are my feelings? They are—God bless the pure, the righteous, the salt that has not lost its savour.

I have not said anything about our enemies. I care nothing about them.

A single man or woman in this kingdom may do a great deal of harm, if they are so inclined. If you put up a barrel of good, sweet meat and a little piece of tainted meat, not larger than a peach, in the centre of it, it will not be three months before the whole barrel of meat will be spoiled, if you do not clean out the lump of bad meat that has lost its saving principles. So wicked men and women in a Ward or in a Quorum can do much mischief. They inoculate death in the community.

Paul, in speaking of the tongue, says, “It sets on fire the whole course of nature.” It inoculates hell into the people. A sister comes into your house, and you think she is almost an angel, she can smile so sweetly. Do you not know that the Devil can smile just as well as a Saint? You cannot know persons only as they are proved.

God bless you and this whole people in the east, west, south, and north. My prayer is—God bless these valleys, and the mountains, and the fountains of life in them.

How good it is to reflect that the day has come in which we have declared our independence. This we have done because the Lord God has said it to his servant Brigham. We are independent of those troops and those poor, miserable, ungodly scoundrels that they call civil officers. What civility, to come here to preside over us with 2,000 troops! With them it is, “God damn the Mormons—God damn Brigham Young. We will kill him and Heber C. Kimball, and we will seduce and debauch every woman in the City of Salt Lake.” The Lord has said to brother Brigham, “Say to them, before all Israel, in my name, They cannot come in here.”

I am glad and can shout, Hallelujah! Praise be to the name of our God! And peace be to that man or woman that steps forward and sustains the weight in this operation. And that man or woman who revolts against the Priesthood of God and takes the opposite course, may God Almighty curse them, that they may go to hell, where they belong. These are my feelings.

I am thankful this is a goodly land. I never was in a better. I appreciate it, and I appreciate these mountains and valleys, and the red men of the forest. May God bless them, and, let the old Nephite Prophets and Patriarchs and servants of God stir them up and turn their hearts to the house of Israel in these Valleys, and he will do it; and the United States cannot buy them. God Almighty has got them by the bit. What?—Israel? Yes. Although they are as a wild horse, he can lead them the same as you can a tame one.

We shall prosper; we shall prevail with all those who cleave to the Church and kingdom of God; only do as you are told, and you need not trouble. See how the Lord is watering the earth. It will be wet down three or four feet, and he will continue to do it, and it will be like a pool of living water; and he will cause the earth to produce, and we shall be blessed, and God will sustain us; and he will sustain those that sustain his people.

Instead of sending out two, three, or five thousand men, let us pick out a thousand, and they will stand against the United States. If God is with us, who can prevail against us? Why do not the women go to work and make up hats and caps for their husbands, and help them, and not suffer them to spend three dollars for a hat for a child three years’ old? Let us make our own knives and forks, and everything else that we use; and let every man be diligent at home or in his shop about his employment.

Brother Brigham says the soldiers cannot come here. Then we should say the same. He says they will be confused. Let us all pray that they may. Be kind to each other, and take good care of everything in your possession. Do not waste anything, nor abuse your horses. A man that is abusive to his animal is apt to be the same to his wife or child. There is nothing in the spirit of love that will kill or destroy unnecessarily—nothing that will lie or oppress, for that comes from the spirit of destruction.

The spirit of hypocrisy professes to be my friend to-day, and then tomorrow will go and speak against me. This should not be among us. Let us go to from this time henceforth and be one, and God will bless us. When you go visiting your neighbours, preach these things to them, and speak the truth continually, and lie not.

I go visiting sometimes. I was out on a visit yesterday. You invite me to visit and talk; but half the family will go to cooking the night before, and cook all day until supper time, and then they are too full to talk or hear, and we start home before the rest of the family has anything to eat; and they cook up everything they have, or expect to have for a year to come, figuratively speaking. I would rather have a piece of bread and go into the kanyon with one or two of the brethren and talk about the things of God.

Last Monday, the Congress of the United States commenced its session, and no doubt they will remember us. I want you should pray for them. Pray for the President of the United States; pray for the Senate and the House of Representatives; pray for the Speakers of each house, and pray for all men in authority, especially those who are opposed to Israel and who are planning for our destruction. I want you to pray good prayers for them, that they may fall into the dilemma they want to put us in. You need not pray anything more than that; for, I swear to you, they will get a bellyfull.

The members of the Legislature here will assemble to-morrow morning, at ten o’clock, with our Governor at our head. It is the best legislative body there is upon the face of the earth, because they hold the Priesthood, and there is no person there only those who hold it—the leading men of Israel. Pray for that Assembly. There are forty-nine men of us—the representatives of this whole Territory, to make laws for the government and protection of the people. But when those men have made a law, our Governor can veto it in a moment. He is the head of the department to make laws to protect, sustain, and uphold the kingdom of God in all the world. If a law is made to protect me, it equally protects you and your wife and children. Now, I want to know if there is a man or, woman here who is not interested in that? I mention this that you may pray that they may make laws such as the Lord would approve, if he was here himself. Those who feel in favour that our Governor continue, and to uphold and sustain him, with the Legislature and everything else that is good, rise up on your feet.

[The whole congregation arose.]

God bless you, and bless our Governor, with everything connected to him. Amen.

Enmity of Sectarian Priests Towards the Saints, etc.

Heber C. Kimball

Remarks by President Heber C. Kimball, made in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, Sunday afternoon, December 20, 1857. Reported by Leo Hawkins.

We have had some most excellent instructions from brother Wells; and inasmuch as this people take heed and then practise them, we, of all people now upon the face of this earth, or that ever were upon the earth, are the greatest and most blessed, or shall be. As he, said, it is for each of us to live our religion individually. I cannot live your religion; I cannot perform your services; I cannot pray—that is, I cannot perform your prayers. I can pray for you, but I cannot perform your duties: it is impossible for me to do that. It is just as impossible for me to do that as to go to your separate houses—say some three or four thousand houses, and get your breakfasts for you, and attend to other domestic duties that you should perform each one for yourselves, individually and collectively. Do you not see that that would cause me to be much more active than any man could be in the flesh?

I merely bring this up as an illustration. I cannot live your religion any more than I can go to your houses and get your breakfasts and then eat them for you. One of those things is just as nonsensical to me as the other. I merely bring that up as a comparison, and not for the purpose of creating laughter or levity. The reason I am led to refer to some of the most simple ideas is, that I may be able to come at the capacity of the most simple person, and then I am sure that all above that can understand.

We are here in the mountains a thousand miles from the Christian world—that is, the portion of the Christian world that we have come from, even the United States. I suppose there are as many as one or two hundred, and perhaps three hundred different Christian denominations; and every one of them differs, and every one of them is at variance one with the other; and every one of them, although they are at variance with one another, were all agreed in killing or in consenting to the death of Joseph Smith, either directly or indirectly.

I do not suppose there are any of the clergy of the present day, though there may be a few score, but what rejoiced the moment they heard that Joseph Smith’s blood was shed. “Thank God,” said they, “that we are liberated from that impostor, Joe Smith, who has caused us so much trouble and alarm.” ‘Thank God, I say, that we are delivered from that Christian nation. Deliver me from their Christianity and from them.

It is the priests of the day who incite the people to anger against us, and the men that stand in authority are tied up in their feelings on account of the priests of the day; and of all the ungodly beings that God ever made, the priests of the present day are the most ungodly, and I know it; and they are the mainspring of all the mischief pertaining to this earth, as they are under the influence of the Devil; and, secondly, the editors, lawyers, and doctors, as they are under the influence of the priests. Thank the Lord God that we are a thousand miles from any of them and all of them. They cannot get here with steamboats, nor with ships, nor with railroads, nor with lightning-rods: but we have a lightning-rod or electric power that gives us intelligence. Our President knows their acts, and he can foresee future things, and he knows their evil designs; and he will have greater foreknowledge from this time forth, if this people will concentrate their faith and exertions; and if they do not, he will; and he will forestall and thwart them, and they can never trouble us to any great effect. Why? Because we are calculating to do right.

Am I not thankful that we are here in the tops of the mountains, a thousand miles from everybody, right in the centre of America, in the chambers of the Lord? And God has led us here. They have killed Joseph, Hyrum, David, and Parley, four of the Prophets and Apostles; and they have killed and destroyed thousands of men, women, and children; and they have rejoiced at it—they have exulted at it—the priests in the pulpit and the whole nation. Well, who cares? I will tell you one thing, brethren: If this people will live and do as they are told, I do not care what course they take—I do not care how many ditches they dig, nor how many snares they lay—as the Lord God liveth, our enemies shall fall into the snares they prepare for us.

[The congregation responded—“Amen.”]

And it shall be visible to this people—as visible to them as it is that the sun ever sets out of our sight or ever rises again, or that water runs or grass grows; and they shall be a standing miracle before this people, from this time forth.

Now, I will prove these things upon natural principles. This kingdom, this Church, this people are his servants. Our Governor is God’s servant, and he will stand, and we never shall be ruled over by any of them again—never, no never, while we live faithful and keep the commandments of God and do as we are told, every man, woman, and child.

Arise and shine, for the light and glory of God is on you, if you will accept of it. It is upon us, and it is with us, and it is around us, and it is about us. What shall we do? Sit down now and begin to cry, this man saying—“I have got no hat, no cap, no pantaloons, no shirt, nor garments?” Sit down and cry about it, will you? Sit down and cry about it, sister, because you have not a dress nor bonnet, and many other things? Sit down and cry about it!

If you had taken a judicious course with your cotton yarn, and, instead of making rag carpets, had made some shirts and garments, it would have been to your interest; and if, instead of putting your wool into carpets, you had put it into dresses and blankets, it would have been to your interest. You have used much of your yarn in making carpets, and I would not give shucks for the whole of them.

I can tell you how to make a skirt or a quilt. You know you all have to have a bed-quilt, puckered up into a quilt. Take your rags—the little square pieces, oblong pieces, and all other kinds of shapes, and sew them together until you get enough to make both sides, the same as you would a quilt, and then take the cotton that was in the old one and put it into the new one, instead of throwing it away. Would it not look well? I will tell you it would look like Joseph’s coat.

You need not laugh about it: it was no dishonour to him. They put it on him, thinking, probably, that it was a disgrace to him; but it was not: it was only fulfilling the word which was predicted of him. Would it be a disgrace to you? No. That woman who will take that course honours herself, her husband, and this people, and sets an example that is worthy of imitation.

Take those pieces and keep at work until you make a full garment of them, and then let us go to work as a people, as far as we have it in our power; and raise sheep, instead of killing and destroying them. Raise flax. I have not heard much of this flax raising. There has been a great deal of flax raised to procure seed to make linseed oil, but there has been none made; and there is, if it has not been disposed of, some three or four hundred bushels of flax seed in the Tithing Store. I have never heard of much being raised for any other purpose but for the seed. Perhaps some persons have dressed a little, but I have not heard much about it.

Brother Lorin Farr came up to see me a few evenings ago, and he said he had raised a crop of flax. It was not thought to be much; but he went to work with his men and gathered it and rotted it, and he has dressed it, and has got over one hundred pounds of beautiful flax, as good flax as he ever saw in the States, and good lint on it, better than he ever knew there.

How much will that hundred pounds of flax make when dressed? It will make about 125 yards of good cloth. A pound will make more than a yard.

After the flax is dressed and swingled, a woman takes it and hetchels it, and takes out the coarsest of the tow; then she hetchels it again, and gets another quality, not quite so coarse; then she hetchels it the third time, and that is fine. She will take that and make fine, beautiful linen, nice enough for any man to wear for the bosom of his shirt; and the rest she makes into table-cloths, towels, shirts, and good dresses, handsome enough for any lady.

When I married my wife, she was a spinner of both wool and flax, and wore woollen dresses for winter and linen for summer, and never put on a calico dress except to go to meeting, nor fine shoes. She would wear her coarse shoes until she got to the meeting-house, and then she would change her shoes.

You may laugh at it, but I have seen it hundreds of times with as good women as you have got and as good women as ever lived. That is novel to a great many people, but I have seen these things.

I am telling some of these simple things, if you have a mind to call them so; or you may call them simple things that are seen in the latter days, that no person knows anything about—mysteries. That is a mystery that I have seen with my own eyes, and so have many who are in this congregation.

Women would come from Victor, a distance of three miles, to the town of Meriden, New York, where I lived; and I have seen them walk barefooted, until they came near where I lived, and then they would put on their white stockings and shoes to go into meeting; and when they came out of meeting and had passed off a little out of sight, they would pull off their shoes and stockings and go home barefooted, for the purpose of saving their fine shoes and the stockings which they had spun and knit out of flax. I am telling what I have seen and what I know.

A good many women are now in this Church who were brought up in that manner, and never were allowed to go to extravagance as people do now in many things.

Take a course to accumulate; return back, in regard to these matters, as it was in the beginning of our lives, to make our own clothing, our own shoes, and our own leather, and raise our own peaches and apples, cattle and horses, and everything else.

Now, do I not take a course to do this? I have not raised any flax yet, but I am going to try it the coming year, if I can find a man who understands it. Perhaps my gardener knows how to break flax; and I have three wives who know how to spin it, and they can teach the rest.

I am going to have a home manufacturing school in my family, and I am going to take those who understand this branch of business to teach the rest; and if there is one that is a dressmaker I will have her teach the rest to make their own dresses, knit their own stockings, and make their own caps and bonnets; and make the clothes for their own children, and let the beauty thereof be the workmanship of their own hand, according to the design God gave us; and if we take that course as a people, we are blessed above all other people upon the earth, and we shall eventually be a free people, an independent people.

I will tell you the day of our separation has come, and we are a free and an independent people, isolated a thousand miles from the Christian nation; and thanks be to our God for ever. And we are the people of God, and this is the dwelling of King Emanuel, in—these mountains, and he will gather all nations unto us—those that will be gathered; and those who will not, he will compel them.

The day has come when the people have got to bow the knee to God and pay tribute to him, every man and woman on this earth.

In regard to these matters, we should commence at home in our own families, by our own firesides. Let the improvement commence there, and then increase. It will not be long before we shall all be amalgamated into one spirit. These are my feelings.

Brother Hunter, our presiding Bishop, has to deal with these matters—home manufactures; for, in reality, it pertains to the calling of Bishops to deal in temporal affairs, to enable us to become an independent nation.

I am satisfied that we shall have a good season for crops the coming year, if we are faithful. But it will depend on our goodness, faithfulness, and oneness. I have told you a great many times that our faithfulness and goodness and oneness would have an effect upon the crops. It will have an effect upon our stock, and upon the earth, the air, the mountains, the valleys; and that is not all: it will extend to the uttermost parts of the earth. There is not a branch that belongs to this kingdom but will feel the power. I know that by experience, by knowledge, and by intelligence.

You cannot now find an Elder among the nations, even one who is in the uttermost parts of the earth, if he could speak, but what would say, “Brother Brigham, do you want me to come home?” He has not received the word directly from him, and will stick and hang until he gets the word; but he feels as though he wanted to come home. They feel it to the ends of the earth.

How does the earth feel, when righteous men and women are walking upon it, ploughing it, hoeing it, watering it, blessing it! I will tell you the earth feels it, and every part of the earth that is attached to it. It has power in it. Let us go to work and be an independent people.

Am I glad that that mountain is between us and the merchants? Yes, I am glad of it; for as long as we can get those stores to come in here, we shall buy those rotten goods.

I will tell you some facts. If those things that I have told you are facts, I will tell some more. I have, in this valley, bought individuals of my own family a dress every month in the year, and at the last winding-up scene they told me they had not a dress that was fit to wear. They would not last hardly as long as you were making them, the things we buy in the stores are so rotten. They have rotted on the shelves, and they have bought them for about one-quarter their worth, and put a price on them that should have been if they had been good articles. I know it by my own experience.

How long will a good linen dress last you? Did any of you ever wear one? We never saw anything else, much, worn in the country, in the summer season, in a farming country. I never had a broadcloth garment, that I recollect, till after I became a member of this Church. I wore woollen home-made in the winter, of our own make, that my mother and sister spun; and in the summer I wore tow pantaloons and a tow frock.

I remember very well when I had the first fine shirt. I went and bought six yards to make me two shirts, just previous to my getting me a wife, and my sister Abigail made it up. Take a good linen dress, and it will last a good and a careful woman two years, if not three; and then you may take a good woollen dress and put it upon a good woman, an honest woman, a clean woman, and a careful woman, and it will last her five years—I mean in the season of it. I presume there are hundreds of women here that would rise up and say, “That’s a fact.”

Well, as brother Lorenzo was speaking last Sunday, (I put it into his mouth when he was talking about brother Brigham’s family and mine,) I do not believe there are many families in these valleys that are more industrious at home than our families are. Take them in general, I do not believe there are any families in these mountains that make as many yards of homespun as they do. Our women have got, almost universally, two good woollen dresses apiece. I know that those two woollen dresses will wear out thirty calico dresses such as we buy here.

Just see what brother Brigham’s family has done. I am going to talk about our families. They have got good dresses which we have purchased for them. Is it right for them to wear them? Yes; they are just as worthy to wear them as any other women in this town. I say, Wear them out. Wear your bonnets and everything else, and make them last just as long as you can, and take good care of your domestic things, flannel, and everything else.

In our city there are a great many poor women—I am aware of that; and they will be eternally poor, for they waste everything they can get hold of; and they are nasty and filthy, for I see them dragging their dresses behind them; and though they are so poor that they cannot get up in the morning and wash their faces and hands before breakfast, yet they have got about eighteen or twenty inches of their dresses dragging in the mud. Now, you look, when you go out of this meeting, and see if you do not see several of them.

I am now talking about home manufactures. But if that is home manufacturing. I do not want that part. I am going to get rid of that. I cannot believe in it. I was speaking to a lady, the other day, about long dresses; and said she, “That’s the fashion Queen Victoria established.”

Said I, What has Queen Victoria to do over here? She had better get religion before she comes to set an example for our ladies, dragging their dresses in the mud. Well, they said she established it because she had such a big, squatty foot. You make a great deal worse squat than she does, dragging your clothes through the mud. Brother Lorenzo spoke of it, and I told him it belonged to the Bishop. It was his duty to lecture on this point.

My advice to you is, when you go home, tuck up that dress or cut it off.

I remarked to brother Lorenzo, a few days ago, when it was tremendously muddy, and a woman was walking through the mud, with her dress whopping over, and then stretching out, and then whopping over on the other side. You follow that woman home, and you will find that she has muddied her foot clear up to her legs. I am talking about the ridiculousness of such things; and if I can get you so ashamed that you will not come to meeting again with such long dresses, I shall be glad.

I can recollect, when I was a young man, I used to go with the ladies; and when they came to a mud-hole, they would catch up their dresses and trip over. I like to see it. Say I, That is a decent woman; she is nice and clean.

Let us go to work and do as we are told. I will do it, as the Lord helps me. I shall go to with my might and begin to accumulate my own living, by the help of the Lord God and my brethren. And will this whole people do likewise, raise their own grain, their potatoes, and build good houses, and make themselves comfortable?

We shall live in peace, if we will only do right and take this course. And if we do not take it and have to go into the mountains, we have got to make our own clothing. I can take a little wheel on my back and a bundle of flax under my arms, and we can drive our sheep into the mountains, and my women can get into a tent and go to spinning. How nice that would look—sitting in the door of the tent, spinning. It would look a great deal better than it does to see them taking a course to bring distress upon this people, depending on the world for their rotten stuffs.

God bless you, brethren. God bless you, sisters, and make you happy and comfortable in your habitations, and your habitations all little heavens, and be in heaven at home and abroad; and let every one be diligent in doing good. Amen.

Blessings of the Saints, Etc.

Wilford Woodruff

A discourse by Elder Wilford Woodruff, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, Sunday morning, December 27, 1857. Reported by J. V. Long.

It seems to fall to my lot to occupy a few moments this morning; and I feel to say that this is a blessed place, and that this is a blessed people, and that they are partaking of a great many blessed things.

If the Latter-day Saints could prize and comprehend the blessings that are given unto them, and if our minds were enlightened continually by the Holy Spirit, we should feel ourselves blest and comprehend that we are made partakers of the greatest blessings which the Lord imparts unto the children of men—I may say far greater than the rest of our fellow-creatures who now inhabit this earth.

The Lord says, Whosoever are quickened by a portion of the celestial spirit and abide a celestial law, they shall inherit a celestial glory; whosoever are quickened by a terrestrial spirit shall inherit a terrestrial glory. I realize this, and consider that the Lord has revealed unto us the celestial law; that is, he has given unto us the fulness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and has given us a knowledge of the principles of eternal life. The Lord reveals truth unto the children of men; by which truth we are to be qualified and prepared for exaltation. Truth has been presented in its simplicity, so that it might be comprehended by the sons of men.

As I reflect this morning upon the condition of the human family, and consider how differently we are situated from the masses of mankind, I do feel that we ought to be grateful to our great Benefactor. There are millions of the human family who assemble in various houses, in cathedrals, churches, and chapels for the purpose of worshipping God; but is there one of those numerous congregations who come together with an understanding of the truth, except there be some Latter-day Saint Elder who is called to preach to the inhabitants of the earth? Do they come together understanding the principles of the same Gospel, the same plan of salvation, the Gospel of Jesus Christ, in a way and manner to make them one?

Now, God could not make a people one with so many kinds of faith and such a multiplicity of doctrines, diametrically opposed to each other, as exist in the world. But we are a blessed people: we have the principles of union and oneness with us; and by carrying them out, they bind us together and make us one.

It is upon this principle that the Latter-day Saints are blest and made free. We are delivered in a great measure from those troubles and perplexities, false doctrines, the darkness, the error, and superstition by which our minds have been beclouded, until the light has made manifest unto the children of men that they were in darkness; for this was the case with us all. Until the light came, we were grovelling in the dark, in a great measure. Though we might be honest, and we might be actuated by the best and holiest feelings, yet, until the fulness of the Gospel was revealed the world were like the blind groping for the wall. We had no Apostles—no Prophets; we had no inspired men to rise up and tell us what to do to be saved; and we had to go through with all that trouble, misery, and darkness to which the children of men are subject while living under false doctrines, false traditions, and false teachers.

I have frequently remarked in my life, and I was sincere in the sentiment in saying that I would rather take a six months’ tour in the Penitentiary than to go through with a six months’ conviction and conversion in the sectarian world, according to their order of doing business. Let any man go through the ordeal of six months’ conviction and conversion in the Presbyterian Church, and then be made acquainted with the true plan of salvation, and he will feel about as I do upon the subject.

Read the history of any man, and read his experience in the religious world, and you will find that it is worse, as far as the affliction of the soul is concerned, than as long a time in the Penitentiary. We will take a Presbyterian revival. A man is called by the sectarian excitement to get religion. He goes to the clergy—I do not care whether it is in a synod or in any other place; but suppose that he has a great desire to seek after the plan and principles of salvation, and he applies to the clergy, they will tell him like this—You must surrender yourself to the Lord. He goes to work to pray and fast, and he is faithful and diligent in trying to give his heart to the Lord; but he is still in trouble, and he goes to the priest and informs him of his situation; and the priest tells him all the time—You must give your heart unto God; you must be willing, to be damned and to suffer all things for the sake of Christ. The minister still pleads with him to submit himself to God; but he does not tell him the first step which he ought to take in order to have his sins forgiven and obtain salvation, but tells him continually that he must do it—that he must give his heart to God. The result is that the man mourns and weeps, and by-and-by he thinks that he has committed the unpardonable sin, and he gets so that he thinks it is the worst sin that he can commit to pray when going through these feelings and this trial.

I have read the history of many strong-minded men; and besides this, I know my own history and experience: I know the way the children of men suffer in attempting to give their hearts unto God; and, as I have said, as far as the feelings of the children of men are concerned, it would not be grieving their feelings any more in bearing the reproach of their neighbours to be sent to prison for crime, than some men have endured in getting religion.

What is the reason of all this? It is because they have not the same law—because there is not any man inspired to rise up and teach them the way to be saved—no Apostle to teach the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Now, in the midst of these trials and tribulations, many of you can remember how many nights and days you have spent in suffering and distress, trying to give your hearts to God. And when you have been called into the circle of ministers, have they not called upon you again and again to come to the anxious bench and get religion? I can well remember it, although I never joined any church at all until I joined the Latter-day Saints; but yet I attended meetings, and I have been called upon day after day and night after night to give my heart to God, so much so that I would get mad to be told to do a thing so many times that I was all the time trying to do; for I had a desire to do that which was right, but did not know how to take the first step; and those who taught could not tell me how.

Now, had there been an Apostle there to have said, “Go and repent, be baptised for the remission of your sins, and then I will lay my hands upon you that you may receive the Holy Ghost, which will lead and guide you into all truth; it will enlighten your mind in relation to the principles of eternal life, and it will show you things past, present, and to come;” how easy this would have been, providing a man inspired of God had been there.

In relation to these things, this people are truly blest; but the world are in worse darkness than they were before Joseph Smith received revelation from heaven. They have gone into thicker darkness, for the Gospel has been offered to the children of men—to the most of the Christian nations during the last twenty-five years, and in a great measure they have rejected it; but before the light came to them they did not know what to do, for the world were bound up in ignorance, darkness, and by false traditions, false principles, and false teachers who gave unto the children of men their erroneous opinions for doctrines of salvation.

We are liberated from these things: the cloud of darkness is taken from us, and the light of eternal truth has begun to shine upon our minds.

Some of this assembly have embraced this Gospel in foreign countries, and many of us in this our native land; and now we have all come together to hear preaching, exhortation, and receive instruction in the things of God and we have come expecting to hear the truth; and in this we have not been disappointed, for we do hear the truth from this stand. We have been taught the pure principles of virtue and righteousness by the servants of God.

The knowledge we have received has taken from us those troubles of mind and soul and those distressing feelings which were occasioned by those false doctrines and traditions that were implanted in our minds in early life, and that have caused us so much suffering in days that are gone. Then, I say, it is a great blessing that God has given unto us the celestial law—the principles of the Gospel that will lead to celestial glory and eternal lives.

The Lord has for years past been continually revealing the simple principles that will bring us back into the presence of our heavenly Father, and which will give unto us a place in his celestial kingdom, if we abide a celestial law.

We can all see the effects of the establishment of the Church and kingdom of God upon the earth, and we perceive that the effects of the Gospel are very different from false tradition and from sectarian absurdities that deluge the world. The requirement is that men shall abide the celestial law of God, in order that they may be quickened by that power and be united by those principles with the Apostles, and Prophets, and all those beings who have been quickened by it in ages that are gone, and dwell in the light and presence of God, and be for ever in the society of the city of Enoch and our brethren who have gone before us, and who have been made perfect by the same Gospel which we have received.

If we were to go into the celestial world, we should then be actuated by the spirit that predominates there, and have continually with us those principles by which we should be governed. We have got to possess the same spirit and principles in this world, and we have got to abide a celestial law here, and be united upon the principle that unites the people of God who dwell in his presence, in order to get the same glory that they enjoy.

These are the principles that are taught us from day to day, and we must learn to carry them out, and we must lay aside our selfishness and all false principles that we have imbibed and that have been taught us from our infancy, in order that we may obtain the blessings and power of God.

It is different with us from what it is and will be with the children of this people. As one of the old Prophets said, speaking of the gathering in the last days, when they would come together, wake up from their drowsiness, get to understand principle, and see their true position, they will say, “Surely our fathers have inherited lies and things wherein there is no profit.” And it is truly so; for we can already say that our fathers have inherited lies, and we have inherited many of their traditions.

Until we heard the fulness of the Gospel, we were filled with traditions and false doctrines; and the teachers of the day did not instruct men to walk in the same path, but they were continually teaching something that would divide men in their feelings, and that would produce as many different creeds and schisms as there were sects in the world; and hence we have all the evils attendant upon that course of life.

This puts me in mind of a circumstance that happened when I was preaching in Kentucky. I preached upon the first principles of the Gospel, and at the close of my discourse I gave the privilege for any one to ask questions or to make remarks, if they felt so disposed. A gentleman arose, and I noticed that a great many of the congregation began to laugh; and I afterwards learned that the gentleman was an infidel, and hence the congregation were disposed to make fun of him. He said, “I will not detain you long, but I wish to state to this large congregation that Mr. Woodruff has taught me more this evening than I ever learned in my whole life before. From my boyhood I have been searching into religion; and when I have asked a minister in relation to the way of life, he would point me to the way he was walking himself; then I would ask another, and he would point out a different way; and I might have asked a hundred, and they would all have pointed out a different road, and they would tell me that I must be born again. I observed men who were said to be born again, and one class of men who were said to be born again would take one way, and another would take quite a different road; and I always marvelled at this, for I did not see any sense in men taking different roads to lead to the kingdom of heaven. But now this man, Mr. Woodruff, has told me the truth, and shown me the reason they took so many different roads after they were born again; and the reason is, because they were all born BLIND.”

This in reality is the case, for many of us have been born again according to the traditions of our fathers; but those that keep the celestial law and obey the principles of the Gospel of Christ, you never find them taking different roads. There is but one right road, and it is a straightforward one; and the principles and rules that govern you in that path are simple and easy to be understood. This is the path for us to walk in, and I consider that we are greatly blessed in having learned the true way and in being delivered from that yoke of bondage that has chained us down with error, false doctrine, and false teachers.

This I count one of the greatest blessings that God has given to the children of men, to have the plain truth pointed out to them. You look at the religions of the day, and see their confusion and the mystery that hangs around them: you may present the truth to them as plainly as you can, and so simply that an intelligent child might understand, and still they cannot comprehend it. You ask a man among them about the character of God, and about his attributes, and what can he tell you? They will preach about God, about the Son, and the Holy Ghost, long sermons, to prove that those three personages are one; and when they get through, they know nothing about it, and conclude it is a great mystery.

Where is the man or woman that comprehended anything about God or about eternity until Joseph Smith revealed the fulness of the Gospel? I could read of those things in the Bible which we now believe in and receive; but I was surrounded by the traditions of the world and could not comprehend them.

We are now taught, from time to time, the plain principles of the Gospel of Jesus Christ—the plan of salvation—the way to live in order to have the approbation of our Father in heaven. Is not this a blessing above all blessings? If this people could comprehend their blessings, they never need have an unhappy moment. If this people could comprehend the position they stand in and their true relationship to God, they would feel perfectly satisfied, and they would realize that our heavenly Father is merciful unto us, and that he has bestowed great and glorious blessings upon us.

When we consider that we can come into this Tabernacle and sing, pray, preach, exhort, and bless, and that there is no sheriff standing at our doors with writs to arrest us, we may consider these things as blessings from the hands of the Almighty; for they are such.

As brother Brigham, brother Heber, and many others have said, there is not a man that is capable of entering into the celestial kingdom of God who is not willing to receive the instructions of his brethren and abide the law of God. There is not a man in this kingdom, who has got the right spirit within him, but who thanks God for the mountains and for the five hundred miles of sage plains that lie between us and the homes of our enemies,

The hand of God has been visible in bringing us here, and it has been visible with us all the time, as far as we have taken the counsel that has been given us. These are truths that cannot be disputed.

I feel comfortable and truly thankful in my mind for the blessings bestowed upon us, and I feel to, pray that we as a people may increase in the knowledge of God and of the laws of his kingdom, and in the knowledge of all those principles that lead to glory, to exaltation, and, eternal lives, and that will lead us back to our Father in heaven. The troubles of the children of men are very numerous, but a great many of them are borrowed. I believe two-thirds of the troubles of men are borrowed. It appears to be a natural gift, or it seems natural to us to borrow trouble; and it is a good deal so with our blessings: we look forward to some future time when we are going to enjoy great and glorious blessings, but our blessings are at the present time. This is the time that we should enjoy the blessings that God has given us. We should rejoice to-day, and be happy to-day, and feel to thank the Lord for the blessings that he has put into our hands; and as to borrowing troubles, we should let them all pass; for it is sufficient for us to pass through troubles and trials when they are upon us; and if we pursue this course, we may escape a great many imaginary, trying, and perplexing scenes.

Many of us have expected trouble this winter from enemies; and it did appear as if trouble was inevitable, to look at things naturally. We may look at things as they may approach us next summer, and we may expect that our enemies will seek to destroy us; and in fact I do not doubt but that it is now in the hearts of the children of men to concoct schemes for our destruction; for we know they desire to have this people blotted out of existence. They have not the Spirit of God, but they are in worse than midnight darkness; and the consequence is, they do not delight or desire to see anybody live upon the earth who will serve God and carry out his purposes. They are afraid of the power of true religion and of the consequences that must necessarily arise; and hence they feel to say in their hearts, There shall not a kingdom be upon the earth that belongs to God.

This is the feeling of our enemies; for they are stirred up by Satan to root out every principle of righteousness and truth from the earth. Can they do this? No, they never can. Why not? Because God reigns, governs, and controls the ship of Zion, and he has established the principles of eternal truth upon the earth, and they do dwell in the hearts of the children of men, and they will bring forth fruit to the honour and glory of God. We do know and understand that this kingdom will not be given to another people; for it is established with a promise never to be given to another people: but, with the light of the Holy Spirit, we shall subdue our enemies and overcome every obstacle. It is our duty to be continually increasing in faith, that we may be enabled to call upon the Lord with acceptance, and that we may stay our enemies and hedge up their way; and let us pray for them, and let us continue to believe that, if we do as we are told, we can accomplish whatever we are united upon; and be assured that the Spirit of God will not lead us to unite upon anything that is evil.

We know it is right to establish a kingdom of God upon the earth, and we know it is right to establish in the hearts of men the principles of life and salvation which God has revealed through Joseph the Prophet.

If we will do our duty and listen to those that are set to lead us, we shall find that the hand of God will be over us for our good, and it will be against those that are planning for our destruction; and God will strengthen and uphold this people until the day comes for the kingdom of God to spread itself abroad, and until the law of God is issued forth from Zion. We shall find that this will be the case; and inasmuch as we have these privileges and this faith, as Saints of the Most High, we should prize them and lay hold of them with one united heart, and not consider that the battle is to the strong or the race to the swift; for the Lord holds the destinies of all, and we are in his hands.

I do feel thankful to see the spirit of peace and the spirit of cleansing here at home. I am thankful that I see the time when wicked men do not delight to dwell here in Utah, and I do feel that the righteousness, the conduct, and the acts of this people in general will be such that it will be a hot place for wicked men.

It is our duty to live in this manner so that we can ferret out iniquity wherever it exists. Men that come here to seek for our gold and silver find that it is now too hot for them. The day has now come that they cannot bear the burning heat of Zion, and I am glad of it; and I also hope that we may still increase, for there is still room for more improvement. We speak of improvement, and truly there has been a great improvement in the midst of this people; but there is still room for great advancement to be made, for many of us are still a long way short of being prepared for the celestial kingdom and of having the reward promised to celestial and exalted beings.

There is great room for every man to labour and to improve his life, that he may be prepared to meet our Father in heaven and to enjoy the same glory that those participate in who are heirs to the celestial kingdom of God. Notwithstanding these things are before us, I fear that we do not sufficiently appreciate them; but we must learn to so order our lives that we shall be ready at any moment to respond to any and every call that may be made upon us.

We feel at home here, and we feel that this is the place for us; and my constant prayer to God is that we may not only enjoy, but that we may prize the privileges that are afforded us—prize the day that we live in, and the City of Great Salt Lake where we dwell.

Those who have been here for years past do not realize the difference that there is between this place and the world; but I can tell you that, with the wicked, it is one continual scene of blasphemy and of every species of wickedness that is calculated to lead the mind down to death and to lead men and women from the way of life, and from the holy Gospel of Jesus Christ, and from everything that is calculated to produce holiness and purity in the human mind.

The power that predominates here has a tendency to lead us in the path of virtue and rectitude and to unite us together: it will lead us to obey the law of heaven and to carry out those principles that we are taught day by day. In this way we can do right and have the approbation of our heavenly Father; and then he will preserve us from all our enemies, whether they be few or many; and though the whole world be arrayed against us, the Lord will as sure preserve us and make a little one a great nation as he delivered Israel out of Egyptian bondage; and this kingdom will become, as Daniel has seen it, a great mountain, and fill the whole earth.

These and all the blessings and promises which he has given will be fulfilled in their time and in their season; which may the Lord grant for Christ’s sake. Amen.

Providence, etc.

Brigham Young

A discourse by President Brigham Young, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, December 27, 1857. Reported by G. D. Watt.

It is a great privilege to know the way of life and salvation, and to know how to walk therein; yet we are still, more or less, under the traditions of our fathers: they are woven around us as a garment in which we are clothed.

It would be a great blessing for a people to be brought to actually realize that all they can comprehend—all they can see with their eyes, hear with their ears, or understand with their hearts, is the creation of God, from the mighty globes that roll in the immensity of space to the smallest mote that helps to compose this world. It would also be a great blessing for a people to really understand that the eye of the Lord is upon all his works—that nothing escapes his notice, and that all is composed, organized, and brought forth for the glory, benefit, and use of intelligent beings. There is no true enjoyment in life—nothing that can be a blessing to an individual or to a community, but what is ordained of God to bless his people. If we could at all times strictly realize this, do you not think that God would be continually in all our thoughts? Could we but behold and realize the handiwork of the Lord in all his doings, and that he has created and ordained everything for the benefit of his creatures, would not that bring us to sense, realize, and understand the hand of the Lord in all things? In consequence of the darkness and traditions that have been over us, many look upon things, acts, and blessings, not knowing whether they flow from the Lord or proceed from some other power.

Who would be deprived of the blessing of sight or of hearing? What amount of money would hire an individual to part with those senses? The light of the sun to cheer the face of nature—to light up the path that we may walk safely therein without stumbling, who would be deprived of? Who gave it to us? Who gave us affection? Who has ordained the passions of the mind and the body, which constitute the soul? Who should control them? To whom should they be devoted? If the vail of the covering that is over us and the nations of the earth were so removed that we could behold the glory, the excellency, the beauty of the attributes that are dispensed by the children of men—for they are appointed by the Lord who has ordained all these things—would not God be in all our thoughts?

We are now blessed with the privilege of coming to that understanding of being taught and of teaching ourselves to come into subjection to the celestial law of Christ, so that every passion, every sensation, and faculty that God has bestowed upon us may be devoted to his glory, to our advancement in knowledge, to our perfection in this probation, and to a preparation for perfection in his celestial kingdom. This is a blessing indeed! In the course of life there are many of our thoughts, words, and acts that appear to be of minor consequence—so much so, that we would hardly consider that the Lord would notice them, and are apt to forget that he watches every movement of his creatures, to know whether they appreciate their gifts and blessings which flow from him, or whether they treat them as a thing of naught.

We have the privilege, while the majority of the inhabitants of the earth are deprived of it, of learning the ways of God. He is in the acts, and directs and guides all the affairs of this world, and we have the privilege of understanding his ways in so doing. We have the privilege of learning the principles that pertain to God and godliness. We have the privilege of learning the weakness ignorance, blindness, and all the evils that sin has brought upon the children of men—of so understanding correct principles that we can discern the things that are of God and the things that are not of him and of learning the great wisdom displayed by the Almighty in causing intelligent beings to dwell in a sinful world.

Brother Woodruff, in his remarks, alluded to the priests of the so-called Christian world. Were you to summon the priests of the day, not only those that consider themselves full of wisdom, but also those from the heathen nations, (and there are hundreds of thousands, and, probably, millions that are performing the labour of officiating as messengers from a superior or supreme Being to enlighten the minds of the children of men and instruct them in things pertaining to eternity, to lead their minds, as they say, from sin and the power of darkness,) you would at once learn that there is not knowledge enough among them all to give you the correct reason why God suffered sin and blindness to enter into this world. That knowledge has not been upon the earth for centuries, until the Lord revealed it through the Prophet Joseph Smith—at least not to our knowledge, and we have a pretty good understanding of this world and its inhabitants. There are but very few places in the north, south, east, or west, on the islands or on the continents, that are inhabited by intelligent beings, but what have been penetrated. Missionaries have visited them and men of learning and scientific research; and they have not only learned the geography, but have actually sounded the intelligence of the inhabitants of the whole globe, so far as we yet know, going from west to east, and in the south and north as, far as man can penetrate; and among them all, aside from the revelations in our day, there is not knowledge enough to tell you why God suffered sin to come into the world. You have been told the reason why—that all intelligence must prove facts by their opposite.

No organized beings are prepared to become associated with or crowned, heirs in the celestial kingdom, until they have passed through these ordeals and have drank of the bitter cup to the dregs, so that they know and understand good from evil. There was not knowledge enough in the whole world to tell even that, until it was again revealed through Joseph the Prophet. The very best of them would marvel why God suffered Lucifer or the serpent to tempt mother Eve. That always has been a great mystery to the world, and is to this day, with the exception of the knowledge that has gone forth from the Lord through his Prophet Joseph, and then through the Elders of Israel, who have plainly taught many doctrines that were previously a perfect mystery to the people, though they have now adopted many of them into their faith; but they will not give us credit for them.

Before the Gospel revealed the introduction of sin to this planet, it was a great marvel even to the most learned, and they would ask, “Why was it so?—is it not strange?” and would rest with the expression, “It was suffered to be so.” While reasoning or familiarly conversing with one another, let the question be asked, “Why was Eve suffered to partake of the forbidden fruit?” and the invariable reply was, “I cannot answer that question: it seems that it was so, and it appears to be a great pity.” That is all the knowledge there is in the world on that point. The starting-point they have not learned, that no intelligent being could be exalted with the Gods without being subjected to the temptation of sin; that he might know and understand the power of the adversary, the opposite to goodness; for it is written that “There must needs be an opposition in all things.” The world have not yet learned that simple truth.

I remember hearing a debate between brother Alfred Cordon, one of our Elders, and a sectarian priest, when I was in England; and I presume there were a score or two of priests ready to put questions and answers, into the mouth of their speaker. They expected to be able to use up the Book of Mormon upon the point of Adam’s partaking of the forbidden fruit from the hand of Eve; but the answer that the woman was found in the transgression, and not the man, came so, quickly that it hushed them up at once, so that they could not argue further. Brother Orson Pratt whispered to brother. Cordon the answer. Many of even these my sisters who are before me to-day have seen the wisdom that is in the Christian, world, while they have been, conversing with their former priests, and, have answered some little question that was a perfect mystery to a priest—a little question which they understood, and the priest did not, and have seen the priests thrown completely off their guard, become dizzy in their heads, and unable to continue the conversation. It is written in this Bible that the woman was found in the transgression, and not the man; and that plain doctrine has baffled all the learning of the priests.

We have the privilege of coming to understanding—of knowing that everything in heaven, on earth, and in hell is ordained for the benefit, advantage, and exaltation of intelligent beings; therefore there is nothing that is out of the pale of our faith. There is nothing, I may say, good or bad, light or darkness, truth or error, but what is to be controlled by intelligent beings; and we should learn how to take into our possession every blessing and every privilege that God has put within our reach, and know how to use our time, our talents, and all our acts for the advancement of his kingdom upon the earth. These principles are hid from all other people in the world; but we have the privilege of learning them. We should apply our hearts to wisdom and learn the things of God.

The Lord asks a question, through the Prophet Amos, “Shall there be evil in a city, and the Lord hath not done it?” Is there anything that passes with the children of men that the Lord does not control to his glory? That is what the Lord wants every man and woman to understand. If there is good, the Lord is there to dictate it. If there is power, has he not power over all the power there is upon the face of the earth? If there is evil, if there is sorrow, if there is trouble, if there are, trials for his people, is he not there to dictate those sorrows and troubles? All that passes, upon the earth is under his eye; he dictates in the affairs of nations. If a mighty king and kingdom are raised up upon any portion of the earth, the Lord has done it And when a mighty nation crumbles in its power, the Lord has touched their pride and strength. He raises and casts down; he dictates in the light and in the darkness, at his pleasure; he makes the thick darkness his chariot and rides upon the clouds; and he is also the brightness of the sun. We have the privilege of learning that God dictates, controls, and manages all to his own glory.

With many, even in this Church, the question arises, “If God dictates all these affairs, to whom shall sin be attributed? Am I to blame, if God always dictates and controls?” You should keep before you, as Latter-day Saints, other principles besides those you may be able to hear or read at any one time. No man can tell you everything in one short discourse. You understand that you have organizations endowed with a certain portion of divine intelligence, which is supreme, absolute, and independent in its sphere. You are organized expressly for the purpose of being exalted, of preserving your identity before the Lord, and being prepared to enter into celestial glory, to be crowned, to receive kingdoms, thrones, and dominions—to design and act as do the Gods. These principles you are well acquainted with, and they should be continually before you. All intelligent beings are also endowed with certain inalienable rights, privileges, and powers inherent in them. When God organized intelligent beings, he organized them as independent beings to a certain extent, as he is himself. And whether we see an evil act or a good one performed by an intelligent being, that being has performed the act by his will, by his own independent organization, which is capable of doing good or evil, of choosing light or darkness, of performing that which will promote life, or that which will promote death, or a dissolution of his organization. Then, without the evils being placed before us, we should not be capable of refusing it; without darkness had come into the earth, we should never have learned how to appreciate the light. Then all the family of Adam and Eve would have been mere machines, as a portion of the inhabitants of the earth profess to believe that God has foreordained all the acts of the children of men from all eternity, and that they are obliged to act as they do. But we have learned that in our organization we are as independent as the angels are in theirs, or as any heavenly being that dwells in eternity.

If a nation transgresses wholesome laws and oppresses any of its citizens or another nation, until the cup of its iniquity is full, through acts that are perfectly under its own control, God will hurl those who are in authority from their power, and they will be forgotten; and he will take another people, though poor and despised, a hiss and a by-word among the popular nations, and instil into them power and wisdom; and they will increase and prosper, until they in turn become a great nation on the earth. God does that; and all within our power, that we have any understanding of, is ordained for the use, benefit, and control of his intelligent creatures.

You remember that a year ago this people were in the height of what they called a reformation. You also well recollect my teachings and my feelings upon the subject, and that to my mind the necessity for a reformation among Latter-day Saints was a disgrace, and beneath our calling; for it belongs to sinners and the ungodly, and not to Saints, to be getting up a reformation, though continually improving belongs to the calling of every Saint. Suffice it to say, there has been a great improvement in the midst of this people. A great many have confessed their sins; but much fewer have forsaken them. I would that all had forsaken their sins, their transgressions, their wickedness in every particular, and followed their iniquitous ways no longer; but such is not the fact: there has been more confessing than forsaking. This winter brings a new scene before us. Many of the brethren have been deprived of the privilege of labouring at home during the past fall: they have been in the cold and storms, and have but lately returned. For about two weeks past it has been, “Brother Brigham, may we have a dance in our Ward? Brother Brigham, may I get up a party for my Quorum?” Bishop Hunter will come and say, “Several Bishops have written to me to ask you whether their Wards may have a dance, or a few parties?” But I do not believe that there is a single Bishop, or President of a Stake, or President of any of the Seventies or of the High Priests, or any officer of this Church and kingdom, who has, during that time, asked me whether they could have the privilege of serving God with all their hearts.

In a word, here is the difficulty: Many of my brethren and sisters who are now before me believe, to this day, if they were to go into a room prepared for music and dancing, they have stepped aside from serving God, and are serving somebody else. I have answered all Bishops and all Presidents and all this people, with regard to their dancing, that I am willing that those who live their religion every day, hour, and minute of their lives to the glory of God shall dance all they wish to; but I have not yet given my consent for any other class to do so, and I want you all to understand it. If your minds have been wrought up by too much anxiety—if you have had wakeful hours when you ought to have been asleep, in consequence of the threatened danger and troubles—if you have been afflicted in spirit, and your minds are worn down, which they can be, so long as they are connected with the body, which is apt to wear out, reasonable recreation may be beneficial. The mind, being inseparably connected with this body, becomes tired: I acknowledge that mine does. I sometimes feel that I have not a pound of strength left, just from sitting and thinking. You may judge whether there has been a labour upon me, when you reflect that I realize that God holds me responsible for the salvation and safety of this people. You hold me responsible, every one of you, as standing between you and God, to guide you safely—to dictate and direct the affairs of this Church and kingdom; and then you may judge whether my mind labours or not. My mind becomes tired, and so do your minds, if you are Saints.

The mind of a man who is wholly devoted to the Church and kingdom of God on the earth is powerfully exercised, and he feels all that I can, in proportion to his standing and calling. The minds of such men are exercised from morning until morning again, and they labour more unhealthily than a person does at mowing or chopping wood, and their minds become weary. What do they need? A little relaxation. If you want to dance and rest your minds, dance. But a man or woman that intends, when they go into a room prepared for music and dancing, to serve the Devil a little while, I would to God that they would go to California, where they may serve the Devil all they desire to.

I would rather have a hundred righteous men with whom to face all hell, and the world at its back, than to have all this great community, unless they serve the Lord.

Those who cannot serve God with a pure heart in the dance should not dance; though dancing is not an ordinance, except we say it is an ordinance of folly and weakness. I have not the privilege of going to the kanyon to chop and load wood and logs. I do not go to the joiner’s bench, as I used to, and toil until my body is nearly wearied to death. But my mind is from eternity to eternity—from the beginning of the creation to the end thereof: it is not confined to the length of a twelve-foot board.

My mind becomes tired, and perhaps some of yours do. If so, go and exercise your bodies, and thank God, and say that it is a blessing and a privilege that he has given you for his name’s glory and for your benefit and the advancement of the righteous, the holy, the godly, those who have kept their covenants with their God and with one another.

If you wish to dance, dance; and you are just as much prepared for a prayer meeting after dancing as ever you were, if you are Saints. If you desire to ask God for anything, you are as well prepared to do so in the dance as in any other place, if you are Saints. Are your eyes open to know that everything in the earth, in hell, or in heaven, is ordained for the use of intelligent beings?

It is like words in the wind to talk about the sweetness of the honeycomb to those who have not tasted the opposite. You may talk about the glory and comfort of the light to those who never knew darkness, and what do they know about it? Nothing. You might as well preach to those lamps. If we can realize that everything in all the eternities that ever were and ever will be is ordained of God for the benefit and glory of intelligent beings, we can understand why he said to Joseph, “Against none is my anger kindled, only those who do not acknowledge my hand in all things.” Do I acknowledge his hand? Yes. I told you in your afflictions, drivings, persecutions, and all that has been grievous to be borne, that the hand of God was in that as much as it was in bringing forth his revelations and the Priesthood through Joseph. I will acknowledge the hand of God, not only when our Government is arrayed against this little handful of people, but also when the whole world take the same stand. I am going to acknowledge the hand of God every time.

The wicked kick at “Mormonism,” but they will find it somewhat like the old man’s stone wall that he built five feet high and six feet thick, to prevent the boys from stealing his apples; and when the boys in their anger tipped it over, behold it was higher than it was before. So with “Mormonism:” every time they give it a kick, it rises in the scale of power and influence in the world. I am also going to acknowledge the hand of the Lord when I see the day, and I pray that I may, when I can say, Let our Elders pass and repass peaceably, or I will attend to you: let them preach the Gospel, as you do others; and if you can put them down by the Scriptures—by good, sound philosophy and argument, then give no heed to their teachings; but do not mob them, or I will attend to your injustice. I want to see that day. [Many voices, Amen!] And I will acknowledge the hand of God the same as I do in the way he has handled the crowd that has lately come into our Territory.

We here enjoy a goodly share of the common blessings of life; and you see a body of men and women filled with intelligence, and yet you see and hear of some persons who cannot control themselves. God has so ordained that you may learn to control yourselves and work righteousness. It is ordained that you may prove yourselves worthy of every principle and power that are in the Gods to control in eternity.

The principle of pure affection is the gift of God, and it is for us to learn to control it and exercise proper dominion over it; and if we are faithful, we shall see the time when we can say, as our Father in heaven says, I am angry with the wicked; I hate their works, and my anger is kindled against them. Is there any malice or wrath there? No; for it is written that the Lord is angry, but sins not. And one of his servants, learning something about this principle, writes to his brethren, “Be ye angry and sin not;” but it would be a sin to take a course to destroy that which is calculated for good. If you sin not, it is in destroying the evil works, and saving that portion that is ordained for exaltation: that is being angry and sinning not.

We ought to control our passions. God has given us judgment and discretion. Every qualification of man is ordained of God, as well as good and evil. Light and darkness are here; the power of God and the power of the enemy are here. It is for us to bring into right subjection every act of our lives and all around us. It is for us to see the hand of God and acknowledge it in all things.

If you want to dance, run a footrace, pitch quoits, or play at ball, do it, and exercise your bodies, and let your minds rest.

The blessings of food, sleep, and social enjoyment are ordained of God for his glory and our benefit, and it is for us to learn to use them and not abuse them, that his kingdom may advance on the earth, and we advance in it. That is our errand in the world, and we have no business but to build up the kingdom of God, and preserve it and ourselves in it. Whether it is ploughing, sowing, harvesting, building, going into the kanyons, or whatever it is we do, it is all within the pale of the kingdom of God, to forward his cause on the earth, to redeem and build up his Zion, and prepare ourselves, that when the Lord shall usher in the morning of rest we may enter into our labours to officiate for our dead friends back to Adam.

All that have lived or will live on this earth will have the privilege of receiving the Gospel. They will have Apostles, Prophets, and ministers there, as we have here, to guide them in the ways of truth and righteousness, and lead them back to God. All will have a chance for salvation and eternal life. What do you think of that Gospel? No one will be denied the privilege of having it. Where is there a sectarian that can tell you anything about the power of the Gospel?

Brethren and sisters, if you have understood my mind with regard to your recreations, I am happy. But understand that there is not a man or woman professing to be in this Church and kingdom that has any liberty to drink to excess, to lie, deceive, cheat, steal, or do anything that is wrong; and those who do such things have not my sanction to join the others in the dance. There are some who practise stealing to this day—who are dishonest, and will lie; and such persons have not my consent to participate in dancing.

Those that have kept their covenants and served their God, if they wish to exercise themselves in any way, to rest their minds and tire their bodies, go and enjoy yourselves in the dance, and let God be in all your thoughts in this as in all other things, and he will bless you; and I bless you all, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Self-Government, etc.

Orson Hyde

A sermon by Elder Orson Hyde, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, January 3, 1858. Reported by G. D. Watt.

Brethren and sisters, it has fallen to my lot this morning to speak unto you a short time as I may be led by the Spirit of the Lord our God. It is very natural for me, when I arise to address a congregation, to speak pretty energetically and pretty loudly also. This you all know that are acquainted with me and that have heard me speak. I like to hear an energetic speaker; but one who speaks very loud is apt to injure himself. When I have spoken too loudly, I have done injustice to myself and probably to the congregation. I shall endeavour, the Lord being my helper, to modulate my voice according to the Spirit of God that I may have when speaking, and not go beyond it, neither fall short. At the same time, I do not want my mind so trammelled as brother Parley P. Pratt’s once was, when dancing was first introduced into Nauvoo among the Saints. I observed brother Parley standing in the figure, and he was making no motion particularly, only up and down. Says I, “Brother Parley, why don’t you move forward?” Says he, “When I think which way I am going, I forget the step; and when I think of the step, I forget which way to go.”

I desire that I may watch myself, that while I may be thinking what to say, I may not allow my voice to range unchecked or uncontrolled; and while I may seek to govern my voice, I hope not to be forgetful of matter for your edification.

The principle of government among the Saints is the most important principle that there is for us to understand. If we apply it to individual capacity, it is the most important to us as individuals, not only in the government of the hand and arm, which are greater members than the tongue, but in the government of the tongue also. The tongue, though a very small member, is of all importance, which we readily concede. And if we can govern the tongue, we may be considered qualified to rule; for the tongue, though a small member, sets on fire the course of nature, and is too often set on fire of hell.

It is the tongue that causes the evils that exist in the world; it is the tongue that sets nations at war; it is the tongue that causes broils in the domestic circle; it is the tongue that causes the fire of animosity and ill-will to burn in our midst. If we can succeed in governing the tongue according to the mind and will of God, we have got peace in our families, peace in our neighbourhoods, peace in our community, and, what is more than all, we have peace with our God; for he that offendeth not in word, the same is a perfect man. Show me a perfect man that does not have peace with his God, and you will show me something I never saw or heard of. If we can govern the tongue, we are prepared then to enter upon the government of other matters; but I think we shall have plenty to do, at least for the present, to govern our tongues, even the best that are under the sound of my voice; for there is no person but that sometimes speaks unadvisedly with his lips—but that sometimes lets off an improper word; for the tongue or mouth is merely the valve of the heart—the place where the sentiments are discharged that have been confined in the heart, and that is the true index to the real inner man. Hence, “By thy words thou shalt be justified, and by them thou shalt be condemned.” Who of us this morning can say that we have not offended in word, even this morning? Can we say that we have not offended in word since the new year of 1858 began? 1857 is gone by; 1858 is now before us. Have we offended in word since this year began?—for I am sure that you all prayed that, with the close of the year, your sins might be canceled and swept away into the gulf of forgetfulness, that they be brought against you no more. Then I trust that you have entered upon the new year with a clean page—turned over a new leaf. Is there a spot or blemish upon that new page thus far until now? Have none of us offended in word? If we have not, so far we are perfect, and able also to bridle the whole body. This will do then, perhaps, for the regulation and control of the tongue.

There are other matters that I may be led to speak upon in relation to the government of the Saints as a body. By what law shall we be governed? By what rule are we to be controlled and managed? By the laws and powers of this world, or by the laws and powers of the world to come? We form a very important link in the chain of existence. We are occupying a very important place at the present time, and we are called upon to set an example. We are called upon to be the pioneers of a work that shall be everlasting. To be sure, we are but weak and feeble; yet we are the strongest of all people on the earth, if we have the God of heaven to be our helper; and we have him, if we offend not in word—if we can govern the tongue,

It is said there are a great many imperfections among us as a people. Grant it. At the same time, it is said we are the best people on earth, and the only friends God has. Admit this to be so. We may not be so pure friends as he might desire, but we are the best there are; and if he suffers us to be cut off, he will have none left of any kind. This is verily so.

We know that if we want a certain work done, we select the most proper individual for that job. If he is not so good as we could wish, we take the best we have and use that individual. So the Almighty, if he cannot have a people exactly to his liking, I do not know but that he will take the best there is, and manage and get along with them according to the wisdom he possesses.

Now, in relation to the Constitution of the United States, I want to speak a few words. There is a great deal of sacredness attached to the Constitution of the United States by this people: that is all right and good. The Constitution is well enough, and and so is anything that serves the purpose for which it was created, provided that purpose be a good one. It was designed and created with a good intention. If it serves the purpose and end of its creation, it is good; and when it has served the end of its creation, the purpose and design of the Almighty are accomplished, and I do not know that he has any more particular use for it. He may then lay it aside as a relic to be respected and honoured for the good it has done, for aught I know.

It is said that brother Joseph in his lifetime declared that the Elders of this Church should step forth at a particular time when the Constitution should be in danger, and rescue it, and save it. This may be so; but I do not recollect that he said exactly so. I believe he said something like this—that the time would come when the Constitution and the country would be in danger of an overthrow; and said he, If the Constitution be saved at all, it will be by the Elders of this Church. I believe this is about the language, as nearly as I can recollect it.

The question is whether it will be saved at all, or not. I do not know that it matters to us whether it is or not: the Lord will provide for and take care of his people, if we do every duty, and fear and honour him, and keep his commandments; and he will not leave us without a Constitution. There is none of you will dispute that the Temple of Solomon was built by the inspiration of the Almighty, and it was built to answer a certain purpose and design: it was built by the skill, wisdom, ingenuity, and strength of man, aided by the inspiration of the Almighty. It was a beautiful structure, and excited the admiration of all people. Even the Queen of the South came to behold the wondrous works of Solomon and his wisdom, and declared that the half had not been told her.

The edifice stood for centuries, though it had become somewhat like the boy’s jack-knife, which had had three new blades and two new handles. In the days of our Saviour, the disciples were very anxious to show him the magnificence of that building. “Master,” said they, “see what stones! Look at the grandeur, sublimity, strength, and skill displayed in the erection of this building!” I see it all; but I tell you one thing, and it is near at hand, when there shall not be left one stone upon another that shall not be thrown down. “You come out against this temple!” The Jews thought the Saviour was a blasphemer when he said he would destroy this temple, and in three days he would raise it up again. “What! are you going to destroy this sacred place that was built by the inspiration of the Almighty?” They supposed he referred to the temple built by Solomon; but instead of that, he referred to the temple of his own body.

This shows how the Jews viewed their temple, and the importance they attached to it. They considered it as a most sacred place, and this is why they misunderstood the Saviour and considered him a blasphemer for presuming to speak against the temple. You discover that the Saviour says, There shall not be left here one stone upon another that shall not be thrown down.

Why must this temple be razed to the foundation? Because it has answered the purpose of its erection; and another thing it has been so grossly polluted that it has incurred the displeasure of the Almighty, and he will not see so noble a structure defiled and remain in the midst of the Jews to be used as a den of thieves, instead of a house of prayer. The Lord went to work to purify it, and took a whip of small cords, and went in and cast out them that bought and sold, and overthrew the tables of the money-changers, and the seats of them that sold doves, and made quite an uproar in the midst of the Jews. Still they would resort there. There was the place where they would buy and sell, despite the reproof the Saviour had given them. Then said he, There shall not be left one stone upon another that shall not be thrown down. It is useless to endeavour to purify and cleanse it, because it has been made the theatre of so much corruption and hypocrisy. I will sweep it out of existence, and utterly destroy it.

Just so with the Constitution of the United States. It was framed by the inspiration of the Almighty, we readily grant. It has served a certain purpose—been a partial shield to the Church in its infancy, or it has been a check upon mobocracy that otherwise would have risen against it. It has not been a protection exactly, but a check; and the Almighty saw fit to bring forth his work under this Constitution. It has served and fulfilled its purpose. Now, look at the disgraceful roguery practised under that Constitution. There cannot be an election of a President without bribery, betraying, and buying and selling votes. Under the Constitution there are all kinds of trade, traffic, and commerce carried on in a political view. The Constitution now serves but little purpose other than a cloak for political gamblers, merchants, and hucksters.

The Almighty looks down from heaven and sees it impossible to save the Constitution, to perpetuate it, and cleanse and purify it; for the wickedness of the people is determined to sweep it out of the way. Although it was framed by his wisdom and skill, and his power and goodness, yet with as much cheerfulness will it be overthrown as it was ever erected or framed. I presume that Titus, the Roman Emperor, when he entered Jerusalem, when he overthrew the temple and the city, was inspired by the Devil as much to do it, as perhaps, Solomon was by the Lord to build it, or those that did build it, because it had fulfilled its day and its work, and had become corrupted and impure, and was the place in which corruption was practised; and he would sweep it away. It is sometimes the case that in a city where a house of ill fame is kept, the people will turn out and demolish the house. It is not because they have an antipathy against the house, but because it was the cover in which abominations were practised, and they will not bear it, and they turn out once in a while and tear down the house. We do not suppose the Almighty had anything against the temple; but it was a place of resort for corrupt characters, and he was determined to dispense with them by destroying their haunts of iniquity. We do not suppose the Almighty has anything against the Constitution; but it serves as a kind of cover under which corrupt characters hide themselves and attempt to carry on all kinds of barter and traffic in relation to politics; and the Almighty is determined to uncover and expose them.

What Constitution shall we be governed by, when unprincipled men have destroyed the Constitution of our Union? I will tell you what we shall have: while we walk in the favour of God, we shall have a Constitution. The Constitution written in the Bible? No. In the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, or Book of Mormon? No. What kind shall we have, then? The Constitution that God will give us. Do you suppose that Joseph Smith was permitted to be killed because the Almighty had anything against him? No. But he wanted the ungodly that rejected his testimony to fill up the cup of their iniquity; and hence they were permitted to take away his life, after he had accomplished the work he came to accomplish, and not before; they could not touch him before he had done the work he was sent to do—before he had laid the foundation of this kingdom. And when that was completed, he might be taken from the troubles of this world, that the ungodly might have the opportunity of filling up the cup of their iniquity. The blood of Joseph and Hyrum was shed—mingled too with the blood of brother Taylor, who survived, and who is here a living witness to the facts that occurred in connection with their death. Has the nation atoned for that blood? No. Have they offered to do it? They never have. But if one poor scamp should happen to be killed in this country, in this region, the whole of the United States are ready to fly to arms to avenge the blood of that individual, that never was worth the powder and lead to kill him. But the Prophets of God that are inspired of the Almighty to do a work for the benefit of the human family can be killed, and no man lay it to heart. Oh, it is all very well: to be sure, it was an outrageous deed to murder them when they were in the hands of the law—when they were held as prisoners; it was a horrid act: at the same time, we are glad it is done. That is the feeling, and the universal feeling almost throughout the United States. There was hardly a man, woman, or child that did not assent to the death of Joseph and Hyrum, but objected to the way in which it was done. “It is not exactly honourable or pleasing, but we are glad of it anyhow.” That is the sentiment of the nation, and by that very sentiment they have drawn upon themselves the anger of God; and that blood has to be atoned for, and it has to be atoned for upon all those that have said, We are glad of it!—that have secretly said so and cherished that idea. It will extend to them all who have consented to the death of the Prophet of God.

Now, says the Lord, “To him that overcometh will I give power over the nations.” Did Joseph Smith overcome, even unto death? Yes. Was God with him? Yes, he was. When they were about to cut off his head, behold, the power of the Almighty came down, and the men stood as it were like marble statues: they could not move, but stood there like Lot’s wife—not pillars of salt, but pillars of petrified corruption. The power of the Almighty came down with the vivid glare of lightning’s flash, and they had no power to take his head off. Was God with him? Yes. Was his death glorious? Yes. What was his glory? One portion of it is—“To him that overcometh will I give power over the nations.” A portion of his honour and glory will be to enforce his word and see it take effect among the people and nation that have said, We are glad that he is killed! They cannot avoid it by going through death. They will have to be arraigned under the government and jurisdiction of their murdered victims.

When we pass a law in the Legislature, and say that it is the law by our acts, we also say that all laws and parts of laws conflicting herewith are repealed from this time henceforth. When Joseph takes his position, all laws and parts of laws that shall conflict at all with him are hereby repealed, and his word and his law will be the end of strifes. There is no dodging it, and I feel thankful for it. Well, brethren and sisters, let it be our happy lot and our ambition so to live before our God and our superiors that have gone before us, that they may take pleasure in saying to us, “Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things.” I tell you, Joseph holds the keys, and none of us can get into the celestial kingdom without passing by him. We have not got rid of him, but he stands there as the sentinel, holding the keys of the kingdom of God; and there are many of them beside him. I tell you, if we get past those who have mingled with us, and know us best, and have a right to know us best, probably we can pass all other sentinels as far as it is necessary, or as far as we may desire. But I tell you, the pinch will be with those that have mingled with us, stood next to us, weighed our spirits, tried us, and proven us: there will be a pinch, in my view, to get past them. The others, perhaps, will say, If brother Joseph is satisfied with you, you may pass. If it is all right with him, it is all right with me. Then if Joseph shall say to a man, or if brother Brigham say to a man, I forgive you your sins, “Whosoever sins ye remit they are remitted unto them;” if you who have suffered and felt the weight of transgression—if you have generosity enough to forgive the sinner, I will forgive him: you cannot have more generosity than I have. I have given you power to forgive sins, and when the Lord gives a gift, he does not take it back again. When he bestows a power, he does not diminish it, unless it is through transgression in the individual to whom this authority is given; but if he increases in righteousness, the Lord will add to it, instead of taking away. We see the position that brother Joseph stands in; we see that he has overcome, and that he has power over the nation. Now, brethren and sisters, don’t you think that brother Joseph feels for this people—feels an interest for us? Has he overcome, or has he not? We all say yes, he has, by the word of the Lord, by the truth of heaven, and by the word of his testimony. He has laid down his life for his brethren; and greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. He has overcome? Yes. Then has he power over the nation? Yes. Then he loves this people, does he? Yes. Does he love that people that killed him? No: he feels towards them as the Lord does, who is angry with the wicked every day, yet he does not sin. What shall he do with them? Break them to pieces as a potter’s vessel. Then the love that he has for this people and the anger that he feels towards the ungodly will be seen and felt by all classes; and if he has power over the nation, will he not exert it? He is armed with this power, which is reason sufficient why he should exert it in favour of his friends. Then we have no reason to fear.

When a man overcomes, he has power over the nation. I tell you we have no reason to fear, if we are friends to that individual.

They thought, if they could kill Joseph and Hyrum, they would get the ascendancy, and that it would be an end of “Mormonism.”

Do you not see that every means they devised for their own safety is so many steps towards their overthrow? They could not have struck a more fatal blow for themselves than when they murdered Joseph and Hyrum, because it made them rulers over their enemies; and by this bloody act they sealed, nailed, and clenched their own doom, and there is now no possible chance of deliverance.

It is just so with our enemies at this time: if they let us alone, we will prosper; and if they don’t, we will prosper the faster and bring them under subjection the sooner. That is just the way our heavenly Father will overrule it, if we live to his honour and glory.

Now, we have the living law. The voice of brother Brigham is heard from day to day and from time to time, and also the voices of his Counsellors, who are to him as Aaron and Hur were to Moses, lifting up his hands in the midst of the congregation, and sustaining and upholding him while his voice pours out the mind and will of God unto us. That is the law by which we are governed; and if we abide it, we have no need to transcend our Constitutional rights. In that we are safe, if we will honour and abide by it; and it is the only safe law and protecting power that will shield and screen us in the day of adversity and trial.

As Joseph stood to the people in his day, so do brother Brigham and his Counsellors stand to the people in our day. Now, then, provided we can secure the favour, friendship, and goodwill of them that hold the keys of the kingdom in our day, it will be all right. Suppose some of us did really sin and transgress in the days of Joseph, in our darkness and ignorance, in our stupidity and blindness, and grieve the Holy Spirit and the spirit of Joseph: he is dead and we are living; and by-and-by brother Brigham comes up before Joseph. “Well,” says Joseph, “How did those ones get along in your day? Have they improved any? Have they done right even in your day, and secured your confidence and goodwill?” “Oh, yes,” says brother Brigham; “they have done well in my day. We have had no trouble with them: they have kept my word.” Says Joseph, “If you can speak in their favour, I will not interpose any objections.”

It is for us, brethren and sisters, to secure the goodwill of those that hold the keys of the kingdom here. We do not care what they think outside of us. We ask no odds of them: they may think what they please. If we can only get the goodwill, faith, and love of our brethren that preside over us, we shall not need the encomiums of the ungodly.

If we can get the goodwill of them that preside over us in our day, they will speak a good word for us. If you, Bishops, have a man in your Wards that has been refractory and is put under your jurisdiction, the President calls upon you and asks, “How does that man get along? First rate: he is easily governed and controlled.” Says the President, “I am glad to hear it; I am glad he is getting along so well, and hope and trust he will continue to do so: he has my goodwill.” If we can secure the friendship, goodwill, and confidence of those who preside over us, and merit it, (mark you, and we shall not get it without we do,) the fact is, it will be their pleasure to speak a good word to Joseph for us, and also to others that have gone before. Is there a Bishop under the sound of my voice now that would not esteem it a pleasure to bear testimony in favour of a man for his good conduct, if he had been rebellious and had reformed under his administration? No. Let us remember these things, brethren.

The men that God has placed in our midst let us sustain like the two counsellors of Moses, Aaron, and Hur, who held up the hand of Moses. Let us honour that word that comes from the Prophet of God. He holds the keys of the kingdom. He is the true successor of Joseph, and he will have power over the nation, either in life or in death: it is immaterial to him. When brother Brigham goes and joins with Joseph, it will be said, “Oh, we are one, just as we always were; and here come his Counsellors: they are one, and they increase the strength and power of the Priesthood beyond the vail. It is for us to uphold these men in every condition.

Do we ever eat a meal of victuals without asking God to bless it? We do not, if we do right; for we ought to have grateful hearts all the time, and ask God to bless every gift he bestows upon us, and thank him for it. And when we pray, can we pray without remembering the power that bears us up? If I were going to climb upon a scaffold, and I thought it weak, I would strengthen it before I ventured upon it. I do not want to venture upon it unless I know it is strong. If I put forth my powers in behalf of it and strengthen it, then I know it is strong. If I never pray for that power, and feel no interest in it, I will never venture upon it. But if I have an interest there, I will strengthen that power; and when I do, I can venture on it.

The Presidency are like an arch with a keystone in the top of it. The greater weight you put upon it, the stronger it is. It is sometimes the case that the arch falls, but it is when no weight is upon it; but when you put a hundred thousand pounds weight upon it, it is better bound together and stands the more firmly. So, if we sustain that power by our prayers and faith, we may put everything on it—not everything for them to do, we do not mean, but the weight of responsibility in dictating the affairs of the kingdom. We may trust them with safety and confidence, because we have contributed to make the butments permanent and strong, and now we may venture with assurance.

The grand secret we shall find to be, when we get through, that these are gods unto us, and there are millions of them beside; but they have but little to do with us. It is the power that is next to us that we have to do with more particularly—the power under whose jurisdiction we are immediately brought.

Some think they can run by their Bishops and disrespect their authority. They may think, “Only let me make it fair with the President, and it will be all right; I have the sanction of the highest authority.” You might have the sanction of the head; but if the head had no feet to stand on, that sanction would not be of much worth.

Just so, we should seek to have the sanction of those that are immediately over us by our upright conduct. How can we love those whom we do not see once a month, or once in six months, if we love not our Bishop whom we see daily.

Some men think, if they can have a good name abroad and with the Presidency, all is well. But at home, in our own houses, in our Wards, and with our immediate neighbours are the places to establish our reputation. I tell you, if there is not a good influence in our own neighbourhood, among our own Ward people in our favour, there is not a good influence anywhere for us, except with the reprobate. When you find a man or woman that has a good influence in their own Ward with their own Bishop—a good name with their own neighbours, they have a good name everywhere.

When the rays of light come from the sun, we say they are glorious, just as far as those rays extend. It is the same glory and the same influence, and it is the same power. Just so it is if all is right at home; if we have the respect and confidence of our own domestic fireside friends, we have the respect and confidence of all whose respect is worth possessing.

Some may think, if they can only keep fair weather with their Bishop and neighbours, it is no matter how they live at home, whether they neglect their affairs and quarrel like cats and dogs or not, if they can only pull the wool over the Bishop’s eyes.

If we have a little hell in our own houses, that little hell will be sure to break out. We close the sepulchre, and roll a stone there, and seal it with the seal of State, and confine it just as closely as we please; but the contents will escape. Even so with any family: their conduct will be known, and they cannot suppress it, nor confine it to their own domiciles. Let us have no kind of jars at all: let us make everything right at home, at the real seat of government to begin with.

If they should have a little difficulty among the troops out here in Utah, so far from the seat of Government in Washington, it would have but little effect at head-quarters. But when contention, strife, and war break out in the halls of Congress, it then becomes something; and such kind of difficulty I pray God, in the name of Jesus, to let them have right at home, at the seat of empire, because they have sought to destroy the kingdom of God; and it is the same spirit that moved Herod to slay the infant children. God grant they may be smitten with worms, as was Herod, or anything else that seemeth him good, and defeat their intentions and designs.

If we can make it all right in our families, there is the place of government. Govern the tongue right in our own families. I know it is sometimes the case that a person will see a chance to slip in a word that will cut like a razor. “Oh, that is too good a chance to let slip; therefore I will let fly a word,” and it sets all hell on fire. I speak particularly in relation to some women; but I do not know that it is any more in relation to them than to the men. The woman sees a chance to give the man a keen word that will make him feel; but she sours her own dish by so doing. She turns the sweet into gall, and then is compelled to eat it.

What is the better way? If she sees a chance to inflict a wound by a word that will cut, and she thinks her husband really deserves it, which is the sure way to get a victory? Never say that word! Say the women, “If we can have no protection, shall we say nothing at all?” Let it pass, I tell you; take it mildly; and, by-and-by, says the husband, “I grieved my wife, and gave her just cause of offence. I am sorry for it; she has taken it so meekly, and never has harrassed my feelings. Now, this cuts me ten times worse than if she had said something to balance the matter: then I should not have had this sting in my heart. But to see her take it so mildly without offering one reproach, O my God, how can I forgive myself?”

When you get a victory in that way, it is worth something. It is like getting a victory over our enemies by not firing a gun nor molesting them, only praying for them all the time. By-and-by they will come under conviction, and see all these things, and say, “O my God, can I ever forgive myself? We are whipt, and they have never done a thing.”

You may get a victory over your husbands all the time by praying for them, not exactly as we pray for our friends out yonder; but pray for them, and never do a thing to harm them, and by-and-by you will gain the victory; and I tell you that will count. Try this plan and see.

I do not feel like occupying more of your time. You have my best feelings and prayers, night and day, that God may bless you, and the land for our sake, and that he will clear our coast of enemies, and place a flaming sword to guard the way of the tree of life, that the tree of life in the valley may grow, being watered by the streams from the mountains until it becomes a great tree. This is what I desire and pray for.

May God bless you and our leaders and give us favour in their eyes, that we may grow up under their fostering care, that we may be prepared to act in every place where Providence may guide us, or they in their wisdom place us, and be ready to act well our part from this time henceforth and for ever. Amen.

True Government, Union, and Progress, etc.

George A. Smith

Remarks by Elder George A. Smith, made in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, January 3, 1858. Reported by G. D. Watt.

We have listened to a very interesting course of instructions, which, if treasured up in our hearts and properly practised, must do us all good. It is of the utmost importance to our welfare in the kingdom of the Most High that we commence and learn to govern ourselves; and when this lesson is learned, then we are prepared to govern others. Unless we can govern ourselves, we are unprepared to be governed in the way that the kingdom of God is to be ruled and directed, which is to be upon the principle of common consent. It is not that a majority shall rule, but that the people shall be agreed; and when all the people are agreed as touching any one thing in the kingdom of God, no power can resist it.

The world look upon us as though we were tyrannized over, because they do not know the principles upon which we act. In all our Conferences and Councils, this people should act as a unit, and have done so to a greater extent than any other people that have existed on the earth for a great many centuries. This has astonished even republicans. It is astonishing to many men to think that a people can all be agreed; and I have read professedly learned illustrations of republicanism, which declare that it is attended with great danger for the people all to be united. There is danger of their being united, lest they oppress somebody—that is, themselves.

In conversation, last winter, with ex-Governor Lane, of Oregon, (then a delegate in Congress,) on this principle, I told him of an election which occurred in one of our new counties, where the office of Sheriff was vacant, and by accident there were two candidates and a close contest. He said, “That is an evidence of civilization.”

If every person in a family can learn to be governed, there will be no difficulty in that family. And if every person in a Ward can learn to govern and control themselves, there will be no difficulty in that Ward; for the human mind is so constituted that this principle cannot be learned only by the observance of the principles of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Now, there is no other people upon the face of the earth that could live in these valleys and cultivate and irrigate the soil as we do. They have so little control of their disposition and of their temper, they would kill each other with their hoes over the water ditches. There could not be two, three, or forty owners in a water ditch without fighting. It takes pretty good Saints to get along with water ditches in a dry time, and not quarrel.

When this people live as they should, there will be no disposition in them to quarrel one with another. If anything is wrong, they will be ready to submit that wrong to be made straight by those who understand it better than they do. If any misunderstanding arises, it can easily be adjusted. But, with our views, prejudices, and traditions, we are all the time struggling with ourselves and our own peculiar notions. Every person has in his own brain a series of ideas implanted from early youth, which he considers to be right; and it is a very hard matter for us to relinquish these deeply-implanted traditions, which in nine cases out of ten are not right.

Now, from the early history of this Church, almost every man, every Elder, or member that has undertaken to study or practise law was in a very short time on the high road to apostacy and destruction; and every member of this Church who has undertaken to practise law as a profession has gone neck-and-heels to the Devil. What is the reason of this? They take up the opinions of men that wrote perhaps hundreds of years ago, and lay them down as a standard, drive them down as stakes, and then tie themselves to them, and they are immediately in a peck measure: their minds are contracted to the circumference of a peck measure, and they are a good deal in the condition that a gentleman was, by the name of Silly, who kept a tavern. There was an eminent Presbyterian minister who called on him, by the name of Peck. Silly thought he would joke the minister before the company at the dinner table, and said to him, “Mr. Peck, I believe it takes two pecks to make a half-bushel? “Yes, sir; but it only takes one Silly to make a fool.” So it only just takes one of those “Mormon” lawyers to make a fool.

Instead of taking up the subject as it exists, and enquiring what is right or wrong, they adopt the Gentile mode of undertaking to carry a point, right or wrong; and no Elder of Israel can undertake to carry a point, right or wrong, just or unjust, and stand up and defend injustice, falsehood, and corruption, without losing the Spirit of God; and it only takes one such a man to make a fool.

Trace over the history of apostates, and you will find that in almost every instance they lay down a standard rule—that is to say, “Thus far will we go, and no farther.” For instance, we will take the Bible, Book of Mormon, and Doctrine and Covenants, and say concerning them, They are true—the rule and guide of our faith and practice; they are the law we must abide, and we must go no further; and so their light is blown out. Although these books are true, and there are many good instructions in them, by which we may learn the way of life, yet the very moment we tie ourselves to them and say we will receive nothing more, from that moment our light is extinguished, and we are inside the peck measure.

Go back to the early history of the Christian Church, and you find that the very moment the institutions of Jesus Christ and his Apostles were presented to the world, men began to speculate and philosophize on them, and to distribute them into different parts, and speculate on them, adopting their own wisdom for the wisdom of God. Instead of observing strictly the original principles of salvation, and keeping the light always blazing—keeping the spirit of revelation always burning—keeping the spirit of truth, the lamp of light, and communications from the Almighty continually flowing, they adopted a little of that they had received which suited their vain notions, saying, “We have enough, and upon, this we will build.”

The very moment that revelation to this Church through our Prophet and Presidency ceases to be communicated unto us, and we adopt any series of books, whether the writings of Joseph or the writings of any other man, or all the writings and revelations that ever have been given, and say, This much we receive, and no more; then we are as dead as the lifeless corpse: we cut off the channel of revelation, and the light and the communication between us and eternal happiness; we cut asunder the thread of light, and we are in darkness and adrift at sea, without a compass to guide us, like any other religious denomination. Hence it is that we bear testimony of the fulness of the Gospel and of the Priesthood conferred upon Joseph Smith, and conferred upon our Prophet and President Brigham Young, and all the authorities of Israel in their sphere and in their standing and position.

I know that this Priesthood is true and is the authority by which we can claim and obtain from God this burning light until the day dawn and the day star arise.

Now, if I could not get up here and bear testimony that we are led by the power and instruction of the Spirit of prophecy—by the Spirit of the Almighty—by a Prophet called of God, ordained and chosen to instruct, teach, and lead us, you would never hear my voice in your midst. But that light never can be put out: it is with the Church, and God has set his hand at the present time to establish his kingdom. But unless the Saints will so live and so exert themselves that they can preserve the purity of the holy Priesthood among them, the work will be left to other people.

There is no opportunity for a half-way place: it is impossible. Men may think they can lie a little, blaspheme a little, get drunk a little, or do a thousand other mean things just a little, and yet be the servants of God. But if we would inherit the blessings of the Priesthood—if we would stand in the presence of the Almighty—stand upon Mount Zion and inherit the blessings of a glorious celestial dominion, we have got to be clean: we must cleanse ourselves, put away our follies, and be prepared to stand united.

A great many people have wondered why it was that it was necessary for the Saints to gather together. The fact is, the human mind is so weak—so susceptible of false impressions, that while the people of God were scattered in the nations of the earth, to come in contact with all the corruptions, prejudices, and traditions of the world, it was literally impossible for the human mind to resist these pressures. But by bringing our firebrands from every part of the world, gathering them from every nation, kindred, tongue, and people and placing them together in one mighty heap, and exercising ourselves with diligence to cast out everything that is not right—by doing this we kindle a fire that can never be extinguished.

This is the work of God, and the servants of God that are called to preside over us are the messengers of the Most High, and they have the light and the power. It matters not whether we live to behold it in this life or not, that light will triumph; and all those who live humble and keep the commandments of God will triumph also. This is my testimony. We need not fear the nations of the earth; we need not fear the armies of the Gentiles.

From the very hour that the light began to shine, all the world has been trying to put it out; but the more they try to extinguish it the brighter it will shine; and it will blaze and burn, and it will go forth and will consume out of our midst all those that work iniquity; and Zion will be established in its purity, no more to be thrown down.

It is of no use to be discouraged or alarmed. We may have to sacrifice some of our habits, some of our comforts, and some necessaries; but then it will wake us up to supply our own wants. If our enemies should stop the importation of goods, deprive us of the means of exporting all the gold and silver we can accumulate, we will retain it among ourselves, and turn in and produce for ourselves. The greatest sermon that ever has been preached in these mountains in aid of home manufactures was that preached by General Johnston, when he told the merchants on Black’s Fork that if they undertook to carry their goods to Salt Lake, he would set their trains on fire. If they will keep their traps away, we will produce our own, and then we shall have them, and they will be our own, and we shall be independent, and we will fulfil the commandment given to the Church through Joseph—“Let all thy garments be plain, and their beauty the beauty of the work of thine own hands.”

May God bless us, and enable us to do right in all things, is my prayer, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Blessings of the Saints—Hindrances to Progress, etc.

John Taylor

A discourse by Elder John Taylor, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, Sunday morning, January 17, 1858. Reported by J. V. Long.

I feel that we are all of us in the hands of God, that we are all associated with this kingdom, and that if any people under the face of the heavens can be properly called “the Saints of the Most High,” we are that people. It certainly is a prominent position, a great title, an endearing relationship that we sustain to the the Lord, if we really magnify our calling and honour our God.

When we reflect upon the myriads of human beings that crowd the earth in every nation, country, and clime, and then consider that we are the only people that do really “acknowledge the hand of God in all things; “that we are the only people that God has chosen and selected to place his name among; that we are the only people that can emphatically be called the servants and handmaidens of the Lord; that we are the only people that have a right and claim upon the promises of God; that we are the only people that entertain correct ideas pertaining to our present position and our future destiny; that we are the only people that can stretch back to ages that are past, and look forward to those that are to come, and that can act understandingly in relation to our worship and the ordinances of the house of God, having a knowledge of the past, the present, and the future; that we are the only people under the heavens that have a legitimate right to the promises and blessings of God, whether they relate to this world or that which is to come; thus we are the only people that understand anything about the present position or the cause of the organization of the world and of man, and that understand anything correctly about a preparation for a future state; that we are the only people that know how to save our progenitors, how to save ourselves, and how to save our posterity in the celestial kingdom of God; that we are the people that God has chosen by whom to establish his kingdom and introduce correct principles into the world; and that we in fact are the saviours of the world, if they ever are saved;—when we reflect upon these things, there is something connected with them that is calculated to make our hearts swell with gratitude and thrill with joy; and when we feel the consoling influence of the Spirit of the Most High God resting upon us and round about us, and the visions and glories of the future that we are destined to enjoy are open to our minds, if we are faithful, and the great events that are about to transpire in the last days are manifested to our minds, there is something in them that is calculated to cause us to sing, Hosanna!—hosanna to the Lord God of Hosts!

There is something in these reflections pleasing, enlivening, animating, cheering, and something that is calculated to cause joy and rejoicing in the soul.

If we look abroad in the world, what are their enjoyments and hopes? They say, in effect, “Let us eat and drink, for to-morrow we die.” They say, “Give us gold, give us riches give us honour, and give us the pomp, glory, and glitter of this world! Let us have our day now, for we know very little about the future. Let us enjoy life while we can.” These are their feelings, and hence they riot in every excess and wallow in lasciviousness and debauchery. They corrupt their bodies, debase their minds, and they are not fit receptacles for the Spirit of the living God; nor have they any among them that are capable of teaching them anything about that Spirit; but they are in the dark.

When we reflect upon these things, have we not something to be thankful for? Have we not cause of gratitude to the Most High God? I think we have; and I think, if any people are blessed under the heavens, we are that people; and we may exclaim, as the ancient Israelites used to, “Happy is that people whose God is the Lord.”

It certainly is a lamentable thing, when we come to reflect upon it, to see so many of the human family ignorant and careless, knowing nothing about God—knowing nothing of their origin or destiny. What has the Lord done for us? He has opened the heavens, and has revealed the principles of truth. He has sent his holy angels to communicate unto the children of men the things that are calculated to promote their peace and happiness in time and throughout all eternity. He has given unto us, his people, the holy Priesthood after the order of Melchisedec, which “holds the keys of the mysteries of the revelations of God,” which draws back the curtains of the invisible world, and enables him to penetrate beyond the vail, and discloses the great purposes of Jehovah pertaining to himself and to this world, as they shall roll forth in the accomplishment of his purposes.

What a contrast between this and the religion of the world! This shows man imperfectly at the present, it is true; but it will show him perfectly how to become a saviour—how to redeem this world, which has been overrun with anarchy, destruction, misery, folly, and evils of every kind—how to redeem the world from the curse under which it labours and groans: it will show him how to teach the human family, that they may understand correct principles and be saved in the kingdom of God.

The religion of Jesus Christ will develop the plan of putting down the high-handed power of tyranny and oppression which now pervades the earth, and how to establish the principles of peace, righteousness, and virtue upon the earth, and how to place the world of mankind in that position which God has destined they should occupy when his kingdom shall rule upon the earth, and when “every creature in heaven, on earth, and under the earth shall be heard to say, Blessing, honour, and glory, and power be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb, for ever and ever.”

The germs of this peace are with us; the intelligence concerning these matters has begun to be developed, and there is a communication opened between the heavens and the earth—an unction that dwells with the Gods, an intelligence that governs all worlds and controls all nature, a particle—a spark of Deity straight from the eternal blaze of Jehovah, opening, unfolding, enlightening, and teaching. It emanates from him to the authorities of this Church, and flows through all the ramifications of the Priesthood. That spark from the bosom of Jehovah enabled them to commence that reformation that will redeem a world from the ruins of the fall.

This kingdom and this organization will save all that are governed by its principles, and it is destined by its influence and workings in the world to spread and increase until every knee shall be made to bow and every tongue confess to the glory of the Father.

These principles have begun to be developed among us; and when we live our religion, when we walk according to the light of the Spirit of God, when we purge ourselves from impurity and corruption, and the sweet whisperings of the Spirit of the Lord pours intelligence into our bosoms, broods over us, causing peace and joy to be with us, we have then, more or less, a faint glimpse of those things that are laid up for the faithful; and it is then we feel as though we and all that we have are in the hands of the Lord, and that we are ready to offer ourselves a sacrifice for the accomplishment of his purposes upon the earth.

These are our feelings, and we feel proud of our associations with the Church and kingdom of God. Why is it that our spirits are not always joyous? There may be different reasons. One reason is that we do not always live our religion. We give way to vanity, frivolity, and nonsense too much, and sometimes to dishonesty and fraud; we do things that are not right, and adopt practices that are not good; and when this is the case, the Spirit of the Lord is grieved, and it wanders from us, and we are left to grope in the dark; the visions of eternity are shut out from our minds, and we see through another medium than that of the Spirit of God. We are led, through these circumstances, to stumble and fall; and many make shipwreck of faith and of a good conscience.

We do not all of us sufficiently comprehend the great blessings that God has conferred upon us. We forget, sometimes, that we are the Saints of God; we forget that we have dedicated ourselves to the Lord, with all that we have; and we forget our high calling and our future destiny. We forget, sometimes, that we are engaged, with many others, in establishing righteousness and planting the kingdom of God upon the earth; and we condescend to little meannesses, and become forgetful of the great and glorious calling to which we are called. Many of us give way to temptation; we falter and get into darkness, and lose the Spirit of the Lord. We forget that God and angels are looking upon us; we forget that the spirits of just men made perfect and our ancient fathers, who are looking forward for the establishment of the kingdom of God upon the earth, are gazing upon us, and that our acts are open to the inspection of all the authorized agencies of the invisible world.

And, forgetting these things sometimes, we act the part of fools, and the Spirit of God is grieved; it withdraws from us, and we are then left to grope our way in the dark. But if we could live our religion, fear God, be strictly honest, observe his laws and his statutes, and keep his commandments to do them, we should feel very different; we should feel comfortable and happy; our spirits would be peaceful and buoyant; and from day to day, from week to week, and from year to year, our joys would increase.

Other causes also operate to retard the Saints in their progress. Most of us have come out of and been mixed up with the world; we have been associated with, and have received our education and ideas in the midst of corruptions of every kind, and we have sucked it in as with our mother’s milk.

Even our religion has been corrupt, and our ideas of morality have been wrong; our politics, law, and philosophy have all been wrenched, twisted, and perverted; our customs, habits, and associations have been wrong; and all that we have come out from is vanity, evil, corrupting, and damnable in its nature.

Is it surprising, then, that we should find it difficult to live according to the light and intelligence that dwells in the bosom of God and that is manifested partially unto us, his people? Is it surprising that, surrounded as we have been, and wallowing in corruption all the day long, that we should have partaken more or less of these things, and that they should still cling to us?

When Joseph Smith had anything from God to communicate to the children of men or to the Church, what was it he had to fight against all the day long? It was the prejudices of the people; and, in many instances, he could not and dared not reveal the word of God to the people, for fear they would rise up and reject it. How many times has he faltered? It was not that he was particularly afraid; but he had to look after the welfare and salvation of the people.

If the Prophet Joseph had revealed everything which the Lord manifested to him, it would have proven the overthrow of the people in many instances; hence he had to treat them like children, and feed them upon milk, and unfold principles gradually, just as they could receive them.

Was all this because it was so hard to comprehend correct principles? No; it was because we were babes and children, and could not understand.

How is it now, under the administration of President Young? Much the same, in this respect. He has often found it very difficult to make the people understand things as the Lord has revealed them unto him.

We ourselves have not got rid of our evils. We have so much professed righteousness and foolish tradition within us, that we feel indignant many times at righteous principles, when God reveals them. Have you not felt so, brethren and sisters? I know you have, and you know you have.

What is the reason of this? It is because you do not understand celestial laws, nor the principles that govern intelligences in the eternal worlds; it is because you do not understand what is best calculated to elevate, ennoble, and exalt you both in this world and in the world to come; and hence many falter and stumble and fall by the way.

In consequence of these things, we are frequently brought into darkness, bondage, and doubts, because of our consummate ignorance and the traditions by which we have been surrounded; for they all have their influence upon us, and it seems as if we could not break through the shackles again. There is something in our nature also that is mixed up with our very existence. I think the Scriptures say that man is prone to evil as the sparks fly upwards, and not only prone to evil, but to depart from God.

We are all aiming at celestial glory. Don’t you know we are? We are talking about it, and we talk about being kings and priests unto the Lord; we talk about being enthroned in the kingdoms of our God; we talk about being queens and priestesses; and we talk, when we get on our high-heeled shoes, about possessing thrones, principalities, powers, and dominions in the eternal worlds, when at the same time many of us do not know how to conduct ourselves any better than a donkey does.

Notwithstanding our talk and our short comings, there is a reality in these things, and God is determined, if possible, to make something of us. In order to do this, he has to try us and prove us, to manifest principles unto us, to develop the evils that are within ourselves, and to show us, by placing us in various positions and subjecting us to various trials, what we are—to show us our weaknesses and follies, in order that we may be made to lean and depend upon him alone. He will try men and prove them, to see if their hearts are pure; for he designs to take a course with us that will bring out the evil; and he will touch them in that part that will develop it, for he knows what part to touch in order to make us develop that which is in us.

Many of us feel like one of the kings of Israel did when the old Prophet told him he would fight against Israel, rip open women, and trample upon children. The king said, “Is thy servant a dog, that he should do these things?” The Spirit of God in the Prophet knew that such would be the case, and it was not long before he did the very things. And there are many of you who, if you had been told that you would do such and such things, would have exclaimed, “Is thy servant a dog, that he should do these things?” Yet, many of you have done things that you would have been ashamed to have your neighbours know; but you were not ashamed to have God and angels know.

The light of the Holy Ghost makes manifest men’s deeds, and the Spirit of God is like a “two-edged sword, dividing the joints and the marrow,” breaking, severing, cutting, piercing, penetrating, developing, and unfolding principles that we are almost entirely ignorant of, until they come to be developed.

When you have seen your ignorance and folly, you are inclined to say, “I thought I was a smart, good, able, intelligent man; but I have found out that I am a fool, and that I can do nothing to establish righteousness upon the earth, except the Lord God helps me to do it.” When the Spirit of the living God was poured out more copiously upon you, it developed principles that were before latent within you. That Spirit enables you to see yourselves as the Lord sees you.

No trial is joyous for the present, but grievous to be borne; but trials yield their blessings, when patiently endured. The things that are seen are temporal, but those that are not seen are eternal; and while we look at things that are seen, we are apt to neglect things that are not seen. When we see things that are by the light of the Spirit, and compare them with things that are to come, we say, “It is the Lord; let him do what seemeth him good.”

The world has been apostate for generations past: it has been under the dominion of the prince and power of the air, even the god of this world, who rules in the hearts of the children of disobedience. As I have stated before, they have been wrong in their national affairs, they have been wrong in political affairs, they have been wrong in their religion, and they have been wrong in everything.

What is God going to do, to set the world right? We are the people who are called to do his work; and if so, he must put us right. We are a little nucleus, a mere handful, that he has selected from among the nations, to put his name among. Yes, we are that people, with all our faults, our foibles, and vanities. We do acknowledge the hand of God; we do acknowledge the Prophet of God and the teachings of the Most High, and we do feel willing to be governed by those teachings.

Now, are we engaged in a small work? We are here in the tops of the mountains, just as the Prophet said we should be. “And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established in the tops of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it. And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.” (Isaiah ii. 2, 3.) The kingdom of God has to be established upon the earth, and the reign of righteousness introduced.

We have first to learn submission to the will of God ourselves, through various trials, persecutions, and the development of our weaknesses and imperfections, and thereby learn to appreciate the goodness and blessings that flow from him. We must see that we ourselves first learn obedience, and then teach others. But how can we teach others a lesson which we have not learned ourselves?

There is no nation now that acknowledges the hand of God; there is not a king, potentate, nor ruler that acknowledges his jurisdiction. We talk about Christianity, but it is a perfect pack of nonsense. Men talk about civilization; but I do not want to say much about that, for I have seen enough of it. Myself and hundreds of the Elders around me have seen its pomp, parade, and glory; and what is it? It is a sounding brass and a tinkling symbol; it is as corrupt as hell; and the Devil could not invent a better engine to spread his work than the Christianity of the nineteenth century.

How are the nations going to be redeemed? How is the kingdom of God going to be planted upon the earth? Will it be by preaching, or by power? Will it be by the natural course of events, or by moral suasion. Will it be by the outpouring of the judgments of God on the nations? Will it be by kingdoms being overthrown and empires crumbling to ruins? How is it going to be done? I answer, These things will be accomplished by the guidance of the Lord through his Prophets who are in our midst. Don’t you see this, brethren?

How are we going to dispose of that army on our borders? Are they going to fight us, or are they going back? or what is going to be done? Now, who can tell us how these things shall be? These are very small things, and show unto us the imperfection of our judgment, and how little we know of the things that are around us—how very little we know of those things that are coming to pass, except God reveals them through his servants the Prophets.

If we pursue a right course and magnify our calling before God, then everything else will be right; for surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secrets to his servants the Prophets.” Then it is for us to believe what the Prophets say.

Sectarians profess to believe in the Bible, but they will not let the Lord have any Prophets. But we will listen and try to keep the commandments of our God,

I am now coming to some smaller things than those about which I have been talking. Can any of you tell me how you are going to get your next year’s clothing? No man can be independent who is dependent upon others; no nation can be independent that is dependent upon another nation for its sustenance.

Adam was thrust out of the garden after he fell, and had to take care of himself. Doubtless he was taught to spin, to weave, and to raise flax. We read that Abel used to raise sheep; so he must have known something about the use of wool. Cain was a tiller of the ground, and he went to work and raised wheat, corn, squashes, onions, beets, carrots, and such things.

What had Adam to clothe himself with at first? We are told that he and his wife had fig-leaves with which they covered themselves. That was rather a poor scrape to be in! They did not have many bedclothes to put on, nor many hats or bonnets. There were no merchants to sell, or manufacturers but themselves, in those days. We are certainly as well off as he was, for we have got a start; but we cannot be independent until we can make our own shoes, dresses, shawls, bonnets, pantaloons, hats, and all such things as we need. When we can do these things, raise our own food, manufacture everything we need among ourselves, then we shall be independent of other people.

We have talked about being kings and priests; but we shall have to begin at the ABC, and learn to take care of our beef-hides, and see that they are tanned into good leather—to take care of our sheep; and not let them be destroyed as they have been heretofore; and, in connection with all these things, we have to take care that we are Saints, and look sharply after the devils.

A brother was talking to me about sheep, the other day. He stated that he believed 50 out of every 75 lambs in this Territory have been destroyed for want of being better looked after.

We have to make ourselves, our wives, and our children comfortable; and we must do this out of the elements that surround us in these valleys; and if we do not, we shall find the saying of Jesus applicable to us—“The children of this world are wiser in their generation than the children of light.” Let us learn to take care of ourselves.

While we are dependent upon others, we are in a poor position to look at the condition of the United States at the present time. We are happily preserved from their commercial troubles. Our very isolation preserves us from broken banks and ruinous credit. Let us only use our judgment and proper care and industry, and we shall be free from a thousand contingencies to which we are liable when we depend upon others.

If we take care of our wheat we shall be independent in that respect, and that will be one point gained; and we must continue doing so with every other thing, until we have gained every point and accomplish what we design.

We have more manufacturing talent among us than there is in any other community of the same size that I have ever met with, and yet we are dependent.

If the Lord will tell us what to do, we will do it, whether it is to fight armies or to do anything else; and by the ingenuity there is here, we will go to work and manufacture our own clothing; and, according to the word of the Lord, we will let our adorning be that of the workmanship of our own hands.

Let us learn correct principles, that we may be enabled to govern ourselves spiritually and temporally, and instruct our children and the posterity which spring from us, that we may obtain an exaltation in the celestial kingdom of our God.

The servants of God, if we are faithful, will teach and instruct us in the things of God; and we shall grow up in virtue, intelligence, holiness, and purity, and learn to understand correct laws; and our rulers will be from among ourselves, and, our Governor will be one of us—one of the Lord’s appointing—not of the Devil’s.

When Zion is established in her beauty and honour and glory, the kings and princes of the earth will come, in order that they may get information and teach the same to their people. They will come as they came to learn the wisdom of Solomon.

We have intelligence and ingenuity among us to do all that is required, and we have got to set to work; and, as the Lord gives us wisdom and revelation from time to time, we will carry out his purposes and his designs; we will perform the duties that may be required of us, and we will magnify our callings, that we may be prepared, through a long course of instruction and experience, to enter into celestial glory with the intelligences who surround the throne of God.

Brethren, I pray that God may bless us, enlighten our minds, lead us in the way of truth, and save us in his kingdom, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Judgment According to Works, etc.

Brigham Young

A discourse by President Brigham Young, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, January 17, 1858. Reported by G. D. Watt.

We have heard much in regard to the knowledge and understanding of this people—also of the nations of the earth; and it is very true that the best of us have only commenced to learn true principles. We are but children in the kingdom of God. We understand, in a great measure, the knowledge that is in the world: we have been brought up in the wisdom the world professes, and that we understand. But the things of God are so directly in opposition to the vain imaginations of the inhabitants of the earth, that it is hard for people to learn them. They remove our erroneous traditions from us. At the same time, all the morality, and good works, and good thoughts and words that tend to good, that are in the world, are of the Lord. Honest hearts, the world over, desire to know the right way. They have sought for it, and still seek it. There have been people upon the earth all the time who sought diligently with all their hearts to know the ways of the Lord. Those individuals have produced good, inasmuch as they had the ability. And to believe that there has been no virtue, no truth, no good upon the earth for centuries, until the Lord revealed the Priesthood through Joseph the Prophet, I should say is wrong. There has been more or less virtue and righteousness upon the earth at all times, from the days of Adam until now. That we all believe. Men who have lived without the Priesthood will be judged according to their works, as well as those who have had the privilege of it. That is our doctrine. That is what the Lord has told us, through his servants, from the beginning. No matter where they, have lived, or to what nation they have belonged, all people will be judged according to the works or deeds done in the body.

Honest hearts produce honest actions—holy desires produce corresponding outward works. That is what we understand and believe; yet the traditions of the fathers are so diverse from the holy Priesthood, that it is hard for people to learn even the smaller things pertaining to the kingdom of God—one of the smallest items pertaining to life. If we should have ability to sustain ourselves here on the earth, we certainly should have to live; for if we have not the ability to live, we certainly should pass behind the vail. In that case, we could not be capable of doing good in our present organization. As you have often been told, and as we believe, good men and good women ought to live the longest on the earth and set good examples, teach good doctrines, and produce righteousness.

Individuals or a community that have not the ability to preserve themselves in this life have no power to perform works to be judged by consequently, there is no judgment passed upon them for deeds done in this probation. The duty of a good people is to know how to preserve themselves in this life. The first revelation given to Adam was of a temporal nature. Most of the revelations he received pertained to his life here. That was also the case in the revelations to Noah. We have but very few of the instructions the Lord gave to Enoch concerning his city; but, doubtless, most of the revelations he received pertained to a temporal nature and condition. And certainly the revelations Noah received, so far as in our possession, almost exclusively pertained to this life. The same principle was carried out in the days of Moses, and in the days of his fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. We may say that eight or nine-tenths of the doctrines and principles set forth in the revelations given to those men were of a temporal nature.

As soon as Moses was called upon to go and deliver Israel, the revelations the Lord gave to him were of a temporal nature, pertaining to the temporal life of the children of Israel—instructing Moses how to deliver them from bondage and lead them from the servile state in which they then were. He taught them in the same manner while they were travelling through the wilderness; and so it continued down to the days of the judges, and then to Saul, whom the Lord permitted them to make a king, and then through the teachings of the Prophets. The greatest recorded digression from that course was when the Saviour came. He repeatedly alluded to a spiritual kingdom, in his sayings to his brethren. The people had become so corrupt that it was all useless to then endeavour to establish a literal kingdom of God on the earth. The children of Abraham had wandered so far from the true doctrine, the Priesthood, the principles, and ordinances that the Lord had revealed, that the Saviour had not opportunity to more than drop a hint, as it were, about a temporal kingdom. Yet the idea of a temporal kingdom was so indelibly riveted upon the minds of his disciples, that they supposed he alluded to it, and that when the Saviour should make his appearance, he would actually establish a literal kingdom on this earth and reign over it. The institutions and traditions which had been handed down pertained to a temporal kingdom, and they could not see that the corruptions and wickedness of the people were so great that he could not teach or suggest anything that they could understand pertaining to a temporal kingdom; therefore he alluded to a spiritual kingdom—the kingdom of God that should be set up in the heart. And those principles taught to the people and received by them would gather them together in the latter days, when he could prepare and organize a literal kingdom on the earth.

The first revelations given to Joseph were of a temporal character, pertaining to a literal kingdom on the earth. And most of the revelations he received in the early part of his ministry pertained to what the few around him should do in this or in that case—when and how they should perform their duties; at the same time calling upon them to preach the Gospel and diffuse the Spirit and principles of the kingdom of God, that their eyes might be open to see and gather the people together—that they might begin and organize a literal, temporal organization on the earth. All that has been done, and has been done by the wisdom of God. The wisdom revealed through Joseph was the wisdom of our Father in heaven—it was not of himself.

The revelations to us teach us to first cleanse our hearts—to purify ourselves, in order to have our eyes sufficiently opened to see the kingdom of God; for, without the spiritual birth referred to in the New Testament, we cannot see the kingdom of God. The revelations to Joseph were—Go forth, my servants, preach the Gospel by the power of the Holy Ghost, and open the eyes of the people, that they may see the kingdom of God, and not look into eternity to see the Father seated upon his throne and the angels around him, nor seek to know what he is doing there. The people need teaching by the power of the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven, that their eyes may be open to see that the Lord is commencing a literal kingdom upon the earth. When they can discern that, then they have the opportunity to be born of water, to enter into this kingdom. Nearly all the teachings to us pertain to this life; and if we have not ability to preserve our lives in our present existence, what can we do here to promote the kingdom of God on the earth; or to prepare the earth or the people for the coming of the Son of Man? Nothing. Consequently our labour is chiefly a temporal labour.

Brother Taylor has enquired how we are to be clothed another year? We have either to obtain new clothes or to wear those we have now. Some one may say, “My clothes will not last another year.” Perhaps they will, if you will take good care of them.

When we first came here, the people were told, and many saw and believed it as much then as they can now, that the Lord in his providence led the people into these mountains to separate them from the Gentile world, in order that he might establish his kingdom—his laws, and commence his Zion in the mountains, where his people could have but little connection with the world. They were taught that when they first came here; and now the prospect is very fair for separating us from the rest of the world, and most of the people can see it. They were taught then as much as they are taught now, that it was necessary to go to and provide for ourselves. Do any of the brethren who came here ten years ago last July remember that you were instructed that every facility that we could need was here in the elements?—that the gold, the silver, and the iron were in these mountains?—that the wool, the flax, the silk, the cotton, and everything necessary to sustain man were in the elements around us? “What, is silk here?” Yes, in as great abundance as in any part of the earth; and the finest broadcloth is here, and everything to make life desirable is here.

It is for the people to go to and develop the resources surrounding us. Sugar, starch, and glue are the chief ingredients in the sustenance of man. The saccharine matter is in everything that grows here: it is in the vegetables and in the animals. We have as good beef as there is in the world, furnishing gluten—a substance that acts its part in sustaining man. We can raise as good potatoes and wheat as can be raised in any other part of the earth; also other products affording starch, and all the necessary variety and quality of articles of food. We can make sugar from the beet; but we are now cultivating the Chinese sugar-cane, which produces as good a sweet as any we have imported. We have the materials for feeding the body. And as to clothing, we can produce as good wool here as they can in any part of the world; but we must have the sheep to enable us to do so. And we must sow flax and plant cotton for the manufacture of linen and cotton cloth; but the elements are here from which they all will grow.

Import silkworms and mulberry trees, and you will find that this is as good a country and climate in which to raise silk as any on the face of the earth. Do some understand this? Yes, there are persons here from the Eastern States who have raised silkworms and manufactured silk; and here are scores and hundreds of silk manufacturers, from the old country. Why, then, do we not have silk? Because no man takes steps to organize certain elements into the silk. All this was told you in the beginning, and why did not men understand?

You may take the Latter-day Saints, as a whole, and they have but very little good, sound, worldly sense. Look over this congregation, and then go through the Territory, and you can find thousands that, during the first four years of our settlement here, flooded these valleys with waggons and cattle, and every facility for raising what we needed. We drove in the sheep, brought the flax-seed, and this, that, and the other useful articles. But what did we see? Men, women, and children run to California to get gold. They were then told what I can now prove. “Go to California, if you will; we will not curse you—we will not injure nor destroy you, but we will pity you. If you must go for gold, and that is your god, go, and I will promise you one thing: Every man that stays here and pays attention to his business will be able, within ten years, to buy out four of those who leave for the gold-mines.” Since then some of those persons have come cringing back, and thinking, “O dear, I declare I wish the brethren could not know that I had been away! I want to appear as though I had not gone to California, and to be full of good works and faith.” Poor, ignorant, pusillanimous creatures! They come whining back and want to be considered in full fellowship, after leaving this place to which our God has led us, and after having used their means, to feast and build up the Gentiles.

Brother Heber and I told the company that went to San Bernardino with Amasa Lyman, that they would never reach here again without help from this people, and we are now sending all the teams we can raise from the southern settlements to bring them back. Why? Because they cannot stay there, and they are not able to remove. They were told at the start that they would have to renounce their religion, or else come whining back to these valleys. You may take all who have unadvisedly gone from this Territory, [and hundreds and thousands have so gone,] and I believe that I alone am able to buy the whole of them, though when I came here I had but very little property, except what I owed for. I also believe that brother Kimball and many others who have listened to what is taught now own more property than the whole of those characters. They could not believe that I knew enough to instruct them in temporal affairs. “Do they now believe that I do? They are obliged to admit it, though some think, “Really, I do not know whether it is so or not,” What are those persons good for now?

Obedience is one of the plainest, most every-day and home principles that you ever thought or knew anything about. In the first place, learn that you have a father, and then learn strict obedience to that parent. Is not that a plain, domestic, home principle? How long will it take the men and women here to learn it? You have learned, from year to year, scores, if not hundreds of principles of the Gospel taught; and one of the first principles to be learned by the Saints is to be of one heart and mind, to obey your leaders, to obey the Lord. If you have leaders who do not teach you the words of life and salvation—who do not give you the words of the Lord, why not have faith sufficient to remove them out of the way and have better men? If this people are righteous and have any leaders that are not capable of dictating you, why not stretch your faith to the heavens for God to remove them and give you men that are capable of leading you?

Could I make a brother in the Church believe, after passing through the troubles in Missouri, after again being driven from our homes in Nauvoo, Illinois, and after being led to this secret retreat and sustained all the time by the matchless power of our God, that the love of riches would have so blunted the minds of many as to cause them to run to California after gold? Why not have stayed here, where we could have improved this Territory three times as much as we have? We could have extended our settlements still farther on the right and on the left. But no; they must run and leave us. And many of those that have tarried have but a little more confidence, when they have improved upon and learned the lesson taught by those who have left.

The great majority of men and women do not know how to take care of themselves. Let me refer the whole of you to a circumstance in winter quarters. We left Nauvoo in February, 1846, made our own roads through Iowa, except some 40 or 50 miles, built bridges, cut down timber, turned out 500 men to go to Mexico, came this side of the Missouri river, and there wintered. How did you live there? Do you know how you got anything to eat? Brethren came to me, saying, “We must go to Missouri. Can we not take our families and go to Missouri and get work?” Do you know, to this day, how you lived? I will tell you, and then you will remember it. I had not five dollars in money to start with; but I went to work and built a mill, which I knew we should want only for a few months, that cost 3,600 dollars. I gave notice that I would employ every man and pay him for his labour. If I had a sixpence, I turned it into 25 cents; and a half-bushel of potatoes I turned into half-a-bushel of wheat. How did I do that? By faith. I went to brother Neff, who had just come in the place, and asked him for and received 2,600 dollars, though he did not know where the money was going. He kept the mill another year, and it died on his hands. I say, God bless him for ever! for it was the money he brought from Pennsylvania that preserved thousands of men, women, and children from starving. I handled and dictated it, and everything went off smoothly and prosperously.

Can you sustain yourselves? Yes. How can you clothe and feed yourselves? Keep Gentiles out of here, and not permit any more supplies to come from them; and then you will raise sheep and take care of them and their wool; then you will raise cotton and flax, and dress the lint. We have women who know how to manufacture flax into thread and the finest cloth in this house. Why do you not make linen? “Because we can turn a calf on to the range, and after awhile sell it for 20 or 30 dollars and buy store goods.” That course is temporal ruination to this people. It is a far greater injury than benefit for us to purchase imported goods. Shut down the gate and make your own hats, bonnets, and every other article of wearing apparel. We have the furs and all necessary facilities for making every article we need. We can also make our dye stuffs, so soon as we, can get a greater variety of seed. For ten years we have advertised the brethren to bring indigo seed; and I have not obtained any, only a little that brother William Willes brought from the East Indies. I have also wished them to bring madder seed, for you can raise it where you can raise corn. Do we know enough to raise indigo and cotton? Yes, when the gate is shut down.

I told the brethren, yesterday, that I was not afraid of men’s apostatizing when war and trouble are on hand, for then they will stick together. It is in calm weather, when the old ship of Zion is sailing with a gentle breeze, and when all is quiet on deck, that some of the brethren want to go out in the whaling-boats to have a scrape and a swim; and some get drowned, others drifted away, and others again get back to the ship. Let us stick to the old ship, and she will carry us safely into the harbour. You need not be concerned. I want the brethren to raise flax.

I want some man, who has got the requisite spirit and nerve, to prepare a quarter-of-an-acre as they prepare ground for flax in Ireland, and then sow about a bushel-and-a-half or two bushels of seed, and let it grow as thick as a horse’s mane; if necessary, brace it up while growing; pull it at the period when the lint will be the silkiest, and prepare it for the women to exercise their skill in making fine thread. A bushel of flax-seed to the acre produces a coarse lint, suitable for making ropes and coarse cloth.

Brother Taylor remarked that about 60 out of every 75 lambs had died in this Territory. Yes, you may say that, out of every 75 lambs about 90 have died. Where were our sheep in 1848-49? I then had 100 sheep, and I would now have 40,000 if they had been taken care of as they ought; but instead of that, I have bought about 550 since; and now I have 400 or 500.

Sheep are driven into the Territory, and then they decrease. What is the difficulty? It is, “Hurrah for the gold! hurrah for the stores! hurrah for the merchants! hurrah for hell!—let us have a portion of hell here.”

Elders who have been to St. Louis and had credit for a cent should not have brought a thousand or two thousand dollars’ worth of goods here and fooled them away, having fooled them out of merchants who still remain fools.

Shut down the gate, and stop bringing ribbons and foolery here. I wish the ribbons and like articles were all sunk in the bottom of the sea, rather than have them brought here. Do you know enough to clothe yourselves? Yes, when you are driven to it. It makes me think of what we passed through in Missouri, when Joseph was preaching the Consecration law for surplus property. Would any man listen to that law? No, not a man. “Will you pay Tithing?” “I cannot any way in the world, for I have not as much property as I want.”

When the army came and took away the guns, killed our cattle, fired our houses, took possession of our fields, and compelled the brethren, at the point of the bayonet, to sign away their property to pay the expenses of the war, one fellow said, “By—see these men, how keen and fine they look! Old Joe has been trying for years to make them consecrate their property, but he could not persuade them to do it. We can make them consecrate.”

The brethren felt well: but suppose they had been required to sign a deed of trust to the kingdom of God on the earth, would they have done it? No; they would have suffered themselves to be damned before they would have done it. Can you not see the ignorance of the people in those things? And to this day you can see men come here penniless, and hear them say, “We had plenty of money where we came from.” Then why did you not gather when you had money? “We wanted to make more, to bring, a great amount into the kingdom.” Thus men come here penniless, and feel well about it. Enquire into the matter, and you will often learn that last year they had several thousand dollars, but it has gone into the hands of the Gentiles.

Suppose a poor Elder, while on a mission, should borrow ten dollars of such a person, that person will come here and be ready to apostatize, unless that money is paid; but if the devils get it, “Oh, it is all right.” Such feelings are in the hearts of some men and women now before me. With them it is, If my enemies get my property, all well; but I don’t want the kingdom of God to have it.” Ask them whether they want the kingdom of God to have their property, and they will reply, “O yes; ourselves and all we have are in the kingdom of God:” but touch a dollar of theirs, and they will squirm.

We are trying to become Saints, and by-and-by we will actually become Saints. When men are Saints, they will bring their thousands and lay them at the feet of the Bishops, Apostles, and Prophets, saying, “Here is my money; it is now where it should be.” But now what do you see? If an Elder has borrowed a little money, or been helped in any manner, he must be chased home and made to pay the uttermost farthing, or there is dissatisfaction. Fortunately that is not the case with all. A portion of the principle of darkness is in the hearts of the people; but it is fast going out, and they are coming to a knowledge of the truth.

One of the first and plainest principles to be believed and practised is to put ourselves and all we have into the kingdom of God, and then be dictated by the Lord and his servants. Is there any danger? Some are ready to say, “Yes, we are afraid to trust ourselves and our means here and there.”

Brother Taylor has just said that the religions of the day were hatched in hell. The eggs were laid in hell, hatched on its borders, and then kicked on to the earth. They may be called cockatrices, for they sting wherever they go. Go to their meetings in the Christian world, and mingle in their society, and you will hear them remark, “Our ministers dictate our souls’ salvation;” and they are perfectly composed and resigned to trust their whole future destiny to their priests, though they durst not trust them with one single dollar beyond their salaries and a few presents. They can trust their eternal welfare in the hands of their priests, but hardly dare trust them with so much as a bushel of potatoes. Is that principle here? Yes, more or less.

Can we feed and clothe ourselves? Yes, we can, as well as any people on the earth. We have a goodly share of the genius, talent, and ability of the world; it is combined in the Elders of this Church and in their families. And if the Gentiles wish to see a few tricks, we have “Mormons” that can perform them. We have the meanest devils on the earth in our midst, and we intend to keep them, for we have use for them; and if the Devil does not look sharp, we will cheat him out of them at the last, for they will reform and go to heaven with us.

We have already showed the invading army a few tricks; and I told Captain Van Vliet that if they persisted in making war upon us, I should share in their supplies. The boys would ride among the enemy’s tents; and one of their captains ran into Colonel Alexander’s tent one night, saying, “Why, Colonel, I’ll be damned if the Mormons won’t be riding into your tent, if you don’t look out.”

We have the smartest women in the world, the best cooks, the best mothers; and they know how to dress themselves the neatest of any others. We are the smartest people in the world. But look out, pertaining to taking care of and sustaining ourselves, that the children of this world are not smarter than the children of light. I say that they shall not be; for we will beat them in every good thing, the Lord and the brethren being our helpers. The Lord bless you! Amen.

Mission to England—Reminiscences, Etc.

Ezra T. Benson

A discourse by Elder Ezra T. Benson, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, Sunday morning, January 24, 1858. Reported by J. V. Long.

It will be two years the 22nd of next April since I started, in company with brother Orson Pratt and others, to take a mission to Europe; and it seems but as a dream for me to appear in your midst this morning. It seems as if it were only a few days since I was in the midst of this people; for the days, weeks, and months that have passed have gone swiftly, and it seems as though a great deal of the time had not been measured to me.

I presume this is the experience of many of you who are now before me; and although many of you have passed through scenes of trial, yet you have felt to realize your situation in the reformation more than you ever have done before. Feelings have come over you that you have never before experienced since you have been in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. But, notwithstanding all our past failings and weaknesses, we have been greatly blessed and prospered, and the hand of the Lord has been over us for good all the day long.

Now, if we all, realize and do actually know that God is with us—that he has forgiven our sins—that we are in fellowship with this people and have confidence to go before our God in prayer, knowing that our sins are put far away from us, no more to return again, unless through our disobedience, it is one of the greatest blessings that can be conferred upon us.

When I was called upon to leave these valleys, I felt that I had the prayers, fellowship, and confidence of this people; and if I had their confidence then, I am well persuaded I have it now. This reflection causes my heart to rejoice; and it is one of the greatest blessings that any man can enjoy to know that he is in full fellowship with this people.

Shall we be thankful to our God and this people for the faith and prayers that have been exercised in our behalf? These things have occupied my attention ever since I arrived home.

True, there is a warfare within me, and there is a warfare within every man and woman that has a name in this Church; and we have to guard against the intrusions of the Adversary. Upon what principles shall we guard against them? Why, live our religion. That is all we have to do; and I know that, by the power of faith and the Holy Spirit, we can root out everything that is contrary to the promptings of that Spirit, and we shall know for ourselves that we are the children of God.

I have been to England on a mission, sent by the First Presidency and the general authorities convened in Conference on the 6th day of April, 1856; and I can say I have had a prosperous mission, and have been greatly blest. As I have told the Elders, so I will say here. Any man who goes on a mission in these times, to the European nations, to the United States, or to the islands of the sea, and returns home with his scalp on, I think he should certainly acknowledge the hand of the Lord in it.

When we first arrived in England, all was peace, as a general thing. And do you know the reason why it was peace? Yes, you do. We could preach throughout England; we could preach in Germany, in France, in Denmark, Sweden, and Norway; we could preach in Wales, in Ireland, and Scotland, with but very little interruption; and, as a general thing, we had very good attention and good congregations. But when the reformation commenced in the Valleys of the Mountains, as the Saints were told beforehand, the Devil began to open his eyes and look at the Saints, not only in England, but throughout all the parts of the earth where the Latter-day Saints were located, and wherever the servants of God were travelling to preach the Gospel, and wherever the printed word was being circulated.

In all these places the Devil was up and dressed two hours earlier in a morning than he ever had been before, attending to his calling and kingdom, and doing that which was committed to him; for he has a work to do as well as we have, and he is most faithfully performing his part. Just in proportion to the diligence of the Saints in Zion and throughout the earth, so will the Devil work; and you cannot tell the time when his old nose has not been poked as near to the servants of God and to this kingdom as he could get it; and he would be right here to-day in this congregation and break up this meeting, if he had the power to do it.

Through the faithfulness of the Saints, I am led to believe that the kingdom is pretty well cleansed, especially from Gentiles and from Gentilism. But it is not so in the world; for the Devil has power in the midst of the Saints while they are amongst the Gentiles. But, as I told the Saints in England, there should always be a little place in the heart of every man and woman which they can call Zion; and it looks to me as if there were a good many here who could say Zion is in their bosoms, and that they have a place in their hearts which they can call heaven.

The Spirit of God flows to a greater extent from this stand than it does in any other place upon the face of the earth. There is more power here than in any other place.

I can say, in behalf of the English Saints, that they are a good people, and you know it as well as I do; and those who have been there know it, and you who have not been there know it by the spirit they bring when they come here.

As regards the work of the Lord, in general the Elders have been faithful. They have gone into the streets and into the lanes and borne a faithful testimony to the work of God and to what he was doing among the nations. To the honest their words have been sweeter than the honeycomb; but the great majority were unwilling to receive the message sent unto them.

I have taken a great deal of comfort, and satisfaction in lifting up my voice before the people, and I have cried aloud and spared not, but told them what was in my heart. I felt it was my duty to vindicate the truths of the Gospel. I have also taken up the laws of the Territory of Utah and the laws and Constitution of the United States, pointing out to them the privileges and rights that are guaranteed unto us by those instruments.

I not only say this of myself, but I can say it of my brethren who have been associated with me; for we have had power to put down all opposition that has been raised against us, unless it was by an ungodly mob that was inspired by the Devil to get up sticks and stones and every kind of weapon they could procure, excepting firearms, which the law of the land forbids them to carry.

When they come with the Bible in hand, which they profess to believe, they are easily whipped out; and truth rises triumphant among the people, and the high and low and all that were intelligent could see and understand that we have the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and that we have the authority which no other people possessed. There was not a minister or any other individual that held the authority which we had in our possession; and some were ready to acknowledge it, when the Spirit of the Lord was upon them. But how long would that last? Only long enough for them to get out of doors.

It is indeed a great thing to purify the Saints; and it is a great thing for a man to purify his heart. When a man’s heart is pure and the scales are knocked off from his eyes, he can then see and comprehend the things of God—he can know the mind of the Lord in this land or any other; but if the scales are over his eyes as thick as canvas, he cannot see afar off. We all know that we have to live our religion here as well as in England; and I sometimes think it takes more faith to live in Zion than in another place; for there is more required of a congregation in Zion than there is in England.

The Saints in Denmark and in Sweden are inspired by the same Spirit that we are, and they are as good a people as I ever travelled amongst in my life. They do not generally understand the English language; but they can understand by what spirit a man is moved when he gets up to speak. They rejoice when an Elder from the Valley presents himself in their midst; and, to see a Valley Elder, they would get up of a morning and go 40 miles, and not stop for rain, thunder, or lightning till they got to their journey’s end.

There is a certain class of men that are honest in heart, but fear comes upon them when trials are presented, and they do not understand; they have not faith or confidence to stand up and say, “I am a Latter-day Saint, and if you want to mob, mob and be damned.” There are but few who can stand the trying day. A great many of the Saints have no faith to brook the insults cast upon them, and hence they hide up and keep out of sight of their enemies.

I told the Saints in Bath and Bristol that we were going home, before I had got any news; and, said I, “You have been mobbed, laughed at, and jeered by your enemies, and I want you to understand that you do not owe them anything. I am willing to be responsible for all the sin there will be if you immediately shut up your chapels and henceforth hold your meetings in some private house or little room, or some place where you will not be subject to the insults of mobs. The next morning I got a letter from brother Pratt, informing me that I was called home.

I was not sent out to convert the world, but to warn the people, to vindicate the cause of truth, to set forth the true character of this people politically, religiously, temporally, and spiritually, and to declare unto the nations of the earth the true situation of this community.

I want to live a long time yet, and I hope that I shall not die until the kingdom of God rises triumphant over all the powers that are organized in opposition to it.

A good spirit prevailed among the Saints in Europe when we left them, which was about the 14th of last October. Brother Samuel W. Richards and George Snyder arrived in Liverpool on the 9th of that month, and brother Pratt immediately wrote me word to come to Liverpool and prepare for returning home.

On the arrival of brothers Richards and Snyder, we held a council, at which it was decided that brother Pratt, myself, brothers John A. Ray, John Kay, John Scott, and William Miller should return home. We immediately went to work and released all the Elders, except brother Calkin, of the English Mission, and brother Jabez Woodard, of the Italian Mission. The native Elders are just as anxious to come here as the American Elders.

Before we embarked for England, I had a few days’ time to spare, and I embraced the opportunity to go and visit my friends and acquaintances; and when I went in amongst them, they immediately asked if I had come back to stay. “No,” said I.

“Then what are you come back for?”

“Why, to prove that you are false prophets; for you told me that in five years “Mormonism” would be broken up, and that the Saints of God would be scattered and peeled. “Now,” said I, “if you want to prophesy anything more about ‘Mormonism,’ prophesy good things—big things; for it is the kingdom of God, and it is set up in the mountains. It is the kingdom that Daniel saw, and it is going to spread and grow till it fills the whole earth.”

On the Sabbath I was in the neighbourhood where my friends lived, in the State of Massachusetts, and I told my brother that I wanted to go to old Milford to the meeting, whereupon he got out his carriage, and we drove off to the meetinghouse; and as soon as the old minister got his eye upon me, he motioned to me to come into the stand. He called me brother Benson, and said, “Sit down here.” He said, “Do you want to preach or to pray?” I said, “Yes, for I am a praying man.” I offered up as humble a prayer as I could, and then sat down. I learned then that he had a special lecture he wanted to deliver on politics; for it was when they were trying to elect Fremont President of the United States. He delivered his political sermon about the North and South; but there was no repentance or Gospel about what he said.

When he had concluded, he gave me the privilege of talking to the people, which I did for about half-an-hour. I knew that I had to talk in a very pious style, but I endeavoured to preach the Gospel in plainness; and the very moment that I came to a testimony of the Gospel—to declare that Joseph Smith was a Prophet, and that Brigham Young is his successor—good gracious! you could see devils dancing in the countenances of the people, and the influence ran from heart to heart. However, they kept quiet, though very uneasy. After my remarks, they claimed the privilege of asking questions. One gentleman asked if we believed in slavery. I told him, No, we did not; “but,” said I, “we believe in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which is the Gospel of liberty, for it opens the door of freedom and throws off the fetters of bondage.”

“Well,” said he, “do not you believe in freeing the negroes?”

I answered, “No; the Lord will do that.”

“Ah,” said he, “the Mormons do believe in slavery; for they permit men to bring their slaves into their Territory.”

I then went on to show him our views upon the subject; but I could see my remarks did not satisfy the people.

The next man who came on to the carpet wanted to know how many wives brother Brigham had. I replied, “I have not come here to lay before this people the domestic affairs of my Governor. It is a question I never asked him myself, for I never took the pains to inquire anything about it. But still, as I am a Yankee, I will guess, if that will do you any good. Now,” said I, “I will be honest with you, for your pastor has given me the freedom of speech; and, if I may judge from appearances, I should presume he has some fifty or sixty.”

He then asked, “Why do you believe in that doctrine?”

I replied, “Why did Abraham believe in it? Why do you wish to raise a quarrel with me, when all the Prophets spoken of in the Bible you believe in both taught and practised it?” He could not tell; but the amount of it was, he wanted to put down “Mormonism”—not that he could rebut the testimony that was presented, but he had a spirit to endeavour to put down the cause of God.

The principles of the Gospel are going to either damn or save all to whom they are presented. There are hundreds and thousands and tens of thousands of people in the world who this day know that “Mormonism” is true, and they are using their money and their influence to hinder its progress.

The priests of the day are ready to collect their pence and shillings to persecute the Saints of God and to foster and sustain those who will do it.

Wherever you find a man in England, in Germany, or in Denmark, who takes the periodicals of the day, he can sit down and tell you all about the Latter-day Saints. He can tell you what we believe; and, providing you could converse with him without his knowing you were a “Mormon,” or a servant of God sent to him with the everlasting Gospel, he would sit down and tell you all about “Mormonism.” But you must appear as a stranger and ask, “Do you know anything about the Latter-day Saints in Utah?” “O yes,” he will say, and proceed to tell you what we believe, But the moment you let him know who you. are and undertake to preach to him, he will turn round and deny everything that he has said. What is the reason of this? It is because he is dishonest and has partaken of the spirit of the father of lies, who is determined to use his influence and power to the injury and destruction of the Saints of God.

I was received in Massachusetts as I never was before by my friends, for they hailed me with joy. But were they ready to receive the Gospel? No—no more than they were fourteen years; ago. I could see they had a spirit to persecute the Saints, and they would have been as easily lit up as a lucifer match. “Well,” said one, “did you come that way back?” “No, and I never want to go again, unless the Almighty commands me.”

When we came to New York we looked through the pioneer trail, but it did not look right: but when we looked south, it was all light; so we took the steamer for the Isthmus.

We had on board 1,150 passengers; 200 or 300 of whom were United States troops. When we were loading up, the soldiers were driven on board, like pigs, as thick as they could stand.

Government is shipping men round by the Isthmus of Panama to California, and we were informed the next steamer was to bring 600 men. There was a good deal of fault found by the officers of Government because there were only 250 along with us; but it was said, “They are going to ship them by thousands to California, and then forward them to Utah.”

They said they were coming to California; but when we asked them privately where they were destined for, they said, “We are going to Utah.”

It is so also in Kansas. They have all sworn, old Harney included, that they will not give sleep to their eyes nor slumber to their eyelids until they have destroyed the “Mormons.” They design in their hearts to blot “Mormonism” out of existence, and they feel like using their money for the accomplishment of this object, and even go so far as to say their purses shall be open for their means to be used in the fitting out of men for the Territory of Utah; and they say they will come from the north and from the south and from the east and surround this people by thousands and by tens of thousands, until we are wiped out.

This is their feeling, as a general thing, and it seems as if all earth and hell are united against the “Mormons.” They have not got here yet, have they? Catching is always before hanging!

The halters are already made which they design shall hang the Governor, the members of the Legislative Assembly, and every faithful Elder in the Church; for they feel determined to swing you up between the heavens and the earth. We understand their plays and their schemes, for we have been in their midst.

The inquiry may arise, “Did you ever hear one man say anything in our favour?” Yes, we have heard more than one who dare come out and vindicate the character of this people, but it would generally be in private circles. I have heard a man say that he had been among this people, had been treated well, and never saw a better people in his life; and he said he believed that all those reports that were in circulation were a pack of damned lies.

There was a man travelling on the packet with us who used to attend the threshing-machine for William Macpherson, in this city. He vindicated the character of this people. He did not recognize us; but I knew him as soon as I saw him. He said, in conversation with men on the boat, “I am a rambling sort of a chap; but if I were going to live and settle down, it would be in Utah.” I asked him if he thought the “Mormons” were going to fight. He said, “No, they are not; for they are not a fighting people; but it is those lying editors. The Mormons are a peaceable, quiet people.”

When the standard of freedom is raised, we shall bid all classes welcome to the rights and privileges of liberty. When that day comes, people can come with all creeds and enjoy their liberties, providing they will acknowledge the laws of God; and I can tell you they will come by hundreds, by thousands, and by tens of thousands. Yes, they will flock to the standard of liberty.

There is not a master-spirit on the earth at the present time who dare take this stand and raise the flag of liberty, bidding welcome to all nations, except President Brigham Young. The very move that has been made for the last six months will preach louder and stronger than all the Elders of Israel.

The standard of liberty is about to be unfurled. Good laws will be maintained, and the virtuous and innocent will have the rights and privileges guaranteed unto them; and we mean to stand in defence of those principles of right, even to the laying down of our lives, if necessary. When a man will stand in defence of the truth, he has more power and influence among the nations of the earth than a dozen of the ungodly.

If ever I felt like preaching the Gospel, it is now; and I would not ask for a better mission than to take my valise and travel through the Territory of Utah; and I know that in doing so I should travel amongst the best people in the world. I have seen the contrast between this people and the world most visibly during the last three or four months.

What is the condition of the Government of the United States? They are all looking at the President, just as a child would, apparently expecting that something would be done. They are hoping and expecting that Government would take “Mormonism” in hand and wipe it out of existence in a few days. But Uncle Sam, uncle Bill, uncle Tom, and all our uncles and cousins, will find something to do if they attempt such a thing.

The people of the United States seem paralyzed, and do not know what to do; They are waiting for the Government to call for volunteers, and then they say they are all ready to go. California people say they are all ready to rally. But I tell you, I believe what brother Brigham has said—They will not come here. The priest in the pulpit is ready, and says, “O yes, we must go and wipe out the Mormons; but do not ask me to go.”

This is like an old man that had some boys, and when he wanted a job of work done he would say, “Go, boys, and do that:” but his neighbour, who had a lot of boys also, when he wanted anything done, used to say, “Come, boys, let us do that.” It is just so with the priests, lawyers, doctors, and all others who are opposed to “Mormonism:” they say, “O yes, go and wipe out the Mormons;” but they never want to go themselves.

I will tell you, the majority of the people in the States do not care the ashes of a rye straw for their officers, and it is just so in the army: in fact, they none of them care much for each other; but they care a good deal for Uncle Sam’s money.

When we landed in San Francisco, the officers were so much afraid that the troops would desert, that they went and guarded them themselves; and we left them patrolling the docks there. The officers were Yankees, stiff and starched, and they said, “Mormonism must be extinguished;—yes, this must be done.”

“Colonel Casey, what do you think about it?” He seemed to be a peaceable kind of man, and said he could not tell what would have to be done. The Colonel was then asked if he fostered the idea of going to an innocent people and exterminating men, women, and children? He said, “I do not like it; it is contrary to my feelings; but the Government of the United States have taken the thing in hand, and we, as officers, are compelled to carry out their plans, or resign.”

Let us do the very best we can, brethren and sisters; for the day may come when we may be thankful for every foot of greasewood and of desert country there is between us and our enemies.

I am glad that we came through on the southern route, for I have been enabled to learn a little of the road.

The editors in the States are prompting Government to bring their troops from the south. Why, they do not know; only they are not, on that route, so subject to snow-storms, and they can travel in the winter. But I can tell them, the south route is ten times worse than the east: it is one perfect desert from Muddy Creek clear through. There is now-and-then a patch of grass on the journey. But what can a large army do?

The kanyon coming up the Santa Clara is quite as good as Echo, and some think a little better. It does seem as if those mountains and kanyons have been prepared on purpose; and we have great cause to be thankful for those natural defences.

Here we have liberty to do right and legislate for our own benefit, and we feel that this is our home.

I told sister Richie on Painter Creek, when she invited us in to breakfast, and set before us some butter, milk, and bread, that it was the best meal I had eaten since I left home and I enjoyed it much better than I did the dainties that were provided while I was crossing the Isthmus.

I feel to back up all the plans of my brethren who have the right to dictate, and to bear off this kingdom to the nations; and this is the feeling of my brethren who have returned with me.

We are now ready to go and preach the Gospel, to go into the kanyons and help to fight our enemies, or to do anything that is required of us; and I feel to say, with all the power and authority of the Priesthood that is conferred upon me, God bless our leaders with wisdom, with power, with influence, with cattle, with horses, with sheep, with wives, with children, with houses, with lands, and with everything their hearts can desire before God. This is my prayer all the day long; and when I feel so, I feel strong in the mighty God of Jacob, and I know that he blesses them with his Spirit.

I feel to say, Latter-day Saints, in the name of the Lord, Be ye blessed; for ye are the only people that God acknowledges on the earth, as an organized community, politically and religiously, spiritually, physically, and mentally—the only people that are to be found who are willing to acknowledge that God has established his kingdom with Apostles and Prophets.

A great many of the people of this generation have turned infidels; but still the sectarians have their Scripture-readers, and they go through all the formalities of religion. One man came to me and wished to know if I would like to have the Bible read to me. I told him yes, for I was fond of anything that was good. I asked him if he believed in angels. He said, “O no; the power of God is done away;” and everything is done away among them, only just what man can do; and men set themselves up who have no vitality nor intelligence in them. It is all like the chaff before the wind. We are truly a blessed people, for we have the light of eternal life; and, notwithstanding the howling of the priests, if we do as brother Brigham says, we shall come off victorious.

I believe this people are ready to do anything required of them; and if they continue in this way, all will be well with them, and nothing can stand before them.

I heard a man say that he did not care what was said against this people, he was ready to believe it; and I can say that such a man is ready to be damned, and he will be damned.

I bear this testimony that I know this to be the work of God, and I take great pleasure in proclaiming it.

I ask an interest in your prayers, that I may have the spirit of obedience and be enabled to do as I am told from this time henceforth and for ever. Amen.

Increase in Saving Principles, etc.

Heber C. Kimball

A discourse by President Heber C. Kimball, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake, Sunday afternoon, December 27, 1857. Reported by J. V. Long.

You have all heard what has been said, and the design thereof has been to show you your situation.

There is not much profit in all the teachings that are given from this stand to a person who simply hears the sound and does not partake of the spirit and intent of that instruction; but the profit is to the man who heareth the word and observeth and receiveth the Spirit and power of God.

I bear my testimony to what has been said to-day, for it is good; and every one that heareth and observeth what has been said by brother Brigham, brother Woodruff, and brother Snow shall be blest; for it is life to all who receive it, because truth is life.

If we treasure up those principles, and they adhere to us—that is, to the fountain of life that is within us, how can there be otherwise than a growing and increasing in the knowledge of God? It is upon the same principle that wheat increases, and upon the same principle that every kind of vegetation increases. How does wheat increase? It is because the element or germ of life is in the wheat. If the germ was not in each kernel, of course it would not increase.

If there is a fountain and the root of truth within us, then other principles of truth will adhere to them and connect themselves to that fountain that is within us. What will be the result in such a case? The fruits of righteousness will appear. A man has got to have the saving principles of life within him continually. If they do not dwell in him, he is not in a saveable condition, for there is no way to save a man only to plant within him the principles of life; for in the absence of those principles, he is like salt that has lost its saving power, and thenceforth is good for nothing.

You know that salt will not save meat when it has lost its saving principles, and it is just so with us: when a man sins to that degree that he rejects the truth and the principles of righteousness, he is thenceforth good for nothing but to be cast out and trodden under foot of men.

So it will be eventually in the United States. After the truth is all gathered out, you will find that the rest will be destroyed. I do not mean that the land will be destroyed, but I refer to the wicked inhabitants, and the earth will be emptied, according to the words of the Prophet. Why will this be so? Because there are no saving principles there: the saving principles are with this Church, and there is no salvation in the absence of those principles.

I dwell upon these things because I wish every man to listen to them, and I want them to watch and nourish every word, and to cherish them as you would a crop of wheat. Let nothing come in between you and the word of God, and then you will do well and prosper.

I have got just such a wild notion in me, if you please to consider it so, that I believe we can raise everything that is raised in every other part of the earth. Why do I believe it? I believe it because I have got the Priesthood: it has been given to me and to you, and we are made saviours of men upon Mount Zion.

Well, then, if we have got the seed and principles of life within us, upon the same principle that the earth imparts nourishment to vegetation, we can impart life to others; and if we can save a man, upon the same principle we can save a woman and everything that is upon the earth. What do you go to work here for? I go to work to produce vegetables, grain, and all things that I and my family need, and I dictate my children, and show them a course for them to pursue.

We have dedicated this sacrament to the Father and to the Son, that the saving principles of life may be in it, and that, in partaking of it, we may become sanctified. We bless the water as well as the bread, and ask God to sanctify it and fill it with life and the principles of salvation. Do you not think that God can bless this land, so that we can raise anything here, as easily as he can bless the bread and water? Yes, he can. What makes me believe these things? It is because the people generally do not believe them; and they show by their works they do not. But I endeavour to prove by my works that I am a believer in these very doctrines which I am teaching to you.

The individuals who believed that it was not possible to raise fruit here have no currant bushes, no apple trees, no apricot trees, no peach trees, no plum trees; in fact, they have not got any fruit-trees at all, from the fact that they did not believe that fruit could be raised; and their works have shown their, faith. They have got most excellent faith, in their way, but it does not produce any fruit.

Those same individuals now believe that we can raise fruit up here in brother Brigham’s garden, and brother Heber’s, and brother Carrington’s, and those men that live up here on the poorest land there is in the valleys; and we certainly do produce some of the best fruit that is produced in these mountains. I never saw better peaches in my life, nor any larger ones, nor any that were more full of juice. Do you think I have got any dried peaches? Yes, I have got enough to last me two years, and I presume that brother Brigham has, and a great many others. How were they produced? They were produced by our actually going to work and raising the trees and nourishing and cherishing them.

I will ask some of you mothers a question, and you that deal in poultry. You know we have hens, and they lay eggs, and we have geese, and turkeys, and all other kinds of fowls; but they might lay eggs from now till doomsday, and if they did not keep those eggs warm, and nourish them, they never would produce a chicken; no, never. Do not you all understand that?

If you say you cannot raise fruit on that low land, I wish to say to you that I know better. All the reason why they have not raised fruit in the lower parts of the city is because they have not planted the trees! Upon the same principle, the people of San Pete said they could not raise fruit. It was because they never set out an apple tree, and for several years they never planted a cucumber, a watermelon, nor a squash, and of course they never raised one. I presume brother Snow will bear testimony to this. Some said they had faith; but their faith never produced watermelons, squashes, cucumbers, nor anything else. Now, works will produce faith, and works will produce good trees and good fruit.

We dedicate and consecrate the wine or water that we partake of in the sacrament, and we also dedicate the bread to the Lord; and it should be just so with everything: it should all be dedicated to the Lord; and upon all that we do and put our hands unto, we should ask his blessings. We should never meddle with anything on this earth that we cannot lay our hands upon and bless and dedicate and consecrate to the Lord, that it may be for the accomplishment of what it is designed, and produce the very effects that we desire.

I could talk about a great many simple things of this kind, but you laugh. When I talk about such things as cucumbers and watermelons, many laugh, and I hate to be laughed at when I am telling the honest truth and speaking of the simple things of the kingdom of God.

Bless you, this world was made out of small things. I was small, indeed, when I was in the loins of my father Adam; I must have been very small, and so must you, for you were all there: but here I am, a grown man, and, perhaps, nearly as large as Father Adam was. Perhaps I am not so large: I may have become degenerated; but be that as it may, I know that I am here.

Brethren, go and dedicate your gardens, and when you get a tree that you want to set out, dedicate the ground, the root, and the elements that you are going to place around it, and ask God to fill it with warmth and with power to vegetate. Dedicate the seed that you are going to put into the earth, and then dedicate the earth, and nourish it when it springs forth, especially in a cold soil; and do not say that it cannot be quickened, for I say it can. There can be substances such as bones, ashes, lime, old hats, and old boots and shoes, and everything that you can get into it will tend to quicken it; and why will this be the case? Because you have asked God to bless it, and because you have put works, with your faith. By pursuing this course, you can produce apples and peaches on the low as well as on the high lands. Do I believe that the character and course of this people will cause the earth to produce things that require a warm climate? Yes—the earth will be like the people who inhabit it; and it is the duty of us all to go to work and practise accordingly.

Can you produce flax in this country? Can you produce it, unless you go to work and put in the seed? Can you produce wheat, unless you plough the land, put in the seed, and then irrigate it? Do I believe that this land will produce cotton? Yes, just as well as the land down in the southern country: God can change the climate for the benefit and salvation of his Saints.

There never was an ear of corn raised here till we came, and nobody would believe that we could raise any. Bridger offered brother Brigham a thousand dollars for an ear of corn raised in the valley. The mountaineers had not confidence enough in God to put the seed into the earth; but we have almost produced anything that we have tried, and there has been cotton raised up north in this valley. Bless you, it is colder up north than it is here. Can we raise madder here? Yes, every one can raise it in their gardens, and it can be raised as easily as your beds of flowers. I cannot remember the names of them; but it can be raised upon the same principle that your flowers are raised; and so can silk, only the tree is first raised, and the worm eats the leaves of the tree, and then produces the silk.

I am going to talk about home manufacture, and I cannot get my mind upon anything else. You may take a hundred men who have got a hundred wives only, and let me tell you that not fifty years would roll around before they would revolutionize the whole world, if they were men of the right stripe. Why would they do this? Because they would be filled with the power of God, and the very earth that they walk upon would be quickened by them, and the mountains, the sage plains, and the pools of water would feel their power. If it were necessary, those men would control them just as much as Moses did when he struck the rock with the rod that God gave to him, and through the gift and power of God that was in Moses the rock was rent, and the water gushed forth.

Why was this miracle performed? Because it was necessary for the salvation of the children of Israel. Is it necessary that miracles should be performed now? Yes, it is necessary that the Lord should hear us and help us; and he will hear us and bless us, if we are humble and faithful; and he will bless the earth and all that dwell thereon; he will bless our herds, our flocks, our wives, and our children; and they will increase in proportion to our righteousness. These are my feelings in relation to these matters.

Brethren and sisters, let us go to work, every one of us, and cultivate the earth; for it will not hurt any member of a family to assist in these things: it will not hurt the sisters to assist in making gardens; no, it will not hurt your delicate hands any more than it did in England. I know, and can now see hundreds that worked in the fields with their nice, delicate hands, and their striped petticoats, and it did not take above three yards to make one of those petticoats. I have seen you with your nice shoes and your bed-gowns, or some would call them sacks, and your nice aprons tied around, and the apron would cause every pucker just as well as if they had been made in the dress.

This is home manufacture! It is a common occurrence, just as much so as it is for one day to follow another. Why cannot you pursue that course, just as you did in England, in Illinois, in Missouri, or in the Southern States, or in Massachusetts and in Vermont? Did the ladies work there? Yes, they did; they used to sow the onion seed, and then weed the onions, and attend to them, and bring them to maturity; and why is it not as well to do that now as to have to go into it five years hence, as brother Snow has been speaking of?

When the United States muster their forces, and the Devil combines his forces against us, then God will combine his forces against them. But we do not want women to go out and fight, but we want them to stay here and raise everything for our comfort and consolation. We can pursue a course that will make this whole land bring forth. You can have fruit on the low land as well as on the high; you can have fruit at San Pete as well as here. Why, brother Snow will acknowledge that they raise as good pumpkins there as we do here; but they never did till they had faith to plant the seed. Are they going to raise fruit there? Yes, they are; and if the ground is cold, they must stimulate it, but not with whisky, for that will cost too much.

I intend to take a course to worship God acceptably, and I never saw greater necessity than there is at the present time for us to live our religion and be one; and this is not anything new with me, for I have seen it all the time. Then let us go to with our might and do all things that are required at our hands. Let us make all the cloth we can, and raise all the flax we can; and when we have raised it, let us make that into cloth, and then we shall be able to make every woman shine with home-made clothes, when they come into this congregation with their beautiful wool and linen dresses on, and their bonnets made out of straw that has grown on their own land. I have been thinking about this matter two or three days, for I have some straw on hand, and I have been thinking of advising my women to braid up the straw and have my boys! hats made before the hot weather comes. I would rather see them do that ten thousand times than to see them go to parties, and then half the boys get drunk. That is not home manufacture, but that is death and destruction to this people.

Now, sisters, go to work and braid your straw, and have it ready when the summer comes. This whole people might have their heads covered with their own home-manufactured goods, and then they would not have to go to those stores and buy hats that are not worth a dime apiece. Suppose the boys were out two years, would not the sisters have to do some of these things then? Is it not better to have things of our own make than to give the merchant a dollar or two for them, and then not have them half so good?

Sisters, gather up the rags—those little fine pieces that you have throwing about, and sew them together, and make nice petticoats and aprons for the little girls, coverlets, &c., and then teach them to do it for themselves, that they may hereafter make good wives. I can tell you there are not one-half of the women that are fit for wives when they are married. They have not been instructed in home manufacture, and some of them have scarcely learned to wash the dishes properly or to take care of things about the house; and the young men are just as bad.

I am not talking to you, young women—I am talking to those that are married; for they ought to be instructors of those that are young. How long would it take a little girl to sit down and make herself a nice petticoat and to pick up some nice pieces to make herself an apron of? But; you women who have not got anything to wear did not think of these things. You are now ready to say, “We have not got anything to wear; we have not got any patches, and therefore cannot make any patchwork.” Well, then, tear up your dresses and make some, for that is what a great many of you do. My desire is to stir up your minds to reflection in my simple way, that you may go and attend to some of these matters.

I do not care about the army over at Bridger, and in fact I have scarcely thought of them—at least not for a week past. Will they trouble us? No, they will not, not so as to root us up from this time henceforth and for ever, provided we do right. When you are doing those things that I have been speaking of, you are keeping the commandments of brother Heber, the Twelve, and your Bishops. My mind is upon these things; I am led to them, and I will talk about them.

In our first start here, it was almost impossible to get any man to start a tannery, and now a great we get. I have this from our shoemakers; and I feel to thank God that the gate is shut down, that a deal of the leather that is made here is the best, and that we cannot get their miserable stuff here any more. The Lord will now bless our labour; he will bless the fruits of the earth, he will bless our tanneries, he will bless our sheep, our flocks, and everything we undertake to handle and manage; and that is not all, for we will bless those things too, and we will dedicate and consecrate them to God, and we will ask God to fill the earth with the resurrecting power; for life is the resurrecting power, whether it is little or much, and it is that power which brings forth vegetation it is the same power which brings forth food and raiment; and by the same power we shall be brought forth in the morning of the resurrection only there will be more of it in exercise.

We should dedicate all those things to the Lord, with our bodies, our houses, our furniture, the earth that we cultivate, and the seed that we put into the earth; and we should bless the shovel, the hoe, the spade, the sheep, the horses, the cattle, the cows, and all that we possess; and then will not God multiply them unto us? Yes, he will, and we shall get heavier fleeces of wool and more of them. What! can he bless the fleece? Yes, he can, as easily as he blesses the sheep.

I recollect being in England, in the town of Chadburn, Lancashire; and while there I felt as if my whole system was alive; I felt quickened by some unseen power. Brother Hyde was with me, and he knows that it is true; and I felt to pull off my shoes. We pulled off our hats, for we felt such a sacred and holy feeling. I told brother Joseph about it when I came home; and said he, “Brother Heber, that place was dedicated by one of the old Prophets, and it will always be filled with the spirit of life.” Does not that prove that we can bless the earth? Yes, it does, and we can; and you may call me crazy if you like; and I will say, Bang away, but that does not make me crazy. You may call me visionary, if you please; and I wish to God you were all visionary as those holy men were who dedicated those places in the days of Jesus and the Apostles. They are holy places, and they will be held sacred even as Jackson County; and there is not a man living there but at this day has the spirit of fear upon him and expects that he will have to march some day; and, to this day, no man has ventured to cultivate or build upon the Temple Block. Joseph the Prophet dedicated that land, and they feel the effects of that dedication; and the blessing will remain there, and all hell cannot get it off; and I shall yet see the day that I will go back there, with brother Brigham and with thousands and millions of others, and we will go precisely according to the dedication of the Prophet of the living God. Talk to me about my having any dubiety on my mind about these things being fulfilled!—I am just as confident of it as I am that I am called to be a saviour of men, and no power can hinder it.

If we do not receive these things, it is because we do not live for them. I want to do everything by the power of God and the inspiration of his Spirit. When I get a new wife, I always dedicate her to God, and this is the way I have done for years. I also make a practice of dedicating my children to the Lord, that they may grow up in his wisdom and increase in his power.

These are little things; but you need not laugh about them, and nobody but fools would laugh; for these things are our very existence.

I want to know of every man and woman, if you were going to place a sacred thing anywhere, and you were to put it in an unholy vessel, whether that vessel would not make it impure? Yes; and it will become unholy because of that cursed thing. If it is the most holy thing in existence, it will become corrupted by coming in contact with unholy things.

I am preaching these things to my brethren and sisters, that they may know, if they have not dedicated and consecrated their children to the Lord, that it has to be done. But you may inquire, “How shall we do it?” You will have to do it as brother Brigham and others have done when in Nauvoo. We had to take our children and wash and anoint them, and place the birthright and father’s blessing upon them in the house of God, and then have them sealed to us; and you will have to do just so.

If you do not take the right course to raise up a holy seed unto the Lord, but jangle and contend one with another, your children will not have so good a chance to get the blessings of celestial glory; but, in proportion as you bring yourselves into subjection, your children will receive the blessings of heaven.

Just as soon as spring opens, I am going to work to put into the earth every kind of seed, and I want my wives to take an interest in these things, in raising the flax and making the cloth. They take a mighty interest in wearing the cloth when it is made; and if they will do these things, the day will come that we will be as rich as we can desire in all things that this earth produces. Our Governor will be rich, and there is not a man on God Almighty’s earth that will begin to compare with him he will swallow them all up in riches and blessings.

I am opposed to your nasty fashions and everything you wear for the sake of fashion. Did you ever see me with hermaphrodite pantaloons on? [Voice: “Fornication pantaloons.”] Our boys are weakening their backs and their kidneys by girting themselves up as they do; they are destroying the strength of their loins and taking a course to injure their posterity.

Now, just look at me. I have no hips projecting out; they are straight down with my sides. I am serious myself, although I can smile and laugh when I am serious; but these ridiculous fashions I despise, and God knows I despise anything that will tend to destroy the lives of my sisters. What is your existence worth to you? It is worth everything to your posterity; and you ought to consider their interest as well as your own.

There is not a woman in this congregation but would be as straight as I am, if she did not destroy her shape.

Bless your souls, I am talking about home manufacture. I was speaking about it last Sunday, and I would not have said a word about it now, but there were a good many who felt disposed to ridicule brother Lorenzo D. Young’s remarks; therefore I have spoken as I have. I want to know if some of them were not tried by what he said; for some of them were talking about cutting enough off their dresses to make frocks for babies and sending it to him. I wish they would send it to me—I would show them what I would do with it.

Some of you are taking a course like that of the Gentile world—namely, to weaken and destroy the human family, and they are going down to death as fast as they can. Shall we follow in their tracks? Some of them have come up into the tops of the mountains for the purpose of introducing their corrupt and damnable practices and customs.

You may take all such dresses and new fashions, and inquire into their origin, and you will find, as a general thing, they are produced by the whores of the great cities of the world—London, New York, and from Paris, and from all the Gentile cities. Now this is true, gentlemen, and brother Brigham, brother Taylor, and a great many others can bear witness of it.

There is a new fashion that our boys have got hold of, and Spanish bits and bridles, and then with their hermaphrodite pantaloons they look ridiculous. I will speak of my own boys, for they are like the rest, and have to take things rough-and-tumble as they come in this mountain life—to go into the woods, take hold of a lion’s beard, and tell him to stand still: their backs are like the women’s; they are cut nearly in two with these cursed fashions, so that they have but little strength left in them.

I understand those officers out yonder have got a good many women with them, and I do not believe there are twenty in the whole camp but what are whores, and they designed to come here to set you a pattern and to moralize this community. I say, Will they not feel pretty straight by next spring? I think they will feel considerably cooled off by next spring, and I have an idea that by that time they will feel disposed to quit their prostitution; and if they do not go away, we will make them march pretty quick. Those soldiers cannot rule over us, nor their civil officers either, for they are the meanest of the corruption of the world. It makes me angry, but I will not sin about it; but I feel displeased at such things.

We shall prosper from this time forth. Now you may mark it, and you will see that those who will do right will prosper. I will tell you, if we cannot take a course to put iniquity out of our midst, and if men will take a course to demoralize themselves, we we will draw the line and divide the evil from the good, and we will have those who corrupt themselves stay at home and let the pure in heart go out to war. And this is not all: I am opposed to any man’s going into those mountains to stand between us, and our enemies that will get drunk. We do not want any man there but what we can lay our hands upon and dedicate to the Lord; and we do not want any there but who will do that which is right in the sight of God and man; but we want men that will pray and keep their covenants sacred. In short, we want men that are acceptable in the sight of God: they are the men we want.

We want the home manufacturing men; and away with your trash and nonsense, for I am sick of it. I do not say but I have some traditions about me, for I know that I have; but I wish they were off far away. My desire is that I may do everything that is right from this time forth and for ever; and I feel, as I heard brother Brigham say, a few days ago, that I am as independent of those little, nasty, wicked spirits as God is upon his throne, when I am right myself; and so is every other man.

It is true that we are the best people there are on the earth. But still there are a great many things I do not like to see; and one is—when men get up a party, I do not like to see drinking whisky the very first thing that is introduced, and especially to go so far as to pollute themselves. Some of you might say, “Brother Kimball, your boys have been doing the same thing.” If they have, I do not fellowship them in that; but I disfellowship them for so doing, and so does brother Brigham and every other good man. I do not care whether it is a son or a wife that does wrong—I will not fellowship them in that wrong, for I am not partial: I care just as much about the English as the Irish or the Americans, and I guess I manifest it pretty well.

If you cannot obey those you have seen, how can you obey those you never saw? You never will see those whom brother Brigham and his brethren represent, unless you first obey those that you see every day. We are God’s representatives; and if you want to know whether you will ever go into the presence of God, I can tell you that you never will, unless you learn to obey your brethren. Then live to sustain the authorities of this kingdom by your works, and we shall live scores of years.

Brother Brigham never will die by the hand of an enemy, neither will I, nor any of you, if you will do your duty. Brother Brigham is just as secure as the roots of a tree, if every limb performs its duty. I tell you it is hard to tell things just as a man has them in his mind. For my own part, I have not got the language.

Now, if you are determined to destroy yourselves, I am perfectly willing, providing you do not destroy the fruit of your loins; but many of you are taking a course to destroy that by your ridiculous fashions.

Now, suppose that any of you were to take a tree and tie the limbs in a strait place, so that they were obliged to remain in it, will that tree be as thrifty as those that are loose? No, it will not; and if you do not believe it, go into my garden, and you will there see trees with the limbs crossing each other at various angles; and the consequence is that they are gnarly or diminutive in size, and very inferior in appearance, and perhaps they will never produce any fruit.

Do not desire your children or your children’s children to stop their growth, and do not you take a course to render them impotent and imbecile. I am talking to you, ladies; and then, again, I am talking to you, gentlemen, that wear those hermaphrodite pantaloons.

May the Lord God bless this people, and bless his servant that leads them; and I bless everything that sticks to him; and the blessings of salvation shall be with you; for I promise you these things in the name of Israel’s God. Amen.

Idolatry, &c.

Brigham Young

A discourse by President Brigham Young, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, February 7, 1858. Reported by G. D. Watt.

Through the remarks of brothers Edward Partridge and Silas Smith, who have lately returned from their mission to the Sandwich Islands, we are made acquainted with a new variety of customs; and I must confess that, hearing a relation of the customs and traditions of the natives of those islands, I am almost led to believe that they are a people very much like ourselves—that they are entitled to the appellation of human beings. They are prone to wander—prone to weaknesses; and if they have any knowledge of God, they are prone to forget him and to turn to their idols. They are prone to be froward in all their ways, very much like ourselves.

We believe that we have been better taught, and that we are quite an enlightened people. Christian Europe and America deem themselves the most enlightened people upon the earth; and an equal self-confidence among those islanders is all that is wanting to make them believe that they know more than the Europeans and Americans. I have an idea that the Anglo-Saxon race possesses more confidence in themselves and more worldly wisdom than any other nation upon the earth; yet take the people on the Sandwich and Society Islands, and the natives of these mountains and of North and South America, or of any country where there are natives in their idolatry—those whom we call ignorant, dark, benighted, lost, possessed of little or no knowledge, and let a person understanding the Priesthood visit them, and I will venture to say that he would find more and better traits of the Priesthood of God among them than can be found among the Christians. And though it may appear surprising and a matter hardly credible, yet even we are more or less under the power of traditions similar to those of the heathen.

There is a cause for their traditions, customs, and present practices. They have grown into their present idolatry through a neglect of the truth, through a proneness to wander and forget their God and true religion. Let this people backslide—lose their present faith and knowledge, and in after generations, perhaps, a few would cling to the Priesthood with all the vigour that we do, and would understand that the people were going into darkness, and would urge them to have some custom, some form, some representation or figure of their former faith and religion. What is commonly termed idolatry has arisen from a few sincere men, full of faith and having a little knowledge, urging upon a backsliding people to preserve some customs—to cling to some fashions or figures, to put them in mind of that God with whom their fathers were acquainted, without designing or wishing the people to worship an idol—to worship stocks, stones, beasts, and birds. Idols have been introduced, which are now worshipped, and have been for centuries and thousands of years; but they were not introduced at once. They were introduced to preserve among the people the idea of the true God.

I have frequently said, and say again, that there are and always have been a great many in this Church that are not Saints. There are more “Mormons” than Saints; and there are different degrees and grades of “Mormons” and of Saints. There are many that are “Mormons” that are not Saints; and so it will be until Jesus comes to separate the sheep from the goats; or, in other language, until the Husbandman shall bid his servants gather the wheat into the barn, and the tares into bundles to be burned. This must be; this we all believe and can understand.

If we are not all Saints, the most of this people are trying to be. If we are not as perfect in our sphere as are the angels, we are trying to prepare ourselves to become so. We have not yet received our inheritances; but we are trying to prepare ourselves to be worthy to receive them. Yet it can readily be understood that if this people should backslide, they would, as others have, introduce an idolatrous worship. All Protestants accuse the Roman Catholic Church of worshipping idols. It is the practice of its members to carry a cross with them to worship the Virgin Mary. They have paintings and images in their chapels and other places of worship; and they are accused of worshipping these paintings and images, and that they are idolatrous worshippers. But those representations were introduced in the same way that a father would show his children that Jesus Christ is actually a man like their father, by showing them a figure representing Jesus as extended upon the cross, and saying, “This gives you, my children, an idea that he was a man.” Now, let those children, when saying their prayers, have that representation before them, and how long would it be before some of their neighbours’ children would tell their mothers that those children were worshipping a picture or image? This is the way that idolatry has sprung up in the world, through a method established to keep the people in remembrance of the God they once worshipped and were acquainted with.

Do the Christian world know whether God has eyes to see, ears to hear, or hands, or a body? They are as ignorant of the true God as are those islanders, and all whom we call heathen. And our traditions are such that we are yet more or less in the dark, and are under the necessity of assembling here from Sabbath to Sabbath, and in Ward meetings, and besides, have to call our solemn assemblies, to teach, talk, pray, sing, and exhort. What for? To keep us in remembrance of our God and our holy religion. Is this custom necessary? Yes; because we are so liable to forget—so prone to wander, that we need to have the Gospel sounded in our ears as much as once, twice, or thrice a week, or, behold, we will turn again to our idols. It is immaterial what the idol is, whether it is what the Californians call a slug, or whether it is a twenty-dollar gold piece, or an eagle, or half-eagle, or whether our affections and attention fasten upon our farms, houses, and other worldly goods—if we are not constantly exhorting the people and setting before them the necessity of living their religion, calling back their minds that have been wandering, and preaching and praying with them, behold, they would turn to their idols.

Were the Lord to give us peace for a few years, so that we should have no sorrow or trouble from without with the land producing abundantly, with the fine weather and the healthy climate, how long would it be before many of you would again want to go to California to get gold, and turn away from your holy religion to worship an idol? Rather than neglect your holy religion entirely, you had better keep your images right before your eyes and say your prayers to an idol, whether it be cut out of wood or is a dog’s skull, so that you believe there is something behind that which will actually point your affections to look beyond that which you see with your natural eyes, and cause you to believe in a Supreme Being, in an Overruling Hand, in an All-wise Providence, or to worship even a god without body or parts. Are we under traditions to the same extent that some others are? Perhaps not. We do not think we are; and yet we have our traditions upon us; and if we are not careful, we are liable to become as great idolaters as there are in the world.

Brother Silas Smith has just told you that he had not been at home four days when he heard his name called for another mission; and he says that he is ready and willing, of which I have no doubt; for I never knew him when he was not willing to do anything that he was told to do. We say that we are willing to do anything required to sustain us in our religious rights—to sacrifice our all for our religion and the hope that is before us. Brother Clapp has just taught us that we are not worthy of eternal life, unless we are willing to sacrifice all. Brother, Clapp, what have you to give? [ Everything I have.”] But you have not got anything. John, what are you willing to give for eternal life? You say, “Everything.” What have you got? Consider well what you have. Says he, “I live here; I have my life.” No, you have not; for it is in the hands of your Creator. “I have a wife.” She is only committed to you to enable you to prove whether you will treat her in a righteous manner: she is not yet yours. “I have children that are the offspring of my loins.” They are not yours; for you cannot produce them of yourself. “I have a farm.” No; that farm belongs to another. The Devil says that it is his; but we expect Jesus will have the whole earth. “I have horses and possessions.” Reflect well, and consider whether you really own anything. Upon reflection, you discern at once that your wife may be taken from you; your farm and your other possessions may be taken; and your gold and silver may take the wings of the morning and fly from you. If God withdraws his sustaining hand, you sink. You have no wife, children, horses, houses, nor land.

When men and women talk about giving everything for the salvation which they anticipate and live for behold, they have nothing to give; nor have they anything to do, only to do their duty. And what is that? To improve upon that which is committed to their possession—to prove themselves worthy to their Father and God, that ere long they may be worthy to receive crowns of glory, immortality, and eternal life. Then we shall be beyond the power of Satan. We shall be where we can control death and him that has the power of death; and we shall reign triumphantly as the Gods and as the sons of God. We must inherit that power and glory before we can say that we really own anything, even the least thing in this world or in eternity.

Some persons talk about sacrificing; but we have nothing to sacrifice. All we have to do is to love and serve our God, and do everything we can to bring knowledge to ourselves and to the people—everything we can to make them happy, wealthy, strong, and numerous, so that we may overcome the powers of darkness and reign triumphantly on the earth, Jesus Christ being our head and king. That is all we have to do. Tell about houses, lands, and other property being ours, and that we have no traditions and idols! I would as soon see a man worshipping a little god made of brass or of wood as to see him worship his property. I have a number of such gods brought to me from the East Indies and from the islands; and I would as soon see one of my brethren worship one of those brass idols as to see him worship his property; and he would be as much justified in the sight of God. Does this congregation understand what idolatry is? The New Testament says that covetousness is idolatry; therefore, a covetous people is an idolatrous people.

Some of you are just as much idolaters as are the heathen, but you do not know it; neither do they realize their idolatry. Were I on the islands and seeing the natives bow before their images to be healed, I would say, “Have faith.” And instead of disfellowshipping a man for worshipping an idol, I would exhort him to have exceeding great faith in his idols, upon the same principle that I exhort the brethren here to have faith in our God. “And if your idol will not heal you, look beyond to that Being who can.” I am not for cutting people off from the Church that worship their property instead of their God, but for bearing with them until they shall gain light and knowledge so as to see their errors and, turn to the God of truth. I would say to idolaters, “If you have faith in an idol, have a little more; and if you have faith enough, the Lord may work upon your minds so that you can understand the blessings he has in store for his people. And I say to the men and women who profess to be Latter-day Saints, “God giveth and he withholdeth; at his pleasure he raises up and puts down kings, emperors, thrones, and dominions; and the power and wisdom and glory of the Almighty, who fills immensity and operates upon all things, will prevail.”

What good can our wealth do, were it not to promote the cause of God upon the earth, overcome the power of Satan, and be used to bring forth righteousness and overcome darkness? That is dedicating ourselves and all we are made stewards over to the building up of the cause of God on the earth. In so doing we can be justified. We cannot receive the glory, the kingdoms, the thrones, the wisdom, and the power that are designed for us, without a close application in our studies and in our efforts in our whole lives to build up the kingdom of God on the earth. We need to apply our minds to wisdom as strongly and closely as brother Silas Smith had to apply his mind to learn the language of the natives, that he might be able to teach them his ideas without trusting to their passing through the mouth of another. No matter how much of the Spirit a teacher has, if his words have to be interpreted by one who has not the Spirit; the people are not benefitted; “For the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.” No matter how much a man preaches, nor how much of the Holy Ghost he has—the spirit may be edified, but the understanding will remain unfruitful. And if we trust to some other person to bring forth the hidden things of the kingdom, if we are all the time dependent on an interpreter who has not the Holy Ghost, we cannot grow rapidly in the knowledge of the truth.

We must live so that our knowledge and faith shall reach beyond the ideal, no matter what that is; and we must have knowledge of the living God for ourselves. The people wish to know whether they cannot find out the living God. Yes, just as quickly as you are prepared; but you must cease worshipping idols. Then, when persons say they are willing to sacrifice their all for the kingdom of God, they will do it without whining. Then, if a Ward is required to perform a certain work, they will not complain about it. Then they will be apt to cast their idols behind them, and will not so worship and covet a beautiful span of horses that they will not let them go to save the whole house of Israel. But in the first place, they have nothing to sacrifice; in the second place, God has given them enough with which to benefit his kingdom; and thirdly, if it is not on hand when required, by-and-by it will be said, “Take from those persons what they seem to have, and give it to those who are worthy—who can dispose of their property to build up the kingdom of God.” It will be said of us all, unless we improve upon what we have, “Take that which they seem to have, and give to those who improve upon their talents and will gain more.”

Whether you can see it or not, I know that this people are more or less prone to idolatry; for I see that spirit manifested every day, and hear of it from nearly every quarter. We must stop worshipping idols. We are in possession of the keys of the kingdom; the eternal Priesthood is committed to this people, and we are blessed as are no other people of which we have any knowledge. This people have the words of life—the way of life and salvation: they know how to save themselves and all that will cleave to them. Now, what is demanded at our hands? Is it to pray that we may be faithful? It seems to be a burlesque. It is most disgraceful to be under the necessity of saying, “Brethren and sisters, let us be faithful.” Rather so obtain a particle of wisdom before God that we can see our own standing, what we are called to do, and understand what is bestowed upon us. You might as well pray for the angels to be faithful as for this people. If you could see and understand things as they are, your whole souls, minds affections, lives, and everything at your control would be sealed up in God and his work. Then would it be, “You cannot take my horses, for I cannot spare them?” No. Who cares for all the horses in the world? The Devil says that he has claim on them, and he means to devote them to his use. I will see that all the horses, mules, gold, silver, clothing, and people belonging to this Church are devoted to the kingdom of Christ, God being my helper; and I will out general the Devil, and baffle him in every turn, and head him in every nook and corner; and he shall be turned hither and thither as the Lord will. I am determined, in the name of Israel’s God, to see the Devil whipped from the earth, and out-generaled and fooled in all his schemes, and whirled about by this Church until he is glad to leave the earth and go to his own place; and then we will see whether or not the Lord God has all things that belong to him.

Compare our position and situation with that of the rest of the world; look at the inhabitants of the earth, and try to understand the object of our being on this earth, the object of the forming and peopling this earth, and designing and decreeing that things should be thus and so. Try to understand why our first parents partook of the forbidden fruit, and why Jesus came to the earth to redeem fallen man. Let us try to learn why things are suffered to proceed on the earth as they do.

If you get an understanding to know the purposes and designs of our Creator in framing and peopling this earth, do you think that I should be under the necessity of exhorting you to say that you will sacrifice your all for eternal life? The idea is nonsensical. Should I be under the necessity of exhorting you to live your religion and cling to your God? If we should not come to meeting during the next sixteen years, and if we had never met since the brethren were driven from Jackson County, every one would live his religion. If this people had understood what they ought, the early Elders might have lived in foreign nations and preached the Gospel until this day, and they would then have been better prepared to worship God acceptably than many are now; and this people would have been more cautious, better prepared, and more contented to practise what they know, instead of searching after things that do not concern them.

We know enough to damn us; and when we know enough for that, we know enough to save us, if that knowledge is improved upon. We are a happy people. We are the only people on earth that acknowledge God and truly believe in him. The Christian and heathen world profess to believe in him; and the Jews say that they believe in him: but they do not believe in Jesus Christ. The Christians profess to believe in Jesus Christ; but, if he told the truth, not one of them really believes in him. I do not doubt their honesty; but I doubt the manifestation of any knowledge they have of him; for if they were his disciples, they would do the works which he did. That alone is positive proof to me that they neither believe in him nor have any idea what he designs concerning them. They may be honest and sincere; but they are very ignorant. This people have the true knowledge; they have it not, We have the Priesthood; they have it not. We have the way of life and salvation; they have it not. We know how to be Saints—how to save ourselves and all who will hearken to our counsel; they do not.

Now, ask yourselves, is there any necessity of preaching, praying, teaching, and exhorting, to learn us our duty and make us Saints? It is almost labour lost. You heard brother Silas say that if the Elders should leave those islands, in a few years the natives who have embraced the Gospel would be as bad as they ever were. If there is nothing more of them than that—if they have no desire to do good—no power in themselves to keep them from giving way to the Devil, unless there is an Elder from Great Salt Lake to watch them, the quicker they are damned the better. I would not, in such a case, walk five rods for the whole of them. If they do not know enough, after what they have been taught, to save themselves, they will be damned, and I will not ask another Elder to wear out his strength and waste his energies in so useless a work.

Those islanders and the natives of this country are of the house of Israel—of the seed of Abraham, and to them pertain the promises; and every soul of them, sooner or later, will be saved in the kingdom of God, or be destroyed root and branch. If they do not choose in this probation to take the path that leads to life, let them go their own road. The honest in heart in all nations and generations who are worthy to receive any salvation will receive it, sooner or later; and I do not care how quick the Lord Almighty cleans the floor; for then we will build up Zion and redeem the honest in heart. But it is not for me to know the times and the seasons: it is for me to be contented in the discharge of my duty to-day, and let to-morrow bring forth what it will.

May the Lord bless you, brethren and sisters. Amen.

Testimony of God’s Servants Faithfully Borne to the Nations, etc.

Orson Pratt

A discourse by Elder Orson Pratt, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, Sunday afternoon, January 24, 1858. Reported by J. V. Long.

Once more I have the opportunity of beholding the faces of the Latter-day Saints here in the valleys of the mountains.

I begin to be almost weary in trying to carry salvation to the wicked nations of the Gentiles; and because of the many years that I have spent on missions, I find myself almost a stranger in the midst of the Saints at home. There are now but very few that I can recognize. There are many that have known me for upwards of a quarter-of-a-century that I have forgotten.

I have felt, since I started for home this last time, that I should, perhaps, be permitted to tarry with you longer than I have had the privilege of doing at any former period of my life.

If any one should ask me where my home has been for the last quarter-of-a-century, I should answer—Among the nations; for that has been my principal abiding place ever since the year 1830.

When I received a letter from the President, releasing me from the Office at Liverpool, and also releasing all the missionaries in that country, without specifying in the letter what time I should return, I immediately felt a great desire to return this winter; and by this means I believe I have saved to myself some six or seven months time that I can dwell here in the midst of the Saints; and at this peculiar period I feel that it will be a great blessing to me to be with you—that if you have to share toils and tribulations in having your enemies upon your borders, I may share them with you; and that if you have peculiar blessings bestowed upon your heads that I also may be made a partaker of them.

Should my brethren say to me, “Brother Orson, we wish you to take a mission, now, to China, or to the East Indies, or to any other part of this globe, and tarry there twenty-seven years before you return to your home,” I would go. Yes, I would gladly go, and feel that it was my duty, and that I was pleasing God in obeying the counsel of his servants.

The Lord sent forth this message some twenty-eight years ago; and, during this period, the servants of the Lord have been sent out especially to the Gentile nations, that their times might be fulfilled, and to give them an opportunity of receiving the truth. Those servants have gone forth, though in their weakness; and, with very few exceptions, they have been very faithful in their duties. They have fulfilled that parable that is recorded in the Book of Mormon, where the labourers are said to have gone forth and laboured with their might, and the Lord of the vineyard laboured with them; and it predicts that they should be faithful in keeping the commandments of the Lord of the vineyard in all things.

We must, therefore, draw this one conclusion—that the testimony that has been borne to the Gentile nations is sufficient, so far as our weak judgment can comprehend, to condemn them all, if they never hear another sound from the voices of the servants of God while they exist in the flesh. Why is it enough? Has every individual among the nations of the Gentiles been preached to? I will tell you what has been done.

Thousands and tens of thousands of large congregations have been preached to in the United States and in Great Britain. Thousands and thousands of the servants of God have lifted up their voices, day after day, week after week, month after month, and year after year, and warned the nations; and the Lord told us, more than twenty years ago, that he had sent forth his servants to warn the people, and it became those who had been warned to warn their neighbours. The Lord, more than twenty years ago, said to his servants, “Your garments are clean from the blood of this generation.”

Where is there a Gentile nation upon this earth, if they were to be destroyed this very day, that could come up before the Lord of Hosts and plead any excuse before him for not knowing concerning the latter-day message which has been sent forth? According to my feelings upon this subject, I believe that they have been fully warned, beginning with the nation of the United States that inhabit this promised land. They have also been thoroughly warned in Great Britain. The nations of Europe have been offered the message; but they would not receive it. It seems to me, according to my judgment, and according to the vast amount of testimony that has been sounded in their ears, that they are delivered over, not as individuals, but as nations, to the hardness of their own hearts, to fight against the work of God.

The Lord says, in the preface of the Book of Covenants, “Search these commandments; for every jot and every tittle shall be fulfilled, and not one word shall fail.” The inhabitants of the earth were commanded to search those commandments; and you will find in that preface that the Lord told the inhabitants of the earth that his servants, the weak things of the earth that he was then sending forth, had power to seal both on earth and in heaven the unbelieving—yea, verily, to seal them up unto the day when the wrath of God shall be poured out upon the wicked without measure.

Now, the Lord moves upon the hearts of our First Presidency to say to the Elders of Israel abroad, “It is enough: come home. Your testimony is sufficient. The wicked reject it; they fight against it: therefore you may now return to these mountains and valleys. Return from the nations of Europe, return from the nations of Africa, return from Great Britain, from the United States, and from the Canadas, and come home to these mountains.”

In sending forth a message of this kind to the Elders, what does it show? Why, it closes for the present the testimony of the servants of God, and shows that the warning is sufficient, and that both earth and heaven bear witness that the Gentiles are left without excuse.

Apparently, all the devils that brother Kimball and the other brethren saw in vision on their first mission to England seem now to have entered into the tabernacles of the people; and you can see them gnash their teeth at the Saints, just as they were seen by brother Kimball; for the Devil influences them and makes them instruments to fight against the people of God.

Read the vision of Nephi, where the Lord showed him the sending forth of this message to the nations:—“And it came to pass that I looked and beheld the whore of all the earth: and she sat upon many waters, and she had dominion over all the earth, among all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people. And it came to pass that I beheld the Church of the Lamb of God; and its numbers were few, because of the wickedness and the abominations of the whore who sat upon many waters. Nevertheless, I beheld that the Church of the Lamb, who were the Saints of God, were also upon all the face of the earth; and their dominions upon the face of the earth were small, because of the wickedness of the great whore whom I saw. And it came to pass that I beheld that the great mother of abominations did gather together in multitudes upon all the face of the earth, among all the nations of the Gentiles, to fight against the Lamb of God. And it came to pass that I, Nephi, beheld the power of the Lamb of God, that it descended upon the Saints of the Church of the Lamb, and upon the covenant people of the Lord, who were scattered upon all the face of the earth; and they were armed with righteousness and with the power of God in great glory.” [Book of Mormon, 1st Book of Nephi, chap. iii., 47-50.

What is it that is going to increase righteousness and the power of God upon the Saints that are scattered abroad upon the face of the earth? It is the increase of righteousness here at head-quarters; and as branches of the great vine of the same Church, they will feel the influence of the same Spirit, even before the intelligence can reach them by letter. When you reform and turn away from your sins—when you practise righteousness here, the Saints of God abroad feel stirred up to do the same things, and the Spirit of the Lord rests upon them the same as it does upon the people here, only not to the same extent, because you live at headquarters, at the fountain head, and you have a greater experience; therefore, your experience, righteousness and faithfulness, entitle you to more choice gifts than those that have not the same experience.

The power of God will rest upon the Saints of these valleys first, and then upon the Saints in all the world, just in proportion to their righteousness. The Lord is going to increase power here among the people. Have we any dangerous circumstances to pass through that render it necessary that more power should be made manifest? Have we got to bear testimony to kings and to the rulers of the earth at the present time? No, we are not called to do this; but those who are in the nations abroad may have this to do.

What, then, is needful to be done? We have got a different work to do than what we have had for the last quarter-of-a-century.

You recollect that the Lord has said he would try and prove us in one scale, and then he would try us in another, and see if we would be faithful in carrying out the principles of salvation.

When we were thus tried, we went forth and whipped out the religious world spiritually. Their priests, their lawyers, their doctors, their great men, their discussionists, and their wise men have all been whipped and backed out—so much so that they have confessed that they could not stand before the powerful reasoning of the servants of God and the power which accompanied the great latter-day message. But now we have to be tried in another point. We have whipped them out so far as their doctrines are concerned, and they have now come up to try physical force upon us.

I do not know that the Lord would have sent us down there to drive them, if they had not first come against us. But they have come up with sword in hand, with the best engines and implements of war, with their best disciplined armies, their scientific officers, with men that profess to have skill in all the arts of warfare and ability to whip out the few Saints here in the mountains.

Do you think that that God who has enabled his Saints to fight moral and spiritual battles, to array argument against argument and principle against principle in all the contests which they have been called to have, and who has brought them off victorious—do you think he will not defend them at this time also? If he has supported us in all these things, do you suppose that he is going to allow us to be overcome by those who have persecuted his servants, and to let our necks be trampled down under their feet? If I have any understanding of ancient and modern prophecy and of the spirit that is in me, the Lord intends to perform his part of the work for the deliverance of his Saints.

I must say to the Latter-day Saints throughout this Territory, that the same God who has strengthened them to overcome their enemies spiritually will be their defence, and his power and strength and his arm will be stretched out for their deliverance. When you go to meet your enemies, they shall be prostrated before you, and you shall overcome them. And as you have overcome their priests by the strong force of argument, so shall you literally and physically put your enemies to flight, and one shall chase a thousand, and two shall put ten thousand to flight; and this you will do by the power and strength of that God who fought for Israel in ancient days.

Have we any ancient prophecy upon this subject? Yes, we have; and let us bring it up; for we now live about the time that the mother of abominations was to gather together and fight against the Saints.

In the last chapter of the 1st Book of Nephi, paragraph 3, the Prophet says—“And all that fight against Zion shall be destroyed, and that great whore who hath perverted the right ways of the Lord—yea, that great and abominable church shall tumble to the dust, and great shall be the fall of it. For behold, saith the Prophet, the time cometh speedily, that Satan shall have no more power over the hearts of the children of men; for the day soon cometh that all the proud and they who do wickedly shall be as stubble, and the day cometh that they must be burned. For the time soon cometh that the fulness of the wrath of God shall be poured out upon all the children of men; for he will not suffer that the wicked shall destroy the righteous. Wherefore he will preserve the righteous by his power, even if it so be that the fulness of his wrath must come, and the righteous be preserved, even unto the destruction of their enemies by fire. Wherefore the righteous need not fear, for thus saith the Prophet, they shall be saved, even if it so be as by fire.”

Nephi looked upon these things and saw the condition that the people would be in, and therefore he said “You need not fear.” Do you hear it, Latter-day Saints? You need not fear, for the Lord will preserve his people, even if it must needs be that he sends fire down from heaven to destroy the wicked and those that preach false doctrines to the children of men, even the whore of all the earth; for they must tremble and fall and crumble to dust.

I feel as strong, and I do not know but stronger, in regard to the work that is now before the Saints, than I ever have done in bearing testimony to the truth of the Gospel. I have always felt that God would give me wisdom, argument, and testimony to confound gainsayers and opposers of the truth; and thus God has enabled me to do. I have the same feeling to-day—not that we have the strength to do it ourselves; but I know that God will strengthen us for the work we have to do.

Though the Lord may suffer our enemies to come and invade our borders, and though we have been driven and trampled upon, and though we have laid down our necks for them to tread upon, he has now got us here, where he will show forth his power.

He has let us rest in these peaceful valleys in safety and in quietness for some ten years, and now he seems to say to the wicked, “Inasmuch as you will not give heed to the testimony of my servants, and you are determined to invade their borders, go up and try it, and I will show you that I will gird on my strength and arm my servants, and they shall defend my cause.”

It will be just as the Lord said in December, 1830—“I will call the weak of the earth, and I will gird up their loins; and they shall fight manfully for me, and their enemies shall be under their feet.” He also says, “I will not only shake the earth, but the starry heavens also; and the inhabitants of the earth shall know that you are my people, because of the power and the strength that shall be manifest in defending yourselves against your enemies.” This is what the Lord intends to do.

It needed the United States as a nation or as a government to unjustly come up against us, in order to bring about these things. How many scores and hundreds sit in this congregation that have never been in one solitary mob? Have you been tried with persecution and mobbing and death? Have you been tried at the mouth of the cannon or at the point of the bayonet? No—many of you have not; hence a trial is needful. Can you expect the power of God without a trial of your faith? It is expedient that you have a trial of your faith. It would be one of the easiest things in the world for the Almighty to send fire and brimstone upon the earth and destroy our enemies, or to swallow them up by an earthquake as he did in days of Israel.

In those days the Lord enabled Israel to overcome the Hittites, the Hivites, the Jebusites, &c. How easy it would have been for the Lord to have destroyed them by earthquake, or by fire, or by something of this kind! But he did not do it—and why? Because he wanted to do several things at the same time: he wanted to destroy the wicked, and to see if his servants would flinch in the hour of danger. The Lord is going to defend this people, but not without their agency. He is not going to let us sit upon our easy chairs and not expose ourselves. If we were to do this, we should not be worthy of the kingdom of God. He offers us the kingdom, and says it is ours, upon certain conditions.

What else does he say? “My Church shall be free and independent of all creatures beneath the celestial world.” Have we been free from the United States? No, we have not; but we are to be made free from every government upon the face of the earth; and wherever there is any dominion that is beneath that of the celestial world, we are to be free from it.

Now, suppose the Lord had offered us all these things, and we should sit down and not move a finger for the blessings he had given, should we be worthy of them? No, not at all. We should be in this condition, if we were suffered to take possession of these blessings without any trials.

If we are dilatory, we shall have to suffer as in days gone by, and our enemies will come in here and bring in their whoredoms and abominations that they have been accustomed to from their youth up. This will be the case, if we do not save ourselves by our diligence and obedience. But if we show to God that we are willing to stand up in behalf of his kingdom and of the truth, even unto death, then, notwithstanding our enemies may be two hundred to our one, we shall feel strong in the Lord, and he will fight our battles. Then we shall accomplish that which has been promised by the Prophets; and not only the United States will have to suffer, but as the Prophet Isaiah says—“The multitude of all the nations that fight against Zion shall become like the dream of a night vision, as when a man who is hungry dreameth that he is satisfied with food, and he awaketh and behold he is faint.” So will be all nations who fight against this people: they will pass away before the power of the servants of God. His servants will be clothed with wisdom and with the power of the Most High to prevail against all their enemies.

We would let the poor curses alone, if they would stay at home and mind their own business. The American continent never was designed for such a corrupt Government as the United States’ to flourish or prosper long upon it. After they should become ripened in iniquity, it was not intended they should continue. The Lord has designed another thing, and for this reason we are here in these mountains: the little stone has been rolling up hill.

If our enemies keep coming up here, after the Lord has shown his power and enabled his servants to cope with them, if they still continue to fight against Zion, the Saints of God will roll down upon their borders and take them upon their own lands. But before that day comes, we have to show our wisdom by skirmishes and in various conditions in which we shall be placed; and we have got to show the nations that God intends to do something here in the mountains.

When he has done this, we shall then roll down to the borders of Missouri and take possession of our inheritances, from which we have been illegally and unconstitutionally driven.

Brother Kimball says we could not roll down until we rolled up. But we have been rolling up hill for the past ten years, in fulfilment of the prediction of Isaiah, which says—“O Zion, that bringest glad tidings, get thee up into the high mountain;” and having rolled up for ten years, we shall soon begin to roll down. But I do not think it will take ten years to roll down hill; for we shall be propelled by the power of God, and the work will be hastened.

The power of God will be with us, and the Lord God will redeem Zion, as he redeemed Israel in Egypt; and not only his angels, but his presence will go before us, and the nations of the earth shall fear because of the power of God which shall accompany us.

Then will be the time that the Gentiles can be preached to by the Elders with some sense; or rather, they will be preached to by Israel that is scattered amongst them. Then, brethren, you can go and preach to them, and say the power of God is with you, and say to the people, Look yonder, and behold the children of Zion delivered by the power of God; and then you will be respected. Then you can go the palaces of the great and preach to the king upon his throne, to the great men, to the nobles, and rich men of the earth; and many will fear, and receive your testimony, and flow to Zion, bringing their riches with them. But now you could not go into their fine palaces, nor find access to their rich and splendid mansions. You could not get them to hear you for one moment. No: they would degrade you, if possible, to the lowest hell.

There is not a people upon the face of the earth that were ever degraded like the Latter-day Saints. They look upon you worse than they do upon any set of pirates that travel the open seas—that is, if they believe their own words; for they circulate these things in their lectures and in their periodicals; and there is no use to try to preach to them, but let the Lord work with them and with this people.

Let the Lord purify his kingdom, and let the most bitter branches be pruned off—not by some means entirely independent of the Saints; but let the people go to work and trim off such bitter branches as Missouri and Illinois, because of their wickedness and mobocracy; and then the nations will begin to see that there is power there. Yes, trim them up, in order that the natural branches that bear fruit may bear more fruit—that Zion, in other words, may increase her tents and stretch forth her curtains, even the curtains of her habitations, and make not only the desolate cities of Zion, but the desolate cities of the Gentiles to resound with songs of praise to Him that sitteth upon the throne and to the Lamb for ever and ever. This is what the Prophet says about it:—“And their desolate cities shall be built up and be inhabited by the Saints of the Most High.” God will bring about this work; and as to our being overcome in these valleys of the mountains, it will not be, if this people do as they are told—if they are willing to do right in all things.

If this people will hearken to the law of God, and in everything be humble and meek, and keep his commandments by day and by night, from one year’s end to another, we shall be, as it is said in the parable of the vineyard, as one body—as the roots and tops of the great tree which the Lord God has planted and made equal, so that the top will not jostle over because there is not sufficient strength in the roots.

I want to see this people of one heart and of one mind; and when the word comes forth, I want to have them as well-disciplined as the Gentiles, and ten thousand times better.

This is the people who have the right to be of one heart and of one mind for the defence of Zion, for the defence of their wives and children, for the defence of their vineyards, and their flocks and herds, but more especially for the defence of the kingdom of the Most High God.

Let this be the main object of this people. You know that it is the kingdom of God or nothing! Therefore may righteousness be our object from this time forth and for ever. Amen.

Happy Prospects of the Saints, etc.

Joseph Young

Remarks by President Joseph Young, made in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, Sunday afternoon, October 11, 1857. Reported by J. V. Long.

I do not allow myself to make any apologies when I get up to speak, because it is against my feelings—it is against my principle.

I have listened to what brother Lorenzo has said, and I have felt well. It is my desire, if I suggest anything, to suggest that which is profitable—which will do good. Language is too frail to express the rich sentiments of the hearts of the Saints; the tongue fails to utter the glory and the pleasures of the kingdom of God. It cannot do it; language fails. There is a display of the Holy Spirit in the understanding that surpasses all language; it cannot be told; it is past being told or described. This is right; it is as it should be, for language is poor: the best we know of is poor.

I am not precisely like some of our Elders who think that unless somebody is talking all the time, nobody can be edified. It is true that we come together to be edified by hearing each other speak: but when a body of people come together, that body should bring the agency of the Holy Spirit with them; and I drink of the fountain of intelligence, whether any body speaks or not.

We have prayed many years—we have sought many years for the blessings which we now begin to enjoy.

I feel to rejoice in these things. I feel to be glad at the prospects that are before us. I feel to be glad; and whatever may be the result of the present crisis, I am glad in my heart. I never felt so in my life; and it is not I alone, but it is the whole people of the Saints. I believe that in this thing we all feel pretty much in the same spirit. I know that as long as we dwell in mortality, it is impossible for us to obtain that happiness which is in store for the sanctified. It is impossible for me, at the present, to obtain and retain the fulness of that pure spirit that I wish to obtain.

We dwell in impure elements—in an atmosphere that is and has been corroding from the beginning, for it is controlled by the Devil, the “prince and power of the air.” But we can seek the atmosphere that comes from heaven, and that is pure. When we came to dwell in the tabernacles that are so corrupt, we were placed very far beneath the high privileges we shall attain to. We mix ourselves with the spirit of the times; we condescend to weaknesses that the time will come when we shall be ashamed of before the angels and before sanctified beings.

When we condescend to anything that is mean, we feel ashamed; we feel the blush to come upon us, and we know that is not in keeping with the Holy Spirit. I presume it is so with you. I feel assured that you are somewhat sensible of your weaknesses. If the enemies of the Saints should make inroads upon the privileges of the Saints of God, what will it argue?

If such should be the case, it will argue that their hearts are not united. I do not presume to say that this will be the result of the present contest; but, on the contrary, I believe that this people are so much united that God will hold his hand over them, for they are his favourites—they are the seed of his choosing; and there his power, however variable it may be, will ever be successful.

I must prophesy. I feel it in me all the time, because I see something of the faith and prayers of this people year after year; and hence I must prophesy. It has been a hard struggle with the people of God, and you have read and thought how the Saints must succumb; but it has seemed a sort of second nature that the enemies of truth must persecute the people of God; and when they are out of their reach, they must still follow them up and persecute them with a perseverance that is worthy of a better cause.

There is a handful of people in these valleys. They have come to erect his Temple, build the towers of Zion, to attend to the ordinances of the Gospel, and prepare for the great things that await the earth. All our children, and a large portion of our brethren and sisters, and a large portion that persecuted their brethren and sisters here have all got to learn that God has made all of one blood, and that we are all the children of our common parent. They follow us up here, and what for? To shed the blood of Prophets and Apostles and all good men. Yes, we can say it has been so ever since the commencement of this work.

Our enemies are not sane. They are no more sane after they set their hands against this people. The administrators of the Government that we live under are just as insane as they can be. They do not comprehend that those men who stand at our head hold the keys of salvation; but I do believe that they have a desire in them to extirpate the last vestige of hope that is upon the earth. This is the folly and meanness of man, to destroy those who hold the power and the keys of salvation to the inhabitants of the whole earth!

Who is it that is at the head of this? It is the Devil, the mighty Lucifer, the great prince of the angels, the brother of Jesus. He left the province of his Father, and took with him a third part of his Father’s kingdom, and there was no other alternative but to banish him. God would have saved him if he could; but he could not. Lucifer and all his host went away to themselves, and they are our foes; they are after us, and they are after this whole people; and I tell you they are as thick as I want them. Perhaps the air is clearer here than in any other place; but perhaps I am wrong. There may be more devils here than in any other country, and we are certainly more free from their power than any other people under heaven. Be this as it may, I know that there is a victory to be gained, and we have to gain that victory.

It reminds me of an anecdote of a man who was travelling. He saw a devil as he was travelling, and the devil was asleep; and he was asked the reason, and the answer was, the people were asleep. When he came back, the devil was running. He inquired what was the matter; and the answer was, the people are waked up. It has been precisely so from the time that Joseph Smith found the plates: the Devil has been after him, and after this people to the present.

We are safe in retreating; and here is the best retreat that we have ever found, right in these mountain fastnesses. But does persecution cease now we are here? No, sir. If it did, it would be jeopardising what has been spoken. What is this for? and how is it we are so safe? It is because the Holy Spirit of God aids us and sanctifies us, and it consecrates and devotes us to his service, and that is the safety of this people.

I tell you now, this is a good place; but without the sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit to amalgamate the Saints and make them of one heart and one mind, could they live here? No, they could not. But by living their religion, they can live here or anywhere else where the Lord has a mind to put them. It is the conduct of the people that must determine this.

Although these mountains are good and like the ramparts of some other countries—of Switzerland and of Scotland—yet, take away the union that exists in the midst of this people, and then how would it be?

We have many advantages here, and yet God has seen fit to manifest and reveal the necessity of union, and of this people being of one heart and one mind. He has located us here in these mountains to give us an opportunity of taking advantage of these blessings which we enjoy, that we might receive benefits from the advantages of these high mountains.

Are we safe? We are, so long as we are united and keep the commandments of God. But, brethren and sisters, this must be our strength. Our trust must be in the Lord. No one can understand for another, but it is each for himself. I know when I am right, but I cannot always tell when you feel right. When all my family are filled with the spirit of union and show a becoming deference to me as their head, I see there is a good spirit prevailing. Then I say all is peace, all is happiness, all is paradise under my roof. Then there is no enemy that pervades my house.

You should know when you are right and when you feel right; that is, when there is no jealousy, when there is no animosity within us—nothing that is contrary to the spirit of the Gospel. When our desires and the feelings that are constantly brooding over our minds are to do all the good we can—when our desires are to see the glory of God, to see the Saints made happy and comfortable, then we are right, for that is the spirit that unites the Saints together; that is the spirit that makes them one.

There is a good deal to be done, notwithstanding we have advanced considerably. The history of our past experience shows we have made great advances, and now a period in our history has arrived that is more eventful—one that is more absorbing to the Saints than any past period of our history. I have no doubt, when we view this period in years that are to come, that we shall be able to give a brighter account of our progress than we have done in any times that are gone by. This will assuredly be the case.

We never were placed in the position we are now in. We are situated here, and our enemies are close by us. There have been steps taken by them that place us in a different position to what we ever were in before; and who shrinks? I do not, and I do not know that anybody else does.

I praise God and thank him for it, that we are placed in a position where we dare to declare the truth to the world and to the nation to which we have been connected, and where our brethren now have the independence to declare the truths of God and say what steps we will take in defence of our wives and children.

Whether I die on a scaffold or while preaching the Gospel to the wicked through iron grates, yet I should rejoice. I leave the result in the hands of God, and pray that he will rule all things in a way that will be for the salvation of his Saints and for the upbuilding of his kingdom. My heart rejoices and I feel right, and that the Lord will overrule all for our good.

Brethren and sisters, I feel that short sermons are the best, and I feel that there is a degree of the power of God among the people to such an extent that I have never before realized. What is the reason of this? You know for the last year past many have turned from their sins, and, I trust, have forsaken them. There has been a great change; for where darkness and carelessness prevailed, and almost wholly pervaded the minds of the people, I perceive there is an increase of faith in the promises of God—an increase of interest in the cause and kingdom of God upon the earth. Many are laying aside personal interests to sacrifice all for the building up of the kingdom of God, and all seem to be trying who can be the most successful.

I rejoice in this, and I say that nothing could be a better symptom of the gifts and graces of the Gospel being in the people. I feel that God has blessed this people, even beyond my most sanguine expectations, though I always believed that God would save us and bring us through. But it is no matter, if it takes twenty-five years to do that which might be accomplished in one—it is all right—it is all through faith. If there is faith enough in this people to do in one hour what is the ordinary work of years, it would be brought about by the simple act of faith.

If it takes us years to gain that experience which we could learn in a day, it is our own fault. The Lord declared to his disciples that he had many things to say to them, but they could not bear them at that time, for they could not bear all things; therefore he had to give them instructions by piecemeal, because they could not bear the fulness of the light.

It is so now. It is but little that the Saints can bear, and I want you to bear it in your minds, for ever? move of the Holy Spirit softens the hearts of the people: there is with it an accompanying blessing; there is something that warms the conscience and makes the spirit tender. The heart should be susceptible and pliable to the touch of the Spirit. Do not forsake that—do not drive that out of your heart, but make yourself more and more acquainted with the Spirit and power of God. A man may pass through all the ordinances of the house of God, but he must have the impress of the Holy Ghost upon his mind, or he cannot receive that fulness of joy and happiness which he might have. When the Spirit of God melts the heart, it runs through a man’s system, and it is like melted ore. But when the heart becomes hard, there is no penetrating it. This is a serious state to be in.

I tell you there is the power of God in this Tabernacle, and we may feel that we are arrested by the power of God until we should be carried out of that door; and then, perhaps, the next moment, we lose that feeling and become the natural man again. We should strive to get that influence and keep it.

All our domestic arrangements are to be subservient to that Spirit, otherwise we are on the background—we are taking the back track, which never should be the case with the Saints. When a man gets the power of God and the Spirit of the Lord, he is right.

I would not be afraid to warrant everything that I possess upon the earth, if this people will be faithful and live so as to enjoy the fulness of the Spirit of God, that no enemy can successfully invade us.

We want to be happy. This is our ultimate and eternal boon—happiness. You may point me to an individual that is not seeking for happiness, but I tell you the ultimate design of each and every one is happiness. I tell you a man’s mind is susceptible of feelings that cannot be satisfied with out happiness.

Well, home is our paradise—home is our heaven. We can make a heaven in our own bosom—we can make it at home. I never can be joyful or happy without a heaven at home; but when I have it there, I feel well, let winds blow high or low—let adversity come, or prosperity.

I do believe that it is the design of the Almighty to bless this people with prosperity. But I tell you, brethren, I should be afraid of myself, if I had this world’s goods. I tell you the pathway through adversity is the safest way to heaven. When men get prospered, they get lifted up, and then they lose the Spirit of God.

Let us not murmur or repine at poverty. We never shall know the contrast, if we drink the bitter cup all the day long; but we shall enjoy the blessings.

I pray God to strengthen you and to arm you with faith and patience to endure all you may be called to pass through, with elasticity of feeling, and with the gifts and graces of the Gospel, that will fill you with light and life—with quickness of perception.

That you and I may be what we profess to be, is my prayer. God bless you, brethren and sisters! Amen.

The Religion of the Saints and Its Rejection By the World, etc.

Lorenzo D. Young

Remarks by Bishop Lorenzo D. Young, made in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, December 13, 1857. Reported by G. D. Watt.

I have tried to treasure up what I have heard to-day, and pray God to give me power to practise righteousness upon the earth. I am aware that the people that are denominated Latter-day Saints occupy a very conspicuous position before the nation in which we dwell, and also in the eyes of the intelligent nations of the earth.

There is something connected with our holy religion that has called forth the attention of the wise and learned of this generation. And they have used their talents and their wisdom in trying to destroy the vine that has been planted in the earth, or the Priesthood that has been revealed in these latter days for the benefit of the children of men, that they might be restored again into the presence of God their Father.

It would be superfluous for me to say that the revealed truth of God from heaven has not been received by the majority of the world in any generation; so it is no new thing under the sun if Joseph Smith’s mission is rejected by them. The Lord’s wisdom is not like the wisdom of man, neither are his ways like the ways of man.

The priests of the day, who professed to teach the way of life and salvation to the people, looked with contempt upon Joseph Smith the Prophet, and sought by every means in their power to destroy him and the truth which he brought forth, that the kingdom and power of Babylon might, as it has done in days gone by, continue to prevail, unchecked by the influence of the kingdom of God.

Beloved Saints, we are now here in the valleys of the mountains, far separated from those who have sought and still seek our overthrow; and here we have the privilege of coming to meeting to hear from the servants of God, and there are none who dare molest or endeavour to deprive us of this dearly bought privilege. This is a choice blessing, and one which we all should strive more fully to appreciate.

The false learning and wisdom of the world, concentrated, cannot compare with one principle of eternal truth revealed to this people through those whom God has set to lead them. Are we worthy of the high and holy calling whereunto we have been called? Do we order our lives so before the Lord of Hosts that we are worthy of his confidence, worthy to walk in the light of his countenance from day to day?

If we live in such a manner as to receive nourishment from the true vine, into which we have been grafted, then we shall have power to overcome those sins that so easily beset us. There are a great many more things connected with our holy religion besides praying morning and evening, fasting, and paying tithing, as did the Jews. Our religion comprises the holy order of heaven revealed to man in the last days for the final establishment on earth of the kingdom of God, which will never be overthrown; but it will roll on and increase until the kingdoms of this world shall become subject to the law, government, and authority which rule in Zion.

It will not be long before this congregation of adults will pass from this stage of action, and their places will be filled by the rising generation. I was charmed by a remark which fell from brother Kimball this morning. He said, “There are little boys here that will live until they have power to bring the dead to life.” It brought to my mind the great obligation which should prompt parents to bring up their children in the way they should go. Solomon said, “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.”

The words of the affectionate parent take deep root in the hearts of the tender offspring; and the impressions received in childhood remain with them during their lives. I well remember hearing the confession of two men that were executed in an eastern country a number of years ago. They gave a history of their early tuition. One of them regretted that he had not adhered to the teachings of his mother; for, if he had, he said, he would not have come to the gallows.

The children of the Latter-day Saints are different from the children of the world. We have heard to-day that those that were begotten under the order of the Priesthood were endowed with greater power, ability, and knowledge than those children born among the Gentiles. The spirit in our boys is uncontrollable but by the holy Priesthood. Why? Because the master-spirit is in them, and it grows up with them; and when our children become men and women, they will voluntarily adhere to the principles of eternal truth. They have not been under the influence of a sectarian education, and have not this to contend with as have their fathers. They are brought up as the children of the Most High, and they will walk in the path of their fathers and in the precepts of their mothers, and will magnify their high calling to a greater extent, and be far more exalted than them in the eyes of Heaven.

Will the daughters of Zion follow in the footsteps of their mothers? In some things I hope they may; in other things I hope they will not. When we attend to and fully live up to what the Lord has revealed unto us through the Prophet Joseph, as also those instructions which we continually receive from the servants of God, we shall be more like angels or heavenly beings. Our houses will be governed according to the order of God revealed to man. Just walk into President Young’s house, and tell him you desire to walk through his house to see the order of it. Then walk through President Kimball’s—I think neither of them will deny you the privilege—and see if there is not an order of things prevailing there that extends beyond your narrow comprehension.

I well recollect hearing the Prophet Joseph instruct the people, about twenty years ago, to make their own clothing, and to let the decoration of their bodies be the workmanship of their own hands. That revelation has not been much thought of by many. I referred to it in the old Bowery, and there was such a rebutting feeling in the spirit of the people, that it was with the greatest difficulty I could say anything.

It has been said, “Why does not President Young go to work and clothe his family with homespun, and set the example? Why does not President Kimball? Why did not Presidents Richards and Grant and others do it? People with common sense can see the reason why. There is not a man in the Territory of Utah that can compete with them in this thing. They have done it all the day long, as far as their calling would admit. Are they still doing it? Yes.

I see men and women before me clothed in fine apparel. I am glad of it; but I should feel far better to see them clad in cloth of domestic manufacture—that is, in homespun.

The gold and silver that found its way here has gone. This community were not sufficiently wise to buy those articles only which were necessary to make them and their posterity comfortable, and lay a foundation to make themselves independent; but they squandered their means in purchasing fine goods to gratify the fancy of women, and their money passed swiftly through their hands to the merchants, who have taken it along with them to the States; and I am glad of it, because this people are destined to learn a lesson by it that they could not otherwise learn.

The gold is gone; the sheep and flax in sufficient numbers and quantity are not here, and our enemies are between us and the States. The prospect now is fair for our obeying the commandments of God that he gave through brother Joseph with respect to manufacturing our own clothing and the adorning of our own bodies. The people will profit by the lesson.

If we, as a people, will follow out the teachings the Lord has revealed to us through his servants, he will preserve us and be our great Benefactor in days to come as in days gone by, and we shall not be allowed to suffer more than we can bear.

Let me say to all of you, Just take care of what you have got and preserve it. I see the sisters passing along the streets, even in muddy weather, with their dresses of silk and satin dragging in the mud. They could cut off from four to six inches from the skirt, and make their children a dress of what they wear out and waste on the ground; and if they have no earthly use for it themselves, perhaps some of their neighbours would be glad of it.

It does not become me, however, to correct the errors of the people here. Brother Kimball says it is the Bishop’s office. I thank him for this information, for I did not know it before. If you have good clothes, do not drag them in the mud, but save everything you have against a stormy day. Let this people make their own clothes and take care of what the Lord has put into our possession.

Instead of only eight thousand sheep, there ought to have been eight millions. If all men had used the exertion that some few have, there would have been sheep enough to have clothed this whole people from year to year, asking no odds of Uncle Sam or anybody else. Flax can be grown here. I have not raised any flax, but I expect to have some spun and wove.

Were it not for home manufactures, I should expect to go without clothing. President Kimball says there are now about three hundred bushels of flax-seed in the Tithing Store.

Prepare yourselves also to raise sugar-cane, and from that your sweetening, or make up your minds to go without; and if you have got a leaky roof, try to get it fixed.

If our enemies—I do not mean those few out yonder—a swarm of long-billed musquitoes could eat them up at a supper spell—I mean the whole United States and the whole world—if they should come upon us, they cannot prevail, for they are fighting against the kingdom of God and warring against the Saints of the Most High. The combined nations of the earth will try to destroy the man-child and obliterate the truth from the earth; but as the Lord of Hosts lives, they cannot do it; and the reason is because the Almighty stands at the helm, and he will guide the old ship Zion in a safe course, and all the powers of earth and hell cannot stop her progress.

May God bless you all. Amen.

The Prosperity of the Saints Dependent Upon Their Being Right Before God, etc.

Isaac Morley

Remarks by Patriarch Isaac Morley, made in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, Sunday morning, November 8, 1857. Reported by J. V. Long.

I am in hopes that what I do say will be dictated by the right guide, as brother Heber says. I do not wish for any other. It is difficult for me to communicate my ideas, though I do not make this statement because I wish to apologize or to excuse myself from any duty.

I think I realize with you, brethren, the situation that we are in and the circumstances that surround us. Every reflecting mind will rest his thoughts and attention upon our present situation; and if we have in us the light of the Holy Ghost, we shall believe it is all right. This is my conclusion, and I presume it is the conclusion of most of you.

If we, as individuals, are right before God, all will go well with us and the Lord will prosper us. I do not think that the reform that we have undertaken and that is undertaken with this community is done with. I find that it becomes me to concentrate my mind daily and hourly upon the grand things that lie before me.

As to the enemy that is come up to destroy or curtail us in any of our blessings, I care but little about them. It makes me think of the past, when my mother used to have a rod over the mantelpiece for me to look at. I think we have got one that we can look at, and it is where it can be used; and probably if it is used, it will be used to our advantage.

If we can prepare our hearts and our lives, we need not fear anything about our enemies. The greatest fear is that I shall not sustain and carry out correct principles in my own bosom. I believe that our grand object is to have all things right within. If we do this, we shall do well.

We are taught in one place to “pray without ceasing,” and watching is as necessary as prayer. I am of the opinion that we can correct our thoughts so far as to know and understand what our motives are and what our affections are placed upon. If our minds are wandering to the nations of the earth, what will it benefit us? The grand place for our operations to begin is in our bosoms, and to see that our minds and bodies are influenced by those principles that pertain to light, life, and immortality.

There are great attainments in reserve for the faithful of this people. I believe that we may enjoy even more peace and satisfaction than we do now, which may be obtained by prayer and watchfulness. We should reflect upon the covenants and obligations that we have made unto God and before our brethren. There are many keys in those holy covenants whereby we can derive comfort.

Obedience is the grand key whereby this people are to be exalted; and I sincerely believe that the Presidency are comforted by the obedience that is rendered to their requirements.

It is the mind that makes the man; and if that mind is centred upon correct objects—if it cultivates and cherishes them, that mind is improving. There is no time nor circumstances through which we may be passing but there is opportunity for improvement. I learn this daily. And there are no hours that pass but there are opportunities for our advancement in the principles of exaltation.

I believe that reformation and union can be carried to a greater extent than they have been. If there is a love for the truth in the people, it will be manifest in true plainness and true honesty: our yea will be yea, and our nay will be nay. The Scriptures say, “Whatsoever cometh more than this is evil;” but true plainness and true honesty is what we want.

If we are not advancing in light, we are either standing still or going backward. The great principles that we are to be governed by dwell in simplicity; they are easy to be understood by any and all who will apply themselves.

The condescension of Heaven is great: there can be no greater condescension than is manifested to us. We have attained our heirship. We know there is such a principle as well as we know there is a God.

Baptism for remission of sins and the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost are as simple as anything can be. All the great fundamental principles of salvation are simple. We can comprehend and understand them—we can increase and grow by the power of them.

In adding to our faith, it is necessary that we should add virtue first, then knowledge; and these we should cultivate daily and hourly.

Brethren, I intend, as far as I have power, to instruct by example. Without it, I would give very little for all the precepts that are or can be set forth in a family or abroad among the people.

May God bless you, is my prayer, in the name of the Lord Jesus. Amen.

Blessings of Obedience, Etc.

Daniel Spencer

Remarks by President Daniel Spencer, made in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, Sunday morning, October 11, 1857. Reported by J. V. Long.

I arise to bear my testimony to the truth of what Elder Lyman has said this morning. I feel that it has been good to listen to him. The principles of which he has spoken are the foundation of our happiness; and unless we build upon what he has been speaking of, we may seek to all eternity, and not obtain happiness.

All truth comes from God, and he makes it known through his servants; and this is almost invariably in advance of our knowledge. In the commencement of our connection with the Church, in our baptism, we were told that we should receive the gifts and blessings of the Gospel, if faithful. We did not receive positive proof of it; but as we advanced, we realized, through obedience, the truth of what was promised us.

Brother Amasa has instructed us to be faithful—to have confidence in God, and that in his own way he will benefit us and establish peace. If we love God, all things will work together for our good.

If we love God, we love the truth, for all truth is from God. We have got to have this confidence in the Lord and show that we love all truth; and if our faith is established upon that and upon the principle upon which he reveals it to us, then we know that all things will be overruled for our good, our faith, and our happiness, as we have been told to-day.

Now, we have knowledge that it is best for us to labour and obtain clothing to keep ourselves warm for the winter. We have been taught this by our parents. We know that it is best to live by industry. The Indians do not know this—at least but very few of them do, and none of them knew it when we first came here: they did not understand that it was best to labour to make themselves comfortable; but now they are learning it: they are beginning to learn that it is best to make some little sacrifice to get clothing and food; and they are improving in this day by day.

Now, the Gentiles have a knowledge that it is best to labour for clothing, for food, and to make preparation for winter, and so on; but when we speak of the knowledge of God, and that it is best to do this or that because the whisperings of the Spirit say so and so—when it comes to the servants of God and the things of his kingdom, the Gentiles do not know so much as the Indians do; hence they act in accordance with their views and knowledge, and hence they are deprived of many blessings.

We have derived many blessings from rendering obedience to those things that were taught us when we first came into the Church; and those who do not learn these things do not have our experience.

Well, now, as Elder Lyman has remarked, if we love the truth better than error, and have confidence in the Lord that he has established his kingdom, and that he will reveal his will, we are happy, and we shall abide in the truth, precisely as he has told us. If we have that love for the truth, we shall discard all evil from our families—we shall discard strife and every malignant feeling that is contrary to truth.

God has not recommended any mode of procedure that will produce discord or unpleasantness in our homes; hence we had better leave off that which will offend God. A man that harbours a malignant, unruly spirit does not love the truth; and these are the things which cause men to apostatize. They say, “I will have a little gratification upon a principle that I know is wrong.” Well, this is the foundation of apostacy; it is the method by which people sacrifice that which would bring continual peace: they apostatize by sacrificing that which they know to be right—not that which they do not know, but that which they do know; and that which they know is truth. Then the Spirit of the Lord withdraws from them, and they have no relish for the truth, because they have despised and put away his counsel; they have not respected his counsels.

I mention these little things because they come under our observation every day. We have counsel from our Bishops, Teachers, and Presidents. This is the method through which we receive counsel, and we must respect the counsel that comes from all these authorities. If we respect God and his servants, he will respect us; but if we do not respect him, he will not respect us, because we have no respect for the truth nor for God. But if we have a respect for God and love his teachings and his servants, then we shall love the truth; our minds are open because we are searching for truth; we love it and cherish it; it is visible in our transactions in life. Well, then, it is our meat and our drink; it is our food constantly; and we feel to do everything to benefit mankind—to make people happy.

I have been very much interested myself, and I know that the remarks made to-day by Elder Lyman are just what we want. Whatever we have passed through and whatever we may in future pass through, we shall say, if we endure to the end, that we know God has overruled all things for our good. We know now that all will be for our good, and we are made happy in the enjoyment of the knowledge that God will overrule everything for our profit and good; and upon no other principle will it be happiness to us.

It is not to be presumed that we are going to be happy and possess a fulness of knowledge at once; but events will be continually and gradually developed that will show us that God will bring to pass nothing but what will be for our good and for our happiness.

My prayer is that we may have power with God—that we may have confidence that God will do all for our good; and let us know that he accepts our actions, and let us be ready to do whatever is required of us, nothing doubting, and I know that peace will be the result.

I want to make a few observations in relation to the handling of our guns. There have been three individuals killed through carelessness. Almost every day I hear guns fired off, and oftentimes they go off in a direction not intended. Now, be cautious, and let not any accident of this kind take place in this city. Be careful where you discharge your guns, for our lives are precious. Many have now been called to handle guns that never have been used to it. Let such put on a double guard over themselves, and know that they must not use firearms carelessly.

The late news from the army is favourable, as it has hitherto been. I presume that it is well understood; therefore, I will not repeat it.

Let us live so as to continually secure the favour of God, and I know that we shall have constant peace and joy. This is my prayer, in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Personal Feelings and Experience, Etc.

Elias Smith

Remarks by Elder Elias Smith, made in the Bowery, Great Salt Lake City, Sunday morning, August 2, 1857. Reported by J. V. Long.

My brethren and sisters—Very unexpectedly I appear before you this morning. Perhaps it might be well enough for me to confess my sins before you, to begin with.

Before I get through, I presume, with the few remarks that I may make to you, you will learn that I am not much of a public speaker upon any subject whatever. I have frequently, of late, received visits from brother Kimball, and he has intimated that I might be called upon to speak before you. This morning I went to the Office for the purpose of writing a letter to a sister that I have not written to for several years. Brother Stout and brother Hiatt came in, and we spent some time chatting. Brother Kimball then came in, and I thought if I could get away from him I should be glad—not that I wanted to shun his company, but I knew pretty well his business. When on the way here, I thought that I had escaped his notice; but his eye was a little too keen for me.

I have often thought that if I were calculated to do any good, it was in another line rather than preaching; for I would rather do anything else. If anything else is required of me, I feel that I can go and do it; but when called upon to speak, I always have felt a diffidence. I know that I cannot stand up before this congregation and teach anything, and I shall not presume to do it; but inasmuch as I have been called to address you, I will endeavour to do so a few moments.

It is true that I have been in the Church a long time, and I have been with the Saints in all the scenes of persecution and trial from that time to this, except that I had not the privilege of being with the pioneers who came to this Territory. Circumstances so ordered things that I could not share with those men who came and sought out this country the toils of that memorable journey. Aside from that, I believe that I have been with them in all the scenes that they have passed through, and I have striven to do all that I could for the cause, though I have never tried to make myself conspicuous, but have endeavoured to do what I was told by those over me; and that will be the case with me to-day; and then, after I have spoken to you, I shall go and do something else.

Although I thought I was somebody, before I heard “Mormonism,” yet I can say in truth that it has made me all that I am. I know that I have not lived up to all the privileges that have been afforded me, and I know that I have not been as thorough as I ought to have been in many things; but when I have reflected, I have come to the conclusion that I would be more persevering in the future—though, when anything has been given me to do, I have generally gone and done it.

When “Mormonism” found me, I was surrounded and enveloped with the things of this world. My father had a name among a religious society, and I frequently went to meeting with him; but when I did not choose to go where he went, I went somewhere else. I never adhered to any religious principles, but believed in living a strictly moral life; but I did not believe in anything scarcely that was taught by the religious parties around me. If, however, a man wished to become popular in the world, it was necessary in that part of the country for him to belong to some religious body; for it was hard to rise in the sphere of respectability without it. Notwithstanding this, I thought, if I could not be raised in the world without having a form of religion, I never would rise. But I believed that I could accomplish it without that, and I was in a fair way for it, as I thought, when “Mormonism” first came along. Under these circumstances, you will readily believe that I did not give way to it immediately, and I have been sorry for it many times. Instead of yielding to it, I strove to throw it off; but at length, being convinced that it was true, I said farewell to my popularity, threw off the things of the world, and have tried to be a “Mormon” from that time to this; but that I have not lived up to all the privileges I ought to have done, I freely acknowledge.

I am glad that I am with you to-day, although I cannot say that I feel free to speak to you. I realize my imperfections and my foibles, and that I am in the presence of those who have taught you all the principles that you know, and who have also taught me all that I know; and therefore, if I should attempt to teach anything, it would only be reiterating those things that you have heard.

I feel to rejoice every day of my life that I live with the Saints in the valleys of the mountains, while war rages and rumours of war are heard all over the earth. I rejoice that I have the privilege of dwelling with the Saints in peace and safety, for I feel that we are in safety; and if we live our religion and obey the counsel and advice of those set over us, we shall continue to dwell here in peace, and nothing will molest us.

The United States may send all the armies they please—I have that faith and confidence in the work of the Lord that I feel assured, if we carry out those principles and the advice of those set to lead us, all will be well with us, and our enemies will have no power over us whatever.

The other evening, when the brethren arrived from the States, bringing the news that there was to be no more mail, most of you were up in the kanyon. I stayed at home to wait for the arrival of the mail, for I thought it would be better for me to wait for it than for it to arrive and have to lie in the office two or three days without being opened and prepared for delivery. I think Thursday, the 23rd, was one of the longest days I had ever seen. I tried to do something to pass away the time. I went to the Tithing Office and spent a little time with the brethren there; but I could not feel to settle down to anything. In the evening, brother Smoot and the other brethren came in and said that Uncle Sam had taken the mail away from us, and that he had ordered several thousand troops to this Territory. I felt perfectly calm when I heard the news, and went home and slept soundly, and I have slept well ever since.

It is true I feel somewhat annoyed and not a little vexed at the occurrence and at the treatment we have received from the Post Office Department in relation to the mail, to think that, after so much has been expended to get it fairly into operation and have it carried punctually, it should be taken from us. But as to their conduct in this respect aweing us into subjection, I feel as though it never would he done. [Voices: “Amen.”]

I am aware that the prophecies are fulfilling, and that we shall soon see scenes of war and commotion, and may be brought in collision with the United States; but as to their having power to destroy our leaders as they wish, I do not believe they ever will.

I have had a desire to live ever since I was a lad. I have always felt a desire to live to be an old man, and I yet have that desire. In all the scenes that I have passed through, I have never wished to die, but have desired to live and see Israel triumph over all her enemies.

A brother was speaking to me yesterday about certain places in Missouri, and he said, You remember such and such places. I replied, I never was there, but I expect to go. [Voices: “Amen.”] I started from Liberty once and expected to see those hills and plains which the brother alluded to yesterday. I started with brother Markham and brother William Burton, who died in England; but circumstances prevented our accomplishing the journey. I still expect to go there and see Israel victorious over all her enemies, and that the measure they have sought to measure out to us we shall have the privilege of measuring to them.

I have seen many dark days; and when I have seen and heard men, who have been in the Church eighteen or twenty years, say that they have had no trials, I have felt in my heart that they either lied, or that they had not lived their religion. If I was to say that I never had any trials, it would not be true; and if I was to say that I ever once desired to back out, that would be equally untrue. As I said before, in my early days I tried to lift myself up by my own ingenuity. All that I acquired I wished to do by my own skill. If it was not natural to me, I acquired and had a stiff-headed disposition, and that has been hard for me to overcome, and have hardly got over it yet; but when such things come along as try me, and I overcome them, I then feel better.

I hope to overcome all those imperfections by labouring diligently to that end. I came here in 1851, and I believe I have made some progress since towards overcoming my weaknesses in this respect.

Circumstances were such, when I left Nauvoo, that I could not come through with the Saints: my father and mother were taken sick by the way. My mother died in October, 1846, and my father was never able after to come here, except upon a litter. He died in 1848, and I soon after began to prepare to come west. I took up my effects and came here in 1851 and I came determined to be free from that independent disposition that I had had to contend with, as much as possible.

I strove for this in crossing the Plains. The brethren frequently asked me what I was going to do when I got here. I told them that I did not know—that I had not thought about it. But no difference with me what I did; anything that presented itself I intended to do. I have been called upon since to do many things that were not agreeable to me in their nature: in other words, I have had a good deal of dirty work to do; but I have endeavoured to do it and to keep my hands clean; and if in any of those things I have not done this, then I have not done what I have tried to do. Be that as it may, it is my desire to live with you in prosperity or adversity, let what may come. But I certainly do not expect, if we live our religion, that our enemies will have power over us, although I am well aware that they will endeavour to do us all the injury they can.

I have been aware that they have had a design in relation to us for some time, from the fact that all their movements have been carefully hid from us. When we have received their papers, none have had any allusion to their military movements in this direction, neither have their advertisements in relation to their transportation of freight to this Territory ever reached us; and, to prevent us still further from knowing anything of their doings, they have withheld the mail, and that too without raising any legal objections. They did not even avail themselves of the privilege always reserved in agreements with mail contractors. But the fact of the case is, they seek our overthrow; and if any persons here do not think so, they are mistaken.

If they could destroy President Young, President Kimball, and President Wells, and the leading authorities of this Church, they would be pleased; but they cannot do that. If we do not live our religion, I expect we shall be scourged; and for my own part, I feel perfectly free in relation to these things; and whether I live or die, it is all the same to me, although I expect to live to be an old man, and to go back with the Saints to the land of Jackson County. [President B. Young: “God grant it.”]

Brethren, I do not feel like prolonging my remarks. I pray that God will bless his Saints, and that those who have no desire to remain with us may go away. I know, if we keep the commandments of God, we shall obtain his blessings; and I have learned from the history of the past that has come down to us, that those who have not done so he has chastened. If we keep his commandments, we shall be delivered out of the hands of our enemies and be saved in his kingdom.

Brethren, may God bless you and enable you to be faithful in all things, is my prayer, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

The Lord’s Providential Care and Protection of His People, etc.

Lorenzo D. Young

A discourse by Bishop Lorenzo D. Young, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, October 25, 1857. Reported by G. D. Watt.

I can truly say that I feel like a little child in relation to the things pertaining to the kingdom of God, which are wisdom, knowledge, and righteousness revealed to man.

I have been comforted while hearing my brother speak. His words have been truthful. His admonition has been good to the Saints, and his exhortation has been such as we should all reduce to practice in our future lives.

When I stand before the Saints, I can only feel to thank the Lord and bless the name of Israel’s God: why? Because he has led his people in the way they should go for their salvation. While contemplating upon the scenes the Latter-day Saints have past through, and those through which the Saints in former ages have passed, I discover that there is a striking resemblance between the two. Indeed, they are of one family; they have embraced the same principles and are trying to carry out the doctrines taught and practised by the Prophets and by Jesus Christ our Redeemer and elder Brother, when he said, “The kingdom of heaven is like seed cast into the ground, and some of it took root, but long since has the Master taken his journey into a far country, and the vineyard has been let out to husbandmen;” and thank God that we live in the time of harvest, because I always find the time of harvest more joyful than the seed time.

There is a great harvest to be performed, and the Elders of Israel have been engaged in that harvest for many years past, and some of the wheat has been gathered out and placed in the garner of the Lord.

I have contemplated, while sitting here this morning, as to what would have been the condition of the Latter-day Saints, supposing we had been let alone in Kirtland. Every meditating mind can contemplate at a glance the situation this people would have been in to-day.

Supposing we had been left to ourselves in the pleasant groves of Missouri, which we shall, thank heaven’s King, by-and-by occupy, with none to disturb us; but the time has not come yet;—I say, had we been permitted to stay there, could the Lord have fulfilled the words of the Prophets, which were spoken by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, concerning this people in the latter day? Verily no.

Suppose we had been permitted to remain in the city of Nauvoo, Illinois, could the words of the Prophets have been fulfilled concerning this people in our day? No. But the Lord, by his unseen hand and outstretched arm, and by his wisdom, which is beyond the comprehension of finite beings, led his people to this place prepared and reserved by him as chambers of safety for his Saints, in fulfilment of the words of all the holy Prophets since the world began.

You that are acquainted with the words of the Prophets can remember that the Lord has promised through them, that he would hide his people in the last days while his wrath and indignation should pass through the wicked nations of the earth.

What is the testimony of the Elders of Israel in relation to the situation and circumstances of the nations of the earth, where they have travelled for the last few years? Does it not portray to us the most horrible scene of suffering? Abominations of the lowest caste are practised among those nations that bear the fair title of Christian nations, and they have sunk the deepest of all others in degradation, wickedness, and wretchedness.

Is the Lord vexing the nations? Yes; and there is no place where the Lord could better secure his people than in these valleys, behind these towering bulwarks which his enemies cannot throw down. Powder and ball cannot move them. Behind these the Lord has securely planted his little flock, where he has nourished and cherished it by Prophets and Apostles, and watered it with the dews of heaven, strengthening it with manna—the bread of heaven, inspiring the hearts of his servants to give unto it that nourishment that is necessary to make it grow and prosper, until its branches run over the wall and Zion becomes terrible to her enemies when they shall come up to war against her.

The Prophets have truly spoken of this day and looked upon it with admiration. When I call to mind that I have the honour of being a member of that Church which the Lord Almighty has planted in the latter day, it fills my heart with sensations of joy and gladness which language fails to express or communicate.

My brother said his heart leaped with joy on the 24th of July, when the declaration of independence was made. My meditations and sensations were, no doubt, something like those of the fathers who fought for the liberty and independence we ought now to enjoy. They were glad of the dawning privilege of worshipping God in their own way, and of worshipping that God they chose to worship, whether it was the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, or none at all.

Did they not have to fight for that liberty? Yes. Should any of the sons of Zion fall in the contest for similar privileges in our day, thank heaven’s King, they will have the privilege and honour of sealing their testimony with their blood, and of becoming martyrs in the latter day to Heaven’s cause. Will their mothers, fathers, brothers, and sisters have any reason to mourn because their son or brother has died a martyr to Heaven’s cause? No; for they will wear a martyr’s crown, which makes it more desirable for us to go out in the defence of Heaven’s cause, and lose our lives to establish this kingdom and help to sustain it upon the earth, or to dwindle away in sickness, hunger, and thirst, brought upon us from the ungodly conduct of our enemies.

Have not a great many already fallen victims to their cruelty? Yes. Have not I seen many women and children consigned to the silent grave because of their cruelty? I have; and all because we are the friends of God. Were we standing in open defiance of the mandates of king Immanuel, would they be our enemies? No. They are the enemies of Jesus, our elder Brother, who has for a long time withdrawn himself, as he said in the parable, when he compared the kingdom of heaven to a man who let out his vineyard and took a journey into a far country. Jesus has taken his journey; but thanks be to heaven’s King—to God, our heavenly Father, he has said in these last days, “My son, take to yourself the kingdom, because it is yours, for Lucifer has borne rule long enough on that planet now, you go to work and revolutionize that planet, and purify and sanctify it from the wickedness and abominations that exist upon it, that it may be prepared and brought back to my presence.”

This is the work in which we are now engaged. If there should be a man or woman of the character that has been spoken of this morning, that wishes to go away from this people, I wish they would go. Every honest Latter-day Saint has felt and prayed, and his prayer has been in the morning, at noon, in the evening, and at midnight, that God would sweep his vineyard and purify it and prune it of all the dead branches, that they may be burned and blown away by the wind, like the chaff of the summer threshing-floor.

Now, was it not the prayer of every faithful Saint that God would set his furnace in Zion and burn out the chaff and the branches which are withered up and dried, that nothing but the bearing branches might be left—the pure in heart—that there might be no jarring strings, no back-bitings, slander, stealing, or any evil thing among the Saints of God who dwell in Zion? We have seen such things here to a certain extent. I feel glad in my heart, and feel as though I could jump up and cry “Hallelujah! and “Glory!” like a Methodist, because the kingdom of God is set up and given to the Saints of the Most High. The yoke of oppression is broken off, and independence is given to us as far as is now necessary and required, that the kingdom of God may advance on the earth. Why not rejoice and be glad?

There are some appendages to all this, and one little item drops into my mind now—one of the simplest things in the world—that is, for the sisters, if they have not the privilege of knitting mittens and stockings, to go to work and make pieces of patchwork, or anything that will keep the brethren warm that are out in the mountains. No doubt but we shall see tight times; but the Lord will guide his servants, and his kingdom will prosper, and every Saint will learn how to appreciate blessings when we have them; but there is no occasion for any person to be afraid.

There have been a great many things prophesied here in the way of common conversation. I suppose that a good many of the Saints think that when the old Prophets, Jeremiah, Isaiah, and others prophesied, they used to get down on a bench and kneel before the congregation, or get into a dark closet, where they could speak through a knot-hole and have their scribe write it, or perhaps have a coffee-sack covered over their heads, and ashes sprinkled over that.

I have heard men prophesy here every Sabbath day; and in a thousand years after to-day, when we read over their prophecies, the prophecies spoken by the old Prophets will sink into insignificance and will be forgotten. Even as the wonders of the last days, in gathering Israel, will throw into the shade of forgetfulness the mighty miracles at the Red Sea and in the wilderness, so it will be a thousand years hence, when we read over the prophecies delivered in the year 1857. Why? Because there is a great deal more pending now than formerly.

We now see our brethren called to go into the mountains, and this people are expending much to defend the cause of Zion.

We acknowledge brother Brigham Young as President of this Church: we have long acknowledged him as such; also brother Heber C. Kimball as his first, and brother Daniel H. Wells as his second Counsellor. This Quorum constitutes an embodied power. Where does it centre? In the head, and it compares with the triune Godhead—the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Are these three men who compose the First Presidency one? They are. God has ordained them on earth to fulfil his purposes, build up his kingdom, cast down Babylon, establish righteousness on the face of all the earth, cleanse this planet from corruption’, and prepare it for a dwelling place for immortal Saints.

Has not the Lord embodied all the Priesthood and power of his kingdom in the head of the First Quorum of his Church? Yes. Where should the power of this people be centred? In that personage whom God has ordained to lead his people; and, as I have prayed myself, not that the Lord would tell me anything particularly about the armies of the enemies of God, but make it known to his servants Brigham, Heber, and Daniel—that he would give such counsel to his servant Brigham as would be necessary for the advancement of his kingdom, the destruction of Satan’s empire and the downfall of Babylon, the spread of truth, and the universal reign of peace on this planet, until the land of Joseph is purified and the people of God return and go back with pure hearts and contrite spirits to Jackson County, according to the words of the servants of God, and build the great Temple of the Lord, according to the words of the Prophet Joseph.

Well, here we are, a free people. We are at liberty to go out in the defence of Zion, which we never could do before. The Elders have been to the nations, and besought the people to repent and leave off their wickedness, to reform, and be baptised, and be saved, crying as John the Baptist did, “The kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

Had the nations opened the door to the servants of God to freely preach among them, before this time the Gospel would have been sounded in every ear; and when that is done, Jesus says the end shall come. When the olive tree begins to put forth its buds, know ye that summer is nigh. The stone that is cut out of the mountains without hands has begun to roll, and it will fall on the feet, toes, and legs of the image, and crush great Babylon to pieces: by its power the nations will be broken.

I have long prayed that the Lord Almighty would destroy the nation that gave me birth, unless the rulers thereof repent. Yes, I pray that it may be broken to pieces and become like an old vessel that is broken and thrown out to rot and to return to its native elements.

Let us keep the commandments of God, and all will be right. I want to say a word in relation to our present position. It becometh you and I to be valiant for the truth. All the Latter-day Saints have said they are willing to stand up in defence of the cause of truth.

The old Methodists used to say, when they got up in the pulpit to speak as I have to-day, that they were ready to defend Zion’s cause at any risk. They knew but little about Zion and her cause and the principles of eternal truth. But they have been revealed and taught to us from the stand, Sabbath after Sabbath. No people have been blessed with the privileges of the Gospel of the Son of God as we have.

We are free, for Christ has made us free; and the Apostle says, “Whom the Son makes free is free indeed,” If you are free by the blood of the covenant, and have redeemed yourself by its requirements, see that you bring no spots upon your garments; betray not your trust, but be constant to the truth, and stand a witness for it under: every circumstance in which you may be placed.

Will the Lord give strength? Yes, and all the power, victory, and glory we need. The Lord has courageous men and women in the last days; and I believe there is as much courage among the women as there is among the men. I want them to have courage enough to pray for their husbands and sons, instead of being afraid, and not say, when one of the brethren comes into your house, “Do you think any of the brethren will be killed?” The Lord will dictate that; you need have no anxiety about it.

Lorenzo Dow told the people, on a certain occasion, “You old professors, go home and take down your Bibles that have lain on the shelf until you can write damnation in the dust that has collected on them, and read the old Prophets, and see what the Lord did for his people of old.” The Lord, at one time, sent forth his angel in the time of battle and slew a hundred, fourscore-and-four thousand souls in one night. At another time, when the people of God went forth to battle, and they were afraid, the servant of the Lord stood before them and encouraged them, exhorting them with words of consolation, saying, “The Lord is at the head of his armies.”

Brethren, trust not altogether in the weapons which are in your hands; but when you fight, pray, and let your meditations be unto your God; and the Lord will regard you, and answer your prayer, and fight your battles, as he did in the days of the Philistines, when they defied the armies of Israel. The Lord gives victory to his people; but we should all the time be willing to come up to the help of the Lord against the mighty, whenever it is necessary.

May God bless you, in the name of Jesus Christ! Amen.

Unpopularity of “Mormonism”, etc.

Joseph Young

Remarks by President Joseph Young, delivered in the Bowery, Great Salt Lake City, Sunday afternoon, July 26, 1857. Reported by J. V. Long.

I have been requested to occupy a few moments before you, my brethren, this afternoon. I have a great many reflections in my mind, but it is only, the few that would be reasonable that I hope may have utterance at this time. The suggestions which I heard this morning awakened in me, as they usually do, feelings which I have for the welfare of the kingdom of God, which kingdom, we heard to-day, is already being established on the earth—or we may say that it is established.

It was said in the days of the Apostle Paul, “Say not in your heart, Who shall descend into the deep to bring Christ up? or who shall ascend into the heavens to bring him down? for the word is near thee, even in thy mouth and in thy heart, even the word which we preach, which is—If thou wilt confess with thy mouth and believe with thy heart that God hath raised Christ from the dead, thou shalt be saved.”

It was perilling one’s life equally as much to acknowledge the crucified Nazarene as it is now for the “Mormons” to acknowledge Joseph Smith to be a Prophet of God. We will add on to the test a little now, and say, If you will confess Jesus Christ to be the Redeemer, Joseph Smith to be his Prophet, and Brigham Young his successor, and carry out their counsels unto the end, you shall be saved.

Now, I say it was just as perilous to acknowledge Jesus, whom almost every one then believed to be an impostor and the refuse of all creation, as it now is to acknowledge those men whom I have mentioned.

How is it now? Why, it is popular by the Christian world to acknowledge Jesus to be the Saviour. The Catholics all acknowledge Jesus to be the Saviour. The doctrine has become popular in the world, so much so that nearly the whole world now acknowledge that Christ truly was the Saviour, the Redeemer, the Son of God; and they believe on him. Will people be persecuted for this? No. You may go into all ranks of society in the world, and they will receive you, if you are a Christian; but you must mind one thing—you must not name “Mormonism”—you must not say that Joseph was a man that you believed in; for the moment you do this you are in jeopardy.

I have been many times in places when I did not announce my name, but something would tell them that I was a “Mormon.” I do not know who told them, except it was the Devil; but I could hear them say, “He is a Mormon.” There have been many instances of this kind among the Latter-day Saints.

I prayed, before I heard this Gospel, that I might see the kingdom of God; and I could say as Paul did, that I was alive to religion, but it was without the law. I was full of religion, but I was not very noisy. When the commandment came, “sin revived, and I died;” and I learned that I had to be baptised for the remission of sins, for I could not deny the truth. I was as eligible to the truth as a friction match is to the fire, and I could not get by it. I love the truth yet.

I have heard brother Brigham say, and I endorse the sentiment, that every man and every woman who is not willing to lay down his or her mortal life for this Gospel cannot be saved. The Lord will bring us into a place where we shall be tried whether we are as willing to die as we are to live, and I know this is true; and if I have not gained that point, I have got to live so as to arrive at it on this side of the vail. There is a vail over us at present; but to some the vail is becoming thin, but it is not rent.

There is no greater mark of a man’s being in full fellowship with God than to see that man quickly yield to the will of God without a murmur. This is as good a mark of a Saint as can be given.

From the commencement of this work there has been plenty to try men and to put them to the test. Shall we be mad at our enemies? No, not unrighteously—not wickedly mad.

When I look at the condition of this people, view the work for them to do, and the reward the Lord has for them, if faithful, and then cast my eyes around and gaze upon the bitterness of our enemies, what are my feelings? I can feel as David did concerning his enemies, when he went to the sanctuary; “for there,” said he, “I understood their end.”

Don’t you think his envy was then taken from him? Yes, instantly. He could feel as Jesus felt in his death-struggles, when the Roman soldiers pierced him. He said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”

Jesus knew the turpitude of the human heart and the wickedness that those individuals were capable of; and knowing this, he said, “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.”

I do not know of a better spirit than that which Stephen manifested when he said, “Father, lay not this sin to their charge.” He knew their ignorance as well as their wickedness. He saw the heavens opened, and beheld what their end would be.

Do you think he had any envy towards his murderers then? No, he felt very different from this. I have as great an abhorrence to their iniquities as any other man; and in case the providence of God should call me to stand forth in defence of the truth with the sword and the musket, I probably should feel as resolute in that case as I should on the side of Stephen, when praying God to forgive them.

My father was a native of America—of a New England State. He was a soldier of the revolution, and fought in defence of his country—fought for freedom. He maintained this spirit, and he died a Latter-day Saint. He had the mortification, however, before his death, to be forced to leave his home for the sake of his religion; and had he survived a little longer, he would have been driven from that land altogether, as we his sons have been, and would have been called upon to find his way through the trackless desert to these mountains.

We have come out here and moored the shattered relics that our enemies had not destroyed. We wandered—where, we knew not, any more than Abraham did, only as we were led by that mysterious influence that led the Patriarchs of old. As that influence brooded over them, so did it brood over the pioneers that left Winter Quarters in the spring of 1847, and crossed the plains, the deserts, the streams, and moored themselves in these peaceful vales. Since we have been thus driven far from the land of civilization—far from the ashes of our patriotic fathers, why cannot our persecutors console themselves and say, “They have gone;” and now the voice of liberty, the voice of philanthropy, the voice of generosity would say, “Let the ‘Mormons’ go and rest in peace: they are far away from us; they cannot do us any harm?”

[President H. C. Kimball. They won’t do it, Joseph.]

As Saints, we have assembled together with our wives and little ones, and we have ploughed and sown and raised our own bread, and our grain is increasing. God Almighty has touched the soil and has brooded over it as over the waters at the beginning. And, lo! no sooner have we obtained this land, planted our orchards and gardens, than our enemies want to drive us again.

[President H. C. Kimball. Do you pray for them, Joseph?]

Yes, I pray for them just as the Spirit dictates, which is something like the following:—O Lord, bless all our brethren in the States and everywhere else throughout the world; and bless all that bless them, and curse all our enemies and waste them away.

We have the spirit of ‘76; we are patriots, and we are true to our cause. We have to be persecuted and driven. This is what we expect, for brother Brigham told the story this morning. This is the kingdom that Daniel spoke of.

Did the world ever persecute the Methodists or the Presbyterians as they have the Latter-day Saints? No, nor the Quakers either, not in my remembrance.

This people have been baptised for many of their dead friends; and you remember that it is said in the Scriptures that there should be a fountain, opened for sin and uncleanness; and when this day fully comes, the people who are now persecuting the Latter-day Saints will begin to know who they are and what they are.

I will tell you where my hope of their redemption is. They are going to persecute the people of God; they are going to live as long as the Lord will let them, and then they will die and go to hell, and there suffer the justice of God.

We look at them, and sometimes feel sorrowful, and sometimes feel as if we could deal out justice to them. Our enemies want to kill us, and what for? It is for the purpose of cutting off the redemption of our dead; but the Lord will hold his hand over us; he will preserve our lives, and they will be held sacred in his hands.

What are we going to do? We are going to build a Temple here; and when that Temple is built, we are going to have a font and be baptised for our fathers, mothers, and friends who have died in generations past, just as far back as we can get at them.

Where is the hope of our enemies—those who have no knowledge, and who have never received the Holy Ghost? The Scriptures say that for those who receive it and deny it there is no hope; but those who have never received it will die and go into the spirit-land, and the Latter-day Saints will seek after them and feel after them, if they have not shed innocent blood; and many of them will embrace the Gospel.

I can tell the Latter-day Saints something in relation to our enemies; and that is, if we do not do something for them, they will lie in hell for ever; and the very people they are now persecuting have got to be their saviours, or they will not be saved at all.

I want you to tell them, and tell all the great men of the earth, that the Latter-day Saints are to be their redeemers—that they have to look to them for their redemption, or there is none for them; and they will have to acknowledge that salvation is of Israel, and nowhere else.

The Lord gave his oracles to Jacob and to Israel, but to nobody else, and he never will. They are those who hold the Priesthood, and they are the only ones who could give redemption to a world.

I presume that if the people who are our enemies were to come here and hear this, or if they should know that we believe this, they would, if possible, call us greater fools than ever, and be more eager to destroy us than before, simply because they cannot comprehend the principles that govern us.

Brethren and sisters, I have preached you a short sermon, and I must say that I feel good to-day. I feel well; and may God bless you and bless us all, and enable us to live our religion and serve God with full purpose of heart.

I can endorse one sentiment of brother Smoot, in relation to our enemies coming into these valleys. I do not fear them. I feel as calm as a summer’s evening. The Spirit of peace and quiet is in our midst; God is in our midst; and although we do not see him, he is here; his messengers are here, and they know our doings, and the record thereof they bear to him, and it is good.

Now, brethren, this is a consolation to us all. Believe in God, believe in Jesus, and believe in Joseph his Prophet, and in Brigham his successor. And I add, “If you will believe in your heart and confess with your mouth that Jesus is the Christ, that Joseph was a Prophet, and that Brigham was his successor, you shall be saved in the kingdom of God.” which I pray, in the name of Jesus, may be the case. Amen.

Testimony to the Truth, etc.

John Young

Remarks by President John Young, made in the Bowery, Great Salt Lake City, Wednesday morning, April 8, 1857. Reported by J. V. Long.

I rise before the congregation to make a few remarks, by request of my brethren and by the call of the Spirit of my heavenly Father which I feel within me.

I do not expect to say much, nor to detain you long; but I want to say a few words, for I feel that my spirit is full of testimony this morning; and I tell you what it is, or rather some of it. I know that Jesus lives and dwells at the right hand of his Father, and that he intercedes for the Saints. I also know that Joseph Smith lives; and I can testify that I have felt a measure of the spirit of Joseph influencing the minds of the brethren during this Conference, and that, too, to a greater extent than I ever did in my life.

I feel a testimony within me that I have in a great measure been asleep; but through the mercy of God I have waked up, and I feel that the Lord has been merciful unto me and unto this people; and he verily has met us and called to us when we were afar off; and I am thankful for this: I rejoice in his mercy, his long suffering, and his goodness.

I can tell you, my brethren and sisters, fathers and mothers in Israel, and all you that feel that you have got an uncomfortable yoke upon you—it is simply because it is not the yoke of Christ; for Jesus said, when he was here, that his yoke was easy and his burden light. I know by experience that when I have the yoke of Christ upon me, it is light; and what else do I know? I know that there are persons who complain that the Gospel yoke chafes them; and I want you to understand that such persons have not got on the right kind of yoke. [President B. Young: “That is verily true, sir.”] Now, you that have on such a yoke had better pull out the bow-keys, throw off the yoke, and then put one on that won’t chafe you; for I tell you, as the Lord God Almighty lives, it is now or never with the Latter-day Saints.

The Lord has been merciful unto us, and has called to us by the mouth of his servants and his Prophets that are here, and has given us an opportunity to renew our covenants and again receive the blessings which it is our right and privilege to enjoy.

Supposing the Lord should take away these Prophets and Apostles from amongst us, I want to know how many of this people there are who would ever find their way to heaven? There is not a man or woman that would ever do it. They would slumber, and sleep, and be lost in the darkness and confusion that envelop the world.

We have revelation upon revelation, precept upon precept, and shall I say, here a little and there a little? No. But I will say that we have handed out to us here a good deal and there a good deal.

Here is the fountain of life; and I feel that it is the duty of all to improve upon that which they receive; for this is the day of salvation, and “How shall we escape, if we neglect so great a salvation?” I believe there will be no way of escape for those who are slothful and indifferent.

The other day, when brother Kimball was prophesying relative to the wheat, and also about the granaries, and endeavouring to show you the necessity of preparing for a time of scarcity, the good Spirit whispered to me and said, “What brother Kimball has stated is just as true as Joseph’s interpretation of Pharaoh’s dream;” and I verily believe it, and you may depend upon it, brethren and sisters, that all those things will come to pass as they have been predicted.

Do you know that we have the Prophets of God among us? There are people here, who profess to be Saints, who know but very little in relation to the Gospel which they have embraced; but I tell you that we are not only blest with a Prophet, but we have Prophets in our midst. I know that brother Brigham is a Prophet of God, and that he wears the mantle of Joseph; and I can tell you also that brother Kimball is a Prophet, and these men are filled with the Spirit of the Lord.

Do you not think that I am glad? Yes, I am, and my soul rejoices in the Holy One of Israel, and I feel more happy and a great deal better than I ever have done in all the days of my life; and I am sensible I know more of the principles of the kingdom of God; and I trust I shall learn enough to steer clear of the wickedness of men, and in the own due time of the Lord make my escape from this ungodly world.

I realized, while brother Wells was speaking, that the whole world was and is Babylon; and I realize that everything outside of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is one vast Babylon, full of confusion, wickedness, corruption, and abominations of the deepest dye. Brother Wells also showed you that the great men in the United States are not agreed in any one question that comes before them. He also showed that this had been the condition of the world for ages.

I have found, however, that they were perfectly agreed in one thing, and that was to destroy the Babe of Bethlehem—the Church of Christ; and they are just so yet: they are determined to oppose the truth and take the lives of the Prophets of God, and their cup of iniquity is almost full. The dragon has poured out his mighty flood after this Church, and has tried his best to sweep the Saints of God from the earth. But we still live, and we intend to live eternally, despite the Devil and all his emissaries.

What does Daniel say, speaking of these days—the days in which you and I live? He says, “The kingdom shall never be taken away nor given to another people.” What have the Prophets of God been teaching us for years? They have told us, time after time, that if they had fifty Saints of the right stripe, they would rather have them than to have hundreds and thousands of those who are fearful, half-hearted, and eternally grumbling.

We live in the dispensation of the fulness of times; and all other dispensations, as the Prophet of God has said, were only preludes to this great and last dispensation; for in this day there will be the greatest work performed, the greatest miracles wrought, and more of the power of God displayed, and also more of the power of Satan, than have ever been witnessed since the world began.

I teach the people that Joseph Smith was greater than any other Prophet that ever lived, except Jesus Christ. [President B. Young: “That is true. How can it be otherwise?”] It can’t; and I tell you that he is just as active to-day as ever he was, and he can do more for this people and for the cause of Zion than he could when here.

In the days of Israel of old, and in all former dispensations, there have been many Prophets; but Joseph Smith stands at the head of this, which is a dispensation of all dispensations: it will comprehend and complete the unfinished work of all former days.

I thank my heavenly Father that I live to behold this day. While sitting here, I have thought of the first Conference that was ever held in this valley. It was nine years ago last October. I reached the valley during the sitting of Conference, and some of the brethren said, “The Conference is sitting; won’t you go?” So I walked down to where they were holding Conference, and I found them by the side of a haystack. There was Father John Smith and a little handful of men that might have been covered with a small tent, and they were holding the Semi-Annual Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

When I contrast the present Conference with the one of which I have spoken, I feel to thank God, and my soul magnifies his name for his goodness in gathering his people who were then scattered by their enemies. Some were upon the Plains, a great many at Winter Quarters, some hundreds had perished by the sufferings there endured, and few had found their way to this peaceful valley, where I can now behold 12,000 persons assembled at a Conference meeting. This does my soul good, and I feel that we have all great cause to be thankful for the great and marvellous blessings conferred upon us.

Brethren and sisters, let us rejoice in our deliverance from the hands of our enemies; let us rejoice in our happy condition and in our prosperous circumstances. Let us rejoice, for the kingdom is established and never will be given to any other people.

There is one thing more which I want you to understand, and that is, that God is not dependent upon any one man or woman for the carrying on and accomplishment of his work. If you have not a mind to work for the Lord, let it alone; for he can do just as well without you as with you.

I know there are men under the sound of my voice who are bound by the chains of the Devil, and they are and will be controlled by them, and you cannot liberate them; and what is the matter? They are not of the right blood, and there is nothing right for them: they are controlled by a contrary spirit; they are opposed to everything and to everybody but themselves. I have reflected much upon this subject, and I have been led to conclude that if we could just let into their veins one drop of “Mormonism,” it could not be got away from them;—I mean when the Gospel is first presented to men and women.

If the right spirit and the good seed be sown on good ground, it will bring forth good fruit. Persons who have the truth implanted in their hearts, if they are honest, will grow in the knowledge of God until they obtain a fulness.

We read in the Scriptures of a certain class of men who never come to the knowledge of the truth, and still they are said to be ever learning. I will tell you the reason why they never come to the knowledge of the truth: it is because they never loved the truth, and consequently they went the wrong way to work. There have been such men in every age, and there are just such now, and I expect there ever will be until the last and final separation.

All kinds and characters seem to be needed now, and the great net catches all kinds that come to hand, and the fishermen have got to separate them; and this is not the work of a moment, but still it is an important part of the work of the Lord.

Brethren, let us work while the day lasts; for I can tell you, as the Lord Almighty lives, that we have to act differently from what we have done: we must live nearer to the Lord, and not suffer ourselves to go to sleep any more. Have you not heard brother Brigham say as much as two years ago that if things did not go on in a different way from what they had been going, he would take his pack on his back and go into the wilderness and live his religion? Did not I rejoice last fall when he arose in this stand and said that the time had come when the people must reform and keep the law of God? It brought to my mind the dream which I had respecting the lions, the dogs, and the tigers. It was revealed to me in that dream that those men who lead this people are the Lions of the Lord; and I know they will overcome the dogs.

There has been a great work done in this Territory: the people have reformed, and there area great number of men in this congregation who have been engaged in the work of reformation the past winter; and I know that the Spirit of God is with them. I also know that a very large majority of the people want to live their religion.

I want to tell you something right here that I have told the people in the districts where I have visited. I have told them to look at the bait before they swallowed the hook. I tell you, our religion is full of common sense; and I know that common sense has got to have an important place in the mind of every man and woman; and when the Spirit of God operates upon the minds of the Saints, it teaches them that which is consistent.

If you and I keep humble, and keep a childlike spirit, and never have anything about us but that kind of an influence, then, if a spirit approaches that is not of the Lord, we shall know it. Let us control our tongues, for James says the tongue is an unruly member and sets all on fire; and I can tell you how you may escape. When an unruly spirit approaches you, just hold your tongue, and then the fire which is connected with that spirit won’t hurt you. I tell you, those wicked persons that come to annoy and disturb the peace of the Saints of God will have the fire of hell in them. [Voice: “And swallow the hook without the bait.”]

When I go into the company of a man, I know what kind of a spirit he has about him; and you can know it also, if you will carry with you the right spirit. The Lord has not given me anything that he is not willing for you to have; therefore, strive to have in you that Spirit which will enable you to discern the evil from the good.

Let us live our religion and become sanctified before the Lord, and remember that we are playing a game now which is not only for the time present; but we are now acting a part that will establish our character for a very long hereafter: therefore, let us so order our lives that we may not look back with regret, when we have passed through this probation, that we have not lived better and done better.

I pray God to have mercy upon us and keep us humble, that we may perform well our part, and eventually be prepared for the rest that is promised to the people of God.

I cannot express how thankful I feel when I think that I am living in the midst of a people where there are Prophets and Apostles. Brother Woodruff said that he was glad that he had the privilege of living in such a day and amongst such a people; and I know there are a great many who feel just as he does, but they cannot all speak here and tell of it. I know that I rejoice in the privileges of the Gospel, and I wish to encourage my brethren and sisters to be faithful, to be diligent and prayerful, and always be ready to observe and carry out the counsel of our superiors. Let us be united, for in our union consists our strength.

I do not feel to detain the congregation, but this is my testimony and my exhortation to the Saints; and I know that these men who lead us are true, faithful, and valiant; and if we follow their instructions, we shall be landed safely in the haven of rest.

I can tell you there is a vast difference between a drover and a shepherd: the shepherd leads the flock. This was the way the ancient shepherds of Israel did, and it is the way they do now in many of the eastern countries; and this is the way for shepherds to do with the flock of Christ.

If you undertake to drive people into heaven, you will have a job on hand. I would just as soon undertake to drive an antelope into Emigration Kanyon. If we cannot lead them there, we cannot get them there at all; and if we should happen to drive a few through the gate, we should have to stand there with clubs in order to keep them there; for I can assure you that heaven is no place for any one who has to be driven in order to get him there.

It is said that the husbandman is the first to partake of the fruit of the garden and the field, and he then administers it to others; and I want to know if you think you can administer that which you have not got? Now, I can assure you, there is a great deal in these things for you and I to understand; and if we will apply our minds, we shall learn many important lessons. I want to know if you ever heard anything from the Prophets of God about driving people into heaven, Did they ever teach you a doctrine of this kind? No: but it is “Come, come,” all the day long.

In the days of Jesus there was a spirit of this kind, and the people could not get any of the “holy water” without paying for it; for there were so many picayunish fools around trying to carry out their own will, and they would neither go into heaven themselves nor allow any one else the privilege; but Jesus came along with the key and opened a door and told the people to come. Yes, he cried, “Come, all ye that thirst, and drink of the waters of life freely.”

I thank God that we can partake of those waters of life now, without money and without price. The Lord has chosen us according to his promise; for he has said that he would choose the poor to be heirs of his kingdom. When I think of his goodness, I feel to say, Hallelujah! Praise the Lord, all ye his Saints! Amen.

Past and Present History of the Church, etc.

Lorenzo D. Young

Remarks by Bishop Lorenzo D. Young, made in the Bowery, Great Salt Lake City, Sunday afternoon, August 16, 1857. Reported by J. V. Long.

It is with peculiar feelings, brethren and sisters, that I arise to speak a few moments; and I have as good a right to apologize for standing before you as any other man; but I have no apologies to make, for the simple reason that I am glad of an opportunity to express in public a few of my feelings.

I have not been with the people called Latter-day Saints as long as some of my brethren; but I have been with this people twenty-five years, and I have observed closely their meanderings, their toils, and their labours. I have seen them in prosperity, but it remained only for a short time; and I have seen them in adversity, suffering from nakedness and hunger; and last of all, I have seen them in these peaceful valleys, with none to harm them or make them afraid.

The ten years past have been a sabbatic year to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints—a jubilee—a time of rest.

I will not go into the detail of all the scenes that the Latter-day Saints have passed through since the organization of this Church on the 6th of April, 1830, which most of you are acquainted with, either by experience or by reading the history of this people. Suffice it to say that, as a people, we have had more peace during our sojourn in these mountains, and we have enjoyed ourselves better than ever we did before. I believe, for one, that I have in some degree appreciated this day of rest which I have enjoyed with you, for I have felt in my spirit that it was a blessing to be here; and I believe that all the Saints of God have felt this, to a certain extent.

The Lord showed this place unto his servants, the First Presidency of this Church, and the few pioneers who accompanied them; and from that day to the present I have involuntarily felt like shouting, “Glory! Hallelujah!” Yes, I have felt this, and feel it now.

Is this because I am now more courageous than I was fifteen or twenty years ago? No. It is because, with you, I have prayed, hundreds of times, that we might enjoy the freedom of the sons of God; and I can now behold the faint glimmerings of the dawn of that day when the Saints will be free to serve their God and go forth untrammelled in the accomplishment of his purposes, in the building up of his kingdom, and in the establishment of righteousness in the earth.

Have we not great cause for rejoicing in the prospects before us? If we love truth more than error, virtue more than vice, honour and integrity more than baseness and degradation, then surely our hearts will be glad and our souls will rejoice in the God of our salvation, that we live and are engaged in a work which will result in the final extinction of wickedness and abomination from the earth.

Within the last twelve months I have seen this people become more humble and prayerful, and I have seen them renew their covenants; I have seen them make restoration and restitution, and give the pledge of their sincerity and integrity; and I have seen the Spirit of the Lord poured out upon them. This also gives me exceeding joy; it affords me comfort and sweet consolation.

Do I see this good spirit continue to manifest itself among the people? Yes, I do. We have wise men to stand at the head to lead and guide us. The Lord God of Abraham, by the revelation of his Holy Spirit, guides the ship in which we sail. “Is this true?” says one. Yes, it is. Does the Lord acknowledge us as his people? Yes, he does. How long will he continue to do so? Just so long as we continue to be his faithful children—just so long as we continue to fulfil our covenants with the Lord our God and to one another.

Should any man cherish the spirit of war and the spirit of revenge in his bosom, and feel that he wants to go out and fight and tear down everything before him? The man who feels this does not feel as I do. No: my feelings and the feelings of the people of God should always be calm—not irritable.

Our nerves should not be so unstrung at any time as Sidney Rigdon’s were, when he picked up his spy-glass to look at General Clark’s army, and could not hold the glass still enough to see anything. We must quiet our nerves and always be cool and deliberate.

Is there safety for us, unless we trust in the Lord? No. There is no other refuge. He is our only shield and protector. The Lord fought the battles of his people in ancient times, and he can do it again.

Is it the people in the Territory of Utah that our enemies are and have been contending with? No: they are contending against the Lord of Hosts—against the kingdom of God, the Priesthood of the Most High. Is it the United States alone that are arrayed against the kingdom of God and his Priesthood? No; but it is the whole empire of Satan’s kingdom—even the whole world.

We do not go into the United States alone to preach the Gospel; but we go everywhere upon the face of the whole earth—to every continent and island—to every nation and tongue.

The confusion and wickedness of which we speak are not in the United States only; but they are in every place on the earth, excepting this, which is Zion, so far as we are the pure in heart.

We have not to go particularly to one place or nation to find opposition and the spirit to persecute and destroy this people. It is in every place; for this kingdom has to contend with the powers of earth and hell. Is the Lord able to bring his cause to a successful issue? He is, most assuredly.

I tell you, brethren and sisters, and I want to impress it on your minds, that the stay and the staff of Israel are in the holy Priesthood that is vested in the First Presidency and in the body of the people. We are not to trust in the arm of flesh, but we are to trust on the strength of Israel’s God, and live so that our conduct will warrant us a confidential application to Him in the hour of danger.

Can we trust in the man whom God has ordained and appointed to lead his people? Yes, we can trust in him as God’s agent and representative, through whom we may know his will concerning us; and by faithfully following his instructions, he will lead us in the way of everlasting life. If we do this, though we may suffer the loss of all that we possess on the earth, and even lay down our mortal bodies for the Gospel’s sake, God will reward us in this world an hundredfold, and in that which is to come he will crown us with eternal lives.

Brethren, let us individually—yea, let every man and woman, every Bishop, every Elder, every High Priest, every Deacon, and every member of the Church of Jesus Christ stand firm for the cause of God in their place and station. Let every man who has a family preside over that family as a man of God; and if he has no more to preside over than old Henry Sherwood had, when Captain Clark asked him who he presided over, and he answered that he presided over himself and his wife—let him do it in love and mercy and righteousness before God.

I was in Kirtland, I was in Far West, and in Davis County; and my feelings are just the same to-day as they were when brother Hyrum Smith announced that brother Joseph was in bonds, and that we were all prisoners, and required to give up our arms. I said that I would rather die a free man than submit to such tyranny. I am a valiant man, you know, when I am a long way from danger.

May God bless us, and bless all Israel in the tops of the mountains and everywhere else, and make them our friends, is my prayer, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

The Priesthood, etc.

Joseph Smith

Synopsis of an address delivered by President Joseph Smith, in Commerce, Illinois, Tuesday, June 2, 1839.

The Priesthood was first given to Adam. He obtained the First Presidency, and held the keys of it from generation to generation. He obtained it in the creation, before the world was formed, as in Gen. i. 20, 26, 28. He had dominion given him over every living creature. He is Michael the Archangel, spoken of in the Scriptures. Then to Noah, who is Gabriel: he stands next in authority to Adam in the Priesthood. He was called of God to this office, and was the Father of all living in his day, and to him was given the dominion. These men held keys first on earth, and then in heaven.

The Priesthood is an everlasting principle, and existed with God from eternity, and will to eternity, without beginning of days or end of years. The keys have to be brought from heaven, whenever the Gospel is sent. When they are revealed from heaven, it is by Adam’s authority. Daniel vii. speaks of the Ancient of Days. He means the oldest man—our Father Adam (Michael). He will call his children together and hold a council with them to prepare them for the coming of the Son of Man. He (Adam) is the Father of the human family, and presides over the spirits of all men; and all that have had the keys must stand before him in this grand council. This may take place before some of us leave this stage of action. The Son of Man stands before him, and there is given him glory and dominion. Adam delivers up his stewardship to Christ—that which was delivered to him as holding the keys of the universe, but retains his standing as head of the human family.

The spirit of man is not a created being it existed from eternity, and will exist o eternity. Anything created cannot be eternal; and earth, water, &c., had their existence in an elementary state from eternity. Our Saviour speaks of children and says, “Their angels always stand before my Father.” The Father called all spirits before him at the creation of man, and organized them. He (Adam) is the head, and was told to multiply. The keys were first given to him, and by him to others. He will have to give an account of his stewardship, and they to him.

The Priesthood is everlasting. The Saviour, Moses, and Elias gave the keys to Peter, James, and John, on the mount, when they were transfigured before him. The Priesthood is everlasting—without beginning of days or end of years—without father, mother, &c. If there is no change of ordinances, there is no change of Priesthood. Wherever the ordinances of the Gospel are administered, there is the Priesthood.

How have we come at the Priesthood in the last days? It came down, down, in regular succession. Peter, James, and John had it given to them, and they gave it to others. Christ is the Great High Priest; Adam next. Paul speaks of the Church coming to an innumerable company of angels; to God, the Judge of all—the spirits of just men made perfect; to Jesus, the Mediator of the new covenant, &c. (Heb xii. 23.)

I saw Adam in the valley of Adam-ondi-Ahman. He called together his children and blessed them with a patriarchal blessing. The Lord appeared in their midst, and he (Adam) blessed them all, and foretold what should befall them to the latest generation. (See Doc. and Cov., sec. iii., pars. 28, 29.

This is why Abraham blessed his posterity—he wanted to bring them into the presence of God. “They looked for a city,” &c. Moses sought to bring the children of Israel into the presence of God, through the power of the Priesthood, but he could not. In the first ages of the world they tried to establish the same thing; and there were Eliases raised up who tried to restore these very glories, but did not obtain them: but they prophesied of a day when this glory would be revealed. Paul spoke of the dispensation of the fulness of times, when God would gather together all things in one, &c.; and those men to whom these keys have been given will have to be there; and they without us cannot be made perfect.

These men are in heaven, but their children are on earth. Their bowels yearn over us. God sends down men for this reason. (Matt. xiii. 41.) “And the Son of Man shall send forth his angels, &c.” All these authoritative characters will come down and join hand in hand in bringing about this work.

The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed. The mustard seed is small, but brings forth a large tree, and the fowls lodge in the branches. The fowls are the angels. Thus angels come down, combine together to gather their children, and gather them. We cannot be made perfect without them, nor they without us. When these things are done, the Son of Man will descend—the Ancient of Days sit; we may come to an innumerable company of angels—have communion with and receive instruction from them. Paul told about Moses’ proceedings—spoke of the children of Israel being baptised, &c. He knew this, and that all the ordinances and blessings were in the Church. Paul had these things, and we may have the fowls of heaven lodge in the branches, &c.

The horn made war with the Saints and overcame them, &c., until the Ancient of Days came; judgment was given to the Saints of the Most High from the Ancient of Days; the time came that the Saints possessed the kingdom. This not only makes us ministers here, but in eternity.

Salvation cannot come without revelation: it is in vain for any one to minister without it. No man is a minister of Jesus Christ without being a prophet. No man can be the minister of Jesus Christ, except he has the testimony of Jesus, and this is the spirit of prophecy. Whenever salvation has been administered, it has been by testimony. Men of the present time testify of heaven and of hell, and have never seen either; and I will say that no man knows these things without this.

Men profess to prophesy. I will prophesy that the signs of the coming of the Son of Man are already commenced. One pestilence will desolate after another. We shall soon have war and bloodshed. The moon will be turned into blood. I testify of these things, and that the coming of the Son of Man is nigh, even at your doors. If our souls and our bodies are not looking forth for the coming of the Son of Man, and after we are dead, if we are not looking forth, &c., we shall be among those who are calling for the rocks to fall upon us, &c.

The hearts of the children of men will have to be turned to their fathers, and the fathers to the children, living or dead, to prepare them for the coming of the Son of Man. If Elijah did not come, the whole earth would be smitten.

There will be here and there a Stake for the gathering of the Saints. Some may have cried peace, but the Saints and the world will have little peace from henceforth. Let this not hinder us from going to the Stakes; for God has told us to flee, not dallying, or we shall be scattered, one here, and another there. There your children shall be blessed, and you in the midst of friends, where you may be blessed. The Gospel net gathers of every kind.

I prophesy that that man, who tarries after he has an opportunity of going will be afflicted by the Devil. Wars are at hand; we must not delay, but are not required to sacrifice. We ought to have the building up of Zion as our greatest object. When wars come, we shall have to flee to Zion. The cry is to make haste. The last revelation says, “Ye shall not have time to have” gone over the earth, until these things come. It will come as did the cholera, war, fires, and earthquakes, one pestilence after another, &c., until the Ancient of Days come; then judgment will be given to the Saints.

Whatever you may hear about me or Kirtland, take no notice of it; for if it be a place of refuge, the Devil will use his greatest efforts to trap the Saints. You must make yourselves acquainted with those men who, like Daniel, pray three times a day to the house of the Lord. Look to the Presidency and receive instruction. Every man who is afraid, covetous, &c., will be taken in a snare. The time is soon coming when no man will have any peace but in Zion and her Stakes

I saw men hunting the lives of their own sons, and brother murdering brother, women killing their own daughters, and daughters seeking the lives of their mothers. I saw armies arrayed against armies; I saw blood, desolation, fires, &c. The Son of Man has said that the mother shall be against the daughter, and the daughter against the mother, &c. These things are at our doors. They will follow the Saints of God from city to city. Satan will rage, and the spirit of the Devil is now enraged. I know not how soon these things will take place; and with a view of them, shall cry peace? No. I will lift up my voice and testify of them. How long you will have good crops, and the famine be kept off, I do not know. When the fig-tree leaves, know then that summer is nigh at hand.

We may look for angels and receive their ministration, but we are to try the spirits and prove them, for it is often the case that men make a mistake in regard to these things. God has so ordained that, when he has communicated, no vision is to be taken but what you see by the seeing of the eye, or what you hear by the hearing of the ear. When you see a vision, pray for the interpretation. If you get not this, shut it up. There must be certainty in this matter. An open vision will manifest that which is more important. Lying spirits are going forth in the earth. There will be great manifestations of spirit, both false and true. Being born again comes by the Spirit of God, through ordinances. An angel of God never has wings. Some will say that they have seen a spirit—that he offered them his hand, but they did not touch it. This is a lie. First, it is contrary to the plan of God. A spirit cannot come but in glory. An angel has flesh and bones: we see not their glory. The Devil may appear as an angel of light. Ask God to reveal it. If it be of the Devil, he will flee from you; if of God, he will manifest himself, or make it manifest. We may come to Jesus and ask him: he will know all about it. If he comes to a little child, he will adapt himself to the language and capacity of a little child.

Every spirit, or vision, or singing is not of God. The Devil is an orator. He is powerful. He took our Saviour on to a pinnacle of the Temple, and kept him in the wilderness for forty days. The gift of discerning spirits will be given to the Presiding Elder. Pray for him that he may have this gift. Speak not in the gift of tongues without understanding it, or without interpretation. The Devil can speak in tongues: the Adversary will come with his work. He can tempt all classes—can speak in English or Dutch. Let no one speak in tongues, unless he interpret, except by the consent of the one who is placed to preside; then he may discern or interpret, or another may. Let us seek for the glory of Abraham, Noah, Adam, the Apostles, who have communion with these things, and then we shall be among that number when Christ comes.

Personal Interest in the Kingdom of God, etc.

Joseph Young

Discourse by President Joseph Young, delivered in the Bowery, Great Salt Lake City, Wednesday afternoon, April 8, 1857. Reported by J. V. Long.

I suppose, if I can make you hear who are away at the back side of this vast congregation, that those between here and there will be able to hear also; but I fear that it will be a difficult task.

I am a policeman, or, in other words, I profess to be a peacemaker, and I believe this is the calling of a policeman; consequently, when I see any difficulty or trouble betwixt any two of my brethren, or any two of my fellow-creatures, if my interference is solicited, I feel called upon to make peace and to reconcile the parties. If, therefore, I see any difficulties in this city—if I see any abuse practised upon a fellow-citizen, I feel called upon to interfere. This is in me; it is an inherent principle in me: I cannot cast it out. I love to see the rights of my brethren and sisters maintained: that is my disposition exactly.

I endorse what brother Brigham has said; I do it with all my heart; and I do know, as brother John observed this morning, that the revelations of Jesus Christ are accompanied with good common-sense. I have never seen any but what were the best sense that I have ever seen manifested.

I am a member of this institution which has been spoken of, called the “Carrying Company; I am one of those men, and I feel interested in it. But, says one, have you got an investment there? Yes, I have—not exactly in dollars and cents, but I have got my faith and goodwill there; and then you can put with that all that I have on this earth; and if you don’t believe it, try me: it is all on hand.

I am not only for this, but for every other investment and scheme which is made through the proper channel; for I feel that I belong to this Church and kingdom. If I do not, I know not where I belong.

I am a citizen of this planet, and I do not know that I have ever done anything to forfeit my citizenship. I feel that I have an inheritance in these chambers of the mountains, and I have never forfeited that before this body of people.

Do this people inherit the blessings promised? They do. Some are afraid to plant and to build, for fear we should not stay here long enough to eat and inhabit: Will I plant an orchard? Yes sir, I will. To what extent will I improve? To as great an extent as I should, if I knew that I were to be a citizen of this, Territory’ through all generations. I would plant as much as I should want; if I knew that I and my posterity were to live here till the last trumpet shall sound.

[President H. C. Kimball: They will, if they have a mind to; for there are no devils who can drive them away from here, if they do right.]

I will never cease my exertions here but I will do all that I can to beautify the place. I have done my best to do so, according to my means: I have planted my grape-cuttings, and I have eaten some fruit; I have planted my peach orchard, and have eaten the fruit thereof; and I rejoice to see improvements among this people.

I had the pleasure of planting some three pecks of apple seeds in Nauvoo, thinking they would be useful to somebody, and I believe the trees are there now that grew from those seeds. Yes, there are orchards and vineyards there now, and they will stand there as proofs that this people have been an industrious people.

Why, I tell you, my brethren and sisters, it is one of the greatest follies for men to say that they will not improve because they are not going to stay here. I will build as good a place as I feel I need here; and I will say something else: I would like to see the Temple of the Lord built, and I feel that if it is his will that I should live, I will do what I can towards building that Temple, for I want to see it reared. Brethren, let us rear that Temple—give it into the hands of those who manage the affairs of the kingdom, and all the means that we can, so that the work may be accomplished speedily, and that we may have a renewal of our endowments.

“Why,” says one, “the endowments are going on.” That is true: a portion of the endowments are going on, but there are other things that never will until the Temple is built—of which are the baptism for the dead and our endowments by proxy for our dead friends. Are they going on? No. Will they, before that house is built? No, not that I know of. That is one sermon.

There is another thing. Who is there that feels generous towards that man who has gone beyond the vail—who is gone where he cannot do anything for himself? I tell you I want to see that spirit among the brethren. Suppose, therefore, we get rid of some of our selfishness, and be willing, if proper, to take the wife of some faithful brother who has passed behind the vail, and raise up posterity unto him. If we can do this, in connexion with other duties which we have to perform, we shall be doing good for others as well as for ourselves.

What do the Scriptures say? “There is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom in the grave, whither thou goest.” No—there is no device there, for so says brother Brigham, the Prophet. He says that all the endowments have to be given on this side the vail, or they never will be given. [President B. Young: That is true.]

I can say, when I see what there is to do—the mighty work that has to be performed for the living and the dead, the responsibility is great. Who can estimate it? And good order has got to be observed in regard to this eternal inheritance which is in store for the faithful; for without it all are perishing; but by the Gospel and its power there is an eternal endurance, and we have had some foretaste of a few things that are in reserve for the faithful Saints.

I feel, as brother Brigham says, that I want to see that Temple built. Did you ever sit down and meditate, when all was quiet, when the spirit of serenity seemed to fill the whole house, and when it seemed as if there was some messenger there? If you have, although you did not see him, there was a messenger there—there was a good spirit present. As you continue to contemplate upon the dead, you say, “How I wish I could do something for the redemption of the dead!”

You could not bear to behold that messenger who whispers in your ears and invites you to be active in doing a work for your dead friends. That messenger will inspire you with a desire to do something for those who have passed behind the vail. Every man that has the spirit of philanthropy feels that he is willing to do anything for the great and glorious work of redeeming and exalting the dead.

You are also anxious to enter into the Carrying Company, to gather the Saints whose faith is in our God, and whose eyes are turned towards brother Brigham, who is the head of the Church and kingdom of God upon the earth. To him they look for their deliverance from the thraldom and oppression of the world.

I now want to preach a sermon to the home missionaries. I do not want to hear them preach too long sermons, neither when they are out in the country settlements, nor anywhere else. I should like to have them preach as long as the subject before them is interesting, and so long as the Spirit of the Lord is feeding the flock of Christ.

Jesus at one time addressed himself to Peter and said, “Peter do you love me?” “Yes,” was the reply. “Well, then, feed my sheep.” And again Jesus interrogated him in the same manner, and Peter answered in the affirmative. Then said Jesus, “Simon Peter, son of Jonas, lovest thou me?” Peter answered, “Lord, thou knowest all things, and thou knowest that I love thee.” Jesus replied, “Feed my lambs.”

I believe in this doctrine. When the Elders can feed the people, it is all right for them to continue their discourses; but when the Spirit is becoming dull and is declining, or, in other words, when the pond is run out, then is the time to stop; for this grinding by hand I do not believe in.

I know that some preach the everlasting Gospel, and that is a good thing; but I believe that a man can preach it in five minutes.

I love short sermons, and when I am in the country at Conference and other meetings, I feel that they are particularly good, and I rejoice so long as the Elders feed the people. But when the Spirit ceases to operate through a man, I want him to sit down.

It makes me think of a Scotchman, who, when he was a preceptor in an academy, was required to give lectures at certain periods, according to the regulations of the institution. On one occasion he said, “I will give you the following lecture:—Never speak but when you have something to say, and always stop when you get through.”

I do love to hear men talk good talk, as the Indians say. It is the best and sweetest music I ever hear. I won’t even except brother Smithies big fiddle. The music of the human voice is sweeter to me than that of any stringed instrument. I do not care how illiterate the man is who speaks, although learning is very good; yet, if he speaks by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, that is what I like to hear.

Brother William Kimball could not have told me his feelings better than I knew them, for I understood that he felt just as he described. I can tell you that I would rather hear a few words dictated by the Spirit of God, than hear a long sermon delivered without the dictation of that Spirit.

I am for the building of the Temple, for the Express and Carrying Company, and the gathering the Saints from all nations; and if I had ten thousand dollars, I would invest it in such enterprizes as these.

I have one boy going to England this spring. I have another in the Printing Office, and that leaves me almost entirely alone; yet I feel to say, Hallelujah! I am glad that my son Seymour is going to England, for I know it will do him good. He is filled with the spirit of preaching already.

I can tell you, my friends, it is very pleasing to me to know that my children are advancing in knowledge and usefulness; and I sometimes hear them talk, after they return from meeting, somewhat as follows:—“Who preached to-night?” “The Bishop.” “Who else?” “Oh, brother Clinton and brother Wheelock.” And they seem to think that all the speakers talked so well that it would be hard to tell who talked the best.

Now, do you not see, my friends, that these boys—children I may call them—have got a relish for the Spirit and power of God? My little girls also go to meeting in their turns, and they will inquire of each other who preached. If the answer be that the Bishop preached, or any other man the next question generally is, “Did he preach well?” “Oh yes,” the reply is; “he talked first rate;” and I find that they are filled with the spirit of animation and of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I have not heard them say “dance” the past winter.

I do not discard the practice of dancing; therefore do not misunderstand me; for “Mormonism,” or the Gospel of Jesus Christ, embraces all that is good, and dancing is a scriptural precedent; and it is said that they should go forth in the last days in the dance. Well, upon, this principle, we believe in dancing, and a certain portion of it is useful to the limbs and to the joints, and to the spirits as well.

But notwithstanding all this, wherever there is too much of any one thing, it very naturally produces a reaction; and consequently, there is a suspension of dancing for the present.

If our children do not dance when they are young, the sprightliness, the vigour, and activity of youth are in a manner checked. My father, when I was a boy, would not allow me to give vent to the life and vigour that were in me; and now, if I were to give way to my feelings at times, I should dance too much.

[President H. C. Kimball: You would dance the bones out of joint, I suppose.]

It is not necessary that you should dance the whole of this spirit out of you at once; for if you do, you will have none left, and consequently, no disposition to dance any more. I thought last winter that the people would tire themselves dancing. When the “driftwood” was taken away, and the course was clear, they danced as if they were never going to stop.

I felt glad yesterday to hear what was said by brother Brigham and also by others who addressed us, and I felt so well that I could have danced, This is the way I feel a great deal of the time. As I observed, my father checked the stream of diversion in us, and would not allow his boys to dance at all; and probably that is the reason why I feel so much like it now.

It is natural for our children to love the Gospel, for religion, is a natural thing—it is perfectly natural. You may take a child, and just as soon as you can put it in possession of doctrine, that child will love the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Only let it understand right from wrong, and there will be nothing but the Gospel in that child. If we set a proper example before our sons and daughters, the Gospel will be manifested through all their actions, and there will be no evil desire in them.

I want to know the bounds of my prerogatives in the Priesthood, and never want to go beyond those bounds.

[President B. Young: Shall I give them to you?].

Yes. I want to know them. It is better for a man to run a little behind the line than to have him go before it. I know there are some things that I can say and do, and there are things that brother Brigham can say and do that I cannot: it is not my prerogative.

Here are brother Brigham, brother Heber, and brother Wells, the First Presidency; then there are the Twelve; then right behind them come the Seventies and the High Priests—two mighty bodies of men, whose business it is to act under the direction of the two first Quorums; then come the Elders, Priests, Teachers, and Deacons, who constitute the organization of the Priesthood in the Church, and who are called to assist in preparing the way for Jesus to come. We are (all who magnify their calling and Priesthood) trying to prepare a people for his coming, to purge out those that are filthy, and to put away every evil and wrong from us, and to prepare for the greater weight of glory that is to come.

In order to do this, we are under the necessity of chastising; and the greatest proof to me that there is a man standing at the head who holds communion with God is, to see men receive chastisement in the spirit of humility, without a murmur, and be satisfied that it is for their good.

My opinion was, before I received the Gospel, and is the same now, that the man who has the hardihood and boldness to rebuke his brethren and to tell them of their faults and of their errors is a man of God. Brethren, I want to get rid of my errors.

Brother Brigham said to-day, when he addressed you, that he wanted those who stand up to instruct the Saints to say something worth hearing; and hence there has been within me a feeling of extreme diffidence, when arising to address you, not only to-day, but on many other occasions; for there is not in me the power and wisdom to bring out great principles before the Saints; but brother Brigham and brother Heber can. I feel a delicacy in standing before such a vast multitude as are here present, knowing that there are many bright minds in this congregation.

Some think they could say a good deal, if they could have the privilege of coming upon this stand; but when they come here, everything seems to be shut out from their minds, and they can scarcely say a word. The vast amount of intellect—of knowledge that this people possess oftentimes throws persons who speak before them into great confusion.

It is the most peculiar place—the most delicate situation that a man can be placed in; and hence I say that the simpler a man is the better. On this very account it is that I am contending with myself all the time and endeavouring to be pointed in my sayings; for I do not want to go round about, but to say things just as they are.

When I retain the Spirit of God—when that light is in me which was with Jesus in all his counsellings, at such times all the beings upon the face of the earth would not intimidate me; but, with a mortal tabernacle, we are subject to the weaknesses of mortality. To communicate intelligence to this people, unless God first communicates to me, is impossible; but when he does inspire me with his spirit, and I speak the things right out, nobody need find any fault; and if they do, it cannot be helped, for we must speak that which the Spirit dictates.

I once knew a little boy who was in the habit of being whipped by his mother when he went to bed, in order to make him go to sleep, and he became so habituated to the whipping that he could not go sleep without it, and he would say, “Mother, come and whip me.”

I do not desire to be of that class, but desire to so live as to be able to discern true intelligence and present it before the people in a way that they can all understand.

Brother Brigham told me to get up here and say something. I have done so, and will now tell you that my all is invested in this kingdom: it is all for the establishment of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Not gold, nor silver, nor the perishable things of this world are invaluable to me—such articles will perish and moulder away—but those imperishable treasures that can never be destroyed—the inestimable riches that God has put into my possession; for these, my life, my good will, my faith, my prayers, and all that I can do and possess are devoted to the establishment of righteousness and the building up of the kingdom of God on the earth. All my substance and every faculty which God has given me are subject to the word of brother Brigham.

When a man thus surrenders himself, his family, his means, and everything he controls to the servants of God, what will he have in return? We have left all and have come off into these valleys, in the midst of the Rocky Mountains; and what shall we have as a reward? Jesus said, “There is no man that hath left house, or parents, or brethren, or wife, or children, for the kingdom of God’s sake, who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting.” Is there not a compensation here promised? There is.

Here is a key. When the Devil comes to you and asks you if you want to serve God, tell him that it is none of his business, and that will bluff off the Devil.

Brother Kimball has said that if I had not been sick, I should have died; and I don’t know but I should. I believe it has all been for my good, and I can truly say I have not felt so well for many years as I have felt since I recovered from my sickness last January. When a man is sick, if the mind is uneasy, it injures the body. Since I have got well, I have made a practice of sitting down contemplating and holding communion with God and my own heart; and I do feel and know that I am an heir of salvation; and I do not mean that any enemies shall take this hope and assurance away from me.

I have thought sometimes that I would never die till I had been to Europe. When we went to Quincy, after we were mobbed out of Missouri, and a number of brethren were selected to go on missions, I recollect what brother Brigham said on that occasion. He remarked, “If they did not go and preach, they will apostatize.” I do not know but he made the remark in my presence for my benefit.

Well, we had just survived the bloody persecutions of Missouri, and had got into Illinois, and were all as poor as a church mouse ever was, and many of us felt almost disheartened. We had neither cow, nor ox, nor horse, not one in twenty of us; but the people were humane enough to take us in and assist us a little.

Finally, however, the people of Illinois became hostile, and would not let us live in their midst; and we were forced to seek a home in the midst of these mountains; and, for one, I feel to rejoice that I am here in this healthy climate. But, as a Canadian would say, “This is not a poor man’s country;” but I believe that it is the best place on earth for this people at the present time.

Brother Brigham has redeemed his word in bringing the people here, for he said he would lead this people to a healthy climate. We are here in the midst of these peaceful valleys and mountains; and I do not believe that we shall ever be driven from here, if we do right—never, no never.

I have no trouble about this; for I have been in the midst of mobs, and they once held a council and determined to murder me and my family; but the Lord turned away their anger. This was in Missouri. They demanded our arms; but the brethren said they would not give them up—that they would sooner die. I said, “Brethren, I am the captain of this company, and you should listen to me and to my counsel, and give up your arms.” They did so, and by-and-by the hearts of those men were melted, (they were Kentuckians, who had been called upon to assist the mob,) and they came to us and said, “We will pay you for your arms when the war is over.” No doubt they talked the matter over, and said, “These are good people; therefore let us pay them for their arms.” At any rate, they paid down their money, but we had to use stratagem.

I do not want to detain you, brethren and sisters; but I do rejoice that we are in these valleys, where there is nothing to induce our enemies to come and drive us. We do not presume that they will come, unless they are paid for coming. And if they ever do come, it is my earnest prayer that I may be filled with the Holy Ghost; then, peradventure, I shall want to carry the flag and be foremost in putting our enemies to flight. But if this people will retain the Spirit of God, and keep fanning the flame of the reformation that is in them, our enemies will not come to distress us—we shall not be molested; for no power can disturb us so long as we are faithful.

May God bless us all and preserve us upon the earth, and continue our usefulness, until we have redeemed our families and friends—till we all are brought up and fitted for his presence; which is my prayer, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Liberty, Reform, Etc.

Ezra T. Benson

Remarks by Elder Ezra T. Benson, made in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, September 12, 1852.

As there is an opportunity, I arise to make a few remarks. I suppose the same privilege is granted to me that has been given to brother Grant.

I feel that it is a privilege when a man can rise before a congregation like this and say what he has a mind to. It is a law of liberty. It is certainly like that Gospel which Paul preached in his day. He said it was a Gospel of liberty unto all that embraced it; and I am well persuaded, even to a certain knowledge, that this is the Gospel that you have embraced, and that this is the people of the Saints. When we talk about liberty, I consider it is liberty to do just about right—to do that which shall be for the good of the community we dwell with, for the society of the Saints, and the kingdom of God on the earth.

I merely rise to bear testimony to what brother Grant has said; and I think, if there is any man in the city who ought to have the privilege of saying what he has a mind to he ought, for he is the Mayor of the city. He is a man, therefore, who ought to be backed up by the people; and I am happy and rejoice to see such a spirit manifested in the congregation to-day. From the experience I have had, I know it to be right. The remarks are just in time and in season, and they are worthy of the attention of every civil person in our community.

We have come into these valleys to do right; we have come to build up the kingdom of God; we have come that the Saints may have a place of rest, that the oppressed may go free, and that we may be enlightened and strengthened in the principles of the Gospel. If we do not take cognisance of the things that are before us, how can we expect that this community can dwell here in peace? And if we have not faith and spirit and power enough in ourselves to put down anything that is not right in our midst, we cannot expect to live here long unmolested. It is well that every Elder—that every good person who dwells in this community should stamp these evil principles that brother Grant speaks of with indignation. I have felt, since I have been gone on a mission last year to Potowatomie County and the States, the force, power, and spirit of the men whom he has been speaking of here to-day; and so will every Elder who goes abroad.

It is just as brother Grant has said—that while they could send forth their wrath and indignation to the States—while they could stir up mobs and contention in the midst of the people, it was first-rate with them; but when the scale began to turn, and the God of heaven began to rule and control things for the good of this people, it was then, “How do you do? I feel first-rate. Come and see me, won’t you? Come and eat and drink with me at my table, and stay as long as you please.” Why? Because God is ruling things for our good, and softening the hearts of the people, and gathering his Saints from the four corners of the earth. Brethren, we are serving a God who is able to bring good out of evil for the salvation of his chosen people.

Concerning dram shops, grog shops, whisky shops, and all shops, we heard of this before we arrived in the city. We could scarcely believe it; and had we given way to our feelings, we could have sat down and cried about it as well as not. When we got here, we found it to be true. But I think the medicine which has been laid before you to-day will prove effectual to some of them. I had not the least idea, when I rose up here, that the spiritual knockings were so close at my heels; and if I am not mistaken, if you do not reform before next Saturday night, you will have some temporal knockings that are going to do the business up at once.

I was called upon by the Prophet in Nauvoo to engage in temporal knocking, and we knocked one grocery bottom side up, and away it went, grog, glasses, tobacco, snuff, the Devil, and all. (Voice in the stand: “And the Devil went with it.”) Now, the same spirit is in the City of Great Salt Lake. The same spirit that dwelt in the Prophet of God dwells in the hearts of this people; and all we want is for the word to be given, and the deed is performed. Let me tell you, if we had the power to accomplish this thing in Nauvoo, the way we have got it here is not weak. We have the power to knock temporally. We will knock them into a cocked hat. All we want is for the Mayor to say the word, and it shall be done. I know there are Elders here before me who would do the job up clean to night, if necessary, and cleanse the city of these nuisances.

As far as merchants are concerned, I care but little about them. I believe every word that brother Grant has said: they would flood this valley with shin-plasters, and carry away our gold. If there is a banking institution to be given to this people, let it be done by the President of the Church, and let us have the benefit of it, and not men who would cut your throats to get your money from you. I do not expect, however, that they will trouble me any, for I do not seem to get hold of much money. I am a stranger to it. I do not want any shin-plasters. I am a Democrat, so far as that goes, and believe in a hard currency, until God shall establish another; and if he goes in for shinplasters, I am in for them too. I want the brethren who have them to return the paper to the counters to-morrow morning, and know if they possess a disposition to cash them. If they do, they will redeem them. You would look well walking round here with fifty thousand dollars of worthless paper in your pocket. Who is there in this community, Jew or Gentile, who will do right, but what has been blessed and prospered, and has the good feelings of this people?

I can go to St. Louis as poor as I am; and notwithstanding what has been said to hurt the credit of this people, I can get as many goods as I could wish, even if I have not a single dollar in my pocket. I could get all I could get brought over the Plains. But I did not go for gold and silver, nor did the Elders who went with me. We went to do good to the kingdom of God. Have we done it to your satisfaction? [“Yes.”] May God bless you, then; and may you continue to be blessed and prospered to your satisfaction, and put every evil thing away from your sight. I know you can do it, and all will be right.

It is not temporal things we are after, nor temporal knockings; but you, brethren, who keep dram-shops, go and put them away, and put your bottles away, and say you will spread no more poison among this people until you are commanded. If a man cannot get a living here without selling whisky—without keeping a little dram-shop, it is time he was going somewhere else; for be assured you will never get rich here by selling whisky. It is a curse to this people, and it will rest upon you that follow that business.

I have not been commanded to say what I have this afternoon, but it rests upon my own shoulders. If I talk wrong to this people, I am willing to be chastised by my brethren all the time. If men take the liberty of going to St. Louis, and there using my name, we will say what we please, and in any place we please. Neither are we afraid to say it in St. Louis, or in any other place. We are ready to meet it anywhere. Brethren, look out for temporal knockings, for we are on hand. God bless you! Amen.

Education

Parley P. Pratt

An address delivered by P. P. Pratt, at the Fourteenth Ward Schoolhouse on Monday, December 26, 1853.

My friends—As we are assembled on this occasion, I desire to speak upon the subject of education. I consider that we never lived in a more important time than we do now. The Lord has something for every member of his Church and kingdom to perform, for he has a great work to do. I consider that every faculty we possess should be called into action; and this work is so important, that no time should be lost. Hence we see the necessity of schools, that we and our children may be prepared to perform all that the Lord requires of us. What kind of a qualification is necessary for us to perform this work? The first thing necessary is for us to obtain the good Spirit of the Lord, and then keep it. Without this we cannot do much good. If the Lord wants a railroad built, or any great manual labour performed, which the Saints are not yet able to do, he inspires the nations of the earth to perform the work, as they have the means to do it with, notwithstanding the nations know not God, neither do they serve him. We are not prepared to do the work of God acceptably, unless we keep his commandments. In order to enjoy his Spirit, we must pursue a course of life that will meet his approbation—we must do the things that God requires of us. The people may be looking for some mysteries from me to-day; but the older I grow, I feel to be the more simple. What are the means ordained of God for the benefit of our children as well as ourselves? I do not now refer to the obeying of the ordinances of the Gospel alone, for that we all know to be necessary for both ourselves and children. But what were those means laid down in 1830? We are informed in the commandments and law of the Church given unto us, that “It is the Teacher’s duty to see that the Church meets together often, and also see that all the members do their duty.” Do this people do this? No. Our children are or should be all members of the Church, for they should be baptised at eight years of age; but do they meet together often to pray and speak one to another, or even all the parents of children? They do not. Then they do not do their duty. All officers in the Church are Teachers, except the Deacons, and they are, Assistant-Teachers. Who should be exempt from meeting together often, if any exceptions should be made? It should be the mother with her nursing infant, who cannot go. All others should meet together often; and when they come together, the Teacher that presides should see that each one takes a part in their turn and do their duty. Can the Teacher find any member, either parents or children, that don’t pray. If so, he can find those that do not do their duty; for when you were baptised you covenanted to keep the commandments of God, and he has commanded us to pray. Yes, each member should take a part. Which of you can find a teacher in our schools that would spend all his time in hearing one or two children say their lessons and all the rest remain idle? You would turn such a teacher out of doors. The Lord is not less wise than man. He has so arranged the school for his children that each one is required to do his duty. As all officers are Teachers, it should be the duty of some one—the Bishop, or some one under his direction, to see that the children and young people, as well as all the others in each Ward, are collected together, and that they be taught to pray and to speak, and be instructed in all things that are necessary; for we and, our children should learn and understand, and improve upon every branch of science, knowledge, and duty that is necessary for us, as well as to confine ourselves to any one of those branches. Moroni said it was necessary for the people to meet together often to pray, speak, and teach. When I go abroad, and the people ask me why some of our young people do not do any better, and are so wild, I do not know any better answer than that we do not do our duty to them. The question arises, What is the matter with our children? They are full of vigour and spirit, and they want some way to let it out. But if the Latter-day Saints will do their duty, and gather their children together and train their minds in that channel in which they have soon got to walk, in following the footsteps of their parents in bearing off the kingdom of God, we shall hear no more complaint about them. Is this a mystery—a new thing? No. It is according to the revelations and commandments of God, and it should be taught and practised in every Ward in this city and in every Branch of the Church wherever it exists, lest we come under condemnation. The people of Zion once were told that they were under condemnation, and would remain under it until they remembered to do the things that were taught them. If we met together often and did our duty, what time should we have to be idle? None at all. If all men, women, and children met together to pray and teach, they would feel that they must live consistent with their profession, and they would in a great measure cease to do evil. Then how long would it be before the Spirit of God would rest upon our children? And how long would it be said that “I am sorry that we have got to fort up, because the children of my neighbours are so bad that they will spoil mine?” Not long; but it would be said, “I am glad that we can be together—that we can have such good schools and prayer-meetings; and the children have such a good spirit, that it encourages mine to good works.” We have to be called to this, for we have to be tried in all things; for if we were not, we should not differ from the Gentiles, who will neither borrow nor lend. The Gentile priests have not been tried in the kanyons and many other places, as our Elders have; but we have been tried in a manner that it has taught us to help each other and teach each other. When our children meet to sing, pray, and speak, some may not want to do it. They may say it is too great a trial for them; yet they can do it. With a little practice, that feeling will pass away. Let the names of all in the Ward be taken and given to the Teacher, whether it be the Bishop or any one that takes the lead of the school or meeting, and let him call upon each one in their turn to, pray or speak. Should any young man say, “I wish to be excused, for I got drunk the other day, and would not like to speak,” you then are the very one that ought to pray, and repent, and do better. But what shall I say? Say that you got drunk, and ask the school to forgive you, and that you mean to do better (if you do intend to). This would be a good speech, if you could say nothing more. But if you don’t intend to do better, tell them so; say you intend to get drunk every chance you can get, and do all the mischief you can: then the teacher will know what to do with you—cut you off from the Church, and have no more trouble with you. Let the child say, “I have been thinking of this work, and mean to keep the commandments of God,” or something of this kind, if he can say it in truth but speak the truth at all times. You could say something, and you would increase in confidence. Some one may think, “If I should speak or pray, I should spoil the English language.” No matter. In your prayers you do not need to say a great many things to make a speech; but begin by saying, “Our Father, who art in heaven;” then ask for those things that you want and have faith to obtain, and not ask for a thousand things that you don’t expect to get. And how many things can we think of that we should thank the Lord for! No matter how broken your speech, you can ask for what you want of men. But the child does not often ask the parent for anything worth a hundred dollars, for they would not expect to get it; but they would ask for bread when they were hungry, in confidence, and get it. I would ask the Lord for things according to my wants and faith, as Elijah did when he asked for rain, when there had not been any for three years and six months. What would you think to hear brother Pratt pray, and saying, “O Lord, give me some bread to-day!” This I have had to do all my life. I ask God daily for those things which I want. Now, do not mock God by asking him for those things you do not expect to get.

When the children come to meeting, and any one should stand out, and would not speak or pray, they will soon come to it, for they would not like to be out of fashion, and we should make praying, speaking, and righteousness fashionable. Then it would not be a trial to do our duty; then all could be taught, and our follies and errors be corrected. The Teachers should be very particular that all the members speak, pray, and do their duty. What, if we should neglect this branch of the kingdom, and our children should be called to make their first speech, and that should be before Congress or before any body of men where it required confidence, care, and wisdom to present their views in a clear, distinct, and understanding manner. I would not be in that situation for a thousand dollars. But let our children commence speaking together, and learn while they are children. And their minds should be stored with good things in the days of their youth; for what good would it do this people to live till the coming of Christ, if they were not doing the work of God and preparing themselves for it, but spending their time in amusement?

All of us may not be called to go on missions, but all should live in such a manner that they may be useful in the kingdom of God. Every woman should help her husband to fulfil his mission. If I am an Apostle, what then? Is my wife an Apostle? She may be engaged in helping in the apostleship. And every sister that desires it can find an opportunity of doing good in the kingdom of God.

How many of you in former days have spoken with delight of the work that was promised you should perform, in your patriarchal blessings—that you should teach and instruct the Lamanites, not only in the Gospel, but in domestic labours. This mission is now about to open before you. I hope all will be ready to fulfil it; and if all set a good example before them, it will do much good; but if some set a bad example before them, it will do great evil, and they will say, “Mormon like Indian; good Mormon and bad Mormon, good Indian and bad Indian.”

I have not said anything about our letters. The Regency are getting out a new alphabet; and when we learn our letters ourselves, we will teach others. We should improve all our time to a good advantage. We have no time to spend in reading novels or false things. Read the best books—the Bible, Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, and those things that contain truth. Do you think the people read those books enough? No. Now, do not neglect those things. We want the knowledge those books contain—the prophecies and doctrines, &c.

Is there one thing that we can neglect and do our duty? No; for while we neglect those things, can we pray for more in faith? No. Can we do our duty as parents, by reading novels or permitting our children to do it; and neglect history, prophecy, and the revelations of God, which contain his commandments unto us, and those principles whereby we become exalted and saved in his presence and be purified? We cannot. May God bless you! Amen.

Apostacy, &c.

Jedediah M. Grant

Remarks by President Jedediah M. Grant, made in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, June 28, 1854.

I am pleased that this Conference convened upon the 27th, for it is a date written indelibly upon our memories.

We have been blessed in hearing the testimonies which have been borne by Presidents Young and Kimball, and Elder Taylor. I think the majority of this congregation, though they might not be able to bear as strong a testimony as those who have spoken, can bear testimony that the Lord our God, by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, has revealed to them that Joseph Smith, while he lived, was a Prophet of God, inspired by the revelations of the Almighty to unfold the eternal truths of heaven to a perishing world.

I believe that the feelings of this people respond to the testimony that has been borne to-day; and if we should wait here for all this people to express their feelings in relation to their confidence in Joseph Smith as a messenger of heaven, and in the revelations of God through him, we should have to wait many years.

There are some things we know by seeing, and other things we know by hearing, tasting, smelling, &c.; but the light of the Eternal Spirit that brought us out of darkness into the Church of God is the great abiding testimony of this people.

Indeed, men have apostatized after they have seen and heard Joseph, after they have seen angels, after they have seen the sick healed, and after they have spoken in tongues and prophesied, and had the interpretation of tongues. You will recollect that long since I gave you my advice in relation to the proper time a man ought to apostatize. My advice was that he should never apostatize in a dark and cloudy day—never when he felt bad—never because he felt hard towards his brother or brethren in the Church; but when he apostatizes, he should wait for a clear day, when everything around him is prospering; and then, before he apostatizes, he should ask counsel.

In relation to men’s apostatizing, I recollect in the upper room of the Temple in Kirtland, Ohio, when we were assembled there, a very noted man, by the name of Sylvester Smith, bore testimony of what he had seen of the Prophet of God, of angels, &c. He said he wanted to bear testimony, and continued to say, “I have spoken by what you call the Holy Ghost; the eyes of my understanding have been touched, and I have seen convoy after convoy of angels; I have laid hands on the lame, and they have leaped like an hart; I have spoken with tongues and had the interpretation thereof; I have seen the sick healed time after time;—but let me tell you, everything I have seen and everything you have seen is the height of idiotism.” This was Sylvester Smith, after he apostatized.

This was the testimony of an apostate, which is conclusive proof to me that a man may see the hosts of heaven—the chariots of Israel and the horsemen thereof, and gaze on the glory of God, and be filled with the Holy Ghost; and unless he retains the Spirit of God, he will apostatize. Therefore my advice to the Saints has been, and is, and whenever I give you good advice in the future, it will be the same, that you propose in your hearts never to depart from God or from his people, only when you are filled with the Holy Ghost; and then when you do it, ask counsel of his servants.

I felt glad when brother Brigham nominated John Smith, the son of Hyrum, to be our Patriarch. I have been acquainted with his father personally. I have lived with him for years, and I know the spirit that is in his son; and I know the Lord God has promised to bless his children, and that his Spirit will rest upon his son, to unfold and teach the eternal truths of heaven to bless the people of God.

I would rather have a young man to fill this office than an old man who is filled with the leaven of sectarianism. Give me a man who was raised by a “Mormon” father and a “Mormon” mother, and raised up in the faith from his childhood. That is the man I want to bless me and the people of God.

Instructions and Counsel to Departing Missionaries

Heber C. Kimball

Remarks by President Heber C. Kimball at a Special Conference held in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, August 28, 1852. Reported by G. D. Watt.

We have come together to-day, according to previous appointment, to hold a special Conference, to transact business a month earlier than usual, inasmuch as there are Elders to be selected to go to the nations of the earth; and they want an earlier start than formerly. There will probably be Elders chosen to go to the four quarters of the globe to transact business, preach the Gospel, &c.

I recollect reading in one of the revelations, in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, where the Lord says—“If a man, inasmuch as he is an Elder, has a desire in his heart to preach the Gospel, he it is that is called to preach the Gospel.” On the other hand, the Scriptures, or some of the other revelations of God, say that “many are called, but few are chosen.” When a man has that desire in his heart, he is called; but, perhaps, not a great many will be chosen to go forth and preach the Gospel.

I suppose you are all aware, by the information that we have received from our brethren the Apostles, who have lately returned from foreign missions, that the work of God has commenced in many nations of Europe and upon the islands of the sea. Still there are many nations where the Gospel door has not yet been opened in a direct way. Though the foundation has been laid for the introduction of the Gospel among them, and indirectly the door has been opened to all nations—that is, it has been opened into the main room; still there are a great many adjacent rooms leading from that, that have yet to be opened with the smaller keys.

I want to say one thing before we proceed to the business of calling and setting apart those who have to go from this place to the nations this season. We have made a selection of a considerable number of Elders to leave home and go abroad. This may be repugnant to the feelings of some: they may think it is a hazardous undertaking. But at the same time, to go now is nothing to compare with going out to preach the Gospel fifteen years ago, when they had to go, not only without purse or scrip, but without any knowledge that there was a friend to take them by the hand when they arrived at their destination. Now they cannot go to any part of the world, scarcely, but they will find themselves among the Saints.

It is a pleasure to preach the truth. I will say, to those who love to do the will of the Father, as it was with Jesus Christ; for says he, “Father, not my will, but thine be done;” I wish to know nothing but thy will, and that I will do until I spend my life. Did he not do this? He did. You require that same spirit and determination to carry out the same purpose; and I beg and beseech of you, brethren, you that shall be chosen, when you are elected, to go, if you don’t live until you get to the United States; for when men are called and set apart to the ministry to go to the nations of the earth, if they refuse to go, it is death to them—that is, to their characters as faithful Elders in Israel: they go down and not up, backward and not forward. I merely speak of this from my own experience, for I have had one in this Church of upwards of twenty years. I was raised up as it were with the Prophet; I lived with him to the day of his death. As to our present Prophets and Elders, brother Brigham Young I have lived with, with him I have travelled, and with him I have suffered. I have eat and slept with him, and been by his side almost my whole life. I could say with propriety, and I can say it with truth, that Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God, a Seer, a Revelator, an Apostle of Jesus, and was ordained directly under the hands of Peter, James, and John; and he died a Prophet, and Hyrum died a Patriarch of Jesus—a father in Israel.

Brother Brigham Young is the successor of Joseph Smith; and a better, man never lived upon the earth, nor ever sought the interest of this people more fervently from morning until night, and vice versa, than he has done. Did he not travel in the days of Joseph? He did, from the time he came into the Church until the death of Joseph; and so did I. Did we ever hesitate for one moment? No, not for a moment.

Jesus sought to do the will of his Father in heaven; so it was our duty to do the will of Joseph; and now it is the duty of us all to do the will of brother Brigham, for he reveals to us the will of God, which is his will. We will do his will as an Elder, as a Prophet, as an Apostle of Jesus Christ, holding the same keys that Peter of old held—the same that Joseph Smith held as an Apostle. You all believe this, don’t you, without an exception? Well, if this is your faith—if this is your determination, I want you should manifest it by raising your right hands, and saying Aye.

[A literal forest of hands was the result of this call, and the spacious hall trembled when a simultaneous “Aye” burst from the mouths of over two thousand persons.]

There it is; and it cannot be any other way.

I say to those who are elected to go on missions, Go, if you never return; and commit what you have into the hands of God-your wives, your children, your brethren, and your property. Let truth and righteousness be your motto; and do not go into the world for anything else but to preach the Gospel, build up the kingdom of God, and gather the sheep into the fold. You are sent out as shepherds to gather the sheep together; and remember that they are not your sheep: they belong to Him that sends you: Then do not make a choice of any of those sheep; do not make selections before they are brought home and put into the fold. You understand that. Amen.

Responsibilities of the Priesthood

George A. Smith

Remarks by Elder George A. Smith at a Special Conference held in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, August 28, 1852. Reported by G. D. Watt.

What has been said, brethren and sisters, is verily true. The kingdom of God has been built up by his distinguished blessings and the exertion and energy of those whom God has called to bear it off. When men refuse to fulfil their callings and magnify them in the proclamation of the fulness of the Gospel to the nations of the earth, they certainly lay the foundation for their own ruin. When men, on the other hand, become so puffed up in their own estimation as to think that the kingdom of God could not roll forth without their mighty exertions, they fall into transgression; they are fools in Israel, and their greatness will vanish like smoke.

The fact is, God has planned for us the best sieve that could be imagined. He is determined to sift the nations with the sieve of vanity, and he has placed us here on the edge of the mountains, where a little shaking of the winds will cause everything without weight easily to slide off to the diggings; end in this way the work of sifting is going on daily, and hourly, and yearly, from time to time, according to the nature of the materials that happen to be thrown upon the sieve.

No doubt many of us may be called upon, if not to-day, at some other time, to bear the message of the Gospel of salvation to the nations of the earth; for this was one of the commandments of the Prophet. He enjoined upon us that we preach the Gospel to all nations—that we should send forth the word to all people. This responsibility has been laid upon the Priesthood of the Church, and they are required to fulfil his commandment. There is not an Elder, a Priest, a Teacher, or a member of this Church but what bears a share of this responsibility.

The missions we will call for during this Conference are generally not to be very long ones: probably from three to seven years will be as long as any man will be absent from his family. If any of the Elders refuse to go, they may expect that their wives wilt not live with them; for there is not a “Mormon” sister who would live with a man a day who would refuse to go on a mission. There is no other way for a man to save his family; and in order to save himself, he must fulfill his calling and magnify his Priesthood in proclaiming the fulness of the Gospel to the nations of the earth; and this certainly ought to be greatest joy to the family of any man who feels the importance of building up the kingdom—that he is actually considered worthy, in these last days, to be one of the number to go forth; as one of the horns of Joseph, to push the nations together, to gather out the honest in heart, to run for the prize which we all labour for.

I feel deeply interested in these matters, and I hope and pray that every man who is called upon to go forth on missions to preach the Gospel may have the faith of the Church upon his head, and that they all may lift up their voices in faith before the people, that the light of truth may be a lamp in their path; and that, by their exertions and the blessings of God, it may be lighted up in distant nations.

I recollect a little incident in history, that is told of William the Conqueror. After he had been king in England twenty years, he became very corpulent. In consequence of a little joke upon his corpulency by the French king, he declared war, and the declaration was made in these words:—“Tell my fair uncle I will pay him a visit, and I will bring along tapers enough to set all France on fire.” You may suppose we are sending out but a few Elders—probably not more than one hundred or one hundred and fifty; but we intend to continue the work, and send out Elders enough to set the world on fire, spiritually.

Condition of the World, &c.

John Taylor

Remarks by Elder John Taylor at a Special Conference held in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, August 28, 1852. Reported By G. D. Watt.

Brother George was talking about setting the world on fire. I think, when the Elders have travelled through the world as far as some of us have, and seen the rottenness and weakness of their institutions—the folly and corruption that everywhere prevail, they will find that it is pretty near time, as the Prophets have said, for it to be burned up, and all its works.

But I suppose it is necessary, before the world is burned up, that the good wheat should be saved and gathered into the garner, and prepare to take a fresh start in peopling the earth and placing affairs upon a proper foundation.

There is no person that reflects upon the condition of the world, as it now exists, but his heart must be rained—must be filled with sympathy for the inhabitants of the earth. I have gazed upon their proceedings myself; I have watched their follies, abominations, and corruptions; I have seen them with mine own eyes until I have wept over them. They seem to me to be regardless of God, heaven, hell, eternity, or anything else; and there are thousands, and tens of thousands, and millions of people upon the continent of Europe that would like no better employment than to go into deadly combat and destroy one another.

The people talk about how corrupt we, the Latter-day Saints, are. If all they say about us be true, it is only a tithing of what you will find in the world. I have told them to look at home—to examine their own firesides, and they would find plenty of corruption and abomination. They are living without God in the world—without hope, and they are dying without hope; consequently, they are careless, profligate, and reckless.

The Lord has shone upon us: he has lit up a candle of intelligence in our souls—has imparted to us the principles of eternal truth, opened the heavens, and sent his holy angel to put us in possession of principles that will exalt us in the scale of intelligence among men, and raise us up to be associates of the Gods in the eternal worlds.

Then shall we who have thus been blessed with the visions of eternity—with light and intelligence—we who are filled with the Spirit of God burning in our hearts, who have gazed upon the hidden things of eternity, and contemplated the purposes of God in their majesty and glory—I say, shall we shrink from the task of going forth to snatch these fallen sons of men from everlasting burning? Should we refuse to do so, it would testify that we had not a single spark of humanity in our bosoms, and were not fit to live in the world, much less to associate with the Gods in the eternal worlds.

I know you have a desire to do these things; but I will tell you, there are many things that are calculated to try the feelings of men.

Those who have to go out have to put their noses to the grindstone, and keep them there, and let them grind at it, and not murmur a word; and then, before they are healed, put them there again, and bear it all the time, and go along without saying anything; for you know it is a sin in the religious world to get angry. You need not attempt to without faith in God; and you will have need of all the wisdom and intelligence you can command. You cannot go and convert the world all at once; for it is too far sunken in folly and vice. This reminds me of a dream a brother had in France. He said he thought he was trying to kindle a fire on the sea-shore. Every time he attempted to light it, a wave came and rolled over it, and he could hardly accomplish it until the tide began to recede; and then he considered he would build up a fire when the wood got dry.

You need not think of going abroad into the world, and going, as the Methodists sing, “on flowery beds of ease;” for a great many consider you as impostors, and as a general thing you are looked upon as suspicious characters, to say the least of it, and you will be closely watched. If you go to those foreign nations, your footsteps will be traced. No matter how privately you may make your entrance, or how privately you may take your departure, it will all be known to the police authorities, and they can give all the information required touching your movements.

It was not more than ten minutes after I had taken the cab and started to the railway station to take my last departure from France, when one of the high police came to inquire after me. The gentleman with whom I stayed was a very affectionate friend to me, and he kept the police in conversation for two hours, speaking very highly of me. He told them I was a respectable, high-minded man, &c. The police told him of every place I had been at since I came to Paris; when I came to France; what hotel I stayed in; when I went to England, and how long I stayed there; when I went to Germany, and how long I stayed there; what books I had printed, &c., &c. He gave my friend a most minute account of every step I had taken; and all this is recorded in the books of the police. They have a congress of police among the nations of Europe, by which they can transmit information about every person who appears as a public character in any of those nations.

This is the way you will be watched. If you go to any of these nations, it will be necessary for you to use the greatest wisdom and prudence, and that you should pray to God to guard you in all things.

This police authority did not come after me until I had finished my work. I suppose they would not have injured me, for I had broken no law; but this is their policy. With it we have nothing to do; and I should recommend you strictly to obey all police regulations, and never interfere with any national, civil, or police institutions or regulations. I suppose they might have telegraphed after me, if they wished; but I took another course—not, however, knowing that they were after me. I turned off the main route to go by a little seaport town, and I missed the whole concern, and was in France a week longer, and they knew nothing about me. I was out of their track, and came off safe. The Lord blessed me, and I have been blessed as much in these nations as anywhere else.

You may talk about difficulties and what you have passed through here and there; but we should not be men, if we did not have difficulties to meet with; and we always feel much better when we have conquered them.

This is the difference between us and the world. They meet with difficulties, and they quash down under them, while we ride over them and become victorious. This is the reason why there are so many institutions among the Gentiles that come to naught. They meet with difficulties and fall before them: we meet with the same, but we have a God at the helm, and we triumph over them.

Another Elder and myself stayed in a hotel in a small town for about a week, the landlord of which was an infidel. After we had been there two or three days, I told the landlord I was a religious man. He replied, “Oh, you are religious, are you? Religion is a pack of nonsense.” I told him I cared as little about most of the religion of Christendom as he did; but the one I believed in, I told him, would benefit both body and soul, in time and eternity. I talked to him a little about it, and he began to feel much interested.

I told him about the success and the prosperity that attended our works; and finally he said, “I don’t know but I will sell out and go to America; for I am tired of France.” I said, I will tell you where you will find a first-rate place to settle down in that country; and I directed him to Iowa. He spoke to an Elder that was with him after I had gone away, and said, “I don’t like the way Mr. Taylor speaks to me.” “Why?” said the Elder. “He speaks as though he wants to push me off on one side somewhere; and I want to go where he is. You have got the right religion; and had I found this, I should have been a religious man.”

I talked to another gentleman who came in, who wanted to be introduced to me—a man of good education, and who talked the English language as well as I did. We talked about everything, almost, until religion came on in the conversation. When I was preparing to leave, the gentleman said, “Oh, Mr. Taylor, I wish you would stay three or four days more here, and I will introduce you to a rich sugar manufacturer; and there is a gentleman living in a castle not far from here—I will introduce you to him.” They felt as sorry at my going away as though I had stayed with them twelve months, and they came more than a mile to see me off and bid me good bye, and prayed God to bless me before I left.

You will see many such things as these. I could have introduced the Gospel in the whole of that country, had I had time. You will find that the Spirit of the Lord will go before you and prepare the way. I had men come to me and say, “God bless you!—you are the man I dreamed about.” That is the kind of feeling that operates upon the people in those parts, as well as in other parts of the world. The Spirit of the Lord goes before his servants.

I recollect associating with some medical professors—American gentlemen, who had come to Paris for the purpose of attending medical lectures, &c., at l’Ecole de Medicine, and visiting the hospitals; and though we were “Mormons,” they were glad to have our society, and seemed to feel a desire to associate with us. We talked “Mormonism” to them, and many other things.

These men came there, remained two or three months, and went away. Nobody cared anything about them, only just as much as they paid their way, and that was all. We went there and planted the Gospel in the hearts of the people; and they feel as all other people do who are members of this Church. The Spirit of God was with them, and we could rejoice in the bosom of our friends and talk of the things of God and the blessings he gives to his people. I looked at these doctors, and I said to myself, You poor miserable creatures!—you wander round the world without the Spirit and blessings of God, and nobody cares for you, whether you live or die, while we come here to plant the standard of truth in the hearts of the people, and can rejoice with them in its blessings.

If any of you go into those countries, you will find as warm-hearted people as you will find anywhere else. Brothers F. D. Richards and E. Snow can bear testimony to this. The Gospel has the same effect in their hearts as it has in yours. I won’t occupy your time further. May God bless you, in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Address to Departing Missionaries

Ezra T. Benson

Remarks by Elder Ezra T. Benson at a Special Conference held in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, August 28, 1852. Reported By G. D. Watt.

I feel thankful for the privilege to occupy a few moments at this Conference, and to give my testimony concerning the work of the Lord in these last days.

I feel thankful that we are here, and that we are blessed with the Spirit of truth, which is one of the greatest blessings in the kingdom of God. When we have the Spirit of truth dwelling in our hearts, we are ready, and not only ready but willing to do the things that are required at our hands.

We have been hearing this morning that there are many that will be called to go to the nations of the earth. I feel that I can say that there is not an individual that will be called upon, if he has the Spirit of the Lord or of “Mormonism” in his heart, but what will respond to the call with all his soul. He will feel to thank God and his brethren that he is worthy to be called with such a high and holy calling as to be a messenger of salvation; for I do actually know, by experience, that there is no calling under the heavens, among the children of men, that is so desirable and so great as to go and preach this Gospel.

If a man will magnify his Priesthood, he can do more in one hour in the vineyard, preaching the Gospel and gathering the Saints in one, if he is sent to do so, than he can do here in ten, labouring with his hands for himself, for his family, and for the kingdom of God on the earth; for it is impossible for us to retain the Spirit of God—it is impossible for us to love the Lord, or even keep in good fellowship with this people, unless we do as we are told. Inasmuch as there are honest people in the earth, scattered among the nations, is it pleasing in the sight of God for us to sit down here (unless we are commanded to do so,) and refuse to give them the truth? It is perfectly right to tarry here and prepare for the Saints who are gathering, unless we are commanded otherwise.

I wish to say a few words to those who shall be called upon to go to the nations. The time is now—I feel persuaded of it—for us, Elders of Israel, to work while the day lasts—to work while there is time and opportunity, while God is softening the hearts of the people. Now is the time for the Elders to visit the nations and tell them what they know concerning this great work of the last days. And when we do well for the kingdom of God, we do well for ourselves. When we do well for the people among the nations of the earth, we do well for ourselves, if we go and do as we are told; and that is to preach what we actually know and verily believe.

If it be possible, point out one man—an Elder in this Church, who has gone out to preach the Gospel, and has been faithful in the kingdom of God, that has not been blessed, and whose family has not been blessed. There is not an instance on the records of this Church showing, when a man has gone forth to proclaim the truth, that he has not been blessed. The opposite is the case. They have always returned home rejoicing, with their hearts filled with the love of God. Well, then, brethren, let us go, if we are called upon, and proclaim the good news that God is doing a great work in the valleys of the mountains—that God has called his Prophet, his Apostles, and other servants to proclaim the glad tidings to the children of men—to those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death.

We have the name of being the best-feeling people upon the face of the earth; and I will tell you furthermore, we have the name of being the best people there is in the world: and the time is not far distant when the nations will seek for counsel at the feet of the servants of God. Why? Because we seek wisdom at the hand of God—because we are led by the revelation of Jesus Christ—because we live humble and are honest before God. And he will pour out his blessings upon our heads, to enlighten our minds and give us visions and revelation, so that we cannot be led astray. I know this from the testimony that I receive.

I can bear testimony that God has been with me. Why? Because I have gone and done just as I have been told. It is because it was my determination, my will, and my desire to do the thing I was sent to do. We had a little to do with mobs, it is true. They undertook to mob me a little; and brother Grant said, when he heard of it in Washington, he was glad of it. [A voice in the stand: “And so was I.”] I was, too, because I felt, when they were trying to mob, and were seeking my life, I was better than they were. If I had not been, they would not have tried to destroy me from the earth. They ran me into brother Farnsworth’s potatoe-hole. To be sure, I ran in there, and thought it a first-rate piece to hide. I stayed there a couple of hours and reflected upon mobs—upon the things of the kingdom, and called upon my Father in heaven, by the authority of the holy Priesthood; and I felt as though I could whip all the mobs in Missouri. If it had been wisdom to do so, and the best course for me to take, I would have gone out and whipped the whole posse of them. [A voice from the stand: “Yes, after they had all gone away.”]

Many in Kanesville wanted me to wrestle with them. I said, I don’t wrestle with any except from Salt Lake; but I can tap you on the head, as I would a little boy, if that will do you any good. But when I see a man from Salt Lake, full of good works, I consider it an honour to wrestle with a man of that class; but I don’t have anything to do with the low, degenerated characters who do nothing else but wrestle and gamble. But, I said, if you don’t believe I can wrestle, try me, and I will end you up a few times. They thought I was a very stout man, and it passed off just as well as though I had tried my dexterity upon them.

To close up the whole matter, I feel thankful to God that I am here. I am blessed; and the people here and that are on the road are also blessed.

Now is the time for the Elders to go forth and preach the Gospel. The Lord will soften the hearts of the people; and if the mobs are stirred up, it is all for the good of the Saints.

When Satan begins to grin and show his teeth, you may know there are sheep not far off. Only put your trust in God, and he will keep you and preserve you, as in the hollow of his hand. Be comforted, brethren, whether you go to the nations of the earth or stay at home. It is just as necessary for men to live humble here as it is for them to live humble when they go there; for Satan is not dead yet, and brother Brigham says he is glad of it. It is necessary he should live on the earth a little while longer to stir up the Saints by way of remembrance of the covenant they have made; and I have become perfectly reconciled concerning the things of the kingdom, and am so from day to day.

Let God do as he pleases, and call whom he pleases, and send whom he pleases abroad, and tell whom he pleases to remain at home. It is all the keeping of his commandments, and one station is as honourable as the other. If a man is told to tarry at home, he is as honourable as that messenger who is going to the nations of the earth. But if he sit down and consult the natural man—consult his own private feeling, and say, “Here is my poor wife, here are my children, and here is my farm, that I have earned with my own hands. I know how I came by my hard-earned property. How can I go and preach under these circumstances? All in property and all my fair calculations will be knocked into pie.” Supposing they are, let them all go. There are plenty more farms and everything else. We are in the world, and it is filled with the elements, and we have the keys and the power to work and organize them, make them honourable, and contribute to our happiness and earthly comfort.

What is there more honourable than to carry a message of the Gospel from this people? You have the prayers and the faith of your brethren—the prayers and faith of the whole Priesthood. Who is there that cannot go and do good under these circumstances? If there are any such men, they are not fit to live upon the earth. If a man is not fit to tarry at home, be is not fit to send abroad; and if he is not fit to send abroad, he is not fit to tarry among the people of God, only to be a scourge and a stumbling block to them.

Then let us rejoice; and if I should should give way to my feelings, I should shout, Glory! Hallelujah! I would call upon every individual to feel that the great God is with them—that he is your Father, and you are his sons and daughters, and have a right to the legacy of eternal life and not be bowed down in your minds and say, “I don’t know—I am afraid I am not worthy to go preaching.” If you get the testimony of the Spirit of the Lord, you belong to the great family of God; and if you have the testimony of Jesus abiding in your heart, you may rejoice all the day long.

Have we anything to fear? No. What did the President say the other day? He said he had not anything to fear; but if he should have any fears, it would be that this people would sit down and lull themselves to sleep and forget the kingdom of God. Can a man do this when he feels the Spirit of truth in his heart? No. Its will long to go to the nations of the earth, and be willing to be handled like the clay in the hands of the potter. We do not care what his testimony or knowledge has been. It is the abiding witness we want from day to day. It is that which carries a man safe through, according to my experience. It is then that we have no need to fear.

In the days of Nauvoo there were fears—there was death. The people were afraid this thing and the other would be wrong—that brother Joseph would get wrong—that we should have to submit to principles and doctrines contrary to the doctrines of Jesus Christ, &c. From the experience we have already had in the kingdom of God, has any person a right now to such fears or such a thought for a moment? No. He knows that the principles that have been taught by the Prophet Joseph, brothers Brigham, Heber, and Willard, and by every good man in this Church, are correct principles; and that these men have been borne off triumphantly over every trial and difficulty they have been called to pass through. The Elders, therefore, can go to the nations with their consciences as clear as drifting snow, and with the satisfaction that all is right in Zion, and that we are led by the best men upon the face of this earth. Are you afraid to bear this testimony to this perverse generation? No. The Spirit of the Lord will back you up and put to silence the slanderers in the Gentile world. I have known it by experience. I have not been insulted in any congregation, when I have taught the principles of God as they are taught in the valleys of the mountains. Every dog has been obliged to close his mouth, and has not even dared to exhibit his teeth.

All is right; all is glorious! “Mormonism” will continue, should it come hot or cold—should it blow high or low; for God sustains it. When you feel so, brethren, you feel right—you feel strong and ready to combat with your enemies. Right is written upon your commissions. You are mighty in the right to do right; so that you are perfectly willing that all the devils in hell should know your works—that God, angels, and your brethren should know; and when you are called home, you will return like lions in strength; you will feel well—you will feel blessed.

While you are gone, prayers are ascending in your behalf and in behalf of your families, and every blessing you need is poured out abundantly upon you, and your hearts are filled with gladness.

This is the way to live in the midst of Saints in the world; and when the bowels of hell are moved with wrath against you, and devils belch out their fury, you are then ready to withstand them. Suppose brother Taylor had been guilty of any wickedness in his travels, the whole country would have known it. Just so it is in the United States or anywhere else. If a man does not do right, but intends to feed his passions and carnal appetite, it would be better for him to turn round and say, Brethren, good bye to “Mormonism.”

We cannot hide anything from God’s Spirit and from his servants: I know this to be true. Then let us put the rough-and-ready side out, and let the word be, Come on, all hands, and build up the kingdom of God. This is my determination; and if God will give me strength, and wisdom, and the good blessings of my brethren, it is my determination to shape my affairs so that, when I go away, I can be gone any length of time, and not be like the man who went upon the Indian expedition to Utah. He had not got fairly started before he wanted to return. What’s the matter? “O dear, I have married a wife, and cannot go.”

I am glad in my heart, and I say, God bless brothers Brigham, Heber, and Willard. They are the counsel of heaven to this people, and I mean to honour them in the earth, wherever I go; and I would preach down in the bowels of hell the same as I do here, and not be ashamed of it. My story all the time is, Hurrah for “Mormonism!”

There are a jolly lot of fellows coming on from Kanesville and other places. Eight or ten thousand “Mormons” will come in here this season. They are a good people. Are the good brethren and sisters here thinking about it? Are they willing to take them by the hand and say, Brother, sister, come to my house, and I will make you welcome to this or to that—to comfort their hearts after the toils of such a journey? They are a good people—as good a people as you are, and just as willing to be counselled. My heart yearns after them; and I want you to feel after them likewise, by rendering them all the assistance in your power, until they are comfortably located.

I only throw out these few hints that you may be prepared to act when you receive the proper instructions from your President. There are musicians coming who perform upon almost all kinds of musical instruments. The lame are coming, the blind, and the widows, and the fatherless. I did not stop to make any selections; but I said, Come on, all of you. We have among them big men and little men, big women and little women, grandfathers and grandmothers; and, for aught I know, great-grandfathers and great-grandmothers. But if they are not, they will be, when they get here; for we have the name of raising the most children and the best on the earth; and it will be very curious if we do not carry out what they all day we are guilty of.

I told them in Pottawatomie that we wanted good men to mingle with the Saints. We are sent out to preach to a people who wish to do good to their fellow-men and be saved in the kingdom of God; and if you are not willing to obey the Gospel and build up the kingdom, you cannot stand among this people; for God intends to raise up a holy race before him in the last days, to do his will in all things. After we have warned the nations, we will return home and raise a holy posterity before the Lord: therefore we want good men, and praying men; for I have no confidence in any man who does not pray. It is as much as I can do to live and pray all the time; and after all, I suppose I may say, like the good old Methodist, I leave undone those things I ought to do, and do the things I ought not.

I do not feel that I have any animosity in my heart to any man on the earth. If a man will be my enemy, and is determined to be, all I ask of him is to keep out of my way. I will not injure him, but let him get all the glory and exaltation he can; and I will not throw the ashes of a rye straw in his path.

I can feel sensibly that there has been an increase of union and faith among the people here since I left here last fall: it is either in me or in you. [A voice in the stand: “It is in both.”] It is in both, brother Brigham says. Let this union and this faith continue to increase, until we are brought into the presence of our God; and may this be the happy lot of us all. Amen.

Building Up the Kingdom of God, etc.

Brigham Young

Remarks by President Brigham Young at a Special Conference held in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, August 28, 1859. Reported by G. D. Watt.

The morning is far spent; but before we close the morning service, I would like to present before the Conference the names of a few Elders who have been selected to take missions.

I suppose the brethren understand the object of this special Conference. It is for the purpose of transacting business pertaining to foreign Missions and of giving the brethren an opportunity to cross the Plains before the cold weather. We shall send them out from this Conference.

I wish to say to the brethren, I am thankful, and I rejoice in the Lord my Saviour, for his choice blessings which we enjoy. It was observed by brother Benson that brother Brigham has but one fear concerning this people. It is true.

I do not fear all the devils in hell, or all the mobs that could be raised; but if I have any fear, it is upon this ground—that the people, in their blessings, should forget the Lord their God. I do not see that this is the case with this people; but if there is danger to be anticipated, it is in the slackness of the people to remember the Lord, when the fostering hand of Providence is pouring, our blessings upon them and round about them all the day long.

This has been in former times, when the blessings of the Lord have been poured out upon the people. It is written in the Bible, concerning ancient Israel, that they got fat and kicked against the Lord their God. You may understand the expression as you please. They forgot the Lord and began to trust in the wisdom of man. They forgot their prayers and the duties they owed to one another, and they fell back into a careless, carnal security, and became like the rest of the world.

This is the only ground on which I would have fear, were I to entertain any. As I have often said, and the same I can say again—it is too late in the day for this people ever to be cast off and disowned by the Lord. The work the Lord promised to do is too nigh accomplished, and he has promised to make a short work on the earth. This work has some time since commenced; and if any of the people will not serve their God and do the work he has given them to do, they will be removed out of the way, and that speedily. It is too late in the day for this people to apostatize and the Priesthood to be taken again from the earth; so there is not much ground for fears even in this respect.

A few words to the Elders of Israel with regard to the building up of the kingdom of God. Suppose every man who has wanted to go out to preach, (and almost every Elder has wanted to go,)—suppose they had all gone six years ago last fall, and left Nauvoo entirely destitute of Elders, and attended diligently to preaching up to this time. Would there have been a place prepared for the gathering of the Saints from all the world? No. There would have been no place for the Elders to gather them to; there would have been no standard reared or rallying point for the people. Do you preach the gathering of Israel and the redemption of Zion? You do; and when you would have got through this, and found all the rest had been neglected, what would have been the situation of the Elders of Israel? Their mouths would be closed up and sealed; they would not have any more influence among the people than those doctors and philosophers in France spoken of by Elder Taylor: they came, they tarried; and if they paid for what they had, it was all right; they went, and no person cared for them. It would have been the same with the Elders of this Church.

The whole machinery is in operation and complete, that, when the Elders go forth to preach the Gospel, every man carries with him a two-edged sword, and pierces the hearts of the people by the spirit of the Gospel which he goes to proclaim. But if the work is in progress only in part, his sword is blunted at once; it has no edge, it is incomplete, and does not pierce the hearts of the people; consequently, he had better have stayed at home.

Why I make these remarks is, that we may understand that unless this work is in progress as a whole, it is not complete—we are found wanting, and not prepared to do the work we are called and sent to do. Now, it is just as necessary to come to these valleys, build houses, make fences, erect school-houses, rear up places of worship, and prepare for the gathering of Israel, as it is to go and preach to Israel to influence them to gather. The one is just as honourable and as acceptable in the sight of God as the other; and those that labour faithfully at home, will be crowned with those that labour faithfully abroad. Those who are selected to remain at home receive as those who are selected to go abroad.

It is unnecessary for me, for any of the Twelve, or for any of my brethren to rise up here to preach to the Elders to infuse the spirit of preaching in them; for we have had to hold them back with a cable rope, as it were, to keep them from going to preach. There is no lack of the spirit of the Gospel in the Elders of Israel; for we have been teased all the time to give them permission to go out and give vent to the spirit within them; but had we listened to them, you and I would not have had this commodious house to preach in this day. All the Elders would have been off preaching, and there would not have been enough left to have made the women and children comfortable.

What is to be done? Obey counsel. They do and how far? Enough to scare the whole world. Look at the spirit that is in the midst of this people and that overshadows them. What influence does this have upon the nations of the earth? It fills them with terror and awe; and when they reflect and reason, it fills them with astonishment, that there is a people on the earth, in the present confused, revolutionary state of the nations, that will hearken to counsel, and be of one heart and one mind. They are filled with fear and astonishment, and they dread the union that is among this people more than they dread the Lord Almighty upon his throne. This is a pretty positive proof that this people are willing to hearken to the counsels of heaven.

Brother Benson proclaims in our hearing that this spirit has increased since he left here last fall. It has, and I expect it has grown in his own bosom: it has in mine. What do you think about yourselves, brethren? Would you not be ready also to acknowledge that the same spirit is increasing in your bosoms—a spirit of love, and union, and of faith in your calling? I think there are a great many who can say, and say it truly, that this Spirit of the Lord has greatly increased in their hearts for six or eight months past, or for a year. Were it not so, we should not be found growing in the knowledge of the truth. This is our labour, our business, and our calling—to grow in grace and in knowledge from day to day and from year to year.

I wish to say to this congregation, and I wish them to say to the families of the brethren who are not here to-day, and I would like all the inhabitants of these valleys to hear it—When our brethren who are on the Plains come with their families into this city, or into any of the settlements of the Latter-day Saints, sit down and calmly make a calculation in your own hearts, how you would wish a neighbourhood of Latter-day Saints to receive you, if you had been journeying across the Plains this season. Ponder it over in your minds, and place yourselves in the situation of a pilgrim travelling across the Plains; and, after a hard and fatiguing summer’s work, now you have got home. Imagine yourselves at the doors of your brethren who have plenty. Here are their gardens groaning with the abundance of the products of the earth—with potatoes, beets, and cabbage. Here are milk and butter and fine flour in great quantities. Here are the tomatoes and garden vegetables of every description. Now, you say, I have got home, to my brethren’s door, and they have got plenty. What would you wish these brethren to do to you? Ask that same question to your neighbours, and get them to answer it. I can tell you what you would they should do to you. You would wish them to say, Come, brother or sister, into my garden, and help yourselves to some garden sauce; walk in here, and take and eat, and make yourselves glad. And if they turn round and say, Brother how shall I pay you for what I get? then you cannot hear that, for it is something that is altogether out of the question. The Lord gave it to us: now, come and help us to eat it. That do to the emigrant Saints, every one of you. I know it is the will of the Lord you should do it; and I know, if he should speak to you himself, he would tell you the same thing. I tell you just as it is; and that is just as good, precisely, as though another came and told you. Then the brethren will feel joyful; their hearts will be made glad, and they will know that you are actually growing in the knowledge of the truth.

There are a great many coming. Brother Benson says all are coming, even the great grand-daddies and great grand-mammies, uncles and aunts—all are coming, and I am glad of it. I rejoice; for it puts us in a position that we can send out Elders from this place into all the world; whereas, before, our circumstances needed all the men we had here to prepare for the gathering of the Saints. Now the time has come that we can send out our little parties to gather up Israel and preach the Gospel to the nations before the end comes.

The reports we have heard from our brethren are favourable, cheering, and rejoicing to every heart. Those who are coming from the islands of the sea and from the old countries where the Elders have been sent—those from Pottawatomie and the States are coming home. For the present, this is the place of gathering; here the standard is reared for the Latter-day Saints from all nations, that they may spread out from this place and fill up other places, until the whole continent of America, which is the land of Zion, shall be peopled with the Saints of the Most High.

Question: When are we going back to Jackson County? Not until the Lord commands his people; and it is just as much as you and I can do to get ready to go when he does command us.

Brothers Benson and Grant have been successful in their missions. Brother Benson says some of the brethren were glad when he was mobbed. I was glad of it; for every mobbing difficulty will add glory upon the heads of the humble, faithful, and contrite in heart. It serves to prove and give them experience; it shows them the contrast between the one and the other. All this is preparatory for the Saints to enter into their rest, and for the wicked to receive their punishment. Brother Benson has been successful; and I thank the Lord Almighty that he turned the key here last fall, and caused a tremendous commotion among the political elements—earthquake, thundering, and lightning above and below the earth, with great excitement. This gathered a great many more Saints than if it had been fair weather all the time. This clashing and noise of the elements stirred up the people in Pottawatomie, and then they wanted to go to the mountains, like brother George A. Smith, in the latter days of Nauvoo: he wanted to go to the mountains, or to California, or to Oregon; he was not very particular. What for? Simply because he was obliged to go somewhere. The Saints who are coming now from Pottawatomie were obliged to leave for the valleys of the mountains. Why? Because they had to run somewhere. Do you suppose I am sorry because of persecution? No: I never was in my life; but I have thanked God a thousand times that the Devil is not yet bound; for if he had been, the Saints would have gone to sleep; and if there could be such a thing, they would have been blotted out of existence, with all their intelligence, and the earth have received them into its bowels. Light, knowledge, truth, wickedness of every kind, the works of the Almighty, and the works of the Devil, all conspire to roll on the great work that the Lord Jesus Christ is doing upon the earth—every person and power in their own order.

I do not wish to detain the congregation longer this morning. Brother Kimball set before you the object of the meeting, and I have hinted at it. We will now read over a few names that we have selected. May the Lord God of Israel bless you, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Departure of Missionaries Without Purse or Scrip, etc.

Orson Pratt

Remarks by Elder Orson Pratt at a Special Conference held in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, August 28, 1852. Reported by G. D. Watt.

The congregation have seen manifested the determination of these brethren who have been appointed to go on their respective missions. If it be the minds of this assembly that all of these brethren whose names have been read shall fulfil their several appointments, you will manifest it by the uplifted hand. [The manifestation was unanimous.]

I will make a few observations by permission. When I see so many of my brethren feeling a desire to go to the nations—to different parts of the earth, it truly is a cause of great rejoicing to my heart. When I read, occasionally, letters and communications that are published in the Millennial Star, in regard to the spread of the work among the different nations, it is a joy to me which is indescribable. And when I see the brethren going forth to the different nations, I almost feel as though I wanted to go to all these different places at the same time myself—to go with my brethren and be instrumental with you in trying to build up this kingdom among the nations. There is certainly no work in which the servants of God can be engaged that is so pleasing and joyful to the mind as to be engaged in the work of the holy ministry—in trying to persuade the honest in heart among the nations to receive the truth.

This generation have been calling a long time for miracles; but one of the greatest miracles in the last days, in my estimation, is the fact that scores and hundreds of the missionaries of the Latter-day Saints are traversing the globe, going from nation to nation, upon the principle that the ancient Apostles travelled—namely, without purse or scrip. Is not that a miracle? Has there any such thing happened before for many generations as people travelling over the whole earth, starting from their homes without purse or scrip? If you should go upon your own business, and the Lord had not a hand in the matter, it would be nine chances out of ten if you did not perish before you returned; and, perhaps, nine chances out of ten if you ever obtained means to accomplish your journey and pay your passage from place to place. But where is there an example of any faithful man in this Church, since the year 1830, that has gone forth trusting in the Lord God of Israel, with mighty prayer, but what has been sustained, upheld, and preserved to return again in honour, unless he has fallen, perhaps, by sickness, or has died a martyr in testimony of the truth?

We find, then, that the Lord has actually wrought miracles in scores and hundreds of instances, in sustaining his servants among foreign nations—in foreign lands, where it would be almost impossible for people that were on their own business to have accomplished anything or to have travelled among them. What has the Lord said upon this subject? He commands us, in a revelation given September 22nd, 1832, as follows:—“Therefore let no man among you (for this commandment is unto all the faithful who are called of God in the Church unto the ministry,) from this hour, take purse or scrip, that goeth forth to proclaim this Gospel of the kingdom.” This was a command given twenty years ago this next September. Says one, That looks rather hard. It does not look hard at all; for that same God that gave the commandment is able to bear you up: he is able to sustain you. Perhaps this might have had reference, more particularly, to those who are actually in their fields of labour. This may be [the] case; for travelling to your field of labour is one thing, and labouring in it is another. There may actually be instances where an Elder is obliged, circumstances being such, to take some means to assist him until he shall arrive at his field of labour; but when he gets there, then depend upon the Lord God of Israel and the people to feed and sustain him. I am not going to say but what it will apply in travelling to the field of his labour. At any rate, I would not be afraid to trust the God of Israel to assist me in going to my field of labour, as well as to assist me after having arrived there.

What would be the best thing, then, for these Elders who are going forth? As a general thing, I would say to them, if you have any cash, leave it with your wives and children, to comfort their hearts, to support them in your absence, and be a blessing to them. And if you can get mules and horses to carry you from here to the States, when you get on the frontiers, sell them, and they will bring you in a little cash to carry through the mobocratic divisions of the country. [A voice in the stand: “Send that back.”] The Lord will always provide some way to get along; and the faithful servant of God has nothing to fear only his own weakness and his own imperfections and follies: these are the things he has to fear the most. If an Elder gets unfaithful when he is abroad, he is sometimes apt to get into strait places; but if he is diligent in prayer, in doing the work of the Lord, striving in faith to live humbly before him, setting a proper example before his brethren and the people among whom he labours, he will find that the Lord will bear him off victorious; his power will be upon him; and when he administers in the words of life it will be by the power and wisdom of the Holy Spirit: when he administers in the ordinances of the Church, the blessings of Jehovah will follow: when he says to the sick, Be thou healed in the name of Jesus Christ, behold, it is done: when he commands, the lame will leap like a hart. The power of the Lord God of Israel will be made manifest through his faithful servants, and they have nothing to fear.

Brethren, I will prophesy that the power of the Lord God of Israel will be with you to a far greater extent than what has been poured out in days that are passed; and the way will be open before you, and the Lord will visit the hearts of the people before you arrive among them, and make manifest to them by visions and dreams that you are the servants of God, before they shall see your faces. And you will receive heavenly visions to comfort you, and dreams to give you knowledge of the things of God, if you prove faithful before him. I will prophesy this in the name of the Lord God of Israel; and you will find that his power will be more conspicuously made manifest through your administrations on these missions than has ever taken place since the rise of this Church.

How often have I reflected upon the words of the Saviour, which were given expressly to his servants: they were not given to the whole Church, but to his servants who were engaged in the work of the ministry. He said, “Take no thought for the morrow, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, or wherewithal ye shall be clothed. Consider the lilies of the field: they toil not, neither do they spin; yet Solomon, or the kings of this world, are not arrayed like one of these. And if God so clothe the grass, which to-day is, and to-morrow is thrown into the fire, how much more shall he clothe you, if you are not of little faith. Therefore, take no thought for these things.” You will find, brethren, if you go forth trusting in the Lord, that whatever you need, it will be ministered to you in the very moment; and you will return again with your hearts filled with joy, and your bodies comfortably clothed, and means in your pockets to assist your families when you return to them, and with souls as seals to your ministry, with whom you shall rejoice in time and in eternity.

I have oftentimes thought of another saying in the Book of Mormon, concerning the parable of the vineyard, delivered by one of the ancient Prophets. He said that “The servants of God shall go forth and labour for the last time;” and the prophecy says, “Behold, they were few, and the Lord laboured with them.” Among all the servants that had laboured in previous dispensations, the parable does not condescend to say that the Lord laboured with them, although he no doubt did. But here it is expressly said that the labourers were few, and the Lord laboured with them. And after the vineyard was pruned, and was no more corrupt, he called up his servants and said. Behold, you see I have done according to my will, and ye shall have joy with me in the fruit of my vineyard. This truly seems to be characteristic of the way and manner this Gospel is going to the nations. It does not go according to the will of man, neither according to his inferior judgment, but according to the will of God. It breaks forth on the right hand and on the left, and the servants of God are sent forth by his will and authority; and if they are faithful, he has ordained them to labour in his vineyard; and the prophecy says, They will be faithful, and they shall keep the commandments of the Lord of the vineyard in all things.

Try to have this prophecy fulfilled upon your heads. Keep the commandments of the Lord of the vineyard in all things, that his blessings may be upon you, that when you set to your hands with the pruning-knife, to prune and train up the branches of the trees of the vineyard, and dig around their roots, the power of the everlasting God may rest upon you and the vineyard where you labour. Keep the commandments of the Lord in all things, that you may have joy with him in the fruits of the vineyard when the work is finished. May he bless you as he did Abraham and his servants of old, that you may do the work he has appointed to you in faith, and prayer, and perseverance, that you may bring home your thousands and rejoice in the midst of the mountains.

Necessity of the Servants of God Being Pure in Heart and in Deed, etc.

Brigham Young

Remarks by President Brigham Young at a Special Conference held in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, August 28, 1852. Reported By G. D. Watt.

I want to say a few words to the congregation before we dismiss, for we shall be under the necessity of separating soon, and probably we shall hold another meeting this evening.

I have heard the exhortations of the brethren who have spoken to-day with joy? They seem to be in good spirit; and certainly—yea, most assuredly, there is the most novelty in “Mormonism” that there is in anything upon the face of the earth. It is musical; it pleases both the eye and the ear, and I may say every sense of the man.

When I heard the brethren exhorting those who are going out on missions, I wished them to impress one thing upon the minds of these Elders, for it is necessary that it should be uppermost there, which may be the means of preserving them from receiving stains on their characters, from which very probably they may never recover. If we get a blight upon our characters before the Lord, or in other words, lose ground and backslide by transgression, or in any other way, so that we are not up even with the brethren as we are now, we never can come up with them again. But this principle must be carried out by the Elders wherever they go, whatever they do, or wherever they are. One thing must be observed and be before them all the time in their meditations and in their practice, and that is, clean hands and pure hearts before God, angels, and men.

If the Elders cannot go with clean hands and pure hearts, they had better stay here and wash a little longer. Do not go thinking, when you arrive at the Missouri river, at the Mississippi, at the Ohio, or at the Atlantic, that then you will purify yourselves; but start from here with clean hands and pure hearts, and be pure from the crown of the head to the soles of your feet; then live so every hour. Go it that manner, and in that manner, labour, and return again as clean as a piece of pure white paper. This is the way to go; and if you do not do that, your hearts will ache. How can you do it? Is there a way? Yes. Do the Elders understand that way? They do. You cannot keep your own hands clean and your hearts pure without the help of the Lord: neither will he keep you pure without your own help.

Will you be liable to fall into temptation and be overtaken by sin? Yes, unless you live so as to have the revelation of Jesus Christ continually, not only to live in it to day or while yea axe preaching, in a prayer meeting, or in a Conference; and when you are out of these meetings, when you are guarded mere particularly by the Spirit say that you can get along without the Holy Ghost. You must have it all the time—on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, and every day through the week, and from year to year, from the time you leave home until you return; so that when you come back, you may not be afraid if the Lord Almighty should come into the midst of the Saints and reveal all the acts and doings and designs of your hearts in your missions; but be found clean like a piece of white paper. That is the way for the Elders to live in their ministry at home and abroad.

There are a great many things that could be said here, which would add to the comfort and consolation of us all—a great many principles that could be taught to the Elders, which they must learn when they go abroad. I will notice one thing with regard to learning. You will hear a great many Elders say, If I could go to preaching, I could become a man like many and others: I should receive knowledge understanding; I should be noted—become a great man and a wise man. Many have such feelings, that they are greater who are in the world preaching the Gospel than those who remain here. It is a grand mistake; for if those who have lived with us all the time have not a knowledge of true principles—do not understand the root and foundation of the superstructure—are not filled with knowledge and understanding here, they need not appeal to the Gentile world for it. If they have not the foundation within themselves of talent and tact, they need not go abroad for the Spirit of the Lord to instruct them in things they cannot be instructed in here at home, and to obtain improvement where improvement cannot be made.

We may live here year after year, and store up knowledge all the time, and yet not have an opportunity of exhibiting it to others; but if I have knowledge by the Spirit of the Lord, I gain it at the fountain; and if not quite at the fountain head, the nigher I am to that place the more I get. Though I have not the privilege of exhibiting it to the people, it is on hand whenever the time comes it should be used. It is a vain idea to suppose that we can send Elders into the world who have not got good common sense, to make men of them. If they have good sense here, they will have it yonder; if they have good sense yonder, they will have good common sense here. Whether they are there or here does not alter the foundation that is in them. If the Elders have natural ability and have obtained great wisdom or learning, to go abroad gives them an opportunity to improve upon what they have.

I want to refer to the last speech made here. Brother Phelps feels very joyful, as the rest of us do. When we hear the glad tidings of salvation among the nations, it gives a spring to our feelings and fills us with unspeakable joy.

Perhaps in the case before us, as in others, we might say that men become children. We are children in the first place, then become men; and in the second place men become children in their understanding. As to the correctness of the exalted views that brother Phelps has of myself, I leave it to the congregation to decide for themselves; but to place me on a par with the personages he has named, who have overcome and entered into the presence of God, or even to compare me with Joseph Smith, our martyred Prophet, is too much; though I expect, if I am faithful, I shall be as great as they are now, and so can every other faithful man. But am I now to be compared with these exalted characters? Not at all—not even with Joseph; and he is at present inferior to others brother Phelps has named. But I expect, if I am faithful with yourselves, that I shall see the time with yourselves that we shall know how to prepare to organize an earth like this—know how to people that earth, how to redeem it, how to sanctify it, and how to glorify it, with those who live upon it who hearken to our counsels.

The Father and the Son have attained to this point already; I am on the way, and so are you, and every faithful servant of God.

One of the greatest queries on the minds of the Saints is to understand the nature, the principle of the foundation of our existence. To say nothing about what has been, if you will follow out that which is before you, you can learn all about it. I have a notion to tell you, though I have not time to say much about it now. I will, however, just tell to you the simple story relating to the exaltation of man in the celestial kingdom of God. We will take Joseph for instance: he is faithful to his calling—has filled his mission to this earth, and sealed his testimony with his blood; he has done the work his Father gave him to do, and will soon come to the resurrection. His spirit is waiting for the resurrection of the body, which will soon be. But has he the power to resurrect that body? He has not. Who has this power? Those that have already passed through the resurrection—who have been resurrected in their time and season by some person else, and have been appointed to that authority just as you Elders have with regard to your authority to baptise.

You have not the power to baptise yourselves, neither have you power to resurrect yourselves; and you could not legally baptise a second person for the remission of sins until some person first baptised you and ordained you to this authority. So with those that hold the keys of the resurrection to resurrect the Saints. Joseph will come up in his turn, receive his body again, and continue his mission the eternal worlds until he carries it out to perfection, with all the rest of the faithful, to be made perfect with those who have lived before, and those who shall live after; and when the work is finished, and it is offered to the Father, then they will be crowned and receive keys and powers by which they will be capable of organizing worlds. What will they organize first? Were I to tell you, I should certainly spoil all the baby resurrection that Elder Hyde and others ever preached, as sure as the world.

After men have got their exaltations and their crowns—have become Gods, even the sons of God—are made Kings of kings and Lords of lords, they have the power then of propagating their species in spirit; and that is the first of their operations with regard to organizing a world. Power is then given to them to organize the elements, and then commence the organization of tabernacles. How can they do it? Have they to go to that earth? Yes, an Adam will have to go there, and he cannot do without Eve; he must have Eve recommence the work of generation, and they will go into the garden, and continue to cat and drink of the fruits of the corporeal world, until this greater matter is diffused sufficiently through their celestial bodies to enable them, according to the established laws, to produce mortal tabernacles for their spiritual children.

This is a key for you. The faithful will become Gods, even the sons of God; but this does not overthrow the idea that we have a father. Adam is my father; (this I will explain to you at some future time;) but it does not prove that he is not my father, if I become a God: it does not prove that I have not a father.

I am on the way to become one of those characters, and am nobody in the world but Brigham Young. I never have professed to be brother Joseph, but brother Brigham, trying to do good to this people. I am no better, nor any more important than another man who is trying to do good. If I am, I don’t know it. If I improve upon what the Lord has given me, and continue to improve, I shall become like those who have gone before me; I shall be exalted in the celestial kingdom, and be filled to overflowing with all the power I can wield; and all the keys of knowledge I can manage will be committed unto me. What do we want more? I shall be just like every other man—have all that I can, in my capacity, comprehend and manage.

I am on my way to this great exaltation. I expect to attain unto it. I am in the hands of the Lord, and never trouble myself about my salvation, or what the Lord will do with me hereafter. It is for me to do the will of God to-day, and, when to-morrow comes, to inquire what is his will concerning me; then do the will of my Father in the work he has appointed me to do, and that is enough for me. I am serving a God who will give me all I merit, when I come to receive my reward. This is what I have always thought; and if I still think so, it is enough for me.

I say to the brethren who are leaving home—When you go from home, leave everything you have got here: don’t take anything with you but the Lord and yourselves.

You will want horses to bear you over the Plains; but don’t carry your wives or your children in your hearts or in your affections with you one rod. Dedicate them to the Lord God of Israel, and leave them at home; and when you are in England, or among other nations, no matter where, when you pray for your families, pray for them as being in the Great Salt Lake Valley, and do not bring them close to you, as though they were in your carpet-bag. Pray for them where they are. You must feel—If they live, all right; if they die, all right: if I die, all right; if I live, all right; for we are the Lord’s, and we shall soon meet again.

I wish to say to you that are left here, whose husbands and fathers axe going away for a season—Don’t cling to them one particle, but let them go as cheerfully as you would give a weary traveller a cup of cold water. If you live, it is all right; and if you fall asleep before they return, it is all right. Don’t send your hearts after them one step, nor suffer your spirits to cling to them one moment. Then you wives in very deed will be blessed, and be helpmeets to your husbands.

But if a wife should yet cling round a husband’s neck and say, Oh, how I love you, dear husband! and keep him in her embraces, that woman is a dead weight to that man, and not a help to him. Women should be loyal to the cause of God, and help to build up his kingdom by their husbands, in assisting them to fulfil their missions’; and if they do not do it, they are not helpmeets to their husbands. I know there are a great many here who have had an experience in these things. It is no matter if they are on the other side of the globe, apart, let them long for each other, and there will be a thread of communication between them; the man cannot be useful in his labours while she is all the time weeping and mourning every day of her life. Let a man suffer his mind to be drawn out all the time after his family, and he will become inactive in the work of the Lord.

When you leave, understand it, you have neither wife nor children: you have handed them all over to the Lord Jesus Christ. Let the brethren go and say, I will keep my eyes straight before me on the object of my mission, and not look behind me to my family; but I will accomplish my mission; and when I have done, it is all right. I am willing to go home, if the Lord wishes me to do so.

The time is far spent, and it is necessary for our meeting to be brought to a close. May the Lord bless you; and I say he does bless us. We are greatly blessed above all people upon the face of this earth. Let us be faithful to God and the covenant we have made. Amen.

The Sacrament—The Sabbath—Sectarian Opposition to the Doctrines and Ordinances of the Gospel, Etc.

Brigham Young

Remarks by President Brigham Young, at a Special Conference held in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, August 29, 1852. Reported by G. D. Watt.

While the sacrament is passing, I will take the liberty of making a few remarks.

Some truth has been referred to here, from the stand, with regard to the congregation. These, my brethren and sisters, are in the habit of being here one part of the Sabbath, to hear and understand for themselves. I should be happy to see this house as full every Sabbath in the after part of the day as it is this afternoon. It is a requirement of the Lord, which is both reasonable and pleasing to all those who are diligently doing his will. We have a comfortable house to meet in, where we can preach, sing, pray, exhort, and exercise ourselves in our several capacities, according to our calling, in the worship of God.

This is a great blessing. If we can realize it, it is one of the greatest blessings we can enjoy, to manifest to our Father in heaven—to witness to him that we do always remember the death and sufferings of his Son Jesus Christ, whom he sent into the world to redeem the world—to shed his own blood for our sins. If we could realize it, it is one of the greatest blessings we could enjoy, to come before the Lord, and before the angels, and before each other, to witness that we remember that the Lord Jesus Christ has died for us. This proves to the Father that we remember our covenants, that we love his Gospel, that we love to keep his commandments, and to honour the name of the Lord Jesus upon the earth. Let us try to do this. It is a blessing, a privilege, and a duty we should constantly attend to.

Instead of suffering our labours to occupy the Sabbath—instead of planning our business to infringe upon the first day of the week, we should do as little as possible; if it is necessary to cook food, do so; but even if that could be dispensed with, it would be better. As to keeping the Sabbath according to the Mosaic law, indeed, I do not; for it would be almost beyond my power. Still, under the new covenant, we should remember to preserve holy one day in the week as a day of rest—as a memorial of the rest of the Lord and the rest of the Saints; also for our temporal advantage, for it is instituted for the express purpose of benefiting man. It is written in this book, (the Bible,) that the Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath. It is a blessing to him. As little labour as possible should be done upon that day: it should be set apart as a day of rest, to assemble together in the place appointed, according to the revelation, confessing our sins, bringing our tithes and offerings, and presenting ourselves before the Lord, there to commemorate the death and sufferings of our Lord Jesus Christ.

These are institutions expressly for the benefit of man—not imposed upon him as by a task-master, in the form of a rigid discipline; but they are bestowed upon him as a blessing, a favour, and a mercy, for his express benefit. I trust I shall yet see the day when we shall be so situated, and attain to that knowledge and understanding, that every man and woman will observe and do their duty strictly—do that that is required of them—do no evil—when all will be peace and joy, and the earth be lighted up with the spirit of intelligence. You trust and hope for the same things; and if we are faithful, that time is near at hand.

It is true, most of the doctrine we believe comes in contact with all the prejudices and prepossessed feelings of the Christian world. In the practical part of our religion we do not differ from them in many respects. They pray, and so do we; they keep the Sabbath pretty tolerably well, and so do we; they say they believe in the Lord Jesus Christ; so do we, and keep his commandments; and they call upon the Lord, probably, as faithfully. In some of the plain, practical duties of the Gospel, the religious world are very diligent; but to the doctrinal parts of the Gospel of salvation they are entire strangers.

In the commencement of the career of brother Joseph Smith, he had all the influence and talent of the sectarian world that were acquainted with his doings to cope with; he had them to contend with day and night. He laboured faithfully, though in his youth, and almost entirely destitute of literary knowledge, with not many advantages of an earthly nature; yet the truth he revealed triumphed; the principles he put forth actually circumscribed the religious knowledge of all the Christian world. Almost every principle and every idea taught in the Gospel, that the world had preached and written so much about, he proved they were ignorant of. He taught the people how to have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. He also taught them how to repent. This was new to the world—to be informed that they did not know even how to repent. He taught them how to embrace the Gospel of salvation, what it was, and that these doctrines are essentially necessary for the salvation of the children of men.

There was no person, previous to this, to step forth and say it was absolutely necessary to observe these doctrines in order to be saved, and actually substantiate that doctrine from the Bible. No person could substantiate the doctrine, so as to place the truth of it beyond doubt and controversy, that it was necessary for a person to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.

It is well known to this congregation that the whole Christian world were baffled, and not only baffled, but actually put to shame, upon true philosophy, and their mouths were closed in silence, by the infidel so called. It is well known to this congregation that those who did not believe the Bible—who did not believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, by good reasoning would overcome and triumph over the whole Christian world, set them at naught, and hold them in derision.

The case is different now. Do they overcome the Elders of this Church? They do not; but they are like the frosted grass upon the prairie before the burning flame. An Elder of Israel overcomes them on the ground of their own philosophy, and drowns them in the sea of their own arguments. Could the Christian world do it? No. Brother Joseph told the people it was necessary to be baptised for the remission of sins, and proved it by the Bible: he proved it by his works; he proved it by thousands of witnesses in his day.

He also introduced the doctrine of the laying on of hands for the reception of the Holy Ghost, and proved it from the Bible, by reason, by his own and the experience of thousands besides. You Elders of Israel, do you know whether these doctrines were borne off by you and others triumphantly? They have been successful among every people, nation, and kindred, and tongue, wherever they have been proclaimed. These doctrines are beyond the power of controversy and doubt; no caviller could confute or present the least argument which would prove successful in overthrowing the principles taught by the Elders of Israel.

Brother Joseph introduced a great many new doctrines. It was perfectly new to this generation, but in truth an old doctrine, to be baptised for the remission of sins—that it was absolutely necessary; and then receive the laying on of hands for the reception of the Holy Ghost, and many other doctrines, though in reality they are old, yet true, and new to this benighted generation.

When the Elders first commenced preaching “Mormonism,” twenty years ago, they would take the Bible and prove every item of doctrine to the people beyond doubt and controversy. What did the priests say to you? Can you recollect what they said in the different States where this Gospel was first preached?—what arguments were used against your position and the doctrines you believe? Yes: the priests would halloo from the pulpit, Joe Smith!—old Joe Smith!! That was their argument, to begin with. Impostor!—impostor!!—He is deluding the people!!!—he’s deluding the people!!!!—Old Joe Smith, the money digger!—He is a necromancer!!—he is a fortune-teller!!!—a money digger!!!! Old Joe Smith!!!!! What a profound argument! There is no answering it. You know these are the arguments used against the doctrines preached by the Elders of this Church.

When you introduced the Book of Mormon, the argument used against it was, It is a deception! Joe Smith!!—Impostor!!! And these are the arguments that have been urged from beginning to end; but they could not bring one passage of Scripture or one substantial reason against the doctrine taught and believed by this Church.

What has been said to you? What has been said to me? If we will preach this doctrine, the people almost universally will follow us and say, “Don’t mention Joseph Smith—never mention the Book of Mormon or Zion, and all the people will follow you.” I said, It would not do them any good, if we were to listen to their requirements. What I have received from the Lord, I have received by Joseph Smith: he was the instrument made use of. If I drop him, I must drop these principles: they have not been revealed, declared, or explained by any other man since the days of the Apostles. If I lay down the Book of Mormon, I shall have to deny that Joseph is a Prophet; and if I lay down the doctrine and cease to preach the gathering of Israel and the building up of Zion, I must lay down the Bible; and consequently, I might as well go home as undertake to preach without these three items.

Did not your hearts use to tremble dreadfully, you old Elders in Israel, when you had to preach in new places? You would take up the Bible and quote Scripture from Genesis to Revelations, so as to surprise the people, and did not mention Joseph Smith. Did it not make you tremble, when you had to say that Joseph Smith was a Prophet—when you came to that point, and were obliged either to deny or to own him before the people?

Some are endowed with more moral courage than others. I know the spirits in men generally are inclined to weakness and diffidence; and all men more or less feel their own weakness and inability. The Elders of Israel especially feel the prejudices of the people bearing down upon their spirits; but when they once open their mouths and say that Joseph is a Prophet, such a flood of light at once comes upon them; that they are ready to ask no odds of all the world. But in preparing to make this declaration, their hearts tremble and their knees smite each other, almost like Belshazzar’s. After they have once started, they are independent enough.

I suppose some of you have an experience on this subject. One of our Elders with whom I was acquainted, after he was baptised, got cornered up, and was obliged to preach a sermon. He never had been able to say that he knew Joseph was a Prophet; but he was there in the meeting: the house was crowded with the congregation; the windows and doors full of people, and all around on the green waiting to hear a “Mormon” preacher. There were none there but this one man, and he was called upon to preach. He thought he would pray and dismiss the meeting. He never had known that Joseph Smith was a Prophet: that was the lion that lay in his path; and he could not get by him, nor round about him, nor dig under him, nor leap over him; and the lion he must meet: he must say Joseph, for better or worse. As soon as he got “Joseph” out, “is a Prophet” was the next; and from that, his tongue was loosened, and he continued talking until near sundown. The Lord pours out his Spirit upon a man when he testifies that which the Lord gives him to testify of. From that day to this, he has never been at a loss to know that Joseph was a Prophet. I assure you, his heart quaked; and that has been the case with many others.

When brother Joseph revealed the great mystery of being baptised for the dead, did not a great many of the Elders of Israel think then—“’Mormonism’ cannot endure; it will be overcome.” Every item of doctrine brother Joseph has brought forth had to meet with opposition from the world. We all know that it comes in contact with sectarian influence and every other influence that is not direct from God.

When the Elders went forth, the priests supposed they could easily put them down; but when they undertook to substantiate the doctrine of baptism for the dead, were the priests successful in confuting their arguments? No. The doctrine has ridden triumphantly over all sectarianism; (what I mean by sectarianism is false religion;) and it is so far from being put to silence by all the rest of the world, that it is as popular, wherever you go, as any doctrine taught; it is as readily and as quickly believed.

You can understand, from the few remarks I make with regard to the Gospel, that many things which were revealed through Joseph came in contact with our own prejudices: we did not know how to understand them. I refer to myself for an instance: I never could be persuaded that God would send every person to a lake of fire and brimstone, to be tormented by the Devil, to all eternity, for any little sin he might commit—which was the doctrine handed down. After all, my traditions were such, that when the Vision came first to me, it was directly contrary and opposed to my former education. I said, Wait a little. I did not reject it; but I could not understand it. I then could feel what incorrect tradition had done for me. Suppose all that I have ever heard from my priest and parents—the way they taught me to read the Bible—had been true, my understanding would be diametrically opposed to the doctrine revealed in the Vision. I used to think and pray, to read and think, until I knew and fully understood it for myself, by the visions of the Holy Spirit. At first it actually came in contact with my own feelings, though I never could believe like the mass of the Christian world around me; but I did not know how nigh I believed, as they did. I found, however, that I was so nigh, I could shake hands with them any time I wished.

You heard brother Pratt state, this morning, that a revelation would be read this afternoon, which was given previous to Joseph’s death. It contains a doctrine a small portion of the world is opposed to; but I can deliver a prophecy upon it. Though that doctrine has not been practised by the Elders, this people have believed in it for years.

The original copy of this revelation was burnt up. William Clayton was the man who wrote it from the mouth of the Prophet. In the meantime, it was in Bishop Whitney’s possession. He wished the privilege to copy it, which brother Joseph granted. Sister Emma burnt the original. The reason I mention this is because that the people who did know of the revelation suppose it is not now in existence.

The revelation will be read to you. The principle spoken upon by brother Pratt, this morning, we believe in. And I tell you—for I know it—it will sail over and ride triumphantly above all the prejudice and priestcraft of the day: it will be fostered and believed in by the more intelligent portion of the world as one of the best doctrines ever proclaimed to any people. Your hearts need not beat; you need not think that a mob is coming here to tread upon the sacred liberty which the Constitution of our country guarantees unto us, for it will not be. The world have known, long ago, even in brother Joseph’s days, that he had more wives than one. One of the Senators in Congress knew it very well. Did he oppose it? No: but he has been our friend all the day long, especially upon that subject. He said pointedly to his friends, “If the United States do not adopt that very method—let them continue as they now are—pursue the precise course they are now pursuing, and it will come to this—that their generations will not live until they are 30 years old. They are going to destruction; disease is spreading so fast among the inhabitants of the United States, that they are born rotten with it, and in a few years they are gone.” Said he, “Joseph has introduced the best plan for restoring and establishing strength and long life among men, of any man on the earth; and the Mormons are a very good and virtuous people.”

Many others are of the same mind: they are not ignorant of what we are doing in our social capacity. They have cried out, “Proclaim it.” But it would not do, a few years ago: everything must come in its time, as there is a time to all things. I am now ready to proclaim it.

This revelation has been in my possession many years; and who has known it? None but those who should know it. I keep a patent lock on my desk, and there does not anything leak out that should not.

It pleases me a little to think how anxious this people are for new revelation. I wish to ask you a question: Do this people know whether they have received any revelation since the death of Joseph, as a people? I can tell you that you receive them continually. I would be willing the Elders of Israel should understand one principle; and this I have taught often. This is also taught in the old and new Scriptures, or, in other words, in the former and latter Scriptures, the principle is set forth simply, which is this—When a man is called, as Joseph was, to be a Prophet, he writes his revelations. Joseph wrote a great many. He would, for instance, give a revelation to a man to go to Sanpete to labour; he would give revelations touching both temporal and spiritual things, in the building up of houses and cities, or in the proclamation of the Gospel to the world—all of which are necessary for the salvation and exaltation of the people of the Lord.

Now, brethren, the calling of an Apostle is to build up the kingdom of God in all the world: it is the Apostle that holds the keys of his power, and nobody else. If an Apostle magnifies his calling, he is the word of the Lord to this people all the time, or else he does not magnify his calling;—either one or the other.

If he magnifies his calling, his words are the words of eternal life and salvation to those who hearken to them, just as much so as any written revelations contained in these three books (Bible, Book of Mormon, and Doctrine and Covenants). There is nothing contained in these three books that is any more revelation than the words of an Apostle that is magnifying his calling.

I want you to understand it. If it was necessary to write them, we would write all the time. We would rather the people, however, would live so as to have revelations for themselves, and then do the work we are called to do: that is enough for us. Can any of you think of any revelations you have received that are not written? You can.

I preached a short sermon here, yesterday, with regard to exaltation. I spoke but a few minutes, and brother Pratt brought up the same subject. It is all connected with the great Gospel sermon; for we can but notice parts of it, when we undertake to speak to the people.

It is all connected with the exaltation of man, showing how he becomes exalted to be a king and a Priest—yea, even a God, like his Father in heaven. Without the doctrine that this revelation reveals, no man on earth ever could be exalted to be a God. Do you find out now, when you are exalted, what your work will be yonder? We read in the Scriptures that Jesus declared he is the First and the Last. It is written again in this book, by the Prophet Joseph, that he is the First and the Last—the Last and the First. This principle you see in all the works of the Lord. When a man commences the work of his exaltation, he begins at the last thing that will be completed. Our spirits, thousands of years ago, were first begotten; and at the consummation of all things, when the Saviour has finished his work and presented it to the Father, he will be crowned.

None of you will receive your crowns of glory, immortality, and eternal lives before he receives his. He will be crowned first, and then we shall be crowned, every one in his order; for the work is finished, and the spirit is complete in its organization with the tabernacle. The world is the first to be redeemed, and the people last to be crowned upon it. I leave these remarks with you, and we will now have the revelation read.

[Elder Thomas Bullock then read the revelation. See Supplement to Vol. XV. of Millennial Star.]

Extensive Character of the Gospel, etc.

Brigham Young

A discourse by President Brigham Young, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, August 15, 1852. Reported by G. D. Watt.

I am confident I have the prayers of the Saints and the faith of those who have faith. It is seldom that I request the Saints to pray for me, for I judge them by myself with a righteous judgment. I always pray for the Saints, and suppose in return they pray for all the faithful; and consequently, I have my share of their prayers.

I recollect a statement that I made, last Sabbath, with regard to the Gospel—what a Gospel sermon is, how long it takes to preach it, and what it comprises; that it takes the same time to preach it that it does to accomplish the plan of salvation pertaining to the children of men.

I have never yet seen the time that I had wisdom, strength, and ability enough to preach a Gospel discourse—to commence it, and finish it, setting before the people the plan of salvation sufficiently full, that thereby they might be saved. But it is only given in portions—a little here, and a little there, by feeble man.

The subject that is before us to-day is in the great discourse. To understand the first principles of the Gospel—to rightly understand them, a man must have the wisdom that comes from above; he must be enlightened by the Holy Ghost; his mind must be in open vision: he must enjoy the blessings of salvation himself, in order to impart them to others.

In our capacity, we are privileged, in a spiritual point of view, precisely as we are in a temporal point of view. We have the privilege of learning and adding to the knowledge we have already obtained. We have a knowledge, for instance, of the rudiments of the English language. If we continue in our studies—in our exertions to acquire information, we obtain more knowledge; and if we continue still to persevere, we add still more to that, until we are perfect masters of the language.

Again, with regard to mechanism, in a certain sense, the same principle will hold good. We have the privilege of learning the arts and sciences that the learned among the Gentile nations understand; we have the privilege of becoming classical scholars—of commencing at the rudiments of all knowledge—of entering into the academics, we might say, of perfection. We might study, and add knowledge to knowledge, from the time that we are capable of knowing anything until we go down to the grave. If we enjoyed healthy bodies, so as not to wear upon the functions of the mind, there is no end to a man’s learning. This compares precisely with our situation pertaining to heavenly things.

The capacity of mankind in attaining to geometrical knowledge and the fine arts is great: all nations and people understand more of less of the knowledge pertaining to the arts and sciences. But when they leave those principles that are comprehended in the studies pursued by the natural man, and undertake to define their own persons, their own being, and to understand the propriety and wisdom of the creation, and bring forth to themselves or to others those principles that pertain to future knowledge, they are in the dark; there is a veil over them. The veil of the covering that is over the nations of the earth has beclouded their understandings, so that they are in thick darkness. This our experience teaches us—that when any uninspired person or persons (who pretend to) step beyond organized nature, which is visible to the natural eyes, there is a mystery—the hidden mystery—the deep and unsearchable mystery of creation.

We can see the natural man, we can behold our face in the glass; but can we tell what manner of person we are? Can we define the object of this organization—of this body? Can we circumscribe it? Can we fathom the depths, the propriety, the necessity, and the object of Divine wisdom; in our organization? It is a mystery to the wisest there is upon the earth. We see life and action: this we witness daily; ourselves, we act; we see others act. We have sight to see; our ears are organized to hear, our hands to feel, and all the system throughout seems to be perfectly framed to sense and understanding; and the mystery of it is such that the wisest of all the philosophers are ready to acknowledge, and exclaim, It is a mystery!—it is not to be fathomed or understood by man. When we advance into the future or recede into the past, either plunges a man into still greater mystery. It is a mystery that the world have sought after by their wisdom: they have studied diligently for the express purpose of becoming acquainted with these mysteries. Thousands and thousands have spent their whole lives in study—have sought after and read the comments and ideas of others with the utmost anxiety and fervency of intention, seeking to find that which others have not found—to learn that which has not been learned.

This Book, which is the Old and New Testament, preaches but one sermon from Genesis to Revelations. We commence and go through with this volume; then search all those books which have been rejected by the Christian nations as not canonical, and any other writings of Prophets and Apostles, and all good men—all revelations that have been set aside, and considered unnecessary—summon all the revelations that have been given from the days of Adam to the present time; and what is the sum of the whole of the teachings of Him who has created (the Supreme of the universe)—who has organized and planned and executed and brought into existence—all his teachings to his people? Simply this—Son, daughter, live before me, so that I can come and visit you: order your lives with that propriety, that I will not be disgraced to come and abide with you for a season; or, when I send my angels or my minister the Holy Ghost to reveal my mind and will to you, or to bless you with abiding comfort, that they may not be disgraced in your society.

I say, all the revelations of God teach simply this—Son, daughter, you are the workmanship of mine hands: walk and live before me in righteousness; let your conversation be chaste; let your daily deportment be according to my law; let your dealings one with another be in justice and equity; let my character be sacred in your mouth, and do not profane my holy name and trample upon mine authority; do not despise any of my sayings, for I will not be disgraced. I wish to send one of my servants to visit you. What for? That you may see and know as others have—that you may see as you are seen—that you may understand those principles pertaining more particularly to the kingdom you are in. You have descended below all things. I have, in my wisdom, reduced you; I have caused that you should drink of the dregs of the bitter cup. I have placed you in the depths of ignorance, and have surrounded you with weakness, to prove you. I have subjected you to all misery that can be endured. I have caused you to come upon this earth, where misery, and darkness, and every species of unbelief and wickedness reign, to prove you, that you may understand and know the good from the evil, and be capable of judging between these with a righteous judgment.

I have caused all this to be done; and now, son and daughter, the inhabitants of the whole earth that have lived from the days of Adam until now, the first and the last—the grand aim of all that I, the Lord, have revealed is to instruct you to live so that I can come and visit you, or send my angels, that they can enter into your habitations, walk and converse with you, and they not be disgraced. By so doing, you shall be made partakers of all knowledge and wisdom, power and glory that the sanctified or glorified beings enjoy. And this is, first of all, what the Lord wishes of the people.

What does our experience teach us—our eyes witness day by day? True, I may say, with many of you, I am not under the necessity of hearing the name of my God, whom I serve, my Father in heaven, blasphemed daily; I am not associated with those who blaspheme the name of the Father and the Son, and the character of the Holy Ghost; I do not associate with those who are liars, or adulterers, or whoremongers, or those who love and make a lie. You can say the same: yet, when we mingle among the wicked, what do we see and hear? What do these my brethren hear, that take the pains to go into the kanyons to sell a little beer to the traveller? They hear the name of the Lord that bought them blasphemed. It would take all the teams you have in the country to draw gold enough to tempt me into such a situation.

Men are going crazed to attend the ferries, in order to amass a few paltry dollars. What do you hear there? You hear the name of the Lord Almighty, and his character, and his Son Jesus Christ, and his minister the Holy Ghost, blasphemed; and every servant of God upon the earth is cursed by them to the lowest regions. It is not all the gold of Ophir and California that could hire me to hear it for one month. These are my feelings.

Gold and silver will perish, but the name of the Almighty will remain for ever. His character will not sink, nor the character of his Son, nor of his ministers, nor of any of his faithful servants who keep his commandments. Riches will perish, but they will endure. I say again, there is not gold enough lying east of the Rocky Mountains to bring me to one of these ferries and hear the blasphemies I should have to hear. But can we not hear it here? Yes—to the shame and disgrace of a few of those that call themselves Latter-day Saints. Is it so, that there is a man whose name is written in the Lamb’s Book of Life that will take the name of the Deity in vain? I speak to you who are trifling with the Lord Jesus and the Holy Spirit of promise, to the shame of a few of the Elders of Israel.

The time will come when they will be cut off, though I am sorry to say that. I would rather say that while I am in the society of the Latter-day Saints, I might never hear the character of the Deity ridiculed and disgraced, and his name used in a light and trifling manner.

It is true, I do not hear it. If I were to hear that which other people say they hear—an Elder of Israel use the name of the Lord God in vain, I should cut him off from the Church and if I could not get any help to cut him off, I would do it myself. Let me tell you, he must be a very ignorant man who can use the name of the Deity in vain, without having to repent forthwith.

While I was talking, last Sabbath I wished that I could have strength of lungs to speak about one thousand years, and live without eating or resting. I thought in that time we should get pretty well through with a portion of the Gospel sermon.

I will now read a little in this book, called the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, pertaining to the subject we had before us last Sabbath. I will read a part of a short revelation, in order to exhibit some items of doctrine that are not generally understood, although it is before the people. All people who are disposed, have the privilege of reading this book for themselves; for it has been published to the world for some years. The Saints read it and have the privilege of understanding it, if they choose. Still, as I observed, we are in the school and keep learning, and we do not expect to cease learning while we live on earth; and when we pass through the veil, we expect still to continue to learn and increase our fund of information. That may appear a strange idea to some; but it is for the plain and simple reason that we are not capacitated to receive all knowledge at once. We must therefore receive a little here and a little there.

I will read in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, sec. 44:—

“A commandment of God, and not of man, to Martin Harris, given (Manchester, New York, March, 1830,) by Him who is eternal.”

I could give to the people the cause of this revelation, but it is not necessary. I may say a word upon it when I come to it in the revelation, which will explain all that is necessary. Those who are acquainted with Martin Harris know his natural turn and disposition: he wanted to learn all things at once, was continually in pursuit of knowledge, and neglected to act upon that which he had already received. That is his true character, as far as I have known him. The revelation reads as follows:—

“I am Alpha and Omega, Christ the Lord; yea, even I am he, the Beginning and the End, the Redeemer of the world: I have accomplished and finished the will of Him, whose I am, even the Father, concerning me; having done this that I might subdue all things unto myself, retaining all power, even to the destroying of Satan and his works at the end of the world and the last great day of judgment, which I shall pass upon the inhabitants thereof, judging every man according to his works and the deeds which he hath done.”

We read in the Bible, you recollect, that every man shall be judged according to his works; but it is almost impossible; or, I will say, it is a considerable task and quite a labour to get a community to understand these words as they read; when, in reality, to those that understand them, it is as plain to them as it is for this congregation to count how many fingers I am now holding up before you. If I hold up two fingers, you exclaim, There are two. But somebody will start up and say, No; there is but one; while another declares, There are four, and not one or two. Every person has a privilege of looking for themselves, and may know whether I hold up one, two, or four fingers. To a person who understands this saying it is just as easy for him to judge and know that mankind will be judged according to their works which they do in the body; and yet how hard it is to get the people to say it is so, and have them understand it.

“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.”

This revelation has been before the people, in this volume, since the year 1834, and yet how few have paid attention to it. Suppose I repeat a part of this last quotation—“Neverless, 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 meet 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.”

If I recollect right, I think there is no place in the Bible so explicit, with regard to this name of the Deity—“for Endless is my name.”

“Wherefore, I command you to repent and keep the commandments which you have received by the hand of my servant Joseph Smith, junior, in my name; and it is by my Almighty 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 my 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 in the least degree, you have tasted at the time I withdrew my Spirit.”

This language needs no particular explanation to those who ever knew Martin Harris.

“And I command you that you preach naught but repentance; and show not these things unto the world until it is wisdom in me; for they cannot bear meat now, but milk they must receive: wherefore they must not know these things, lest they perish. Learn of me and listen to my words; walk in the meekness of my Spirit, and you shall have peace in me I am Jesus Christ: I came by the will of the Father, and I do his will.”

I want to connect this part of the revelation given to Martin Harris, with a few words in the revelation called the Vision:—

“Thus saith the Lord, concerning all those who know my power, and have been made partakers thereof, and suffered themselves, through the power of the Devil, to be overcome, and to deny the truth, and to defy my power: they are they who are the sons of perdition, of whom I say that it had been better for them never to have been born for they are vessels of wrath, doomed to suffer the wrath of God, with the Devil and his angels, in eternity: concerning whom, I have said there is no forgiveness in this world nor in the world to come; having denied the Holy Spirit, after having received it, and having denied the Only Begotten Son of the Father, having crucified him unto themselves and put him to an open shame: these are they who shall go away into the lake of fire and brimstone, with the Devil and his angels, and the only ones on whom the second death shall have any power; yea, verily, the only ones who shall not be redeemed in the due time of the Lord, after the sufferings of his wrath; for all the rest shall be brought forth by the resurrection of the dead, through the triumph and the glory of the Lamb who was slain—who was in the bosom of the Father before the worlds were made.”

I wished to connect these two quotations, and refer directly to the situation of the world, believing that this can be made profitable like everything else. All the revelations that are given, and every revelation that was given; and every matter of fact; or truth that is revealed to the children of men is for their benefit; and, if improved upon, in honesty and truth, in righteousness and humility, to the glory of God, and to their own honour, it is a lasting benefit; but if they should turn about and make an evil use of it, it always will be to their condemnation: consequently, it is for the inhabitants of the earth to know the blessings and the privileges the Lord has for them to enjoy. It was said by the Saviour, when in the flesh, to the scribes and pharisees and learned doctors of the law; and it will apply to every class and grade, and every individual in every community: “This is the condemnation, that light has come into the world, and men choose darkness rather than light.”

So it is; it always has been, and it always will be so: when light comes, if the people reject that light, it will condemn them, and will add to their sorrow and affliction. So it is with the inhabitants of the earth, at the present day, as much as it was in the days of the Saviour, or in any other period of the world. Light comes into the world, but men choose darkness: when they do, it proves that their deeds are evil. This principle may prove beneficial to us and to every son and daughter of Adam who hear and have the privilege of hearing and of understanding for themselves.

When we take a view of the inhabitants of the earth, and look at ourselves, and contemplate our own situation and circumstances, we are satisfied that we, as a people, are favoured above any other class upon the face of this globe. Our blessings are multiplied unto us more than any people. We have the privilege of knowing how to escape this world of sorrow and sin, to enter into the strait; gate that was spoken of by the Saviour, and obtain eternal life.

Is there any other people that know these principles—that have committed to them the keys of the holy Priesthood, by which they may save themselves, save their families, save their neighbours, and save all that will hear them? Where is that community? I do not know. So may this congregation exclaim, if the same inquiry was made of them: they can say, We do not know.

We are blessed, greatly blessed; and when we contemplate even upon our afflictions, the fact is, they appear to us not worth mentioning: they should never come into remembrance before us. We have the privilege of serving the Lord, of growing in grace, and obtaining that which the Lord has for us. This is the people the Lord designs should be prepared to enter in at the strait gate; for strait is the gate and narrow is the way, says Jesus, that leadeth to the endless lives. It is translated in King James’ version of the Old Testament, “That leadeth unto eternal life.” But in our late revelations it is rendered, “Strait is the gate and narrow is the way that leadeth to the endless lives, and few there be that find it.”

Were I to inquire of the Latter-day Saints if they are all expecting to enter in the strait gate spoken of by the Saviour—if they are all going to inherit eternal lives, every one would answer in the affirmative. I hope they will. It really would rejoice me, were it to be so; but I cannot believe for a moment that every person who receives this Gospel will be prepared to enter in at the strait gate and inherit eternal lives. But there is one fact, and that is undeniable—we cannot alter it, and that is, every man shall be judged according to his works, and every man will receive according to the extent of his capacity.

Every individual among the Latter-day Saints and among all professors of religion, and then among all the heathen upon the face of the earth, will be judged according to their works. Is this all? No. Every individual will also receive according to the extent of his capacity. The inquiry might arise, Are all individuals who receive the new and everlasting covenant, and by their acts submit to it—are they capable of receiving the glory to be revealed—the crowns of glory, of immortality, and eternal lives? You may answer that question yourselves. Pause a moment.

I will refer your minds to Abraham. He lived many years without children, and sought diligently of the Lord to know if his name should be blotted from the book—if it should become extinct. He was a righteous man, a good man, and conversed with his Lord, received revelations from above, and communed with heavenly beings; while his constant cry was, O Lord, shall my name stop here? You can read in the Bible how he obtained a promise, and his wife actually bore him a son in her old age. He obtained this promise—“Abraham my son, you shall have a posterity, and a great nation shall spring forth from your loins; you shall receive the desire of your heart. What can you desire, Abraham?” I want to know if this will be the end of my posterity? and is my name to stop here? No, says the Lord; to your posterity there shall be no end. You remember what the Apostle says concerning this matter. It is this:—“His seed shall be like the sands upon the sea-shore, and like the stars in the firmament, for multitude; they cannot be numbered from this time henceforth and for ever; they are endless, and still continue to increase and increase.

Here is the very posterity of Abraham in this house. Nearly the whole of this congregation is composed of them; and they are on the increase, spreading forth on the right and on the left, according to the promise made to Abraham, and the blessings he was earnestly seeking for. I mention this to remind you of one fact: it is a great blessing, and one of the greatest that can be bestowed upon a mortal being, to receive the sanction of the Almighty, the voice of God to man, saying that he shall inherit eternal lives. The gift of eternal life is the greatest of all gifts that can be bestowed upon mankind.

When we step forth into other communities, or contemplate the past, and view our forefathers, what will be their situation?—what their doom? I can tell you, and you will allow me to judge the matter; not, however, that I am going to judge them and pronounce sentence upon them; but their situation is plain to those who understand.

My father and grandfather—my ancestors were some of the most strict religionists that lived upon the earth. You no doubt can say the same about yours. Of my mother—she that bore me—I can say, no better woman ever lived in the world than she was. I have the feelings of a son towards her: I should have them—it is right; but I judge the matter pertaining to her from the principles and the spirit of the teachings I received from her.

Would she countenance one of her children in the least act that was wrong according to her traditions? No, not in the least degree. I was brought up so strict, so firm in the faith of the Christian religion by my parents, that if I had said “Devil,” I believed I had sworn very wickedly, no matter on what occasion or under what circumstances this might occur. If I used the name of Devil, I should have certainly been chastised, and that severely. Would my father or mother allow any of their children to say “Darn it?” Were they ever allowed to say “I vow?” No. If we had said either of these words, we should have been whipped for it. I don’t say that we did not say such things when out of the sight of father and mother; but if by any means it came to their ears, we were sure to be chastised.

Did I ever hear a man swear in my father’s house? No, never in my life. I never heard my father or any person about his premises swear as much as to say “Darn it,” or “Curse it,” or “the Devil.” So you see I was brought up pretty strictly. My mother, while she lived, taught her children all the time to honour the name of the Father and the Son, and to reverence the holy Book. She said, Read it, observe its precepts, and apply them to your lives as far as you can: do every thing that is good; do nothing that is evil; and if you see any persons in distress, administer to their wants: never suffer anger to arise in your bosoms; for, if you do, you may be overcome by evil. I do not know that I ever wronged my neighbour, even to the value of a pin. I was taught, when a child, not to take a pin from the door yard of a neighbour, but to carry it into the house and give it to some of the family. Never did my mother or father countenance any of their children in anything to wrong their neighbour or fellow-being, even if they were injured by them. If they have injured me says my father, let me return good for evil, and leave it in the hand of the Lord; he will bless me for doing right and curse them for doing wrong.

I have merely mentioned my own parents and their teachings to their children to bring before your minds the thousands and millions and thousands of millions of the inhabitants of the earth who have lived and passed off this stage of action, and the millions that are now living, eating, drinking, and busily engaged in the almost endless pursuits of mortal life as we are, every one moving according to his own capacity and according to his own views and notions of things; but they all alike breathe the free air and drink of the free water, and all are before the Lord. I bring up these little items to prepare the way for the question, “What are you going to do with all these inhabitants of the earth?

The Methodists answer, “You must come to the anxious seat, or else be plunged into that lake of fire and brimstone, and there live for ever, without any end to your torment, among devils employed in pitching you around, adding brimstone to fire and fire to brimstone. You are to stay there for millions and thousands of millions and millions of billions of years, and all the rest of it a man can think of in the shape of numbers. When you have lived there so many years, you are not any nearer the end of this awful torment than you were when it first began.”

This has appeared to me, from my childhood to this day, a piece of complete nonsense, to talk about the the inhabitants of the earth being thus irretrievably lost—to talk of my father and mother, and yours, or our ancestors, who have lived faithfully according to the best light they had; but because they had not the everlasting covenant and the holy Priesthood in their midst, that they should go to hell and roast there to all eternity. It is nonsense to me; it always was, and is yet.

What are you going to do with them? I will tell you. Take the Methodists and every reformer, from the latest back to King James, who seceded from the authority of the Pope, and the hundreds and thousands that are now living upon the earth, and have lived and passed away, who profess no religion, but stand aloof from all parties—among those who are dead and those who are living, there are multitudes who have been and are as good as they know how to be.

Now, the point is to know what we are going to do with them. Are we going to send them to an endless hell? This wants a little explanation; for if I were to say that all go to hell, I should certainly tell the truth; and I can say, as I said last Sabbath, All go there, both Saint and sinner, in one sense of the word.

There are reasons for this, and it is for man to understand what they are, placing everything in its own place, classifying and putting all things where they belong, to make the doctrine of salvation complete. Fore-ordination, for instance, and free grace are both true doctrines; but they must be properly coupled together and correctly classified, so as to produce harmony between these two apparently opposite doctrines. We must know, when the Lord speaks, what he is talking about, and who he is talking about; all and considerably more of which is necessary to get a proper knowledge of the whole scheme of salvation.

I ask you again, what are we going to do with father and mother? Are we going to send them to perdition, and there let them welter in awful misery and endless torment? No; we are not going to do any such thing; but we will put them where they belong.

Now, understand, all spirits came from God, and they came pure from his presence, and were put into earthly tabernacles, which were organized for that express purpose; and so the spirit and the body became a living soul. If these souls should live, according to the law of heaven, God ordained that they should become temples prepared to inherit all things. I wish you to understand that all spirits are pure when they are put into these tabernacles; but we have not time to explain or set before you the reasons of the variation in appearance in the mortal tabernacles. There are causes for it. Our spirits fill the tabernacles organized for them; the body is a habitation for the spirit to dwell in; and if the spirit and the body both agree in keeping all the laws and all the commandments that the Lord reveals unto that tabernacle it never shall be destroyed.

How many shall be preserved? All who do not deny and defy the power and character of the Son of God—all who do not sin against the Holy Ghost. Now, to return again. Here are the spirits which have come and taken possession of the tabernacles prepared; they have entered into their house; and you observe that these habitations of the spirits of men are scattered over the face of the earth, and they have come from the Lord pure in their spirits. These enter their tabernacles and are shut out from his presence and the knowledge of the Lord: they are ignorant, filled with: unbelief, exposed to the unholy traditions of the fathers, which they have to grapple with, and all the wickedness that is in the world with which they have to contend.

With your mind’s eye look at the millions of them in all nations who are doing according to the best knowledge they possess. What! the Roman Catholics? Yes, and then every one of her daughters down to the latest Protestant Church that has been organized. They are all doing just as well as they can, and living according to the best light they have—a great many of them, though not all. What shall we do with them? They pass from the world, their spirits go into the spiritual world, and their bodies go back to their mother earth, and there sleep, while their spirits are before the Lord.

Are they happy? Every son and daughter of Adam who live according to the best light and knowledge they have, when they go into the spiritual world, are happy in proportion to their faithfulness. For instance, take a view of some of our late reformers; take the best specimen of reformers that we have, who are all the time full of glory and happiness and full of praise to the Lord—who meet together oft to sing and pray and preach and shout and give thanks to the Lord Almighty; and in a great many instances and in a great degree they enjoy much of a good spirit, which is the Spirit of the Lord, or the light of Christ, which lighteth the world.

Now, this may be singular to some. What! they enjoy the Spirit of the Lord? Yes, every man and woman, according to their faith and the knowledge they have in their possession. They enjoy the goodness of their Father in heaven. Do they receive the Spirit of the Lord? They do, and enjoy the light of it, and walk in it, and rejoice in it.

What will be their state hereafter? Every faithful Methodist that has lived up to and faithfully fulfilled the requirements of his religion, according to the best light he had, doing good to all and evil to none, injuring no person upon the earth, honouring his God as far he knew, will have as great a heaven as he ever anticipated in the flesh, and far greater. Every Presbyterian, and every Quaker, and every Baptist, and every Roman Catholic member—every reformer, of whatever class or grade, that lives according to the best light they have, and never have had an opportunity of receiving a greater light than the one in their possession, will have and enjoy all they live for.

I am telling you the truth as it is, and you may write it down if you please, and call it revelation if you will. But it has been revealed before I revealed it here to-day. This is the situation of Christendom after death.

You may go among the Pagans, or among all the nations there are, and they have their religion, their sacraments, and ceremonies, which are as sacred to them as ours are to us: they are just as precious and dear to them, though we call them heathen. They are idolatrous worshippers; yet their religion is as sacred to them as ours is to us. If they live according to the best light they have in their religion, God is God over all and the Father of us all; we are all the workmanship of his hands; and if they are ignorant, filled with superstition, and have the traditions of the fathers interwoven like a mantle around and over them, that they cannot see any light, so will they be judged; and if they have lived according to what they did possess, so they will receive hereafter.

And will it be glory? you may inquire. Yes. Glory, glory, glory to our merciful Father in heaven; for the least glory spoken of in this Vision given to Joseph Smith, junior, and Sidney Rigdon, cannot be described: it is so great and so exquisite that it is altogether beyond mortal perception.

They could not write it, neither describe it in language. The glory of the telestial world no man knows, except he partakes of it; and yet, in that world they differ in glory as the stars in the firmament differ one from the other. The terrestrial glory is greater still, and the celestial is the greatest of all; that is the glory of God the Father, where our Lord Jesus Christ reigns. Well, this people are privileged above all other people upon the earth: this community—this congregation now before me are the people whose blessings are far superior to the blessings of all the human family besides.

What manner of persons ought we to be? Should not all our lives be filled with praise, and glory, and hallelujahs to God and the Lamb, with good works and good feelings, being filled with the Spirit of God? If so, would there be any room for anger or contention from this time forth? There would not be one man or woman that could find time to talk about their neighbours or contend with a brother, but all hearts would be sanctified before the Lord, and every tongue would be speaking praise, and every hand would be put forth to do good and to seek to build up the kingdom of God; and they would never sin again. If we seek to build up this kingdom, hereafter the Lord will build us up. I don’t know that I shall get half through with what I want to say today. I wish to come back and look at ourselves in the next place.

How many glories and kingdoms will there be in eternity? You will see the same variety in eternity as you see in the world. For instance, you see here one class of men who have lived according to the best light they had: you may go among the heathen, or among the Christians, it is no matter; I will call them all Christians, or all heathens, if it will accommodate any body’s feelings, for they don’t come much short of all being heathen. We will take the best men we can find among them—when they pass through the veil they are in happiness, they are in glory, they go among the disembodied spirits; but they do not go where there are resurrected bodies, for they cannot live there: a Prophet or an Apostle cannot live there. They also go into the spiritual world to live with spirits. Do they commune with the Father and Son? The Father communes with them as he pleases, through the means of angels, or otherwise the Son and the Holy Ghost. This is the situation of the Prophet, the Apostle, and all Saints before they receive their resurrected bodies; but they are looking forward to the time when they shall receive their bodies from the dust; and those that have been faithful, probably, will now soon get their resurrected bodies. Abraham has had his body long ago, and dwells with the Father and the Son, among all the Prophets and faithful Saints who received their resurrected bodies immediately after the resurrection of the Saviour. They were then prepared to enter into the Father’s rest and be crowned with glory and eternal lives; but they were not prepared before.

No spirit of Saint or sinner, of the Prophet or him that kills the Prophet, is prepared for their final state: all pass through the veil from this state and go into the world of spirits; and there they dwell, waiting for their final destiny. It no doubt appears a singular idea to you that both Saint and sinner go to the same place and dwell together in the same world. You can see the same variety in this world. You see the Latter-day Saints, who have come into these valleys—they are by themselves as a community, yet they are in the same world with other communities. But I do not feel as though I am dwelling where there are six or eight kinds of religion or more, and, after all, no religion at all; I am not dwelling where there is cursing, and swearing, and horse-racing, and gambling, and everything else that is calculated to disturb a peaceable community. Though I am in the same world where all this exists, I am not dwelling where it is, nor am I disturbed by it; but I am peaceable and serving the Lord.

You can see the variety here. The Presbyterians can go away by themselves and build cities and towns, and try to prohibit all other persons who are not Presbyterians from dwelling with them: the Methodists can do the same; the Baptists can do the same. We have the privilege of organizing society in this world as we please, in one sense. This is what Mr. Owen calls Socialism. He says mankind are controlled by circumstances, and others say that mankind govern and control circumstances. Both are true. We govern and control circumstances; but when we come into circumstances which the Lord controls, we are then controlled by circumstances. I and my brethren can go and settle down in a certain part; and if you choose, we can go into merchandising or stock-raising; and if we choose, we can live without a family, like a Shaker. In this way we can control circumstances in a great degree, while there are circumstances over which we have no control. All this exhibits precisely the situation of the people hereafter: they control circumstances to a great degree, and sometimes circumstances control them. When they are in the world of spirits, there is the Prophet and the Patriarch; all righteous men are there, and all wicked men also are there.

What is going to be done with them? By-and-by Zion will be built up; Temples are going to be reared, and the holy Priesthood is going to take effect and rule, and every law of Christ will be obeyed, and he will govern and reign. King of nations as he now does King of Saints. Pretty soon you will see Temples reared up, and the sons of Jacob will enter into the Temples of the Lord. What will they do there? They will do a great many things. When you see Zion redeemed and built up—when you see the people performing the ordinances of salvation for themselves and for others, (and they will hereafter,) you will see simply this (but I have not time this morning to tell you only a little part of it): About the time that the Temples of the Lord will be built and Zion is established—pretty nigh this; time, you will see, (those who are faithful enough,) the first you know, there will be strangers in your midst, walking with you, talking with you: they will enter into your houses and eat and drink with you, go to meeting with you, and begin to open your minds, as the Saviour did the two disciples who walked out in the country in days of old.

About the time the Temples are ready, the strangers will be along and will converse with you, and will inquire of you, probably, if you understand the resurrection of the dead. You might say you have heard and read a great deal about it, but you do not properly understand it; and they will then open your minds and tell you the principles of the resurrection of the dead and how to save your friends: they will point out Scriptures in the Old and New Testament, in the Book of Mormon, and other revelations of God, saying, “Don’t you recollect reading so and so, that saviours should come up on Mount Zion?” &c.; and they will expound the Scriptures to you. You have got your Temples ready: now go forth and be baptised for those good people. There are your father and your mother—your ancestors for many generations back—the people that have lived upon the face of the earth since the Priesthood was taken away, thousands and millions of them, who have lived according to the best light and knowledge in their possession. They will expound the Scriptures to you, and open your minds, and teach you of the resurrection of the just and the unjust, of the doctrine of salvation: they will use the keys of the holy Priesthood, and unlock the door of knowledge, to let you look into the palace of truth. You will exclaim, That is all plain: why did I not understand it before? and you will begin to feel your hearts burn within you as they walk and talk with you.

You will enter into the Temple of the Lord and begin to offer up ordinances before the Lord for your dead. Says this or that man, I want to save such a person—I want to save my father; and he straightway goes forth in the ordinance of baptism, and is confirmed, and washed, and anointed, and ordained to the blessings of the holy Priesthood for his ancestors. Before this work is finished, a great many of the Elders of Israel in Mount Zion will become pillars in the Temple of God, to go no more out: they will eat and drink and sleep there; and they will often have occasion to say—“Somebody came into the Temple last night; we did not know who he was, but he was no doubt a brother, and told us a great many things we did not before understand. He gave us the names of a great many of our forefathers that are not on record, and he gave me my true lineage and the names of my forefathers for hundreds of years back. He said to me, You and I are connected in one family: there are the names of your ancestors; take them and write them down, and be baptised and confirmed, and save such and such ones, and receive of the blessings of the eternal Priesthood for such and such an individual, as you do for yourselves.” This is what we are going to do for the inhabitants of the earth. When I look at it, I do not want to rest a great deal, but be industrious all the day long; for when we come to think upon it, we have no time to lose, for it is a pretty laborious work.

I have a great feeling to just let the lash slide over on to some men a little. Do you think they would want to go to California to get gold, or run to the ferries, where the name of the Almighty is blasphemed, if they properly understood these things—the way of life and salvation? You will enter into the Temple of the Lord, when by-and-by here come along brothers Joseph and Hyrum Smith, for instance; for they will be perfectly capable of coming and staying over night with you, and you not know who they are. Or suppose David Patten should come along, and shake hands with some of the Twelve, and want to stay all night with them and expound the Scriptures and reveal the hidden things of God. It will not be long before this will be so.

Suppose we are ready for it, and a great Temple is built at the central point, in Jackson County. Gentlemen don’t be startled; for if we don’t go back there, our sons and daughters will; and a great Temple will be built upon the consecrated spot, and a great many more besides that. The land of Joseph is the land of Zion; and it takes North and South America to make the land of Joseph. Suppose we are ready to go into the Temples of God to officiate for our fathers and our grandfathers—for our ancestors back for hundreds of years, who are all looking to see what their children are doing upon the earth. The Lord says, I have sent the keys of Elijah the Prophet—I have imparted that doctrine to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts children to the fathers. Now, all you children, are you looking to the salvation of your fathers? Are you seeking diligently to redeem them that have died without the Gospel, inasmuch as they sought the Lord Almighty to obtain promises for you?—for our fathers did obtain promises that their seed should not be forgotten. O ye children of the fathers, look at these things. You are to enter into the Temples of the Lord and officiate for your forefathers.

Suppose we are ready to enter into the Temple to be baptised and attend to the ordinances for one hundred of our best forefathers, and Thomas should say to John, “John, take this affair and see to it; I want to go to this ferry to make a little money;” or “Joseph, you know the names of our ancestors better than I do; won’t you go and see to their salvation? I have not time myself; I want to build a bridge.” “James, are you ready to perform your duties for the dead?” “No; I want to go and keep a grocery.” And you know the language that is common to such places: the name of the Lord is blasphemed, and his servants are cursed with bitter oaths.

What do you think of it, gentlemen, Elders in Israel? What would money have to do with you, if you were now upon the threshold of eternity, and eternity open to you? Would you have the apostasy, as you have now? A little money is more to such persons than the salvation of all the sons and daughters of Adam. I wish I had a voice like ten thousand earthquakes, that all the world might hear and know the loving-kindness of the Lord.

I am telling you things that are before me constantly. When men and women are reaching after the perishable things of this world, and will step out of the path of duty and endanger their salvation, it has been said that it hurts brother Brigham’s feelings. It is true, and I could even weep over such; and the angels weep-over us to see our foolishness—that we are so giddy-headed as to run after the fading things of the world, and set our minds and feelings upon riches, and neglect our duty in preparing ourselves for the coming of the Son of man, for the coming of the ancient and modern Apostles and Prophets, for the redemption of Zion, and the redeeming of our dear friends in every age of the world when the Priesthood was not upon the earth.

Now, the inquiry on our minds is, Are all the world going to share in these blessings? Yes, all the world. Are there none going to be lost? Are there none going to suffer the wrath of the Almighty? I can say, in the first place, as I have said all my life, where I have been preaching, I neve[r] had the spirit to preach hell and damnation to the people. I have tried a great many times—I tried last Sabbath, and I have tried to-day to come to that point—the sufferings of the wicked. They will suffer, it seems; but I cannot get my heart upon anything else only salvation for the people. All nations are going to share in these blessings; all are incorporated in the redemption of the Saviour. He has tasted death for every man: they are all in his power, and he saves them all, as he says, except the sons of perdition; and the Father has put all the creations upon this earth in his power. The earth itself, and mankind upon it, the brute beasts, the fish of the sea, and the fowls of heaven, the insects, and every creeping thing, with all things pertaining to this earthly ball—all are in the hands of the Saviour, and he has redeemed them all. Who is there that is out of his power? I will tell you, in the first place, he has made man an agent to himself before the Lord, with all the rest that he has ordained, that mankind shall act for themselves, think for themselves, deal for themselves. They can choose the good and forsake the evil, or cleave to the evil and neglect the light and the good, just as they choose. Life and death are placed before them, and they have the privilege of choosing life or death. If they choose death, evil, and darkness, the time will come when those who are acquainted with the power of God will deny that power, and speak against the Holy Ghost, and commit the unpardonable sin. They then throw themselves out of the power of the Saviour, and take to themselves power, and say, “I will not hearken to the Lord Jesus now; I will serve whom I please, and I defy the power of the Son of God.” They yield themselves servants to the Devil and become his angels. They are then out of the hands of the Saviour, and can never dwell in heaven, worlds without end.

This will illustrate the idea. You have heard a great deal about having your names written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. When we were Christians, according to the common acceptation of the word, we used to preach a great deal about getting our names written in that book. I will tell you how it is. The names of every son and daughter of Adam are already written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. Is there ever a time when they will be taken out of it? Yes, when they become sons of perdition, and not till then. Every person has the privilege of retaining it there for ever and ever. If they neglect that privilege, then their names will be erased, and not till then. All the names of the human family are written there, and the Lord will hold them there until they come to the knowledge of the truth, that they can rebel against him, and can sin against the Holy Ghost; then they will be thrust down to hell, and their names be blotted out from the Lamb’s Book of Life.

I want to have the brethren look at the work that is before us. Contemplate your blessings, and realize them. There is not a people who are blessed as we are. We have the words of eternal life, the holy Priesthood of the Son of God. We possess the keys of that Priesthood, and can prepare ourselves to become angels of God—yea, more, to become Saints of God—yea, more, to become Gods in eternity, and to be crowned with crowns of glory, immortality, and eternal life. And woe to them that neglect these things—that read them lightly! Woe to them that live among the world, and love riches, or anything better than they do the Author of our salvation!

These are some parts of the Gospel of redemption. Is it not a blessing? Is it not a great privilege for the inhabitants of the earth to know the truth as it is—to have it sounded in their ears, that they may go to hell and suffer the wrath of the Almighty; yet, if they have not had the privilege of receiving the holy Gospel, have not come to the knowledge of the truth, so as to sin against the Holy Ghost, the time will come, by the power and triumph of the Lamb, that he will bring them forth, when they have suffered his wrath according to the deeds done in the body. Is it not a great blessing?

I will tell you, brethren, and sisters, and friends, when I look at these things, I earnestly wish they could be understood by the universal world. I wish they could see and realize them, and behold the goodness, and severity, and kindness with that severity, and the love that the Almighty has for them. If they could know it, we should not wait for the rising of the sun again before every knee would bow before the Lord, from the east to the west, and from the north to the south, all over this globe, and every tongue confess before God the Father that Jesus is the Christ.

When they do know it and understand it, that is the time when the veil of the covering is taken from their eyes, and all flesh will see his glory together. Then every knee will bow, and every tongue confess, that Jesus is the Christ, the Redeemer, the Saviour, and the rightful heir of this creation, and honour him as their kind benefactor, and praise him continually, though they are in the terrestrial world.

I feel to say, May the Lord bless you! It is with difficulty I talk to you this morning. My voice does not thunder, as it once did; and it would be misery for me to talk to a congregation, and they not hear me. It is with difficulty I preach. I should like if we could talk here one thousand years and not get tired, if we had the ability and power to do so. We will come to that by-and-by. May the Lord bless you and prepare you for the kingdom of rest. Amen.

Dedication Prayer

Willard Richards

Offered up by President Willard Richards in the New Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, April 6, 1852.

Great and all-wise God, our heavenly Father, who dwellest amid the cherubim and art clothed with light as with a garment, in the name of Jesus thy Son and by virtue of the holy and eternal Priesthood with which thou hast endowed us, we come before thee upon this occasion, invoking thy rich gifts and blessings to rest down upon us. Pour out, we pray thee, of thy Spirit upon each and every soul now waiting before thee, that our hearts may be united as one, and that we may approach thee in a manner acceptable in thy sight. May every emotion of our souls arise in unison unto thee in humble praise and adoration for all thy mercies unto the creatures of thy creation.

We remember, our Father and our God, that we are indebted unto thee for our existence—for having been sent upon this stage of action in this day and generation in which the fulness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ thy Son has been made manifest—in which the celestial messenger from thy presence has again proclaimed the way of life and salvation to the children of men upon the earth, saying, “Fear God and give glory to him, for the hour of his judgment is come,”—shadowing forth the restoration of all things that have been spoken by the mouths of all thine holy Prophets since the world began, establishing the pure principles of the eternal heavens, which constitute the laws of the kingdom of our God upon the earth, opening up anew the great principles of revelation and communication with the Gods of eternity—principles which have been hid in the heavens for many centuries, while many generations have lived and died looking for the blessings and promises of this day, desiring that they might have a part in the great preparatory work of the coming of the Son of Man in power and great glory to reign upon the earth.

We remember before thee, O our Father, that we thy servants now in thy presence, having heard the heavenly message and yielded obedience to its holy mandates, have become the happy recipients and partakers of this holy ministry, and that we have ofttimes been delivered from the power of Satan and the devices and machinations of wicked and designing men who have sought our overthrow and conspired against our lives to destroy us from the face of the earth. But thou, O our Father, hast ever been mindful of us, overruling all seeming evil for our greater good, until by thy mighty power thou hast brought us to a glorious inheritance in this goodly land, choice above all other lands, far from the retreats of mobbers and murderers who have slain thy Prophets, and from the land where their blood yet cries from the ground for vengeance to be poured out from the heavens.

Mercifully hast thou dealt with us, our Father; for through all the scenes which thy people have been called to pass—all the perils and watchings and sufferings we have had to encounter, thine angels have watched over and protected us, and the gentle and refreshing influences of thy Spirit have comforted us, and we have been spared as monuments of thy mercy. Multitudes of our brethren and friends have fallen by mobocracy, violence, disease, and death, and their bones have been left to moulder upon the prairie and in the wilderness, while we are again permitted to gather ourselves together in this goodly place and bring into requisition all the powers of body and mind with which thou hast clothed us for the advancement and building up of thy kingdom upon the earth. When thy people have called upon thee in their extremities, thou hast not been slow to hear, but hast exerted thine almighty power and encircled them in the arms of love and of mercy, until thy people have been permitted and enabled to build and inhabit, to labour and enjoy the fruits thereof, and to come forth from our comfortable habitations this morning to worship and praise the Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, Jesus and Joseph, in this commodious edifice, erected for the assembling and worship of thy people.

Ofttimes have our hearts rejoiced together in councils and meetings and in conference; yet never have we met when the manifold mercies and blessings of our heavenly Father called for more ardent praise and thanksgiving to his holy name than at the present, in this spacious and commodious room which thy Saints of latter days are now permitted to occupy. Here, in this place appointed for the assembly of the Saints on this the anniversary of the birthday of thy Church and kingdom upon the earth, in this last dispensation from the heavens, and in the midst of the congregation of the Most High God, we thy servants, O our Father in heaven, in the name of thy Son Jesus, dedicate and consecrate this house unto thee and unto thy cause, for the assembling of thy Saints to worship before thee and to partake of the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper, for prayer, for praise and thanksgiving, for fasting and mourning, for transacting business relating to thy Church and kingdom, or for whatever purpose thy people shall assemble themselves together in thy name.

We set apart and dedicate this house as a holy sanctuary for thy people unto the Lord for ever; and we consecrate the ground upon which it stands and dedicate it unto the Lord our God. May the floor upon which we walk be holy under our feet; may the covering which protects us from the snow, the rain, and the sun, be holy over our heads; may the walls which protect us from the chilling blasts of winter be holy round about us; and may the doors, and the windows, and the slips, and the fastenings, and the trimmings of this house, together with all the various materials of which they are composed, be holy unto the Lord for the meetings, the sacraments, and the transaction of the business of thy people. We dedicate and consecrate that portion of this house where thy Prophet and thy servants now are to be a holy and sacred place, wherein thy servants may stand and declare thy word and minister unto thy people in the name of thy Son and before thee, O our heavenly Father. May every part and portion thereof be holy unto the Lord our God. May no unclean thing be permitted to enter into any part of this Tabernacle; but may it be preserved, with the vestry thereof, and the doorkeepers thereof, and with everything pertaining thereunto or round about, a holy and sacred sanctuary, wherein the pure in heart may rejoice for ever, and no foul spirit ever be permitted to disturb their worship.

May the angels from thy presence be within and round about this habitation. When thy servants shall stand in this sacred place to minister unto the people, may they feel the blessed influences of thy heavenly messengers; may they be filled with the Holy Ghost, as with manna from heaven, and be clothed in robes of righteousness; may the visions and revelations of the eternal worlds be open before them continually; and may thy Saints ever have the listening ear and the understanding heart, to receive and improve upon the instructions of thy servants, that they may grow unto the stature of perfection that is in Christ Jesus, that they may be one with him for ever.

If thy people shall sin, and repent of their sins, and call upon thee in the name of Jesus from within these walls, then hear thou in heaven, thy holy dwelling place, forgive thou their sins, and give them answers of peace. May thy fear and thy dread be upon the heathen that may enter in this sacred place; and may thy Spirit rest upon the honest in heart who shall hear thy word from this stand, that they may believe, obey, and be saved with thy people.

And now, our Father, be pleased to accept the dedication of this house which we now present unto thee, in the name of thy Son, as a tribute of gratitude from thy people; and listen to the voice of our supplications, that it may be preserved from the rage of the elements and the pollution of ungodly men, and that thy glory be upon it and abide therein for ever; so that when thy Saints shall call from hence upon thy holy name in righteousness, then thou wilt hear in thy holy habitation and grant an answer of peace.

Bless all those who have assisted in the erection of this edifice. May they ever rejoice in the labour of their hands and have the glory they desire in the presence of their God. Bless those also who have contributed of their substance for its erection, with all those who have desired to contribute and have not had the means or opportunity; may they also partake of the rich inheritance of a celestial glory, and habitations of comfort and delight among the children of men. Bless all those who profess thy name, and have had the means to contribute for the upbuilding of this house, and have neglected their privilege and their duty; may thy Spirit rest upon all such, that they may humble themselves, repent of their shortcomings before thee and in the sight of their brethren, and arise and do their duty from this time henceforth and for ever, that they lose no more blessings through slothfulness in thy service.

Bless thy servant Brigham with health and strength of body and mind—with long life and peaceful days; may he be endowed with thy Spirit and the revelations of eternity continually; and may thine angels visit and sustain him, and ministering spirits from thy presence attend him in all his ways. Guard him, O Lord, from the malicious designs of wicked men; turn aside every shaft that is aimed for his injury; fit and prepare him with every necessary qualification to lead and guide this thy people; may his strength and ability be according to his duties and the burden he is required to bear; may the rich blessings of heaven and earth be poured out upon him and upon his household; may they individually and collectively enjoy the communion of God and his Saints, and have bestowed upon them every desirable gift that shall promote their peace, comfort, health, and happiness. Bless his habitation and all therein, his flocks and his herds, the ground that he cultivates, his fields, his gardens, and his vineyards; bless him in basket and in store, and in all that pertains unto him.

Bless his Counsellors, thy servants Heber and Willard, with the same blessings. May they always live in the unity of the faith and preserve those bonds of love and union which dwell in thy presence. Continue to strengthen their faith, their power, and their influence, until their voices shall reverberate thy word in tones of thunder throughout the earth’s remotest bounds, resounding in every ear, “Make ready for the marriage supper of the Lamb: his kingdom has come: prepare to receive the Lord!”

Bless this aged Patriarch, O our Father. May his days be continued to be multiplied, and his faculties be strengthened; and may he be filled with the Holy Ghost to bless thy children as he approaches the dawning of a brighter day; that, amid the exaltations of a celestial glory, he may seal blessings upon the heads of the faithful, until thou shalt receive him unto thyself, to rest with his brethren in thy presence. And may the like blessings rest upon all the brethren of his Quorum of the Patriarchs.

Remember the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, with their President, Orson Hyde. Grant, O Lord, that thine angels may go before them and preserve them from all evil. Wilt thou give them power to overcome all the designs and purposes of wicked men and all the devices of Satan; may they be enabled to carry the Gospel to every nation, kindred, tongue and people upon the face of the earth; may they have, in connection with and under the direction of the First Presidency of thy Church, power to roll forth thy work upon the earth, like a mighty torrent that no barriers can resist. Wilt thou bless them, Father, in the good things of this world, that their families may be provided for during their absence, while on missions of thy will to the nations and among all people. Wilt thou encircle them in thine arms of mercy, and preserve them, one and all, to the accomplishment of their several missions and safe return to the bosom of thy Church and to their families in the valleys of the mountains.

Bless with the same blessings all thine Elders, of every Quorum, who are absent upon foreign missions to the nations and islands of the sea afar off. May the quickening power of thy Spirit rest upon them, and their words be like fire, sinking deep into the minds of their hearers. May their testimony be as the sea that is broken up, roaring and rolling with no rest, until the voice that spake as never man spake shall say, Peace, be still!—when all the honest in heart shall have listened to the whisperings of the Spirit of our God and learned the way of life and salvation. Bless all the families of thine absent servants.

O Lord, bless the High Priests’ Quorum and the Quorums of the Seventies of thy people—yea, the Presidents thereof, with their Counsellors, and all the members that are striving in their warfare to overcome the world and its evils, and are endeavouring to roll back the curtain which has enshrouded the earth in darkness and the minds of the people in bigotry, superstition, ignorance, and sin, until wickedness covered the face of the whole earth, and there was none found thereon to walk in righteousness before thee; but all were walking in the precepts of men and in the vain imagination of their own hearts. O Lord God Almighty, we pray thee, in the name of Jesus, to inspire thy servants the High Priests and Seventies with the influence of thy Holy Spirit. Pour it out upon them in great effusions; may they gird up their loins, and, renewing their strength from the fountain of light and intelligence, which thou art spreading forth, come up to the help of the Lord against the mighty, and wax strong in the cause of our God, to the utter overthrow of all his enemies, even to the downfall of Satan’s dominion, that the kingdom of our God and his Christ may be established upon an everlasting foundation, never more to be taken from the earth.

Bless, O Father, the Elders’ Quorum, and awaken them to a sense of their great responsibilities. May they all partake of like blessings with their brethren. May they arise in power and walk forth in the strength of Israel’s God to the faithful performance of their duties; and, qualifying themselves for the work of God, putting on the armour of righteousness, may they be prepared to fight the good fight of faith and wield the sword of the Spirit, to the convincing of multitudes who shall become partakers in this holy ministry, and be ready to go forth in their time and season, and labour in the vineyard.

Bless the Presiding Bishop, with his Counsellors, assistants, and all the members of the Bishops’ Quorum. O Father, thou knowest their labours and the faithfulness which they have manifested in thy cause and in the discharge of their duties. The overflowings of thy storehouse speak in their behalf, as well as the liberality of thy Saints; and as they have manifested by their labours a willingness and desire to observe the counsel of thy servants and to build up and roll forth thy kingdom, we pray thee to acknowledge their ministration and bless them with every blessing pertaining to thy faithful servants; and, may they have every enjoyment emanating from a faithful and acceptable performance of their several duties before thee and thy servants, that they and their households may never lack for any good thing.

Regard in tender mercy, O our Father, thy servants of the Priests’ Quorum, with their President and his Counsellors; and thy servants of the Teachers’ Quorum, with their President and his Counsellors; also the President and Counsellors and members of the Deacon’s Quorum; that they all in their several callings may lift up their heads like men of God and work righteousness, instructing thy Saints continually in their several duties, and ministering in those things pertaining to their high and holy callings. May they be filled with the Holy Ghost and perform a great and glorious work in the midst of thy people Israel.

Grant that thy blessings may be propitious towards this stake of Zion, its President and his Council, and the High Council thereof. May they be men after thine own heart, quick to discern between good and evil, filled with the spirit of the Presidency and of counsel, of justice, and judgment, that the hearts of the people may be made glad, and that they may rejoice in all the administrations of thy servants. And may all the Presidents, Counsellors, High Councils, and Stakes of Zion in all the valleys of the mountains be partakers of like blessings.

Have mercy upon thy servants who labour upon the public works and are striving continually to build up thy kingdom, whether in the various offices and shops or by the wayside. Bless them with the refreshing effusions of thy Spirit, that they may have joy of heart continually. Bless them in their bodies, that they may have health and strength; bless their tools, and their shops, and everything that they put their hands unto and that is round about them, even all that pertains to the general welfare of thy people. May the ground of this block be preserved holy unto the Lord, and the time be hastened when its walls and gates shall preserve it from all unhallowed intrusions—when fountains shall come forth thereon for the cleansing, and purifying, and healing of thy people, and when a house shall be reared unto thy name, from which the ordinances of eternal life shall flow forth to the living and the dead, and the whole shall become a paradise in Zion, even as the garden of the Lord.

Bless all thy people in these valleys of the mountains. May thy Spirit dwell richly within them, and may they serve thee in spirit and in truth. May they cleave unto thee will [with] full purpose of heart, never failing to acknowledge thee in all things, and give thanks and praise unto thy holy name. Wilt thou multiply their posterity, that they may become a great people, and increase their flocks and their herds, and their farms, and their farms, and their gardens, and their orchards, and vineyards, and houses, and shops, and factories, and everything they shall stretch forth their hands to do. May the earth yield its increase without measure unto thy people, that there may be abundance in store for all who shall come hither to learn more fully the way of life and salvation, and for the sustaining of the public works. Wilt thou grant this rich blessing unto thy people, even that they may never be slothful, or grudgingly tithe their increase for the upbuilding of thy kingdom and the spread of thy Gospel on the earth. Bless and preserve thy people from all evil influences, from all untimely and false judging, from all evil thinking and speaking, from all enemies within and without. May their enemies have no power over them to prevail against them or to injure them in their persons, families, or property.

Bless thy servants who have gone to gather up thy people in Pottawatomie and lead them to this place. Give them wisdom and power to accomplish their mission to thy Divine acceptance. In an especial manner would we remember before thee, O our Father, thy children who may attempt to walk across the prairies this season with handcarts and wheelbarrows, pitching their tents by the way, or having naught but the heavens for a covering. Be very merciful unto all such and increase their faith. May thy strength be their strength, and may they be invigorated continually by thine almighty power, that every bone, and sinew, and muscle, and nerve, and every part of their bodies may be renewed, day by day, that their strength fail not. May they have such a power given unto them, that nothing but thine angels can go before them. May no enemy have any dominion over them or any accident befall them. Provide food for them by the way, even if it needs be manna from heaven, as thou didst unto our fathers in the wilderness. May disease and death have no power over them, but may every soul arrive safely in our midst to unite with us in songs of praise and thanksgiving unto God for his great and merciful kindness unto them.

Have compassion upon thy people, O Lord, who are scattered among the nations; and desire to gather according to thy word, but have not the means. Open the hearts of those who have, to impart unto those who have not, that the rich and the poor may journey together, according to thy will. And may all who are now on their way or may be coming this season, whether by land or water, horses or mules, or oxen, or waggons, or chariots, or by and means whatever, experience thy rich blessings, that they may be delivered from every evil and arrive in safety, that the rich valleys of the mountains may be filled with the Saints of the Most High.

Bless the Governor of this Territory, with the Legislators, Judges, Marshals, Sheriffs, and all in authority among the people; and may the spirit of love, obedience, union, and peace prevail. May the lawyers not have power to stir up strife, and contention, and lawsuits in our midst; and may the spirit of peace and conciliation be cultivated by all in authority.

May the Delegate from Utah, now in the Congress of the nation, be clothed upon with the Spirit and the power of Elijah’s God, that he may put to silence the tongues of evil men. May all the enemies of our God be confounded before him. May the wisdom of heaven be his, to lead and guide him in every emergency. May he never be confounded or put to silence or fear; but may he feel that God is with him, and that he will bring him off conqueror over every foe. May he stand forth triumphant in the midst of the nation, clothed with the principles of eternal truth and rectitude. May his daily walk be an example to the world and all with whom he associates; so proving himself a friend of God, and a man after his own heart seeking diligently to know thy mind and will, and yielding humble obedience thereunto.

We pray for the President of the United States, for the heads of departments, for the members of Congress, and all those in authority over us. May they have wisdom to discern the signs of the times and administer in righteousness in their respective callings, in their high and responsible stations. May they love mercy, deal justly, and seek knowledge, wisdom, and judgment from him whose right it is to rule, and become subservient to his holy teachings, Holy Father, may no evil spirit be suffered to prejudice their minds against us, thy servants, or thy people, or cause them to seek our injury; but may the good influences of thy Spirit control them in all their acts towards thy people and towards all the people over whom they preside, or for whom they legislate, that the pure principles of our national institutions may be perpetuated for ever.

Bless all the governments and rulers of the earth who bless thy people and protect thy servants, and overthrow all thrones, dominions, principalities, powers, and governments that fight against thy cause and thy servants, that the way may be opened, for the spread of eternal truth, even the Gospel of salvation, to all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people that dwell upon the face of the whole earth, and that thy servants may have access to the honest in heart everywhere.

Vouchsafe unto thine ancient covenant people, O Lord, the renovating Spirit of thy grace, that they may be prepared to receive their promised inheritance and be gathered from among all nations whither thou hast scattered them; and may they become polished, even after the similitude of a palace, and become fit temples for the reception and indwelling of thy Holy Spirit.

Remember, O Lord, in mercy, thine ancient covenant people who inhabit this land, even the seed of Joseph who was sold into Egypt. Give unto thy Saints the spirit of patience and forbearance, that they may act wisely and justly in all their intercourse with them. Be merciful unto them, O our Father, in their ignorant and degraded and miserable condition, inflicted on them as a living witness of thy righteous judgments; yet remember, we beseech of thee, our heavenly Father, that they are of thine ancient covenant people, and to them pertain the promises made unto their fathers. And we pray thee that their past experience in drinking of the cup of thy displeasure may suffice, and that thou wouldst now stretch forth thine arm for their deliverance from the darkness, superstition, and ignorance that reign in their souls. Give unto them dreams and visions and revelations by thy Spirit, that they may see their degraded condition, and the blessings which are in store for them through the obedience of their fathers, that they may search after thy servants and receive their teaching and the teachings of thy Spirit—that they may be enlightened in principle, in doctrine, and in duty, and learn the way of life and salvation, which their fathers knew and loved, but lost through transgression—that they may again become a white and delightsome people in the midst of the nations, and find salvation at last in thy presence.

Bless all men everywhere who love and obey thy laws, and bless and do good unto thy people. Let their days be lengthened and multiplied upon the earth. Multiply their joy and increase their posterity, that peace may prevail and righteousness spread abroad among the nations.

We present before thee, our heavenly Father, all men who have had the privilege of thy Gospel, who have heard the teachings of thy servants, and felt and beheld the manifestation of thy Spirit, and have turned away from the testimony of Jesus, and persecuted and mobbed thy Saints, and slain thy Prophets, even thine anointed one, and done despite unto thy mercy and try love, and have waxed old in iniquity and changed thine ordinances, have rejected the testimony of thy servants, and sought to destroy them from the face of the earth—whose days of repentance and salvation are past, and who are unmindful of thee, and will fight against thy cause and kingdom, and have shed innocent blood. We pray thee, our Father in the heavens, that thou wilt divest them of all power to injure thy people, that they may fall in the pits and be taken in the snares which they have spread for their neighbours—that they may go backward and not forward, and fall and rise not again. May the plagues which thou hast instituted come upon them, that they may perish from the face of the earth, and their generations after them—that their names be blotted out from henceforth, that the posterity of the righteous may fill the earth.

And now, our heavenly Father, we beseech of thee to listen to the voice of our supplication, and give us an answer of peace. Accept, we pray thee, of this our dedication of this house, of ourselves, our wives, our children, our houses, our flocks, our herds, and all that we possess, unto thee and to thy cause for ever.

We pray that thy good Spirit may be poured out upon us, thy people, while we remain together at this Conference—that thou wilt dictate all things pertaining thereunto—that we may be enabled to accomplish thy righteous will in all things, and grow up in perfection through the gift of thy Spirit—that at last we may rest in thy presence with all thy sanctified ones; and we will ascribe all praise, glory, and honour unto God and the Lamb, for ever and ever. Amen.

Heirship

Brigham Young

A discourse delivered by President Brigham Young, at a General Conference held in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, April 8, 1853.

I wish to deliver a short discourse, which may, perhaps, become a lengthy one before the close of this Conference.

I will now give the text, and probably shall call upon the brethren to fill out the sermon. I do not know that I can refer you to the Bible for the particular chapter and verse, to find the text; but the text may be given here, and the book referred to hereafter.

The text is the Right of Heirship. I will, however, make an addition to the Scripture before I proceed further with my remarks, and say, The Right of Heirship in the Priesthood; for unquestionably this will be connected with the text and brought into the discourse.

In the little that I shall say, I will endeavour to point out the items of doctrine and the right view to be contemplated and spoken upon by the brethren; for I wish this subject to be properly understood.

Pertaining to the kingdom of God, to this earth, to the organization of it, to the bringing forth of the children of men upon it, to the preparatory Gospel or law to fit and prepare them, after receiving their tabernacles, to enter again into the presence of their Father and God, this heirship, this right did belong, still belongs, and for ever will belong to the first-born son in every family of Adam’s race.

This is understood from the Bible, not only by the Latter-day Saints, but also by the Christian world. Jesus Christ, first-begotten of the Father, of all the rest of the children, and of all they possess, alone is the lawful heir. This is no mystery.

After passing over the ages and generations of the children of men for about six thousand years, we will come to the present congregation and say the right of heirship is the same now that it was in the beginning. It is as it was and as it ever will be, worlds without end. This I wish the Latter-day Saints to understand a little better than they have heretofore. I will give you my reason.

For instance, there are sisters in this Church that have been bereaved of their husbands, who died full of faith in the holy Gospel and full of hope for a glorious resurrection to eternal life. One of them is visited by a High Priest, of whom she seeks information touching her situation and that of her husband. At the same time, the woman has a son twenty-five years of age, who is an Elder in one of the Quorums of Seventies, and faithful in all the duties connected with his calling. She has also other sons and daughters. She asks this High Priest what she shall do for her husband, and he very religiously says to her, “You must be sealed to me, and I will bring up your husband, stand as proxy for him, receive his endowments and all the sealing, keys, and blessings, and eternal Priesthood for him, and be the father of your children.”

Hear it ye mothers! The mother that does that barters away the sacred right of her son. Does she know it? No. This has been done in hundreds of instances, though innocently and in ignorance, which makes it excuseable. For my own part, I am willing to wink at the ignorance of the people, and I believe our heavenly Father is.

But you that will hear and be made to understand the true principles that govern this matter, go from this place and do hereafter as has been done in bygone days; and instead of the children being robbed of their just rights: the woman shall lose her children, and they shall yet stand in their place and be put in the possession of their rights. What is to be done? Let mothers honour their children. If a woman has a son, let her honour that son.

But a mother may say, “My son is only five years old. I never had but one son among a number of daughters. I am advancing in years, and may die before I can be sealed to my husband.” Let that son wait until he is old enough to officiate for his father; and though you may go into your grave, let your son do his duty, and [you] never hang to the skirts of a man that is avaricious.

You may see a great many miserly persons with regard to dollars and cents. It is just as natural for men to be miserly with regard to their religious blessings. You may see hundreds of Elders who say to the sisters, “Come and be sealed to me,” crawling round to make the holy ordinances of, God a matter of speculation to administer to their avaricious dispositions. They will tell you that you will go into eternity and find yourselves without husbands, and can: not get an exaltation—that you cannot have this, that, or the other, unless you are sealed to them. I am free, and so are you. My advice to the sisters is, Never be sealed to any man unless you wish to be. I say to you High Priests and Elders, Never from this time ask a woman to be sealed to you, unless she wants to be; but let the widows and children alone.

I will refer you to a discourse I delivered here last season upon the subject of the resurrection and the millennium, setting forth before the people the work to be accomplished in that period of time. We have at least one thousand years, counting three hundred and sixty-five days, five hours, forty-eight minutes, and fifty-seven seconds to the year, if I recollect right, wherein the Elders of Israel will enter holy temples of the Lord and officiate for just such persons as you and I, that have done the work we were called to do in our day, whether it was much or little. There will be hundreds of thousands of the sons of Jacob to administer in these temples for you and me. Joseph, Hyrum, father Smith, and many others will be there to dictate and preside. Joseph will stand at the head of this dispensation and hold the keys of it, for they are not taken from him: they never were in time; they never will be in eternity. I shall be there if I live or if I die. If I die, my brethren or my children will officiate for me. I shall lose nothing through death. Magnify your calling in this Church, and I will warrant you an exaltation just as good and as great as you can ask for.

I might notice many more items pertaining to this matter; but the Elders going round telling the sisters they must be sealed to them, or they cannot get an exaltation, particularly has wounded my feelings. How ignorant such men are! This to me is like a shadow. To talk about it is sheer nonsense. Let every man and woman magnify their calling in the kingdom of God, and he will take care that we have our exaltation.

Sisters come to me and inquire what they shall do, saying, Brother A or B taught me so and so. They are as wild as the deer on the mountains. Their ideas and calculations are derogatory to every shade of good sound sense and to every principle of the Priesthood of heaven.

Brethren, learn to be patient and submissive to your duty and callings in life, and not be anxious to accumulate to yourselves that which, when you have obtained, you are at a loss to know what to do with. There are scores of men in this house that, if they could pile up an almost unlimited amount of gold, in a short time would not possess one dime of it. There are also scores of Elders here who, if they had five hundred women sealed to them and a thousand children, would destroy themselves and these over whom they exercise any influence. They would not know what to do with them. You want to have another wife: but do you use well the one you have got? It is a bad omen to me when a man wants another wife, and the one he has got is ready to leave him. If you cannot keep the jewel you already possess, be cautious how you take more, lest you lose them both.

I did not design to speak long, as it hurts me. I think I have laid out the text before the brethren plain enough for them to preach upon it. I wish them so to exhibit the subject before the people, that they may carry it away in their understandings.

Let me hear no more of this “You must be sealed to me, or you cannot get an exaltation.” If a man gets the widow of a good man, sealed, married to him, with a view to hold control over and rob every child in that family of their birthright, he will be mistaken. It will not be. I say to you, my brethren, young men, you Elders, Rise up and magnify your calling, honour the Priesthood; and if a man has stepped up and married your mother under the influence of such an expectation, TURN HIM OUT OF YOUR HOUSE, AND MAINTAIN YOUR BIRTHRIGHT.

Heirship—Necessity of Adherence to the Instructions of the Priesthood, etc.

Orson Hyde

A speech by Elder Orson Hyde, delivered at a General Conference held in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, April 8, 1853.

Brethren and sisters—I think the words that have just fallen from the lips of our President must have left an impression upon all hearts susceptible of understanding, that time will not easily remove.

I am sure there is no one in this congregation, however he may be entangled in the meshes of the net himself, but must be constrained to say, “True and righteous are thy ways, thou King of Saints.” When we hear the law which governs the right of heirship laid down so clearly, plainly, and forcibly as on the present occasion, we cannot but see; and seeing, we cannot but rejoice and be glad.

When a doctrine with which we have not formerly been acquainted is first preached to us, it is not always that we come into possession of the whole truth pertaining to it at once. This we do not expect.

I will illustrate it by a principle with which we are all acquainted. Does any person in this congregation doubt the ability of those skilled in the manufacture of sugar to produce that article from the beet-root in this valley? I presume there is not one that doubts it. Again—Is there any one that doubts the ability of those who are engaged in the iron regions to produce in time that which is needful and, necessary for the comfort and convenience of the people and for the improvement of this valley? Did they produce by the first blast, by the first exertion, that quality of iron that was necessary to cast into andirons like these? [pointing to two andirons which were placed upon the desk.] No. There were many comparatively fruitless attempts before anything essential could be brought out; but these fruitless efforts must of necessity precede the real, the genuine product. So it is with regard to the manufacture of sugar. There have been attempts made this to year to produce sugar, and partially successful. We are moving step by step to produce the very article that we need.

How many times have the people of this valley been engaged in various matters and things; but have they brought forth the genuine articles they wished to produce at the very first attempt? No. Is it to be expected that Heaven will pour out the fulness of the truth in all its brightness at once upon us mortals, whose minds are naturally in darkness—naturally mixed with the world and its errors? No. But the Lord first sends mortals like unto ourselves to give us light in proportion to our capacity, and by degrees prepare us to drink of the golden streams in all their rich effulgence and glory.

We have had sudden impressions, intimations, and suggestions, from time to time, which were correct, though perhaps not so clear, and a little error mixed up along with them: therefore, if the exertion to do right has been made and error has stepped in, the President has said he could exercise compassion and wink at the ignorance that has existed. But the time has now come when this error is being swept away by the light of truth, and the pure principles upon which we can ground our faith are beginning to be made manifest.

Jesus Christ is the heir of this lower world. Though he has been deprived, through the operation of the enemy to all righteousness, for a long time of enjoying his right—though the world was his own and everything in it—though all things were made by him that were made, yet, when he came to take possession of his inheritance; his own would not receive him. Hence he said, “The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man hath not where to lay his head.” Even upon his own inheritance there was not room where he might be permitted to lay his head. The day was postponed, and the time thrown in the future, when he should come into possession of his own.

But will that time come? Will the Son of God always be deprived of his right to the inheritance? No; it cannot be, He will come armed with power and glory eventually, and take possession of his own. When he came to take the world, to rule and reign over it, his effort was comparatively a fruitless one; for, instead of this, he was crucified. Fruitless, did I say? Must there not be an experiment—an exertion made before anything can be accomplished? Were there not many exertions made before that andiron could be produced? Certainly. Were they fruitless? Comparatively not; for they were necessary, and must precede that article, to pave the way. The Son of God came to take possession of his inheritance here. Did we say it was a fruitless attempt? I will not say so. It was necessary: it was as it should be. Yet he went from the world without becoming its ruler; he went to accomplish the will of his Father, to gather strength and power to effect, in his own due time, the very object and purpose for which he came. Though he had to lay down his life, it all seemed to be right and necessary; yet this does not discourage him: he is resolved to try it again. Why? Because he is the heir, and will not give up his inheritance, no there than any son would yield up his heirship to a stranger when his eyes are opened and his mind can comprehend his rights and privileges.

I tell you, brethren, this is beginning to look like the restitution of all things, when every right is restored to its legitimate heir. When every man and woman are put in possession of their own, then there is nothing to make life disagreeable. If I should see one belonging to me in the hands of another, I should feel that something was lacking to complete my happiness; but if everything that belongs to me is restored to my jurisdiction and placed under my control, where, then, is the aching void? It cannot be; for every principle, desire, and affection of the whole soul is satisfied, and I will say it is right. When all things are restored to their proper place—every treasure to its rightful heir, there can be no ground for dissatisfaction—no ground of complaint or of murmuring. And He that sitteth in the heavens understands and knows well the time to bring about all these things—the proper time to let the heir know and understand his right.

It would not be wise to tell the inexperienced child that an extensive legacy had fallen to him, until he should be old enough to appreciate it. If it were told him before, he might give way to vanity and a thousand foolish ideas and vices that would prove his ruin. When he is kept in ignorance of it until he is able to appreciate it, it is very likely, when he is informed of it, to make him a dignified being. These principles have been wisely hid from us while we were children. When the time draws near that we can appreciate them, our heavenly Father begins to make them manifest, to show to the heirs what belongs to them; and those who have taken the rights of others must relinquish them: they must fall back into the hands of the legitimate owners. For, just as sure as Lucifer, who has usurped authority over this world, has got to resign it to the Son of God, so sure must every right which has been taken from others be relinquished to its rightful owner. Not that I would compare my brethren who may have transcended certain bounds to Lucifer; but I tell you that Lucifer has a little sprinkling in the matter: this is the alloy. However, it is to be winked at, and heaven’s truth will purge the hearts that best for immortality and eternal life from all this alloy, and by-and-by they will find themselves “right side up, with care.”

It is for us to attend the instructions we receive from those who are called to teach us, and do our duty in the office and calling unto which we are appointed, and Heaven will provide and take care we get those things which we need. Why, says Isaac, (when his father had prepared the wood and fire for the burnt-offering,) “Where is the lamb to sacrifice?” Oh, says Abraham, looking upon his son with eyes that spoke volumes, and a heart containing a world of feeling, “God will provide the sacrifice.” Little did Isaac think he was the individual. The words of Abraham were enough to teach his son not to give himself any anxiety about that at all. We are to provide the wood and fire, and the lamb God will provide in his own due time. Our greatest concern ought to be how to discharge the duties that are made obligatory upon us—how to act in our respective callings with an eye single to the glory of God.

If I understand my own feelings and am capable of judging of things, I want none of the blessings that belong to my neighbour. I do not crave them. If I come in possession of anything that is not mine, and I might entertain the strongest feelings of attachment towards it, if I must have these feelings sacrificed, and the object of my tenderest regard taken away and given to another, what shall I do? Why, suffer it, and not complain.

Brethren and sisters, I say, things are coming to light, hidden things are being made manifest, and we have reason to rejoice and be glad.

I want to say a few words to the Elders that are going abroad to preach the Gospel. If I had never been abroad to preach, I could not speak upon this matter as I now can, though I have not been abroad, perhaps, as much as many others have; but I have to a certain extent, which has afforded me an experience I wish others to be benefited by. Brethren, do we realize that we are not only seeking for a crown of eternal life in a glorious resurrection, but that the destinies of the world depend upon our course, our actions, and our conduct in life. What are we sent forth to preach the Gospel for? To save the meek: but to the proud, the haughty, and high-minded, we are not sent. Jesus came not to call the righteous, but Sinners to repentance. And “how beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that publisheth peace, and bringeth glad tidings to the meek.” That is, in other words, how beautiful are the feet of them that come from the mountains, bringing glad tidings unto the meek. How enviable is their position. There are no beings upon earth that, in reality, are so dignified and exalted as the men that have these glad tidings to proclaim to the world, though the world may not know it—may not see them in their true character.

The world does not know them because it knew not their Master, but crucified and put him to death. This, however, did not deprive him of his glory; and although they did not appreciate the blessing, it was known in heaven, and on earth by the faithful.

So we his servants are going forth to save the meek—to proclaim the truth to the meek of the earth, and gather them together. It is said in the good Book that the Saints shall judge the world. Who are going forth now to judge the world? Who are going forth to bind up the law and seal up the testimony? To whom has this work been committed in the last days? To the servants of our God.

But, says one, in the day of judgment all these things are to be made known, and the destinies of men are to be made manifest away in the future sometime. What does the Saviour say? He says, “Now is the judgment of this world, and now shall the prince of this world be cast out.” I see, even in the kingdoms of the world, where their laws are in force and prevail—yea, even here in our city, I see men apprehended for crime. Shall we give them a postponement of their judgment until the final breaking up of the government away ahead? No. But immediately after the crime is committed. I see them arraigned at the bar of justice, tried and condemned; then they may be seen ornamented with a ball and chain in the street.

Now is the judgment of this world; now are the laws of heaven and of earth in force. Shall crime be permitted to accumulate in the kingdom of God, and never meet its doom until the end of the world? Now is the judgment of this world; and when an individual goes forth with the everlasting Gospel, bears his testimony in meekness, and it is rejected by any person or people, and he washes his feet in clean water, bearing testimony of it before his God, what has he done to that people? Do they want to wait for another judgment, when the judgment is already passed? for it is said, Thou shalt go thy way, and return not again to that man or to that house, city, or people.

When the servants of God bind up the law and wash their feet against the people, does not this look like the Saints judging the world? With such a people the judgment is passed. They do not know it; but they will find it out when they wake up from the ion g sleep of death and reckon their history. They will find out that away back at a certain time a servant of God washed his feet against them. Ah! there the die was cast; there their doom was sealed; there they were barred out against coming into the kingdom of God. That was the important moment when salvation passed from them.

Is there any such thing as men having power to forgive sins on earth and they are forgiven in heaven—of retaining them and they are retained in heaven? When the servants of God wash their feet against those who reject his counsel against themselves, do they retain their sins, or forgive them? The Lord says, “What you do on earth I do in heaven,” because “he that heareth you heareth me, and he that rejecteth you rejecteth me.” Brethren, think of these things, and remember the words spoken still further—viz., “But search with all diligence and care.” Be careful not to wash your feet against any but those that are worthy; but endeavour, with long-suffering, and amid the contradiction of sinners against yourself, to be diligent and patient until it go to the last extremity; but when you have done so against a house, an individual, or people, be careful not to return there again, but go your way, even as it is said.

By-and-by, when we get through this world, we shall have another sphere to act in. But, say the noble and proud of the world, “I care not for your washing of feet or your testimony, because, when I die I go into an eternal world, and there I will meet my God, and not you. He will be more merciful to me. I will have nothing to fear from you, for you will have no more power there than myself.” But when you go into the eternal world, if that same Elder who washed his feet against you in this should be the only God you should ever see or find in the eternal world, then you meet with the rubbers again.

Now, there are Lords many and Gods many; but unto us there is but one God, the great Father of all. When he says, “He that rejects you rejects me,” the same importance is attached to your words as to his. What shall we do when we go into the eternal world, after we have laboured and toiled in this for the cause of truth? We are to act upon our Priesthood still; for it is an everlasting Priesthood, without beginning of days or end of life. It lasts for ever. What, last for ever, and still have nothing to do, as some imagine? We have a great deal to do. When brother Parley was speaking on the condition of the spirits in the spirit-world, about their being as dark and ignorant as they are here, I thought we should have plenty to do. These Spirit Rappers that communicate with mortals are no doubt a grade of spirits that are as ignorant of celestial principles as the wild, degraded Indian. The spirit that raps can tell about somebody that comes within the circle of his knowledge; but what does he know about Jesus Christ and the eternal plan of salvation any more than these Indians? Upon this matter they are in the dark. Those men who hold the Priesthood will enter the abodes of those spirits and make a proclamation of the Gospel to them, and I presume it will be something similar to Paul’s proclamation at Athens. The people of that city worshipped all the gods of the nations; and for fear there should be one whom they did not worship, they erected an altar to the “UNKNOWN GOD.” “Whom you ignorantly worship,” says Paul, “him declare I unto you.

Perhaps the very first proclamation of the Priesthood among those spirits who give spiritual communications to mortals will draw forth a confession of their ignorance of the true God and the principles of life and salvation; but you will go there to put them right and declare to them the true God—the true principles of spiritual communication—to point out wherein their way of communication is not lawful—that there is but one eternal source of true and certain communication to the other world, and that is through Jesus Christ. You will tell them that he has been upon our earth, and visited their dominions long ago, and that he has sent you now to fill his track and set them right.

How was it at the time the Saviour came on the earth? There were all kinds of spirits abroad ready to communicate; hence there were false teachers and false Christs. But the Saviour of the world entered their dark abode and put them right, to redeem them, and have mercy and compassion on them. So, when we go hence, we shall go into just such a place—into paradise, or the spirit world, to preach to them and regulate them. We shall know better about it when we get there: we shall understand our mission better.

When brother Parley was preaching about the thief on the cross, who was ignorant of the principles of salvation—(the Saviour would not stop to preach to him when he was expiring upon the cross, but he postponed it until he got into the spirit world, and there he instructed him,) some one whispered to me—I cannot tell who it was—“Would it not be a good thing to send some of our thieves on a mission to take lessons in that school?” It Would perhaps be a higher school than this: they might feel themselves exalted and elevated, if they got into a higher class. [A voice in the stand: “There are no stray cattle to look after there!”] I expect stray cattle do not belong to that department. These matters are of moment and of vital importance to the Elders of Israel, and ought to rest with weight upon their minds.

I do not feel disposed to trespass further upon your time. I wanted to reiterate the remarks of the President. He has illustrated the matter and made so it clear that every eye may see it, and every heart understand. He knew what was necessary. He has not only given us a text, but preached the Sermon also. I cannot make it any plainer, and it would darken counsel by words without knowledge to attempt it.

I pray and beseech you to be awake to these things; and may God bless us and save us all in his kingdom. Amen.

The Lord at the Head of His Kingdom, etc.

Brigham Young

A discourse by President Brigham Young, delivered at the Spring Conference, held in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, April 7, 1852.

It may be considered that we are a mixed congregation, consisting of Bishops, Seventies, High Priests, Elders, the Twelve, and the First Presidency; but I consider we are, strictly speaking, a meeting of the Elders of Israel; for if we were to be instructed in the duties of any one of these Quorums, that instruction would be equally good for all.

This vast concourse of persons are all Elders in Israel, with but a very few exceptions; for there are some Priests, Teachers, and Deacons present, but not a great many. The greater portion of the male members of this community are Elders in the Church; and, as Elders, we are to be instructed so as to obtain an understanding of all things pertaining to our duty.

We have heard and felt sufficient to know that the wisdom which is to be obtained in this kingdom is more satisfactory to us than the boasted wisdom of the world. This is appreciated by the majority of this assembly, if not by all. The knowledge possessed by this people is of more value than all the knowledge of the world put together, and infinitely greater. In this kingdom you will find the root of all science, and that, too, in men who have not been taught the sciences after the manner of the world. They understand the origin of science, and can trace it through the life of man, much to their satisfaction. Let any man who possesses the Holy Ghost, though never taught the sciences but a very little, hear a learned man exhibit the principles of any science, he understands the origin and proper bearings of the subject treated upon by the speaker, through the increased rays of that light which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. This is to us a matter of no little satisfaction.

I have many cogitations with regard to this work of the last days and the prosperity of this kingdom; yet I have learned years ago that the Lord stands at the helm that guides Zion’s ship. He is its Dictator; and unless we work exactly to the line that is marked out by him, our works will be in vain. This has been my experience from the beginning. In every branch and avenue of our lives we must learn to work to the line of truth. It is for us to know what ought to be done, and then do it. Though there should be no earthly, prospect of accomplishing it, we can certainly try; and if we try with all our might, that act will prove at least a resolute and determined mind, adorned with patience and perseverance. And if, with all our resolute endeavours, we are still unable to accomplish our purpose, the Lord will be very likely to stretch forth his hand and give the victory.

Perhaps, before we get through with this Conference, we shall ask such a favour of the Bishops as we asked of them last Conference, which was granted to the letter, and that most rigorously. The brethren are rigorous with themselves, for they have paid their tithing willingly, and I do not know that the Bishops have had to urge them any to the fulfilment of this duty. However, some on the first reflection thought it seemed impossible for them to comply with it, and some thought that our request was inconsistent; but with a little more mature reflection, with a little faith and prayer, they brought themselves directly to obedience. I think this has been almost universally the case. If we should now call upon the Bishops for a favour, it would be to grant us a little assistance with regard to our purchasing and laying in lumber, nails, glass, and other merchandize to supply our future wants. I wish each Ward to bear their share in this matter. I mention it that the Bishops may be alert in their feelings.

Now, brethren, can we fight against and subdue ourselves? That is the greatest difficulty we ever encountered, and the most arduous warfare we over engaged in. This will apply most perfectly to the brethren who have gathered with the Saints. When we are out in the world we preach faith and repentance, so that the Saints bring the knowledge of first principles with them to the gathering-place. Your next step is to enter into the study of this. A man may learn letters and study all the various branches of scholastic education to the day of his death; but if he does not attain to strict self discipline, his learning will not amount to much. The catalogue of man’s discipline he must compile himself: he cannot be guided by any rule that others may lay down, but is placed under the necessity of tracing it himself through every avenue of his life. He is obliged to catechise and train himself, for he knows his own disposition the best—its fortified and unfortified parts. He is therefore the most fit to school himself, until every particle of the man is brought into subjection to the law of Christ.

When had you obeyed the first ordinances of the Gospel, then you discovered that the Lord had set his hand to gather Israel, that Zion might be built up and Israel gathered from the four winds. These doctrines have been taught and re-taught again and again. I think there is not a man here who did not fully understand them while in his native country. There may be a few exceptions among those who have by chance fallen into the society of the Saints at the gathering-place where their first acquaintance was formed, and consequently have not had the same opportunity of hearing the first principles as others have had in the world. Now, we enter this school to be planed, squared, and polished.

Suppose we admit of malice, anger, and wrath in our hearts—steep ourselves in wickedness, by taking the name of God in vain, by entering into every kind of outbreak and transgression, by defiance to every wholesome law, by neglecting our families, physically, mentally, and morally, and by neglecting our brethren and ourselves, our former repentance and baptism for the remission of our sins will not profit us, through indulging in sin afterwards; but all our former sins will again be upon us, and we must atone for the whole. Then let us cleave unto righteousness, learn to do well, and continue to do so all the days of our lives, that our former sins may not stand against us. This is our duty.

If every person in the community would correct his own errors each day he lives, the errors of the whole would continually be effectually corrected. For where is there a man who, by preaching on a text from the Bible or the Book of Mormon, can correct the faults of the people? That may be done until they go into their graves, and little or no good result from it. I mean to correct my own faults, and it is for you to do the same. It is an individual business, over which each man must preside, until every fault in our whole lives is corrected and we are sanctified before the Lord.

If your neighbour suffers his cattle or his children to trespass upon your property, never retaliate or speak an angry reply, for this will engender a spirit of anger in him. Consider well before you suffer your minds to be irritated in the least. Suffer them not to be agitated until your blood is boiling with rage before you are aware; but stop and reflect, coolly consider, and quietly reason with the person or persons who have trespassed upon you, and show them the nature of their transgression against you. If they continue in the same course of conduct, reason the stronger with them, without quarrelling. Thus bring your passions down into subjection to your will, and cultivate an even unruffled temper, until you can perfectly control yourselves at all times, in all places, and under all circumstances. Then our affections and feelings would become congenial to those of the angels of God, and we should continue to increase in that Holy Spirit which would prepare us for the society of holy beings. This is our school, and a profitable one it is to the Elders of Israel.

Why I mention these things is that you may understand, as quick as you have believed and have been baptized for the remission of your sins, that you have then further duties to perform. To be continually repenting is not required of us. If the Elders of Israel could do all that is required of them; they would not need to repent, but they would seek continually to walk in the paths of truth, virtue, and holiness. It is not in keeping with their calling to be fighting and quarrelling with their brethren, or treading upon the sacred rights of others; but it is their duty to walk in the paths of righteousness all the day long. And they will be chastened again and again until they do it.

This is my teaching to the people continually. We do not care about hearing an overgrown Gospel sermon preached here; for the people understand it perfectly already. But do they understand the principle of self-control, and of properly ordering their lives and course before the Lord? Do the Elders of Israel understand all that the Lord requires of them? They do not. This belongs to other branches of the same celestial science. This perfect science requires men and women to be in the school all the days of their lives; and they will not see a single day in which they will not learn some truth with which they were not before acquainted. They can learn from themselves—from the world—from the government of heaven—from the management, government, control, doctrines, and laws of eternity, which will yet be exhibited before us. The Lord has established the world, with its varied productions, for the education of his children, that they may improve upon little things first, and so continue to increase, grow, and strengthen, until they become perfect men in Christ Jesus. These are the duties and this is the situation of the Elders at home.

We have not had much privilege hitherto of meeting together in the Valley. Four years ago, when the brethren came into this valley, brother George A. Smith delivered his first lecture upon the cannon, for there were no houses wherein the people could assemble. Since then they have been greatly blessed, yet they have had little opportunity of holding meeting. The first large place we had to meet in was the Bowery. We felt comfortable in it, and I felt as thankful for it as I ever aid for anything in my life; but as quick as the falling weather came, it drove the Saints away? and rendered it necessary to discontinue the meetings in that place and to hold them in the different Wards, so that it became impossible to get all the people together. Now we have a convenient room—the best hall I ever saw in my life, wherein the people could be convened on one floor. I trust we shall renew our strength, meet here to pray, and to praise the Lord, and partake of the sacrament, until our feelings are perfectly pure; for we are where we can sit and enjoy the society of each other as long as we please, and there is none to make us afraid. Let us be industrious in this great school, nor ever slacken our pace.

There are a great many branches of education: some go to college to learn languages, some to study law, some to study physic, and some to study astronomy, and various other branches of science. We want every branch of science taught in this place that is taught in the world. But our favourite study is that branch which particularly belongs to the Elders of Israel—namely, theology. Every Elder should become a profound theologian—should understand this branch better than all the world. There is no Elder who has the power of God upon him but understands more of the principles of theology than all the worm put together.

This reminds me of a little circumstance that transpired here a year ago last summer. You, no doubt, well recollect Elder Day, (a Baptist minister on his way to California,) who used to preach to us so nicely. I preached one day when he was present. In the course of my remarks, I brought up the subject of the Deity—at the point touching the character of our Father in heaven, upon which he desired the most to be instructed. I dropped the subject and turned to something else. He went to dinner with me, and while we sat at the dinner table, he said, “Brother Young, I was waiting with all my anxious heart, with mouth, eyes, and ears open to receive something great and glorious.” “What about, brother Day?” “Why, as you were describing the Deity, and just came to the point I was the most anxious to have expounded, behold you waived it and turned to something else.” I smiled and said, “After I had taught them how, I wanted the people to add the rest of the sermon themselves.” He said, “I declare, brother Young, I would have given anything I possessed in the world, if you had continued your remarks until I had obtained the knowledge I desired.” I inquired the nature of it. “To know the character of God.” I smiled and said, “Are you a preacher of the Gospel?” “Yes.” “How long have you been a preacher?” “Twenty-seven years I have been a preacher of the Gospel of Christ.” “And you have been a minister so long, and have never learned anything about the character of the Being about whom you have been preaching! I am astonished! Now you want to find out the character of God. I can make you answer the question yourself in a few minutes.” “Well, I do not know, brother Young: it is a very mysterious subject to mortal man.” “Now, let me ask you a single question. Will you tell me what God our. Father in heaven appears like?” He sat a considerable time, while the colour on his cheeks ebbed and flowed alternately, till at last he replied, “Brother Young, I will not presume to describe the character of the Deity.” I smiled, and he thought I was treating the subject lightly. “I am not making light of the subject, but I am smiling at your folly, that you—a teacher in Israel—a man who should stand between the living and the dead—yet know nothing about your Father and God. Were I in your place, I would never preach another sermon while I lived, until I learned more about God. Do you believe the Bible?” “I do.” “What resemblance did our father Adam bear to his God, when he placed him in the Garden of Eden?” Before he had time to reply, I asked him what resemblance Jesus bore to man in his incarnation? and “Do you believe Moses, who said the Lord made Adam in his own image and after his own likeness? This may appear to you a curiosity; but do you not see, bona fide, that the Lord made Adam like himself; and the Saviour we read of was made to look so like him, that he was the express image of his person?” He laughed at his folly himself. “Why,” said he, “Brother Young, I never once thought of it before in all my life, and I have been a preacher twenty-seven years.” He never had known anything about the character of the God he worshipped; but, like the Athenians, had raised an altar with the inscription, “To the unknown God.”

There is not one of the faithful Elders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints but is more or less acquainted with the physical and moral character of the God he serves; which is more than all the world knows, or can know, independent of the inspiration of the Holy Ghost. The greatest, the best, the most educated, and the most profound theologians on the earth, who have obtained their learning by reading and study, had no correct knowledge of what is in the Bible about God, angels, sin, righteousness, and many other important subjects, until Joseph Smith made it known.

We are now in the school of theology and making rapid progress in the study of this celestial science. I admit there are some few dunces in the school: some advance at a very slow pace, and some not at all. It would be difficult to tell whether they enjoy anything or not, or whether they are in the faith or not. But, as a general thing, our boys, who are from the age of ten to fifteen years, know more of the principles of theology than the most educated clergymen in Christendom. In comparison to what is plainly revealed, the world of mankind are almost entirely ignorant of those principles which to them are of the greatest importance.

You certainly are learning; and, brethren, I tell you again, what I have told you repeatedly, if you ever wish to have my good feelings, it will be owing to your conduct in the strict observance of righteousness and ceasing from all contentions from speaking lightly of our great Father in heaven, of our elder brother Jesus Christ, of the angels of God, and of any good being upon the earth, from this time henceforth and for ever. If you want my fellowship, cease from doing these things. I may love you and seek your welfare with all my might; but I do not love the profane speeches and wicked conduct of some of the Elders in Israel. I have no fellowship for men who are guilty of breaking the Sabbath, of drinking spirituous liquors to excess, of contending with each other, and going to law before Gentile or Bishops’ courts to settle their difficulties. There is a better way of settling difficulties than either of these.

I gave the Elders a little key lately, to know when they were in the right path. I will now give you another. When a difference of judgment exists between two parties, let them come together and lay their difficulties at each other’s feet, laying themselves down in the cradle of humility, and say, “Brother, (or sister,) I want to do right; yea, I will even wrong myself, to make you right.” Do you not think that a man or woman, acting in that manner towards his or her neighbour, would be justified by the law of righteousness? Their judgments come together, and they are agreed: there would, consequently, be no need of calling in a third person to settle the difference. After taking this course, if you cannot come together, then call in a third person and settle it. But for those who bear the name of Saints to go into a Gentile court to settle their differences is a stink in the nostrils of the Almighty. To me it is disgusting, filthy, and loathsome, in every sense of the word. I abhor it. Do, for Heaven’s sake and for your own sakes, take my counsel and show mercy to your brethren, even as the Lord has been merciful to us.

It has been observed that the people want revelation. This is revelation; and were it written, it would then be written revelation, as truly as the revelations which are contained in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants. I could give you revelation about going to California, for I know the mind of the Lord upon that matter. I could give ‘you revelation upon the subject of paying your Tithing and building a temple to the name of the Lord; for the light is in me. I could put these revelations as straight to the line of truth in writing as any revelation you ever read. I could write the mind of the Lord, and you could put it in your pockets. But before we desire more written revelation, let us fulfil the revelations that are already written, and which we have scarcely begun to fulfil.

A person was mentioned to-day who did not believe that Brigham Young was a Prophet, Seer, and Revelator. I wish to ask every member of this whole community, if they ever heard him profess to be a Prophet, Seer, and Revelator, as Joseph Smith was? He professed to be an Apostle of Jesus Christ, called and sent of God to save Israel. If you know what the calling of an Apostle is, and if there were ten thousand of them on the earth at the same time, you must know that the words of an Apostle who magnifies his calling are the words of the Almighty to the people all the time. He never need be called in question whether he revealed the mind of the Lord or not. Although brothers Willard Richards, Heber C. Kimball, and myself are out of the Quorum of the Twelve, our Apostleship has not been taken from us. Who ordained me to be First President of this Church on earth? I answer, It is the choice of this people, and that is sufficient. If the Lord designates a plan how his cause and kingdom can be best advanced, whose business is it, if it is the mind of the people to follow it? It is ours and the Lord’s; but it is certainly not the business of those who are enemies to his cause. I preached considerably upon this point in Nauvoo, to give the people the understanding of the different callings of men. Joseph Smith was a Prophet, Seer, and Revelator before he had power to build up the kingdom of God, or take the first step towards it. When did he obtain that power? Not until the angel had ordained him to be an Apostle. Joseph Smith, Oliver Cowdery, and David Whitmer were the first Apostles of this dispensation, though in the early days of the Church David Whitmer lost his standing, and another took his place. I have taught the brethren this principle years ago. When a man is an Apostle, and stands at the head of the kingdom of God on the earth, and magnifies his calling, he has the keys of all the power that ever was bestowed upon mortal man for the building up of the kingdom of God on the earth.

I will now leave these items and take up another. I hinted to-day at the wisdom of the Lord in opening the gold mines, and said he had one object in view, among many others—namely, to try the faith of the Saints. By this his wisdom has been exhibited, and much accomplished by it among those also who are not Saints. Taken view of this community. A portion will not be Saints. This has always been the case when God had a Church on the earth. They are not all sheep that are in the fold, neither are they all Saints who bear the name. I wish you to understand that when the sheep are separated from the goats, they will never again bear the like afflictions they bore while they mingled with the goats, as long as the world stands; no, neither in this world nor any other. Let the sheep and goats be once separated, and the master of that flock of sheep will never afflict them. When there are no goats to annoy the sheep, the latter will mingle with each other and go hand in hand in full fellowship. But when goats are among the sheep, they besmear them with their stink, and they frisk about, and behave so as to actually turn the sheep almost into goats. They will grow short in the hair, look like goats, and stink like them. The master of the flock must therefore do something to preserve the blood of the sheep pure, lest they completely degenerate and altogether become goats. They must be chastened by persecution, to drive out the stinking goats from their midst. The Lord opened the California gold mines to lead them off; and I say to the goats, Go! I am glad of it. “But do you not think the sheep will go too?” Never mind, if they do: they will get well besmeared with the flavour of the goats, run off and wash themselves, and come back again. Though I speak thus, I do not despise the goats; no, not in the least.

You will perhaps recollect a dream I had in the spring of 1848, when so many were going to California. It seemed as though the whole community would be carried away with the spirit of gold, which caused much anxiety in my mind and enlightened my understanding. I dreamed I was a little north of the hot springs, with many of my brethren, among some scattered timber. I thought of sending to Captain Brown’s, on the Weber river, to get some goats, which I had previously bought of him; but while I was conversing with the brethren, I thought the Prophet Joseph Smith came up to us, and I spoke to him. I thought I would send for my goats which I had purchased from Captain Brown, and brother Joseph started off to the north, and I thought very likely he would purchase the whole of brother Brown’s stock; but I felt quite reconciled, if he did. I thought I stood there some time talking with the brethren, when I looked up towards the road on my right, and behold I saw brother Joseph returning, riding on a waggon without any box to it; but it had a bottom of boards, and on these boards there was a tent and other camping implements, &c., as though he had been on a journey of some length. He alighted from the waggon, and came to where we were standing. I looked, and saw, following the waggon, an almost innumerable flock of sheep of all kinds, sizes, colours, and descriptions, from the largest, finest sheep I ever saw, down to the ugly decrepit dwarf. The wool on the large ones, I thought, was as white as snow; then the next smaller ones had also nice fine wool on them, and some were black and white; others had coarse long wool upon them, approximating to hair; and so on, until they became a mixture of goats and sheep I looked on the strange flock and wondered. While I was looking, I asked Joseph what in the world he was going to do with such a flock of sheep, and said to him, “Why, brother Joseph, you have got the most singular flock of sheep I ever saw: what are you going to do with them?” He looked up and smiled, as he did when he was living, and as though he was in reality with me, and said, “They are all good in their place.” This is the dream.

So it is with this people. If you can only find the place for the goats, they answer the end for which they were made. I have always realized that a half-hearted “Mormon” is one of the meanest of human beings, for such are always ready to say, “How do you do, brother Devil?” and “How do you do, brother Jesus?” or, “Brother Jesus, I want to make you acquainted with brother Devil.” It is no trouble for them to turn unto Baal or unto Jesus; yet, at the same time, the Lord has a use for them. I have often heard men say they were convinced that “Mormonism” was true, and that they would cleave to it; but as for their hearts being converted, it is altogether another thing. Mobs never have done one thing against this people, but they could trace them, and have known all about it; for you will always find that the goats will run and lick salt with the sheep; and the Lord who made them has placed them in the world to serve his own purpose. When by these characters afflictions are brought upon the Saints, and they are bereft of all they possess, it is to make them more attached to the cause of truth, while their persecutors are hurled into oblivion, which is the last of them.

If gold is a sufficient inducement to lead men off to live in the midst of that society in California, after they know and understand the condition of it, it certainly proves that they love the things of this world better than they love Christ. You may say you are poor, and wish to accumulate something to help yourself and your family. “Are you starving to death for want of food?” “No.” All of you have plenty to subsist upon. If those who go to California for gold were full of the Holy Ghost, they would clothe their wives and children with buckskin, and wear it themselves to the day of their death, rather than mingle with the wicked and be induced to leave the society of the Saints. The true cause of their taking such a course is, they do not love the Lord.

There is a class of persons that persecution will not drive from the Church of Christ, but prosperity will; and again, there is another class that prosperity will not drive, but persecution will. The Lord must and will have a company of Saints who will follow him to the cross, if it be necessary; and these he will crown. They are the ones who will wear a celestial crown and have dominion, rule, and government. These are they who will receive honour of the Father, with glory, exaltation, and eternal lives. They shall reign over kingdoms, and have power to be Gods, even the sons of God.

Those other classes will take different stations and possess inferior glories, according to their works in the flesh. That class who will altogether serve the world and disregard the cause of truth will become servants to the sons of God and be in servitude throughout eternity.

What shall we do? I say, Cleave to “Mormonism,” work with all our might for the Lord, and love him better than any other earthly or heavenly object. And if he requires us to sacrifice our houses, our horses, our cattle, our wives, and our children, let them remain upon the altar; but let us follow him to salvation and eternal life. Amen.

Discernment, etc.

Heber C. Kimball

Address by President Heber C. Kimball, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, April 6, 1854.

We have had laid before us many items by the President; and so far as I am concerned, one thing suits me just as well as another. I am very much in favour of all the remarks of brother Brigham, and they are revelation to us, and, that from God. It gives me a great deal of satisfaction when I hear a man tell the mind of the Lord, and I can have a testimony to myself that it is the mind of the Lord; and when I have a testimony that it is the mind and will of God, I then know that I have got a similar spirit to the one that revealed it.

It is the privilege of this people from this time henceforth and for ever to understand the things that revolve through their minds from day to day and from year to year. The majority of this people imagine to themselves a great many things that are in reality the things of God—things that God is putting into their hearts; but they do not know how to organize them and arrange such ideas into sentences, to convey them to the minds of the people. It takes an Apostle to do it. It is not every man or woman that can do it.

There have been many things related here that you have, no doubt, thought of, but did not know whether they were right or wrong. It is a great consolation to me to have that degree of the Spirit of the Lord to discern all things and be able to tell what is true and what is untrue. Is it not worth more than all the gold of the world? It is; for gold cannot purchase it. It cannot be purchased with jewels, nor with clothing, nor with the souls of men; and it is just as free to you as it is to me.

I thank God for the things that are going to take place, to give every man a fair chance to prove himself to be a Saint or to be a Devil. Jesus says, “My sheep hear my voice, and they will follow me, and a stranger they will not follow.” This is Scripture. What will you do with it? Are those that are going to the north and to the south, to the east and to the west, following the Shepherd’s voice? Are those who are leaving the Saints to mingle with the world to search for riches following the Good Shepherd or his Spirit? No; but they are following a stranger, and they do not know the Good Shepherd’s voice nor the Good Shepherd’s Spirit.

Well, I am glad they are going. I went up to my mill yesterday, and as I was coming back, I met several brethren on their way to California as fast as they could drive. I thought they were afraid of getting a mission if they stayed here to attend the Conference.

I have learned one thing to a demonstration since I became a member of this Church, that if a man is determined to be damned, nothing can hinder it. I have argued with men for hours, for weeks, for months, and for years, to prevail on them to serve the Lord; but my labours have generally been spent in vain on persons who needed so much persuasion to do good. The Spirit of the Lord does not inspire me to trouble myself any more about men who will do wrong. It is enough for me to do the will of the Lord my God, even those things I am dictated to do by my President; and let every other man act as I do, and be perfectly independent whether to serve God or Mammon. I would not now step one step out of my way to head a man’s course that is determined to go to the Devil; but I will say, Go into the fire, that you may be burned out. He will be saved when he comes to himself; but he never will come to himself, until he is burned out like an old pipe that has become impregnated with filthiness.

The idea of having places of location is good. The people will gather there as they did in Kirtland, and in Missouri, and in other places. I consider it to be a screen. You know, when you carry your grain to the mill, you must take great pains to get out all the smut and dirt, and run it through a screen, that the chaff and other useless matter may drop through, before it goes into the smut machine and hopper. It has also to go through a hurricane, that it may blow off all the dust and make it clean. Many of us have been through a hurricane and through earthquakes. A smut machine is a fit representation of an earthquake: it proves every kernel; and if it is a smut kernel, it bursts it to pieces. After it goes through the hopper and the grinders, it is separated by the bolt into flour of two or three kinds, and the bran passes out by itself. Where there is not a good screen to screen off the kernels of smut and chaff, and ether obnoxious substances, they will have an effect upon the flour. But do they destroy the flour? No: they only blacken it a little; and it will not rise so good when you make a coke of it, because there is no life in that filthy substance that is mixed with it. The life is in the flour.

Upon the same principle, a great many Saints are emigrating, and also others that are not Saints, but thieves, and liars, and adulterers, and fornicaters, and murderers; and they make the good flour, in the eyes of the world to look a little black. But it does not affect the righteous Saint, the holy man, nor the holy woman, nor does it affect the servants of the living God, who bear the Priesthood of the Son of God. I am very much in favour of having in the Lord’s mill a good screen, smut machine, and bolt. We have ground wheat long enough to know the value of a good screen and smutter; and it is high time these valuable appendages should be attached to the mill, which will be a decided improvement. Every portion of the good wheat is good for something, but the smut is good for nothing: we feed our horses with the bran and fatten our pigs, and the other part of it is good to feed ourselves and our children.

What are my feelings continually? They are—I would to God this people would all do right and walk humbly before their God, and do unto one another as they would wish others to do unto them, and when men labour for each other, labour for their brother as they would wish him to labour for them. But I see men who come to labour for the Lord, who are eye-servants. A man who will be an eye-servant to his God will be to his brother; and that man who will be an eye-servant to his brother will be to his God, and he never will work only as you stand and watch him. I see men work on the public works—one hundred, or perhaps one hundred and fifty in a gang, and I have watched them work, and not over twenty men out of the one hundred and fifty will be at work at the same time, while the rest are standing still. I supposed they had agreed to work by turns, so that they would not become wearied before night. Is this doing as you would be done by? I know, gentlemen and ladies, that it is not; and those who do such things will be brought to an account for them, and for all the works of your lives, whether they be good or whether they be evil, whether they be much or whether they be little. You will not receive a reward for anything more than you merit; and whatever you have done, for it you merit a reward, and that belongs to you; but no men or women in the celestial world will be rewarded for that which they have not done.

Do you suppose the Lord will divide his inheritance to the children of men, unless they have earned a right and title to it? (I speak with regard to this earth.) No, no more than I would leave my inheritance to all my children when half of them had turned away from me and never tried to build up me and my estate. Are such rebellious children heirs to it? If they are in truth, then you are all heirs to the estate of the Almighty, whether you have been true to him or against; him—whether you have striven to build up and increase his kingdom or pull it down, and the blessings he has promised to the righteous belong to the wicked as well as to the righteous. I tell you, my family cannot claim any portion of my estate, unless they have assisted in gathering it, and when they have assisted in gathering it and in building it up, they are to be rewarded from that estate according to their merits in building it up and increasing it. That is the way God will deal with the families of the earth, and with this people more especially, and they cannot escape from it. If I seek to build up the kingdom of God, from the time I first came into this Church until I lay down my body in the grave, still my spirit is as capable in another state to continue that work as it is in this. I believe I was active before I came here, in laying the foundation to come here and continue the work in this world. I have come here and received my body to accomplish that which I could not accomplish in the spirit; and now I have got to leave this tabernacle to go again into the spirit world to perform a work I cannot do in the flesh, that I may be prepared to receive my body again and enter into the celestial world with the Gods; and if I am faithful, all things are mine, because I have been faithful in my Father’s business. But that man who will sit down in idleness, and lounge away his precious moments, doing no good to himself, to his brethren, or to his God, will not be an heir to the inheritance; nor that woman who will sit in the corner and grunt, grunt, grunt, until she is all grunt together, and the bumps of grunt stick out in every direction, and she cannot move her little finger to do one good action to build up God’s kingdom, or assist her husband in doing it. It is just so with a great many men and women in this Church, and I wish there were less of them.

No man or woman has taken a proper step—has pursued a course that is according to the mind and will of God, but what it is for his or her exaltation in his kingdom. Suppose they have pursued a right course, and suffered a little in doing so, and then complain about it, will they enter into their exaltation? I tell you, No. Joseph said they would not, and brother Brigham has said they will not, and God has said they will not.

When men or women that have entered into the holy order, and are considered quite unholy by the world, and a little so by some of the good Saints, sit down and begin to find fault and murmur about it, they never will attain to that glory they otherwise would.

Take a righteous course, brethren, and build up the kingdom of God, and all will be well with you continually, and all things will work together for your good. I have not language to explain things any plainer than I do. They are plain enough to me; and if you understand them as I do, they will do you good, and build you up, and nourish you, and strengthen you, and give you grace and patience and humility.

As brother Brigham says, this people are my pride, and my eyes are continually awake to their welfare. This people are a good people, and they are the pride of my heart; and God knows I love to see you do right, and be faithful, and work, and exert yourselves, and do good, and work righteousness all the day long, and not impose upon the Church and upon your brethren, and want them to carry you on their shoulders, and expect them to pity you and coax you and flatter you. Do you expect that such a person will ever enter into the celestial kingdom of God and be crowned? No; for if that spirit is in him or her in the flesh, it will be the same in the spiritual world. If any of my family will do wrong in the house, they will do it out of the house; that is, if their spirit will do it in the body, they will do it out of the body. If you do not curb your spirits and bring them into subjection while they are here in their house, you will have to curb them after they have left the house, or they will continue to be refractory. Now, gentlemen and ladies, that is as plain as I can make it to you; and if you do not come to it, it is your own fault and not mine. My prayer is, “O Lord, help me to be faithful, and to continue faithful, and be submissive like the clay in the hands of the potter, that my President can do with me as it seemeth him good.” When I hear of his going anywhere on business, I run over to him and say, “You expected me, did you not?” Why should I wait to be called upon, when I am chosen to nourish and cherish and strengthen him, and to go and come, run, walk, sit, stand, talk, or keep silent, when he tells me? What is a wife good for to me that will not do the same, and then much more, if it is required? What is the Priesthood good for to those who hold the keys of life and salvation to the world, if they are not submissive in the same manner, and more so. This is true, brethren and sisters; and you have got to do it, the whole of you, or else be burned out, and then become servants to the faithful, who have been perfectly passive in the hands of the Almighty, and are crowned in his kingdom.

He says, “The sheep hear my voice, and will follow me, and a stranger they will not follow.” You must learn submission, every soul of you, and then teach it to your children. If disobedient children were under the training of some good man and woman that would in their own example teach them and discipline them by good precept, they would become good Saints. I wish parents to take that course and train their children in the way they should go, and when they become old, they will not depart from it. Are you waiting for the First Presidency and the Twelve to train them for you? It is a hard case for us to manage our own; but we shall not come under condemnation, if we do our best towards them. You will come under condemnation, if you do not train your children to flee from all iniquity, and then there will be none for ours to cling to. You justify yourselves in many things, because you see others take that course. Because our children run into iniquity, you are not justified, if you do not train yours. I am speaking upon the principle of discipline.

The night the plates were given to Joseph Smith from their bed in the summit of the hill Cumorah, I saw, in the firmament above my head, hosts of men in platoons of twelve; and I saw them march until they reached the western horizon, as far as I could see them. After looking upon them for hours with my natural eyes, I never observed a variation of a heir’s breadth in their step, or the least disorder or confusion in their ranks I think of this sight, and then look at this people: they do not compare in this respect with things in heaven. We are praying continually that things may be on the earth as they are in heaven. When there was a rebellion in heaven, they cast out the rebellious. I may not remain in this earthly house to see the day when the rebellious will all be cast out on earth as they were in heaven; but I shall obtain an organized glorious body and see the day when, if there is an evil in Israel, it will be cast out, the same as it was cast out of heaven. I shall see that day, by the help of God; and my prayer is, by day and by night, “Father, help me to keep thy commandments and magnify my calling and my Priesthood, which will exalt me, and bring me into thy presence, O Lord.” That is what the Priesthood is committed to us for. If we magnify our calling and fill our office, God will magnify us and bring us into his presence. If you believe this, brethren, why do you not live for it? I suppose a great many do, and a great many do not; and those who do not are the persons we are preaching to.

Having made these few remarks, I pray God to bless you, that his peace may be with you, and help you to be faithful and train up your children to be righteous, and as soon as they are old enough, do as brother Brigham and myself have done, send them to the nations of the earth. When my son William returns, I want to have another one ready to send; and when he returns, another; and when he returns, another; and when he returns, I want a dozen there. My children I raise to the Lord, and they shall be devoted to his service, or they cannot prosper. May God grant they may, for Jesus Christ’s sake. Amen.

Proper Treatment of the Indians, Etc.

Brigham Young

A discourse by President Brigham Young, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, April 6, 1854.

As the subject has been broached concerning the Indians, I will take the liberty to make a few remarks, and with all due deference and respect to my brethren, and especially to brother George A., who has last spoken to you. I am under the necessity, to satisfy my own feelings, to deviate from his remarks a little. I will not say, however, that I shall deviate from his real feelings, though I may from what is conveyed in his remarks.

I wish to say to this congregation and to the inhabitants of the Territory of Utah, in connection with the travellers that are passing through, If the whites in their character and position with the intelligence and knowledge of the world and of mankind which they have, had been as kind to the Indians as they have been to the whites from the beginning, there never would have been a single difficulty to this day. I wanted to make that assertion, for it is verily true.

If the inhabitants of this Territory, my brethren, had never condescended to reduce themselves to the practices of the Indians, (as few of them have,) to their low, degraded condition, and in some cases even lower, there never would have been any trouble between us and our red neighbours.

This is the key to the whole of it. Young men, middle aged, and boys have been in the habit of mingling with the Indians of going to their camp and trading with them a little; and they have tried to cheat them. They have sat down in their wickeups and talked with them in the most ludicrous manner: they have gambled with them and run horses with them, and then have taken a game of fisti-cuff with them. If they had treated them as Indians and as their degraded conditions demanded, it would have manifested their superiority, and a foundation for difficulties would not have been laid.

Brother George says he knows what I have said is true. He did not explain his real feelings on this matter.

Allow me to say a word in behalf of Walker. I tell this congregation and the world that “Indian Walker,” as he is called, has not been at the foundation of the difficulties we have had. He has had nothing to do with them. I told you so last summer, and I tell it to you now. I know it from that which is within me. Has he done no wrong? I did not say he had done no wrong. He has been angry, and felt at times that he would like to destroy this people; but I do know that he has been held by a superior power. At the very commencement of the fuss, he was not in favour of killing the whites.

When Kiel was killed, the Indians were still in the kanyon; and when the whites followed them, they could have killed every man; but Walker said, “No—they shall not be killed.” Arapeen took his San Pete squaw and his favourite horse, and killed them, and said, “If God is satisfied, I am.”

Who are the guilty Indians? A few bad men, who thirst for blood, who do not have the Spirit of the Lord, but love to steal Indian children and kill one another—who love to steal from each other and kill anybody or everybody. A few of them we know. But I tell you, Walker has not been the cause of the Indian war. But the Lord will work out the salvation of his people, if they do as they are told. I tell the brethren who live out from this city that the Indians are friendly and wish to make treaties.

Now is the time to build forts and pastures for cattle by ditching and walls. Let the community arise and build large pastures. I am far more afraid of white men stealing our cattle than I am that the Indians will. Go to, now; and do not scatter, but gather.

When men are oppressed, it is in their own hearts and feelings: it is not because oppression comes upon them from any other quarter, that they are dissatisfied. They are not satisfied with themselves—that is the trouble. They may go to the States, to California, or anywhere else, and they will not be satisfied; but they will always be dissatisfied, until they can leave themselves behind. But as long as they must take themselves with them, they will never be without the cause of their dissatisfaction.

They ought to have left self behind them when they started to come here, and have come with a view to build up the kingdom of God. All those who have come to these valleys with such feelings are satisfied. They have always been satisfied, and always will remain satisfied so long as they retain that good intention and do not again bring back self.

I want to say a few words on Indian character. When one tribe of Indians are at war with another, if a few sally out and kill a warrior of the opposite party, that tribe will watch their opportunity, and perhaps go and kill men, women, and children of the other tribe. They do not care whom they kill, if they can kill any of the tribe. This has been taught them from age to age. The inhabitants of the United States have treated the Indians in like manner. If but one person or only a few were guilty of committing a depredation upon a white settlement, they have chastised the whole tribe for the crime, and would perhaps kill those who would fight and die for them.

But no mercy can be shown the poor Indians. No. “We will kill the whole of you, if we can,” instead of hunting out those who have committed the depredation, and chastising them according to their deserts. We must shun this practice, and teach them that the man who has committed the depredation is the man that must pay the penalty, and not the whole tribe. It is our duty to teach them good morals and the principles of the Gospel of Christ. We are their saviours.

As I have done all the time, I tell you again to-day, I will not consent to your killing one Indian for the sin of another. If any of them commit a depredation, tell the tribe to which they belong that they may deliver up the man or men to be tried according to law, and you will make friends of the whole tribe. They have men among them they would be glad to have despatched. For instance, there is a man at Utah called Squash-head: it is said he has made his boast of taking father Leman’s child and killing it. We know the other Indians wish he was dead: they do not like to kill him, for fear of their own lives. They would like to have that man tried and hung up for the murder of that child.

We must pursue a different course with the Indians than we have pursued heretofore; and when we do the best we can and all we can, the Lord will do the rest of it, if the people will do as they are told. You have not been counselled to follow them into the mountains, for there are not soldiers enough here to contend with them there and kill one hundred of them. Though we could raise twelve thousand men, and should send them into the mountains, and let them undertake to follow the Indians on foot, where their horses could not find footing, the Indians would escape from them, in spite of their efforts, and steal all their horses into the bargain, and laugh them to scorn. If we wished to destroy them, the only way would be to set dead-falls and traps.

They came pretty nigh starving to death last winter; and they now see, if they are driven from these valleys in winter, they must perish; therefore they now want to make good peace. Treat them kindly, and treat them as Indians, and not as your equals.

I have fed fifty Indians almost day by day for months together. I always give them something, but I never forget to treat them like Indians; and they are always mannerly and kind, and look upon me as their superior. Never let them come into your houses, as the whites did in Utah [County]. There they would let them lounge upon their beds, until finally they would quarrel and become angry, if the women would not let them lounge upon their beds. Great, big, athletic fellows would want to go into the wickeups of the “Mormons,” and lounge upon their beds, and sit on their tables and on their chairs, and make as free as though they belonged to the family. When their familiarities became oppressive to the whites, and they desired them to leave their houses, it made them angry, and I knew it would. This is the true cause of the Indian difficulties in Utah.

I say to the brethren who live in the country, Treat the Indians kindly; and now is the time to finish your forts, and make them doubly strong; and then go to with all your might and prepare places to keep your cattle, that neither white nor red man can, possibly steal them from you. If you want to know how strong to build your forts and your cattle yards, I will answer you as I did the brethren when we left Nauvoo. They wanted to know what kind of lariets they must provide, and how securely they must tie their animals. I said, “Tie them so that the Devil cannot get them.” Secure yourselves, then, so that you can lie down and sleep in peace and be comfortable. Now is the time for us to make efforts to build places of safety.

Our meeting has continued about as long as we wished it. The brethren will sing, and we will adjourn till to-morrow morning at ten o’clock.

Light and Influence of the Spirit—Power of Evil—Character of the Will, Etc.

Brigham Young

Remarks by President Brigham Young, made in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, June 19, 1859. Reported by G. D. Watt.

It is recorded in the New Testament, and said to be the words of the Saviour, while speaking of his doctrine and the things he taught, “He that heareth and doeth my sayings shall know of my doctrine whether it is of God or men.” “Whosoever keepeth my sayings shall know of my doctrine.” I labour faithfully to instruct the people in the way of life; and the most important point of all my preaching and sayings is that they rest upon the words of the Saviour. Whosoever readeth the doctrine of the Son of God, and obeys it, does know whether it is true or false.

Christ is the light of the world and lighteth every man that cometh into it. No human being has ever been born upon this earth without more or less enlightenment by that Spirit and influence that flows from the Fountain of intelligence. All people have been more or less taught by the Spirit of revelation; and let me say further, there never was a child born upon this earth that was not naturally endowed with that Spirit; and when we try to make ourselves believe differently, we are mistaken.

It is extensively taught that nature must be subdued, and grace made to take its place. I wish to inform you that it is nature for the child to be influenced by the Spirit of God. It is nature for all people to be influenced by a good spirit; and the evil that is spoken of is the power the Devil has gained upon this earth through the fall. He gained power to tempt the children of men, and wickedness is produced through their yielding to his temptations; but it is not nature in them. They are not “conceived in sin and brought forth in iniquity,” pertaining to their spirits. It is the flesh that is alluded to in that passage. Then why not follow the dictates of the good Spirit? We talk about it, read of it, believe in it—that Spirit which gives joy and peace to the children of men, and wishes and does no evil to any person; and that is the Spirit of the Gospel.

If people would listen to the whisperings of that Spirit, they would be led into the paths, of truth and righteousness. If they would overcome temptations to evil—cause their spirits to overcome the flesh, they would bring themselves into subjection to the law of Christ and become Saints of God.

You design evils in your neighbourhoods, in your families, and in yourselves. The disposition to produce evil, to annoy, to disturb the peace of families, neighbours, and society, is produced by the power of the enemy over the flesh, through the fall. Every person who will examine his own experience—who will watch closely the leading of his own desires—will learn that the very great majority prefer to do good rather than to do evil, and would pursue a correct course, were it not for the evil power that subjects them to its sway. In wrong doing, their own consciences condemn them. They are taught what is right, they read what is right, and at times the Spirit of the Lord is upon them, teaching them what is right, and would be upon them from their youth, were it not that they give way to temptation and let the flesh overcome the spirits that God has placed within us. I feel to continually urge upon those who profess to be Saints never to grieve that Spirit that enlightens their minds, teaches them righteousness, to love God and their fellow-creatures, and to do good to themselves and to all around them, to promote righteousness upon the earth, and overcome iniquity in themselves and those around them as fast as possible.

Some may imagine and really believe that I am opposed to the great majority of the inhabitants of the earth—to the religious and political parties of the day; but it is not so. To individuals, as such, I am not opposed. The doctrine I preach is not opposed to an individual upon the earth. If I am opposed to anything, it is to sin—to that which produces evil in the world. I believe that I may say with perfect safety that I am as clear as the stars that shine in the heavens with regard to opposing any mortal being on the earth, though many construe the opposing of their sins into an opposition to themselves. I do not feel opposed to an individual on the earth. I have not any enmity in my heart, or at least I should not have. If I have, I am thus far wrong. If we harbour vindictiveness, hatred, malice, and a spirit that produces evil within us, we are so far given up to the power of evil. But when I say that I am opposed to evil principles and their consequent practices, I use an expression that I think you can understand.

I am much opposed to men and women who say that they believe in God the Father and in Jesus Christ his Son, and treat their names with lightness. I am very much opposed to a dishonest spirit, and that too in this community as well as in the world. I am very much opposed to deception. I am very much opposed to evil speaking. Now understand me completely as I mean. If I should hear a man advocate the erroneous principles he had imbibed through education, and oppose those principles, some might imagine that I was opposed to that man, when, in fact, I am only opposed to every evil and erroneous principle he advances. His morality, so far as it goes, is good.

In the Christian world, thousands and millions of them are as close to the truth as any man that ever lived upon the face of the earth, so far as moral, Christian deportment is concerned. I can find a great many of this community who live as moral lives as men and women can. Is there anything else necessary and important? Yes—to so live as to have the light of the Spirit of truth abiding within you day by day, that when you hear the truth, you know it as well as you know the faces of your father’s family, and also understand every manifestation produced by erroneous principles.

I plead with the Elders of Israel day by day, when I have an opportunity, to live their religion—to so live that the Holy Ghost will be their constant companion; and then they will be qualified to be judges in Israel, to preside as Bishops, presiding Elders, and High Councillors, and as men of God, to take their families and friends by the hand and lead them in the path of truth and virtue, and eventually into the kingdom of God. Let me now tell you, Latter-day Saints, that you do not live to your privileges; you do not enjoy that which it is your privilege to enjoy and when f see and hear of contentions, broils, misrule, bad feelings, ill conduct, wrong in my neighbour or myself, I know that we do not live according to our profession. Why not live above all suspicion and above the power of Satan? This is our privilege.

So far as morality is concerned millions of the inhabitants of the earth live according to the best light they have—according to the best knowledge they possess. I have told you frequently that they will receive according to their works; and all who live according to the best principles in their possession, or that they can understand, will receive peace, glory, comfort, joy, and a crown that will be far beyond what they are anticipating. They will not be lost.

I was highly gratified by a remark made by the Reverend Mr. Vaux, the gentleman who has just addressed you, that the terror of the Lord never can, neither should, in the nature of things, bring men to repentance. Those of you who are acquainted with the history of the world reflect upon the conduct of the inhabitants of the earth; and when did tyranny ever cause repentance of evil? Never. It produces crime. When men are infringed upon in their rights and tyrannized over, they are prone to rise in their might and declare, “We will do as we please, and will let you know that we will have the ruling of our own rights and dispositions.” Tyrannical power may possess the ability to behead them, hang them, or sentence them to prison; but resolute men will have their will.

Unless a ruler has the power of the Priesthood, he cannot rule the minds of the people and win their unbounded confidence and love. To illustrate my idea, I will relate an anecdote. A young man entered the ministry, but soon learned that he could not rule the minds of the people. He then turned his attention to the study and practice of medicine, and directly discovered that the power of evil had induced the people to care more for their bodies than for their souls; but that profession did not give him the influence he desired, for he found the will of the people first and foremost with them. He then studied law, and could command all the influence he desired, for their wills they would gratify in preference to either soul or body. You cannot break down the indomitable will of the human family. I have known children to be so abused and whipped as to render them almost or entirely worthless, and still the indomitable will remained. How came it there? God organized us to become absolutely independent, and the will I am speaking about is implanted in us by him; and the spirit of every intelligent being is organized to become independent according to its capacity.

You cannot break nor destroy the will. It is influenced and controlled, more or less, by the evil that is sown in the flesh, but not in the spirit, until the body has grown to years of accountability; then evil, when listened to, begins to rule and overrule the spirit God has placed within man.

The Apostles and Prophets, when speaking of our relationship to God, say that we are flesh of his flesh and bone of his bone. God is our Father, and Jesus Christ is our Elder Brother, and both are our everlasting friends. This is Bible doctrine. Do you know the relationship you sustain to them? Christ has overcome; and now it is for us to overcome, that we may be crowned with him heirs of God—joint heirs with Christ.

I feel to urge upon the people continually to depart from every evil. We wish to see the kingdom of God in all its fulness on the earth; and whose beholds it will see a kingdom of purity, a kingdom of holiness, a people filled with the power of the upper world—with the power of God; and sin will be overcome, and this independent organization will be brought into subjection to that law. We call it the law of Christ: it is the law of eternal life. When we speak of the law of Christ, we speak of it as the power to keep matter in its organization.

You read of the first and second death. We witness, day by day, the dissolution of the body; and there is also a second death. Let a person observe the law of Christ as set forth in the Bible, the Book of Mormon, and in all revelations God has given from the days of Adam until now, and his conduct tends to eternal life. It will not save their bodies from death, for it is the decree of the Almighty that the flesh shall die. They will be made pure and holy and be brought into a celestial kingdom, through the body’s being made pure by falling back into the dust. Sin has entered into the world, and death by sin; so death has passed upon all mankind, and there is no excuse: they must meet this change.

It may be said that Enoch and his holy city went to heaven, that Elijah was caught up, and that it is generally believed that Moses aid not die; still the sentence that is passed upon all mankind will come upon them at some time or other. They must meet this change, to be prepared to enter into the celestial kingdom of our Father and God.

It has also been decreed by the Almighty that spirits, upon taking bodies, shall forget all they had known previously, or they could not have a day of trial—could not have an opportunity for proving themselves in darkness and temptation, in unbelief and wickedness, to prove themselves worthy of eternal existence. The greatest gift that God can bestow upon the children of men is the gift of eternal life; that is, to give mankind power to preserve their identity—to preserve themselves before the Lord.

The disposition, the will, the spirit, when it comes from heaven and enters the tabernacle, is as pure as an angel. The spirit from the eternal worlds enters the tabernacle at the time of what is termed quickening, and forgets all it formerly knew. It descends below all things, as Jesus did. All beings, to be crowned with crowns of glory and eternal lives, must in their infantile weakness begin, with regard to their trials, the day of their probation: they must descend below all things, in order to ascend above all things. There could not be more helpless child born of a woman than was Jesus Christ; yet he so grew and increased in wisdom and might, that in childhood he could confound the doctors and lawyers in his questions and answers. He increased rapidly in his mental capacity, for he was the son of the Father who dwells in eternity, and was capacitated to receive the wisdom of eternity faster than we can. But we are capacitated to shun every evil, if we listen to the still small voice and to those holy principles that flow from the Fountain of all intelligence.

Cleave to light and intelligence with all your hearts, my brethren, that you may be prepared to preserve your identity, which is the greatest gift of God. God bless you! Amen.

Parable of the Sower, Etc.

Orson Hyde

A discourse by President Orson Hyde, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, April 6, 1854.

As it is now the season of the year for the sowing of seed, some of the parables of our Saviour seemed to be particularly impressed upon my mind, and I thought of reading the 13th chapter of the Gospel according to St. Matthew.

[Elder Hyde read the chapter.]

While listening to the remarks in the former part of the day, which cannot be bettered, this parable of the sower that went forth to sow, occurred to me; and as I have been requested to make some remarks this afternoon, that scripture had a particular bearing upon my mind in connection with what has been said.

So far as I know my own feelings and heart, it is to speak the truth clearly to the understandings of all my brethren, that I may do them good and speak according to the mind and will of our Father in heaven, that you may be edified and strengthened. That I may subserve this purpose, I desire an interest in your prayers, that I may speak, what little time I may occupy, according to the mind and will of God our heavenly Father.

As I have remarked in the outset, you know there is a time, which is now, for the farmers to be engaged in seeding their land, almost universally throughout this Territory; but they do not anticipate reaping at present. The time of reaping and gathering into barns is yet in advance. The seed has to be sown, after the soil has been prepared to receive it; and then it has to be tended and watered in all its various stages, according to its requirements; and by-and-by comes the harvest. First it is cut down, then gathered and bound into bundles, then put into small shocks; and then the waggon or cart comes along and takes the sheaves and carries them to the thrashing-floor, and there it is thrashed.

By this time the labourer begins to partake of the fruits of his labour; but before this, all his toil apparently has brought no return, only the satisfaction of seeing his crop coming to maturity and being prepared for the sickle. But now he begins to receive something in return for his toil.

There is a time, brethren and sisters, when the harvest of the world must be gathered; for you recollect, among the wonderful visions John saw on the Isle of Patmos, he says—“And I looked, and behold a white cloud; and upon the cloud one sat like the Son of Man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle. And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle and reap, for the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe.” It appears there is not only to be a gathering of the wheat, but of the tares also, and that they are to be separated.

When was the time of sowing? I do not speak now in relation to the wheat we grow, but in relation to the word of life that was sown in the hearts of the children of men. It is said, the Son of Man is he that sowed the good seed. It appears, then, that in the days of our Saviour was the time of seeding: it was the time of sowing the word of life and dispensing it among the children of men. Sometimes the Saviour, in view of the immediate results of that word in a limited sense, says to his disciples, “Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh the harvest? Behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields, for they are white already to harvest.” At the same time, the general harvest of the world was not then. The time he referred to was the time for gathering in the Saints, the fruits of their labours; but as the field was white already to harvest, it signified that the world was in a proper state to receive the word of life, and the labourers were few; and he says—“Pray ye, therefore, the Lord of the harvest that he will send forth labourers into his harvest.”

When we take a more extensive view of the subject, we find that the grand harvest is reserved until the last—until the winding up scene; for it is said, “The harvest is the end of the world, and the reapers are the angels,” by whose agency this reaping dispensation was committed to the children of men.

Some one may say, “If this work of the last days be true, why did not the Saviour come himself to communicate this intelligence to the world?” Because to the angels was committed the power of reaping the earth, and it was committed to none else. And after the mighty champions that hold the keys of this dispensation came and brought the intelligence that the time of harvest was now—that the time of the end was drawing nigh—when this proclamation was made, and the announcement saluted the ears of the children of men, what was to be done next? Behold, the gathering of the Saints begins. That very moment a man or woman embraces the Gospel in these latter times, and they begin to see and understand by the Spirit of truth, the first thing they think of is, “We must go and see the Prophet of God and learn the ways of the Lord from his lips. What is it that causes this desire in the hearts of the people? It is the spirit of gathering together; for wherever we went, when first this Gospel was sent to the nations, and proclaimed the glad tidings, the first thing those who were awakened by our preaching would say was, “We want to go to head-quarters, to run together.” These were the feelings of the people common in the circle of my acquaintance and experience.

In early times there was a spirit that was adapted to the work then. Now, if you were to set me to labouring, to building, and sowing seed upon a farm, and the spirit of preaching the Gospel was with me, I should not have the spirit of labouring upon the farm, for I should have the spirit of preaching the Gospel; and in doing so, I am in my element; my work and the spirit I possess correspond, and each serves to strengthen and advance me in the field of my labours. This is the Spirit of the Saviour that was poured out upon the people; and if it had not been for the spirit of running together that came upon them, we might have gone and preached the Gospel and told the people to repent, and have baptised them for the remission of sins, and at the same time they would not have received with our proclamation the spirit of gathering. But they received it, and the Spirit bore witness with our words that the gathering dispensations had actually begun.

In the days of the Saviour, there were some who, as soon as they heard the word, as soon as it was sown, received it, perhaps by the wayside; hut they did not understand it. Now, I have preached to congregations, and I presume others have, where people under the sound of my voice have received the word the same way; and the spirit has borne such witness to them that their hearts have been actually melted under the influence and power of that preaching; yet say they, with tears in their eyes, “We do not understand: we acknowledge there is a power in it, but at the same time we do not understand it; we do not see why these things are so. Were not our fathers and mothers, who have gone before us, right? We acknowledge there is a power with you; but we do not understand why there should be such a variation from the old path.”

These receive seed by the wayside, and the Devil comes and tempts them and persuades them they do not understand or know anything about it. They feel its power, and he catches the word away and throws mists of darkness before their eyes. These are they that receive the seed by the wayside.

Then, again, the seed falls upon stony places, where there is not much earth. You know, where the ground is stony, it attracts the heat quicker than where there are no stones: it draws the warmth of the sun more; and what little soil there is dries up quicker than where there is soil to retain more moisture; and the seed that falls upon such ground germinates quicker and shows itself quicker. But there was no chance for the root to take deep hold; and when the sun arose and began to pour its strengthening rays upon it, it withered and died, because it had no root in good soil.

This class of hearers will correspond very well with another saying concerning certain characters that received the truth, and did not receive the love of it in order to have it take effect. We are not only to receive the truth, but also the love of it. And where the love of it is planted, it must flourish—it must succeed and produce a plentiful crop. These are they that receive the seed on stony places. They apparently receive the word as soon as it is proclaimed to them; and before the principles of have a chance to take rest in their hearts, it springs up and grows, and prospers for a time, but withers in the day of adversity.

The circumstances of some of the people of this Territory leaving for California brought this parable of the sower to my mind. For instance, one distinguished man in the south urges, for an excuse for going to California, the late trouble this people have had with the Indians, or rather in consequence of the rigid measures it was necessary to enter into for protection. He felt himself imposed upon and his rights infringed upon, and therefore he would not stay. He thought the brethren had done him wrong; consequently, he would go away.

Now, as near as I can learn, many have, under the regulations required for those times, felt their feelings to be pinched. Some of them have stood under it like good soldiers, and others have flown the track and will not endure it any longer. They think that better measures could have been instituted.

I am fully of the opinion that the wisest measures have been adopted to enforce upon the people, while the fact is, the operations that are being entered into for defence and protection have been our safeguard. The red men have seen it and marked the progress and design of our works, and they have said to themselves, “It is impossible for us to stand against such operations; therefore we will heave to, for it is, of no use to offer I further aggression.

Here we see the happy result of the measures entered into so far; and we trust, as there is now a prospect of peace, that the work of preparation will be carried on with tenfold more vigour, that all the works may be fully accomplished that are designed.

Be it remembered that the time of peace is the time to prepare for self-defence against a foe; and perhaps by performing the works now going on, they have been the very means in the hands of God by which our enemies have been disheartened, and their progress in wickedness has been checked.

Has not the measure of bringing together all kinds, both of wheat and tares, been best for the people? It has. The tares must be gathered as well as the wheat, for it is the time of the harvest and of separation. Perhaps the measures that have been introduced have served as a screen or a fanning-mill to cause the tares to fly away. There may be some wheat among them when they go; but it seems to me that they are shrunken kernels. Shrunken wheat may grow by putting it in good soil, and it may not: however, it is necessary that this work of division go on. Not only was the work of gathering to take place by the angels to whom it was committed, but the work of separating the tares from the wheat was committed to the angels also. What! to good angels? I did not say that; though it must be acceded that they hold out very powerful inducements for certain individuals to follow them and take their counsel, &c, I say, perhaps the very works that have been carried on here in the Territory—the rigid measures for the defence and protection of the people, may be one cause why these persons are dissatisfied. It is no doubt the principle, and God may have designed it for that very purpose—to, draw the line of distinction, and let it be seen who it was that would abide this counsel and who would not. Those who would not would of course be subject to every evil influence—to be guided by any spirit not of God.

Allowing there are some shrunken kernels of wheat gone out from here, I tell you they are gone, in my opinion, where they will find a moist soil, and will get swelled out to a reasonable size, and perhaps in a way they do not look for. And as I said in a discourse not long ago, it is perhaps necessary that these persons should leave the Saints and go to the world, and try to build up the world and themselves. Why is it necessary? Because here they cannot receive that chastisement and scourging they merit, and they must go somewhere else to receive it, and let some other power have the honour of bringing the scourge upon them they actually merit, rather than the Saints of latter days.

Now, then, “the Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shalt gather out of his kingdom all things that do offend, and those who do iniquity, and shall cast them into a furnace of fire; there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.” Perhaps when they get under the scourge that awaits them abroad, they may begin to feel the chastening hand of God; and repent and humble themselves, and cry mightily to the God of Israel to have mercy upon them.

It is all working just right. Our enemies, whether white or red, can only go so far; none can get beyond the control of the Almighty. They may take the wings of the morning and fly to the uttermost parts of the earth, and he is there; or if they make their bed in hell, behold he is there. They cannot get from under his jurisdiction, unless they go beyond the bounds of time and space. All things are confined in space, and are under the jurisdiction and control of the Almighty; and if he cannot find them in one place, he will in another.

They are like children who have been under the teachings of a kind father all the day long, who taught them the principles of righteousness, integrity, and truth; but they would not listen, like his good children, to his teachings, but they are rebellious, and will not learn their lessons and be prompted to their duty by the voice of kindness, nor be moved to do right by the affection of a kind father and mother, but they must tear themselves away and thrust themselves beyond the teachings of their parents.

Follow such children through their lives, and what will they come to? You will perhaps find them in a dungeon—in the dark cell of a prison, loaded with chains, if not condemned to a greater penalty there. Perhaps they may then follow after their God, like the prodigal son, that could not be trained in his father’s house. His wild ambition led him to grasp at things that were unlawful for him. “Give me,” said he, “my portion of the inheritance, and let me go.” After he left his father’s house, he was reduced to a state of wretchedness and poverty, and would gladly have fed with the swine. He began to feel not only the lashes of an unsatisfied appetite, but also of a guilty conscience. Said he, “How many hired servants of my father have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger. I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee, and am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants.”

You remember it was said in the former part of the day that some persons would be servants. On the father seeing the returning prodigal afar off, all the feelings of a kind parent were awakened. “Come, my son, as you have returned, I will not subject you to be a servant like these are that serve in my house: but you are my son. Bring hither the best robe and put it upon him; put shoes upon his feet, and a ring on his hand.” And they began to be merry.

Do you not see that the prodigal son learned a good lesson in the school of adversity, which he could not learn in his father’s house. The spirit of rebellion could not be made to bow to mild and affectionate means; but it yielded under the hammer of adversity. His spirit was made to bend to his father’s will by that means; and, bending home, he came to his father’s house.

These characters, then, receive the seed in stony ground, and have not root in themselves. They feel themselves troubled and oppressed and wronged in the time of danger and tribulation; and they say, “We will go: we are displeased; therefore we will go far away and try our fortune in the world once more. We tried it once before we embraced “Mormonism.” We thought we were satisfied to cast in our lot with the people of God; but we have become dissatisfied and offended, and we will go and try our fortune in the world again.”

They go and try it. They may get hold of the riches of this world, and they may not; but I will tell you one thing—they will not get hold of all the truth of God in their course; they will not get hold of that which satisfies the immortal mind; and while their pockets are lined with gold, their spirits will be troubled and in distress and misery. If ever once the spark of truth has lighted up the understanding and left an impression there, it is not to be erased in a moment, but it lives; and when it is dishonoured, it is an arrow in the mind, which will torment them day and night. Go where they will they cannot get out of the world—out of the jurisdiction of the Almighty, at least.

A great many are now afraid that the gold of California will all be gone before they get any of it. Suppose they get it all—suppose they actually rob the mines of every farthing’s worth of value, what are they going to do with it? Can they place it beyond the jurisdiction of the Almighty, or put it somewhere where he cannot find it, and use it in a way that he cannot control it? I tell you they may dig and dig, and get all the gold they possibly can, and put it in this bank, or in that; but God will control it all by-and-by, and give it to whom he will; and I will tell you to whom he wilt give it. Says the Apostle to the Corinthians, “All things are yours, whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come; all are yours, and ye are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.”

Now, it is not to him that willeth, or to him that runneth, (they run to California,) but it is God that showeth mercy. He is the character that holds all these things; and where his mercy leans, there is where he will bestow his treasure. Says he, “All things are mine, and I can give them to whom I will. His rebellious children are like some other rebellious children who try to rob their father and take his money from his place of deposit. They say, “We are your children, and we have a right to this money;” and they break open their father’s desk, because they are his sons, and think it no particular crime to get a little of the old man’s cash to enjoy themselves with.

So it is with all those that are running to California to steal a little of the Lord’s treasure; whereas, if they had remained loyal to their post, and continued to do their duty and build up the kingdom of God, by-and-by he would have given them all they could receive and properly apply. For to one he gave five talents, to another two, &c.; and so he will give to every man according to his ability by-and-by. It will be so even with regard to the riches of this world. The more quickly a man applies that which is committed to him, the more he will have, and the larger and greater and more extensive will be his riches. Let him abide in his calling and in the piece where God has placed him to build up his kingdom, and in the final end how will it come out? The Lord gathered the people to where they are gathered by his word; and we may say, to all human appearance, the greatest difficulty is to supply ourselves with the necessary comforts of life; but the battle has been fought, and the victory gained. Fruitful fields are opening all around and extending in every direction.

Why not, then, remain here and wait till the Lord shall shower upon us blessings that will answer the furthest extent of our desires? If we quit the post of our duty, and run to get blessings before they are ours—before we have a right to them, it wilt have the same effect upon us as stolen apples have upon boys that steal them before they are half ripe:—it will set our teeth on edge. If not now, it will be by-and-by.

What is the better way? To remember the counsels given to us in the former part of the day by President Young. Said he, “You who are going to California, pay your debts, and do not steal anything to take with you.” And I would say to those who stay behind, as it is represented the thieves will not all go away, Be very careful when you steal, for it is on interest from the time you steal it; for, remember, you do not get beyond the jurisdiction of the Almighty; and he will make you pay the uttermost farthing. There is no inducement here for anybody to do wrong, but every inducement to do right and keep the commandments of God.

Not only has the dispensation for the gathering of the Saints come, but the wicked also will be gathered. You know it is said, in the last days there shall be “wars and rumours of wars, and earthquakes in divers places; and again, “When these things begin to come to pass,” “lift up your heads” and rejoice, “for your redemption draweth nigh.” Again, “Because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.” How often we hear it said by many who profess to be Saints, “This thing and that thing are wrong.” Perhaps certain men have lost their property: it is mysteriously missing. “Really,” say they, “we feel offended because such things are practised, and we will not stay among such a people where such things are.” This is the natural feeling of those who give way to this spirit of complaining, and they centre all the blame at head-quarters—on the men who are proclaiming against such practices night and day, both verbally and in their daily example.

It is as the Saviour said—“The love of many shall wax cold,” and there shall be “wars and rumours of wars. And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth; for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.”

Now, if you want to see the gathering of the ungodly, look at the combined armies of the world assembling for bloody conflict. Look at the meteors in the heavens: they cannot he silent; they mast speak the language they are designed to speak in the last days. The nations are perplexed, in distress, wretchedness, and misery. They are clothed in mourning, for the demon of war is let loose, blood is flowing, and the Saints are gathering to the valleys of the mountains to be taught and instructed in the ways of the Almighty.

Let those who go from this retreat of the Saints beware that the demon of war be not stirred up to make their abode more unpropitious in the place they are going to. Beware that a cloud does not burst with all its fury upon the western shores. Congress must anticipate something of this kind, or why did they send the highest order of military talents to the western borders? They see it and understand it. We are about in the centre, and all around is commotion. I believe Joseph Smith once said, the next movement we made, we should be brought into the midst of the thrashing-floor; and while they are being thrashed all around, we need not be surprised if we get thrashed a little among the rest.

There will be a mighty thrashing; there will be a thrashing in the valleys, on the borders, and all around among the nations of the earth. It is the time of harvest. You know, as bread is generally scarce at the harvest time, the flails begin to best upon the thrashing-floor. This is thrashing upon a small scale, before the mighty engines or machines begin to bear. When they begin to work, there will be a wonderful dust and smoke and noise and commotion all around. I tell you to remain here till you are sent away.

I want to say a word about people staying here and there as they please. True, it is a free country, and every man may go where he pleases, speaking after the manner of the world. The President of the Church does not control anybody contrary to their own will. Still, if a man is properly trained, and is in possession of the right spirit; he only wants to hear the voice of the good shepherd, and he will follow it; but a stranger he will not follow.

Brethren and sisters, we can go here or there as we please; yet in another sense we are not at liberty so to do, but to go where the voice of truth directs, if we abide in the kingdom of God. If a man come to me and say; “I want to go to Green Rive and settle there; shall I go?” my answer would be, “I cannot control you, if you are determined to go: it is a free country. But my feelings are, if you are not satisfied here, you will not be satisfied there; and if you want counsel upon the matter, go and get it from the proper source.” If a man goes there, I want him to go by proper counsel. I will not hinder him, if he is not counselled; but, at the same time, I would not look upon him as I would upon the man who is counselled to go there. And if there was any important trust to be placed upon any man, I should place it upon him that was in the line of his duty; and I could do it in confidence.

In the midst of counsel there is safety. If a man is counselled to go to Green River, Iron County, to San Pete, or to anywhere else, let him go. Let no man seek to free himself from the yoke, or indulge any uneasiness while it is upon him; for when he becomes accustomed to it, it will not gall his neck.

I will tell you, furthermore, what our views are in relation to the circumstances that surround us. I believe that if every person will faithfully abide the counsel given to him while passing through these circumstances, all the evil intended us will result in our greatest good, or it will be turned away, and we shall enjoy ourselves under the smiles of Heaven.

What turned away the wrath of our enemies? It was the Spirit of God that checked them, when they saw the preparations that were being made. The servants of God were moved upon to do certain things, and they have done them. And although there has been some difference of feeling with regard to the preparations for defence through the Territory, yet, so far as I know, and I am proud to know it, all difference of opinion is done away; and when the brethren strike hands together in this union, I tell you the efforts of the enemy are palsied in a moment: they have no power against us, because our union prevails with God, and he fights our battles. Who can withstand Him? He has caused our enemies to be troubled by day and by night. Their dreams have tormented them, until they are dispirited and disarmed of their strength. Your union and fidelity have done it, through the blessings of God which have been upon you.

Now, there was some seed that fell upon good ground, and it brought forth, some thirty, some sixty, and some an hundredfold. I will tell you what I am doing in my garden, in order to remove the stony ground: I go to work and pick out the cobble stones. So if we find stony places, pick out the stones, and clear the vineyard of them, that all the seed of the word that is sown from this stand and falls upon your ears may sink-down, not in stony hearts, but in hearts of flesh—that it may fall upon good ground and bring forth, some thirty, some sixty, and some an hundredfold.

With regard to the great field that is opened, for instance in Nebraska, Ohio, and California, it is so big, I fear I shall get lost in it, if I enter it on this occasion. I will therefore leave it for somebody else to explore at the present. It is glorious to me, and it is all right. Let the truth go to the ends of the earth, and let God overrule every movement of this Church for the good of his kingdom.

It is the desire of my heart—I say, let the little stone cut out of the mountain without hands roll and fill the whole earth, and let God be glorified, and his Saints exalted; which may he grant, for Christ’s sake. Amen.

Human and Divine Government, etc.

Brigham Young

Remarks by President Brigham Young, made in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, Sunday p.m., July 31, 1859. Reported by G. D. Watt.

Brother Kimball has borne his testimony to the truth of the work in which we are engaged: he has exhorted you to faithfulness, and presented practical morality. For your satisfaction, I will present some of my views concerning the kingdom of God, and leave the subject for others to elaborate.

Erroneous traditions and the powers of darkness have such sway over mankind, that, when we speak of a theocracy on the earth, the people are frightened. The government of the “Holy Catholic Church,” from which all the Protestant churches are offshoots, is professedly theocratic, though it is directly opposed to the theocracy described in the Bible.

But few, if any, understand what a theocratic government is. In every sense of the word, it is a republican government, and differs but little in form from our National, State, and Territorial Governments; but its subjects will recognize the will and dictation of the Almighty. The kingdom of God circumscribes and comprehends the municipal laws for the people in their outward government, to which pertain the Gospel covenants, by which the people can be saved; and those covenants pertain to fellowship and faithfulness.

The Gospel covenants are for those who believe and obey; municipal laws are for both Saint and sinner.

The Constitution and laws of the United States resemble a theocracy more closely than any government; now on the earth, or that ever has been, so far as we know, except the government of the children of Israel to the time when they elected a king.

All governments are more or less under the control of the Almighty, and, in their forms, have sprung from the laws that he has from time to time given to man. Those laws, in passing from generation to generation, have been more or less adulterated, and the result has been the various forms of government now in force among the nations; for, as the Prophet says of Israel, “They have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinances, and broken the everlasting covenant.”

Whoever lives to see the kingdom of God fully established upon the earth will see a government that will protect every person in his rights. If that government was now reigning upon this land of Joseph, you would see the Roman Catholic, the Greek Catholic, the Episcopalian, the Presbyterian, the Methodist, the Baptist, the Quaker, the Shaker the Hindoo, the Mahometan, and every class of worshippers most strictly protected in all their municipal rights and in the privilege of worshipping who, what, and when they pleased, not infringing upon the rights of others. Does any candid person in his sound judgment desire any greater liberty?

The Lord has thus far protected and preserved the human family under their various forms and administrations of government, notwithstanding their wickedness, and is still preserving them; but if the kingdom of God, or a theocratic government, was established on the earth, many practices now prevalent would be abolished.

One community would not be permitted to array itself in opposition to another to coerce them to their standard; one denomination would not be suffered to persecute another because they differed in religious belief and mode of worship. Every one would be fully protected in the enjoyment of all religious and social rights, and no state, no government, no community, no person would have the privilege of infringing on the rights of another one Christian community would not rise up and persecute another.

I will here remark that we are generally looked upon as a dangerous people, and for the reason that there are thousands and millions of people who are afraid that justice will be meted out to them; and they say, to use Scripture language, that “if the Saints are let alone, they will take away our place and nation, and will measure to us what we have measured to them.” They conclude thus because they estimate others by themselves, realizing that if they had the power to deprive us of our rights, they would exercise it. “We will judge you Latter-day Saints by ourselves. If we had the power to destroy you, we would do it; and we are afraid that if you are let alone, you will have the power to destroy us and will do as we would under like circumstances.” If this people had that power to-day, they would not infringe in the least upon the rights of any person; neither could they, without ceasing to be Saints.

When the Saints of the Most High are established upon the earth, and are prepared to receive the kingdom of God in its fulness, as foretold by the Prophet Daniel, they will have power to protect themselves and all the sons and daughters of Adam in their rights. Then, when a person or community says, “I do not want to believe your religion,” they will enjoy liberty to believe as they please, as fully as we shall.

The Creator has given agency to every son and daughter of Adam, and he does not infringe upon our agency. We are at liberty to believe in him and in his son Jesus Christ, or to let it alone.

When the kingdom of God is established, we can believe in the principles of the eternal Priesthood or in something else, and be equally protected in our outward rights. My law, says Jehovah, is pure: it is the law by which the worlds are made, and by which all things are. Those laws tend to exaltation and power; but the world is observing rules that tend to death. You have the privilege of believing and practising a law that will bring to an end, if you wish, not only to the first death, but also to the second.

Jesus has taught us not to fear those wicked persons that are seeking our lives. Do not fear those who only have power to destroy the body, and after that can harm you no more; but fear God and observe the laws he has given and will give, that evil spirits may have no power over you after the body is left to rest.

This body must die: it is so decreed by the Almighty. “For dust thou art, and unto dust thou shalt return;” and it matters little whether you die to-day or to-morrow. Do not fear the wicked, but fear him who has power to destroy both soul and body. The man that pursues principles that tend to death resigns himself unto death, and no power can hinder it.

People are afraid of “Mormonism,” as they call it. They are afraid of the Gospel of salvation, and say that we have something that others have not—that we have an almighty influence, and that influence is a mystery. Certainly that influence is a mystery to all men: it is a mystery to us. I have not time now to explain to you the reasons why it is a mystery.

When the doctrine of salvation was first preached to me, and the vision of my mind was opened, I undertook to fathom the depth of the Gospel plan; but I could not. I was familiar with the doctrines taught by the various Christian denominations, and could easily comprehend them; but I soon learned that I could not fathom the full extent of the doctrine of salvation as revealed in our day through the Prophet Joseph; for I discerned that it was incomprehensible in its extent. It was soon suggested to me—Which of all the doctrines do you now say is the most Godlike—that which you can comprehend and fathom—that which you can measure, or that which you cannot? That which I cannot.

To finite capacity there is much which appears mysterious in the plan of salvation, and there is an eternity of mystery to be unfolded to us; and when we have lived millions of years in the presence of God and angels, and have associated with heavenly beings, shall we then cease learning? No, or eternity ceases. There is no end. We go from grace to grace, from light to light, from truth to truth. But I do not want to follow that thread any further at present.

It is recorded in the Bible that in the last days the God of heaven will set up a kingdom. Will that kingdom destroy the human family? No: it will save every person that will and can be saved. The doctrines of the Saviour reveal and place the believers: in possession of principles whereby saviours will come upon Mount Zion to save the house of Esau, which is the Gentile nations, from sin and death—all except those who have sinned against the Holy Ghost. Men and women will enter into the temples of God, and be, in comparison, pillars there, and officiate year after year for those who have slept thousands of years. The doctrine of the Christian world, which I have already said I was familiar with, sends them to hell irretrievably, which to me is the height of folly. They do not understand what the Lord is doing, nor what he purposes to do.

It is alleged and reiterated that we do not love the institutions of our country. I say, and have so said for many years, that the Constitution and laws of the United States combine the best form of Government in force upon the earth. But does it follow that each officer of the Government administers with justice? No; for it is well known throughout our nation that very many of our public officers are as degraded, debased, corrupt, and regardless of right as men well can be.

I repeat that the Constitution, laws, and institutions of our Government; are as good as can be, with the intelligence now possessed by the people. But they, as also the laws of other nations, are too often administered in unrighteousness; and we do not and cannot love and respect the acts of the administrators of our laws, unless they act justly in their offices.

Jehovah has decreed and plainly foretold the establishment of his kingdom upon this earth; and it will prove to me a shield to the ordinances of his house, in the endowments, and in all the gifts and graces of the Spirit of God with which the Priesthood, so to speak, is clothed. The municipal laws of that kingdom are designed for the protection of all classes of people in their legitimate rights; and were it now in its fulness upon the earth, and the New Jerusalem built upon this continent, which is the land of Zion, the Latter-day Saints would not alone enjoy its blessings, but all denominations and communities would be alike protected in their rights, whether they worshipped the Supreme Author of our existence, or the sun, or the moon, or, as do some of our aborigines, a white dog; and none will be permitted to infringe upon their neighbours, though every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is the Christ. The Hindoos would have the privilege of erecting their temples and of worshipping as they pleased; but they would not be permitted to compel other worshippers to conform to their mode of worship, nor to burn their companions upon the funeral pyre; for that would interfere with individual rights.

The kingdom of God will be extended over the earth; and it is written, “I will make thine officers peace, and thine exactors righteousness.” Is that day ever coming? It is; and the doctrine we preach leads to that point. Even now the form of the Government of the United States differs but little from that of the kingdom of God.

In our Government a President is elected for four years, and can be reelected but once, thus limiting the time of any one person to but eight years at most. Would it not be better to extend that period during life or good behaviour; and when the people have elected the best man to that office, continue him in it as long as he will serve them?

Would it not be better for the States to elect their Governors upon the same principle; and if they officiate unjustly, hurl them from office? If a good man is thus elected and continues to do his duty, he will keep in advance of the people; and if he does not, he does not magnify his office. Such is the kingdom of God, in comparison.

When the best man is elected President, let him select the best men he can find for his counsellors or cabinet; and let all the officers within the province of the Chief Magistrate to appoint be selected upon the same principle to officiate wisely in different parts of the nation. Our Father in heaven does not visit every place in person to guide and administer the law to the people, and to do this, that, and the other: he never did and never will; but he has officers, whom he sends when and where he pleases, giving to them their credentials and missions, as does our Government to our fellow-men here.

Some would have us believe that God is present everywhere. It is not so. He is no more everywhere present in person than the Father and Son are one in person. The Bible teaches that doctrine precisely as it is.

The kingdom that the Almighty will set up in the latter days will have its officers, and those officers will be peace. Every man that officiates in a public capacity will be filled with the Spirit of God, with the light of God, with the power of God, and will understand right from wrong, truth from error, light from darkness, that which tends to life and that which tends to death. They will say, “We offer you life; will you receive it?” “No,” some will say. “Then you are at perfect liberty to choose death: the Lord does not, neither will we control you in the least in the exercise of your agency. We place the principles of life before you. Do as you please, and we will protect you in your rights, though you will learn that the system you have chosen to follow brings you to dissolution—to being resolved to native element.”

When the government of God is in force upon the earth, there will be many officers and branches to that government, as there now are to that of the United States. There will be such helps, governments, &c., as the people require in their several capacities and circumstances; for the Lord will not administer everywhere in person.

The world seem to be afraid of the power of God, or rather, as I observed not long since, afraid that we are not in possession of it. They need not borrow trouble upon that point; for if we are not what we profess to be, we shall certainly fail, and they will no longer be disturbed about “Mormonism.” Brother Kimball said that his friends at first limited the existence of this work to one year; and when the year passed, they extended the time to two years: they then put it off five years; and I do not know what time they have now fixed upon.

I know that the kingdom of God is in its youth upon this earth, and that the principles of life and salvation are freely proffered to the people all over the world.

Our Elders go from east to west, from north to south; and they almost invariably go without purse or scrip.

When Mr. Greeley was here, he was anxious to learn what salaries our missionaries received, and what salary this and that officer in the Church received.

I told him that our missionaries received what the people gave them after they went from here. A few have started from here with money to pay their passage across the sea, that they might not be delayed in reaching their point of destination.

He then asked me whether I did not receive a salary.

I replied, “No, my friend; I can truly say to you that I do not have the value of a cabbage-head from the Tithing Office, unless I pay for it.”

“What!” said he, “do you not have pay for your services? You, devote all your time.”

I remarked that I should count myself a poor hand to dictate this people and hold the position I occupy in the providence of God, unless I was capable of maintaining myself and family without assistance from the Church, though I have had a great deal given to me by the members of the Church. The Lord has blessed me with ability to provide for my wants, and those of my family; and if he has not blessed all the Elders with like ability to sustain themselves, we will assist them when necessary; but we pay no salaries to our Elders and Bishops. My salary consists of the providences of God while I live, and eternal life when I faithfully finish this probation.

When the kingdom of God is established upon the earth, people will find it to be very different from what they now imagine. Will it be in the least degree tyrannical and oppressive towards any human being? No, it will not; for such is not the kingdom of God.

I believe in a true republican theocracy, and also in a true democratic theocracy, as the term democratic is now used; for they are to me, in their present use, convertible terms.

What do I understand by a theocratic government? One in which all laws are enacted and executed in righteousness, and whose officers possess that power which proceedeth from the Almighty. That is the kind of government I allude to when I speak of a theocratic government, or the kingdom of God upon the earth. It is, in short, the eternal powers of the Gods.

What do the world understand theocracy to be? A poor, rotten government of man, that would say, without the shadow of provocation or just cause, “Cut that man’s head off; put that one on the rack; arrest another, and retain him in unlawful and unjust duress while you plunder his property and pollute his wife and daughters; massacre here and there.” The Lord Almighty does nothing of that kind, neither does any man who is controlled by his Spirit.

Again, the theocracy I speak of is the power of the Holy Ghost within you—that living and eternal principle that we do not possess in the fulness that we are seeking. When we talk about heavenly things, and see the world grovelling in their sin and misery, and loving iniquity and corruption, the heavens weep over the people, and still they will not infringe upon their rights. God has created them so far perfectly independent as to be able to choose death or life; and he will not infringe upon this right.

And then to see people running after this and that which is calculated to destroy them spiritually and temporally—to bring upon them the first death, and then the second, so that they will be as though they had not been—is enough to make the heavens weep.

When his kingdom is established upon the earth, and Zion built up, the Lord will send his servants as saviours upon Mount Zion. The servants of God who have lived on the earth in ages past will reveal where different persons have lived who have died without the Gospel, give their names, and say, “Now go forth, ye servants of God, and exercise your rights and privileges; go and perform the ordinances of the house of God for those who have passed their probation without the law, and for all who will receive any kind of salvation: bring them up to inherit the celestial, terrestrial and telestial kingdoms,” and probably many other kingdoms not mentioned in the Scriptures; for every person will receive according to his capacity and according to the deeds done in the body, whether good or bad, much or little.

What will become of the rest? Jesus will reign until he puts all enemies under his feet, and will destroy the death that we are afflicted with, and will also destroy him that hath the power of death; and one eternal life will spread over the earth. Then it will be exalted and become as a sea of glass, as seen by John the Revelator, and become the eternal habitation of those who are so happy as to gain eternal life and live in the presence of our Father and Saviour.

There are millions and millions of kingdoms that the people have no conception of The Christians of the day have no knowledge of God, of godliness, of eternity, of the worlds that are, that have been, and that are coming forth. There are myriads of people pertaining to this earth who will come up and receive a glory according to their capacity.

A man apostatizes and comes back, and there is a place prepared for him; and so there is for all persons, to suit their several capacities and answer to the lives they have lived in the flesh.

There are many who swear occasionally; others get drunk, &c. Do you not know it? O fools and slow of heart to understand your own existence! But many indulge in such practices, and some will stumble here and there; and we must keep pulling them out of the mire and washing them all the time.

Will they be consigned to eternal damnation for such conduct? No; for those who drink too much will make good servants, if you can get them where whisky will not cloud their brains, or where there is none. Make servants of such characters and set them to work in their different departments, and they can do something: they are not useless. They are the workmanship of God’s hands—brothers to Jesus, flesh of his flesh and bone of his bone. The same Father that begat the tabernacle of Jesus on the earth brought forth the world of mankind; and we are all his children, whether we do wickedly or not. We are the offspring of one common Father.

Brother Kimball says that it is a pity there is such a quarrel in the family. In the flesh we are the sons and daughters of Father Adam and Mother Eve: we are all one family; and yet we are contending and quarrelling, and have arrived at such a pass that many do not know whether they belong to one kingdom and family, or not.

There is a place for all; but those who have sinned against the Holy Ghost will become angels of the Devil, and must suffer the wrath of God.

Then I might say, O ye wicked nations of the earth, why do you quarrel with us all the time for doing you good? We want to build up Zion and bring up your fathers and mothers to enjoy a glory, and you are trying to prevent us. They are contending against their own lives—quarrelling against their own salvation and being. But I can truly say to all that I am thankful that I live to see this day and what we call the Gospel of salvation, but called by our enemies “Mormonism,” because we believe in the Book of Mormon.

We are in possession of the principles of life, and I exhort you to cleave to them under all circumstances. Do not fear those who only have power to shorten your mortal existence; but fear God, our Father in heaven. Love him and keep his commandments. Love righteousness all the days of your lives. “Mormonism” is true. It is life and salvation that we proffer to all mankind, and we are now struggling against the power of death, and by faithfulness shall overcome. And still you know that our enemies are thirsting for our destruction; and why do they seek to destroy us? Because we are striving to be righteous. We have the words of life for them, to do them good, to save them and their fathers who died without the law.

With you, my brethren, I have the principles of eternal salvation; and for this cause they quarrel with us. The world say that we have principles that really lay the axe at the roots of the trees of all false creeds; and if we are let alone, their creeds will cease having followers. If they let us alone, and we are wrong and corrupt, as they say we are, we shall come to an end.

Why do they prefer to be corrupt? They do not understand true principles, otherwise they would say, “Praise God! I am thankful that you are here. Do right, prosper, and bring salvation to all the house of Israel, and to the Gentile world so far as you can.”

Let us alone, and we will build up the kingdom of God. We are striving for what all Christendom professes to be, and we will bring it forth. If they persecute us, we will bring it forth the sooner. Could all the Elders of Israel have given “Mormonism” the same impetus that the last quarrel has done? No. The Lord will bring more out of that than all the Elders could have done by any performance of theirs.

If the Devil and his servants are permitted to persecute us, why should we complain? Has not the Prophet; said that the servants of the Devil would make lies their refuge, and hide themselves under falsehood? Poor, miserable, lying curses here can write lies and publish them and send them forth in every direction. Traders take our money for goods, and all the time stir up every destructive element in their power to sell our blood, destroy our lives, and pollute our society.

Should the Lord reveal to me that my work on this earth is finished, I am ready to depart this life at any moment he may require. But the time has not yet come, and I expect to live until the Lord is willing that I should die.

I expect to live until I finish my work; and what is that? To promote the welfare of mankind, and save as many of the sons and daughters of Adam as I can prevail upon to be saved. How many I shall prevail upon to be saved is not for me to say.

When I get through my work here, my body will have the privilege to rest; and I understand where my spirit will go, and who will be my associates in the spirit world.

We have more friends behind the vail than on this side, and they will hail us more joyfully than you were ever welcomed by your parents and friends in this world; and you will rejoice more when you meet them than you ever rejoiced to see a friend in this life; and then we shall go on from step to step, from rejoicing to rejoicing, and from one intelligence and power to another, our happiness becoming more and more exquisite and sensible as we proceed in the words and powers of life.

God bless you! Amen.

Polygamy

Orson Pratt

Sermon by Elder Orson Pratt, Sen., delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, July 24, 1859. Reported by G. D. Watt.

I came to this Tabernacle this morning without any expectation of being called upon to address the congregation; but as I have been requested to preach, I cheerfully yield to the solicitations of my brethren, praying that the Holy Ghost may impart to me something for your edification. The office of the Spirit, when given in ancient times, was to make manifest truth—to quicken the memory of the man of God, that he might communicate clearly things which he had once learned, but partially forgotten.

For instance, the Apostles heard, during three years and a half, many sermons and a vast amount of conversation and private teaching. The office of the Spirit of truth was to bring to their remembrance the things that Jesus had formerly taught them. So it is the office of the same Spirit in these days to bring to our remembrance the words of the ancient Prophets and Apostles, and the words of Jesus, inasmuch as we have faith and confidence in God.

Our traditions inform us that if a man has two wives, it is a great sin and transgression against the laws of heaven and the laws of man. The congregation that now sit before me both male and female, imbibed these traditions before they embraced the doctrines of the Latter-day Saints. We were taught strictly, by our parents, by works on theology, by our neighbours, by our ministers from the pulpit, by the press, and by the laws of Christendom, that plurality of wives is a great crime. Many of us, perhaps, never thought of questioning the correctness of the tradition, to know whether it was in reality a crime or not. That which is generally condemned by our nation, by our parents and kindred, by our public teachers, and by the laws of Christendom generally as a crime, is considered criminal by us. If asked why polygamy is considered a crime, our only answer is, Because false tradition says so—popular opinion says it is a crime. Now if it be a crime—if it can be proved to be a crime by the law of God, then the inhabitants of this Territory, so far as this one institution is concerned, are in an awful condition; for it is well known that this practice is general throughout this Territory, with but a few exceptions. A great many families, not only in Salt Lake City, but throughout the settlements, have practically embraced this doctrine, believing it to be a Divine institution, approbated of God and the Bible.

We shall inquire a little into this principle for the information of the strangers who are present. Let us inquire whether, indeed, plurality of wives ever was sanctioned by the God of heaven—whether he himself is the Author of it, or whether he barely permitted it as a crime, the same as he permits many known crimes to exist. The Lord permits a man to get drunk; he permits him to lie, steal, murder, to take his name in vain, and suffers with him a long time, and at last he will bring him to judgment: he has to render up his accounts for all these things.

If the Lord permits what is termed polygamy to exist as a crime among the Latter-day Saints, he will bring us into judgment and condemn us for that thing. It is necessary that we, as Latter-day Saints, should certainly understand this matter, and understand it, too, beforehand, and not wait until we are brought to an account. If a man were in the midst of a nation where he was not thoroughly acquainted with their laws, he would be thankful to obtain such information as would guard him from committing crime ignorantly: he would not wish to remain in ignorance until the strong arm of the law laid hold of him and brought him before the bar of justice, where he would be forced to enter into a public investigation of his deeds, and be punished for them. Neither do we, as Latter-day Saints, wish to wait in ignorance until we are brought before the great tribunal, not of man, but of God.

Let us, therefore, carefully investigate the important question—Is polygamy a crime? Is it condemned in the Bible, either by the Old or New Testament? Has God ever condemned it by his own voice? Have his angels ever been sent forth to inform the nations who have practised this thing that they were in transgression? Has he ever spoken against it by any inspired writer? Has any Patriarch, Prophet, Apostle, angel, or even the Son of God himself, ever condemned polygamy? We may give a general answer, without investigating this subject, and say to the world, We have no information of that kind on record, except what we find in the Book of Mormon. There it was positively forbidden to be practised by the ancient Nephites.

The Book of Mormon, therefore, is the only record (professing to be Divine) which condemns plurality of wives as being a practice exceedingly abominable before God. But even that sacred book makes an exception in substance as follows—“Except I the Lord command my people.” The same Book of Mormon and the same article that commanded the Nephites that they should not marry more than one wife, made an exception. Let this be understood—“Unless I the Lord shall command them.” We can draw the conclusion from this, that there were some things not right in the sight of God, unless he should command them. We can draw the same conclusion from the Bible, that there were many things which the Lord would not suffer his children to do, unless he particularly commanded them to do them.

For instance, God gave to Moses express commandments in relation to killing. “Thou shalt not kill.” And this is not one of those commandments which was done away by the introduction of the Gospel; but it is a command that was to continue as long as man should continue on the earth. It was named by the Apostles as one that was binding on the Christian as well as on the Jew. “Thou shalt not kill.” Every one who reads this sacred command of God would presume at once that any individual found killing and destroying his fellow creature would be in disobedience to the command of God, and would be committing a great crime.

The same God that gave that commandment unto the children of Israel, saying, “Thou shalt not kill,” afterwards gave a commandment to them, that when they went to war against a foreign city, or a city not included in the land of Canaan, “When thou shalt go to war against it, and when the Lord thy God hath delivered it into thine hands, thou shalt smite every male thereof with the edge of the sword; but the women and little ones shalt thou take unto thyself.” (Deut. xx. 13, 14.)

Again, when Israel took the Midianites captive, they were commanded to “kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman that hath known man by lying with him; but all the women children that have not known man by lying with him, keep alive for yourselves.” (See Numbers xxxi. 17, 18.)

The question is, was it a sin before the Most High God for the children of Israel to obey the law concerning their captives, notwithstanding the former law, “Thou shalt not kill?” Most certainly not. Thus we see that it was a law given by the same God and to the same people that they should kill their captives, that they should kill the married women, their husbands, and their male children—that they should save alive none but those who had never been married and who had never known man. “Save them alive for yourselves,” says the law of God.

Here, then, we perceive that there are things which God forbids, and which it would be abominable for his people to do, unless he should revoke that commandment in certain cases. Because certain individuals among the Nephites, in ancient days, were expressly forbidden to take two wives, that did not prohibit the Lord from giving them a commandment, and making an exception, when he should see proper to raise up seed unto himself.

The substance of the idea in that book is that—When I the Lord shall command you to raise up seed unto myself, then it shall be right; but otherwise thou shalt hearken unto these things—namely, the law against polygamy. But when we go to the Jewish record, we find nothing that forbids the children of Israel from taking as many wives as they thought proper. God gave laws regulating the descent of property in polygamic families.

Turn to the 21st chap. of Deuteronomy, and the 15th verse, and you have there recorded that “If a man have two wives, one beloved and another hated, and they have borne him children, both the beloved and the hated; and if the firstborn son be hers that was hated, then it shall be, when he maketh his sons to inherit that which he hath, that he may not make the son of the beloved firstborn before the son of the hated, which is indeed the firstborn; but he shall acknowledge the son of the hated for the firstborn, by giving him a double portion of all that he hath; for he is the beginning of his strength: the right of the firstborn is his.”

In this law the Lord does not disapprobate the principle. Here would have been a grand occasion for him to do it, if it had been contrary to his will. Instead of saying, If you find a man that has two wives, he shall be excluded from the congregation of Israel, or shall divorce one and retain the other, or shall be put to death, because he presumed to marry two wives, he considers both women his lawful wives, and gives a law that the son of the hated wife, if the firstborn, shall actually inherit the double portion of his property. This becomes a standing law in Israel. Does not this clearly prove that the Lord did not condemn polygamy, but that he considered it legal?—that he did not consider one of these wives to be a harlot or a bad woman? Does it not prove that he counted the hated one as much a wife as the beloved one, and her children just as legitimate in the eyes of the law?

Again, let us go back to the days of the Patriarchs before the law of Moses was introduced among the people, and we find the same principle still existed and approbated by the God of heaven. I have heard many of our opponents argue that the law of Moses approbated a plurality of wives; but it was not to be under other dispensations—as much as to say, it was merely given because of the hardness of their hearts. But such a saying is not to be found in the Bible. I can find a declaration of our Lord and Saviour that the divorcing of a wife was permitted in the days of Moses because of the hardness of the hearts of the people; but I cannot find any passage in the sayings of the Saviour, or the Apostles and Prophets, or in the law, that the taking of another wife was because of the hardness of their hearts. There is quite a difference between taking wives and putting them away.

This law of plurality, as I am going to prove, did not only exist under the law of Moses, but existed before that law, under the Patriarchal dispensation. And what kind of a dispensation was that? It has been proved before the people in this Territory, time after time, that the dispensation in which the Patriarchs lived was the dispensation of the Gospel—that the Gospel was preached to Abraham as well as unto the people in the days of the Apostles; so says Paul; and the same Gospel too that was preached in the days of the Apostles was preached to Abraham. “The scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the Gospel unto Abraham,” &c. The same Gospel that the heathen would be justified by was the same Gospel that Jesus and his Apostles preached, and which was before preached to Abraham. If we can find out that, under the Gospel preached to Abraham, polygamy was allowed, the Gospel preached by Jesus, being the same, of course, would not condemn it. Jacob, we understand, went from his lathers; house to sojourn at a distance from the land that was promised to him; and while he sojourned there, he married Leah, one of the daughters of Laban, after having served faithfully seven years. It was a custom to buy wives in those days: they were more expensive than now-a-days. It is true he got cheated: he expected to have married Rachel; but as, I presume, the old Eastern custom of wearing veils deceived Jacob, he could not exactly understand whether it was Leah or Rachel until after he was married. Then he served seven years more to get Rachel. Here was a plurality of wives.

Did the Lord appear to Jacob after this? Yes. Did he chasten him? No. Did he send his angels to him after this? Yes: hosts of them came to him. He was a men of such powerful faith, and his heart so pure before. God, that he could take hold of one of them and wrestle all night with him, the same as people wrestle in the streets here, only they did not swear; and, I presume, they had not been drinking whisky; and they wrestled with all their might. I do not suppose the angel, at first, exercised any peculiar faith, but merely a physical strength. He was unable to throw Jacob; and Jacob, like a prince, prevailed with God; but be began to mistrust that he was something more than a man that was wrestling with him, and began to inquire after his name: and by-and-by the angel, determined not to be worsted, put forth one of his fingers, and touched one of Jacob’s sinews, and down he came. Did this angel inform Jacob that he was a wretched polygamist—an offscouring of the earth, not worthy to dwell in the society of men? No. He was recommended as a great prince, and one that had power to prevail with an angel all night, until the angel put forth his miraculous power on him.

This same Jacob conversed with God, heard his voice, and saw him; and in all those visions and glorious manifestations made to him, we find no reproof for polygamy. Certainly, if the Lord did not intend to approbate a crime, he would have reproved his for polygamy, if polygamy were a crime. If he did no; intend Jacob to go headlong to destruction, he would have told him he had taken two wives, and it was not right; but, instead of this, he blessed these wives of Jacob exceedingly, and poured out his Spirit upon them. Leah bore him four sons, and then she became for awhile barren. Finding she had left off bearing children, she gave Zilpah—a woman that was dwelling with them to Jacob to wife although he already had two; and Zilpah raised up children to Jacob. Leah had borne several children, and had left off bearing. She had been more backward about giving her handmaid Zilpah to Jacob to wife than Rachel had been in giving Bilhah. Seeing the Lord was about to curse her with barrenness, because she did not do according to the example of her younger sister, she gave Zilpah to Jacob. Then the Lord hearkened to her prayer, and Leah said—“God hath given me my hire, because I have given my maiden to my husband.” (See Genesis xxx. 18.)

Who ever heard of the Lord’s hearing one’s prayer, because a person was doing an evil? If polygamy were a crime, God would have condemned her, because she gave up her handmaiden to her husband. We cannot suppose that any woman not acquainted with the law and commandment of the Most High, and believing it to be sinful for her has band to have two wives, would express herself in such a manners—The Lord heard my prayer and gave me the fifth son, because I gave my hand maid to my husband to wife. This shows to us that Jacob’s wife, Leah, did really consider it something pleasing in the sight of God. It was something that God and all his angels that appeared to Jacob approbated, and, instead of cursing him, blessed him more and more. By these four wives the whole twelve sons of Jacob were born, and they became the heads of the twelve tribes of Israel. And when the day comes that the Holy City, the Old Jerusalem shall descend from God out of heaven, crowned with glory, there will be found upon the wall which is erected around it the names of the twelve Patriarchs of Israel, beautifully engraved upon the walls. I suppose the people of this day would call the most of these sons of Jacob bastards; but they are to be honoured of God, not for a few years, but an honour that is to exist for ever and ever, while their names will be found emblazoned upon the walls of the Holy City, to remain throughout eternity.

Now, recollect, this is under the Gospel dispensation, and not under the law of Moses, which was given several hundred years afterwards. The Lord made great and precious promises to the seed of Jacob, through these wives, saying they should inherit the land of Palestine, and they should be blessed above all people. We find this blessing fulfilled upon their heads, according to the righteousness of their descendants, until they were scattered because of iniquity.

Moses, one of the greatest Prophets that ever arose, with the exception of Jesus, not only approbated polygamy but actually practised it himself. We find, on a certain occasion, that the brother of Moses (Aaron) and the prophetess Miriam began to upbraid him, in consequence of a certain Ethiopian wife he had taken. (See Numbers xii. 1.) He had already one wife, the daughter of Jethro, the priest of Midian. Did the Lord join in with them? Did he say, You are right to make light of Moses second wife? It is polygamy! It is a great crime! It is sinful! Was this the way the Lord talked? No. But he was angry that they should make light of a thing which he himself esteemed as very sacred; and, as a consequence, he smote Miriam with leprosy, and she became as white as snow; and although she was a prophetess, she had to be put out of the camp, and stay out seven days, because of speaking against one of Moses’ wives. Did this look like the Lord’s considering it an illegal marriage? It proves that the Lord did consider the marriage legal.

I have only demonstrated to you that the Lord approbated polygamy, and gave laws regulating the descent of property to the polygamic children. But I will now repeat to you an express command of God to certain persons to marry more than one wife; and they could not get rid of it without breaking the law of God. The Lord said, “Cursed be every man that continueth not in all things written in this book of the law.” However righteous and moral a man might have been in many other respects, yet, if he did not continue in all things written in that book of the law, he was to be cursed. “Cursed be that man, and all the people shall say, Amen.” Now, among the things written in that book of the law, we find these words—“If brethren dwell together, and one of them die, and have no child, the wife of the dead shall not marry without unto a stranger: her husband’s brother shall go in unto her, and take her to him to wife, and perform the duty of a husband’s brother unto her. And it shall be that the firstborn which she beareth shall succeed in the name of his brother which is dead, that his name be not put out of Israel.” (See Deuteronomy xxv. 5, 6.) Must his brother do this, if he has a family of his own? Yes. It does not matter whether he has a family or not, that command is given to him: it is the law of God, and the reason is given in order that the name of the dead might not perish and be cut off from Israel. The living brother had to preserve the inheritance in his deceased brother’s family. Now, if the widow of the deceased brother married a stranger—a import that did not belong to that particular tribe, the inheritance would go to a stranger, and would be shifting from tribe to tribe, or even might become the inheritance of one that did not belong to the tribes of Israel. In order to prevent this, the first-born male of the living brother was to be considered the son of the dead brother, and was to receive the inheritance and perpetuate the same in the family; and this was to continue from generation to generation. Now, suppose that there were seven brothers, as there often were families of that size in Israel; suppose they married them wives, and six of them should die without leaving male issue to bear up their name, but the seventh brother was still living; do you not see that this law and commandment would be binding on that seventh, still living, to take the six widows? This he would be compelled to do; and yet this generation say polygamy is a crime, while here is the sanction of Divine authority. Here a man is brought under obligation to take these six widows, and raise up seed to his dead brothers. How long was this to continue? Is there any evidence in the Bible that it was to cease when Christianity should be introduced by our Saviour and his Apostles? What was the condition of the Jewish nation at the time Jesus went forth preaching repentance and baptism and admitting members into his Church? I will tell you, there were thousands and thousands that were polygamists and were obliged by the command of God to be so. They could not get rid of it, if they obeyed the law of Moses; and if they did not obey, they were to be cursed.

These polygamists, then, that took their deceased brothers’ wives; according to the notions of Christendom in the nineteenth century, would be prohibited from baptism. The Son of God and the Apostles that went forth 1,800 years ago, were so holy that they must not permit any of these polygamists to enter the Christian Church, though they were only obeying the command given by the God of heaven through Moses; yet they must not be baptized—they must be rejected. This would be the argument of Christianity in the nineteenth century. But can we suppose that Jesus would be so inconsistent that he would actually command a thing a few thousand years before, (for Jesus was the one that gave the law to Moses,) and then come two or three thousand years afterwards, and not permit the people to enter his Church because they had obeyed that former command? Such is the foolish argument of Christendom in these days. Say they, Polygamy is not to be sanctioned under the Christian dispensation. I would like to know where their evidence is. What part of the New Testament, or where, in the teachings of Jesus and his Apostles, do we find such evidence recorded, that a man should not have more than one wife? It cannot be found. But says one, “I have read the New Testament, and I do not recollect that the term wives is used by the eight writers of that book; but they always used the term “wife,” in the singular number. And from this it is presumed that they did not have more than one. Let us examine the strength of this presumption.

I find eighteen or twenty writers of the Old Testament who use “wife,” and not wives. Will you, therefore, draw the conclusion that plurality was not practised among them under the Old Testament? If the presumption is of any weight in relation to the eight writers of the New Testament, it certainly is of greater weight in relation to twenty writers of the Old Testament. But it is known that in the latter case the presumption is false; therefore it is of no strength or force whatever in the former case.

Now let us examine some other objections urged against polygamy. The objector has often referred to the saying of Jesus, when commanding the people that they should not put away their wives, saving it should be for the cause of fornication. Jesus says Moses suffered a divorce to be given because of the hardness of the hearts of the people; and further says it was not so from the beginning; that God made man, male and female, and they were joined together by Divine authority, and they twain became one flesh.” Now, says the objector, it does not say that three or that four shall become one flesh, &c.; and consequently, this is an argument against plurality. Let us examine this, and see if there is any force in it. It was not so in the beginning, before the days of Moses. What was not so? This putting away of wives—this divorcing of wives for every little nonsensical purpose. Jesus was showing that it was contrary to his mind and will; that Moses only suffered it because of the hardness of their hearts; but that in the beginning it was not, so; as much as to say, “If you give divorces, you practise something given through the wickedness of the people. If you put away your wives for any other cause than that of fornication, you cause your wives to commit adultery; and if any man marry her that is put away, he committeth adultery.”

Then, again, he says, “If a woman put away her husband, she committeth adultery.” A man has no right to put away his wife, nor a woman her husband. “What God hath joined together, let no man put asunder; for in the beginning it was not so, but they twain became one flesh.”

Is this an argument against having more than one wife? For instance, Jacob and Leah were one flesh, Leah being his first wife. Jacob and Rachel were one flesh. Jacob and Bilhah were one flesh. Jacob and Zilpah were one flesh; and if he had had a thousand more, it would have been the same: each wife would have been a legitimate wife, and one flesh with Jacob; and their children would have been legitimate. This was no argument against plurality. If so, Jacob would have been found a transgressor.

In the second chapter of Genesis, it is stated that the Lord took a rib from Adam, and, by adding other materials, formed a woman, and brought her to the man, and gave her to him as an helpmeet—as a wife. “And Adam said, This I know now is bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called woman, because she was taken out of man. Therefore, shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave unto his wife; and they twain shall be one flesh.”

This is the saying which Jesus quoted. Now, Jacob, in taking four wives, became one flesh with each one of them; but how and in what respect? Perhaps it may be said that they became one in mind, one in understanding, one in intellect, one in judgment, &c. Their minds are to be one. But it does not say one in mind, one spiritually, but one flesh.

How are we to understand this? Paul. (Eph. v. 28—31) says, “So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth himself; for no man ever yet hated his own flesh, but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the Church: for we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife; and they two shall be one flesh.”

Paul makes this quotation from the second chapter of Genesis, to prove that the woman was one flesh with the man, because she was taken out of man’s body, and made out of his flesh and bones. She was one flesh in this respect—not in identity: they were two distinct persons, as much so as the Father and the Son are two distinct personages.

And again, the wife becomes one flesh with her husband in another respect: when she presents herself to the man, and gives herself to him with an everlasting covenant, one that is not to be broken, she becomes his flesh, his property, his wife, as much so as the flesh and bone of his own body.

The Father and the Soft are represented to be one. “I and my Father are one,” said Jesus. Would any person pretend to say, because Jesus and his Father were one, that he could not receive a third person into the communion?—a fourth, or a fifth? If we examine the arguments of modern Christendom, nobody but Jesus could be admitted into the union; or, in other words, they twain—that is, the Father and the Son—were to be one, and no others. But Jesus says, “Father, I pray not for these alone which thou hast given me out of the world; but I pray for all them that shall believe on me through their words, (the Twelve,) that they all may be one, as thou Father art in me, and I in thee; that they may be made perfect in one.”

The disciples of Jesus were not to lose their identity, because Jesus was one with the Father. The identity of Jesus was not destroyed, but he remained a distinct person, and so did all the disciples, and yet they became one; and so is every man and his wives. Because they twain—that is, Jesus and his Father—were one, it diet not hinder the disciples from attaining to the same oneness. And so likewise with regard to the man and his first wife: because they twain are one flesh, it does not prevent him from being one flesh with each of his other wives which he may legally take.

Again, there is a principle which I will now relate more particularly for the benefit of strangers. There is such a principle as marriage for eternity, which may imply one wife or many. The marriage covenant is indissoluble; it is everlasting; it is not limited to time; but it is a covenant to exist while eternity exists: it pertains to immortality as well as mortality. I will prove this. The first example we have on record of a marriage was that of our first parents. Adam and Eve. Were they married as people marry now-a-days? Were they married as the world of Christendom marry at the present day? No: they married as immortal beings. They knew nothing about death; they never had seen any such thing as death. When Eve was brought to Adam, she was brought to him an immortal being. When Adam received her as his wife, he was an immortal being: his flesh and bones were not subject to sickness and decay; he was not subject to pain and suffering: there was no death working in his system—no plague that could prostrate him in the dust. They were intended to endure for ever and ever. So far as their bodies were concerned, they brought death on themselves.

Paul says that sin entered into the world by transgression, and death by sin. Notice that expression. Death entered into the world by sin. If there had been no sin, there would have been no death. If Adam and Eve never had sinned, they would have been alive on the earth at this time, just as fresh and pure as in the morning of creation: they would have remained to all eternity without a wrinkle of old age overtaking them.

These were the personages first married. Question—Were they married for a certain period of time, as persons are married by the world of Christendom at this day?

When you go up before a magistrate to have marriage solemnized, you hear him saying—I pronounce you husband and wife, or man and wife, as the case may be, until death.

Adam knew nothing about that monster: it was not in his creed. Such an idea never entered into his mind as they have at the present day—I bind you together as husband and wife until death, which shall separate you. If I were married by the laws of Christendom, I should consider the woman I had taken was my wife until death. I should consider this marriage covenant the same as if I had a piece of property promised to me for a certain period of time—say for the space of twenty years; after which, I have no claim upon it. When death comes, I have no claim upon the woman married to me by those who pretend to administer the sacred ordinance. But not so with our first parents. When Eve was presented to Adam as an helpmeet to him—as a wife, it was not intended that that relation should cease after s few score of years, or when death should come; but it was sis everlasting as Adam and Eve themselves. When they went down to their graves, they could go down with a sure and certain knowledge that they still were husband and wife, and that this sacred relationship would continue after the resurrection.

This is the great and first example for marriage. The Latter-day Saints have adopted this example, not by our own wisdom—for I do not know that we should ever have thought of it; but by new revelation. The same God that originated marriage for all eternity, in relation to the first pair, has again spoken from the heavens and told us something about this sacred ceremony. He has informed us that if we are married and expect to have claim on our wives, and wives on their husbands, in the eternal worlds, that this ordinance of marriage must be, not till death, but for ever and ever, reaching forward through all our future state of existence.

Having established this principle of marriage for eternity, let us examine the results flowing from it. Let me suppose that here is my neighbour; he has a wife, and she is married to him for all eternity. By-and-by, he dies and leaves his widow. I area young unmarried man, and pay my attentions to her; and she, being still young, accepts my attentions and wishes to be married to me; yet she has been married to a man for all eternity. Can she be married to me for all eternity? No. I accept of her as a wife for time only, yielding her up with all her posterity in the morning of the first resurrection to her legal and lawful husband.

But now what shall become of me? I have got to give up this wife to her legal and lawful husband in the morning of the first resurrection; and I must not, according to the laws of Christendom, marry another so long as she lives; and she might live as long as I. Am I to be deprived of a wife for eternity, because I married this widow for time? or would plurality come in and supply me also with a wife?

This is one of the results necessarily arising, when marriage for eternity is admitted. There is just as much reason for it as for any other principle God has ever revealed to the human family.

Again, for instance, here is a ham that has married a wife for time and all eternity; and here is a woman that has not had a privilege of being married, like thousands and tens of thousands that are abroad in the States and in all the world among the nations of Christendom: they have to live contrary to their own will, and die old maids, without a husband for time or eternity either. If one of this class, who had not had an opportunity of marriage with a righteous man, and who was unwilling to trust herself with those whom she considered unworthy of marriage for time or eternity either, should come to the Territory of Utah, and, still having no offer of marriage from a single young man here, she sees a good man that has a family; he proposes marriage to her; she voluntarily offers to become one of his wives; he accepts the offer; the ceremony is celebrated. What harm is done? Who is injured? What law is broken? None. I ask, Would it be right, with a view that marriage is to exist, not only in time, but in eternity, that this woman, who is a good, moral, virtuous woman, should remain without a husband through all eternity, because she did not have an opportunity of being married? If marriage be of any benefit in the eternal world, would it not be far more consistent with the law of God that she should have the privilege, by her own free, voluntary consent, to marry a good man, though he might have a family, and claim him for her husband, not only through time, but eternity?

Jesus informs us that in the resurrection mankind are neither married nor given in marriage: all these things have to be attended to here. In the resurrection, a man is not to be baptized. Here is the place to attend to these things. If we are to become the promised seed, and heirs according to the promise, we must be baptized into Christ and put him on, and do it before the resurrection; for if I put it off beyond this life, in the resurrection there will be no such thing as putting on Christ by being baptized. Just so, in the resurrection there will be no such thing as attending to the ceremony of marriage, so far as we are informed. But Jesus further says, concerning those persons who have not attended to those matters here, that in the resurrection they are as the angels of God: and some of the angels are a little lower than men. In what respect? They have not the power to increase their kingdom by the multiplication of their species, and this because they have not lawful and legal wives. They are probably among that class who have put off marriage for eternity, and die without attending to it; and after the resurrection, they find themselves wifeless, without any family or kingdoms of their own offspring. In this single and undesirable condition they are to remain, because they cannot hunt up a wife after the resurrection. Such, instead of receiving crowns, will merely become ministers or messengers for the crown, being sent forth by those who have attained to a higher glory, who have the power of receiving kingdoms, and increasing the same, through their own offspring that are begotten after the resurrection by the wives given to them while here in this world. These angels have forfeited this privilege; consequently, they are lower than the man who keeps a celestial law; and if these angels lived on the earth, they would be called old bachelors.

Do you not see the difference between the glory of those who claim their privileges and those who do not? I am not speaking to the class who pay no attention to the law of God or to the nature of marriage; but I am speaking of those ancient Patriarchs, and Prophets, and holy men that understood the law of God, and practised it, and prepared themselves here to receive an exceeding weight of glory hereafter. Do you not understand that such men arise above angels?—that they have kingdoms, while angels have none?—that they are crowned kings and princes over their own descendants, which will become as numerous as the sands on the sea above, while the angels have neither wives, sons, nor daughters to be crowned over? Shall a young, moral, virtuous woman, because she does not find a young man that is suitable to her nature, or worthy of her—shall she be deprived of this exaltation in the eternal world, because of the Gentile laws of modern Christendom? No. The Latter-day Saints believe otherwise. We believe that woman is just as good as man, if she does as well. If a good man is entitled to a kingdom of glory—to a reward and crown, and has the privilege of swaying a sceptre in the eternal world, a good woman is entitled to the same, and should be placed by his side, and have the privilege of enjoying all the glory, honour, and blessings that are bestowed upon her lord and husband. If also cannot get any lord or husband though whom she can trust herself for exaltation to that glory, who can blame her for going into a family where she thinks she will be secure?

These are some of the reasons in favour of polygamy. Many people think it strange that there should be a whole territory of polygamists organized in the midst of Christendom. It is so contrary, say they, to our institutions, and to the traditions of our society and nation, and to the practice of our forefathers that have lived for many generations past. But did you never reflect that it is possible for same of the institutions, traditions, and practices of our forefathers to be incorrect? Look at the vast number of traditions that have had their place upon the earth, and that, too, among the most enlightened generations, which are now entirely discarded. Look at the laws which existed but; a few years ago in enlightened England, where a man, if he went into a shop, being hungry, end took the amount of five shillings’ worth, he must be hung up by the neck.

If a man was almost ready to perish with starvation, as thousands and millions often are in Great Britain, and should go into a neighbouring park and take a sheep to preserve his life and the life of his family, he must be hung up by the neck. The people thought these were wholesome laws, when they existed. They were just as sincere in supposing these laws to be good as the people of the United States are in supposing there should be a severe law against polygamy.

Now, let me say, plainly and boldly, without the fear of contradiction, that the citizens of Utah are transgressing fie law of man by taking a plurality of wives. But it is asserted by some that we are transgressing the traditions and institutions that are established among civilized nations. We admit this freely; and the people of the United States are transgressing that law that was in force in old England about sheep-stealing; for they suffer many of their sheep-stealers to go unhung; and if a man steals five shillings worth of provisions, they do not hang him up.

Why have the American nation abolished, not only many of the traditions, customs, and institutions of ether civilized nations which have been handed down for so many ages, but have even abolished and discarded many of their criminal laws? Why have they made these innovations upon civilized society? Is it not as possible that the sovereign States of this enlightened nation may be misguided in regard to their strict laws which they have passed against polygamy as it was for our forefathers to be misguided in their strict laws against witchcraft in Massachusetts, where every man and woman must be put to death for a witch, if somebody became prejudiced against them? This was a law among our forefathers in enlightened America but a short period back. They thought they were right, and were as sincere in it as the States are in these strict and rigid laws against polygamy. But, thank the Lord, Utah is not in bondage to such bigoted State laws.

The form of the American Government makes each State and Territory independent of the laws of all the others. Have the laws’ of Missouri any bearing upon the people of Kansas, any further than what the people of Kansas voluntarily, by their Legislature, re-enact? No. The laws of one State or Territory have no more to do with the laws ‘of any other State or Territory than they have with the laws of China. Utah is just as much under the laws of China as under the laws of Missouri, or the laws of any other State of the American Union. There is a difference between these local State laws and the laws of the United States passed by Congress in Washington. The laws of the United States are applicable all over the nation. Has the American Congress seen proper, since its first organization, to pass a law against polygamy? No So far as the national law is concerned, it has no more bearing upon the subject of polygamy than it has upon the subject of monogamy, or something that never existed. Let us go still higher, above the laws of Congress, to that great instrument—the American Constitution, which we, as a people, have always held as one of the most perfect and glorious instruments that was ever framed by any nation, through their own wisdom, since the world began. It guarantees to us the liberty of the press, freedom of speech, liberty to seek for one’s happiness, and to emigrate from State to State, and to enjoy all the privileges and rights that any man could in conscience ask for. Is there anything in that glorious Constitution that forbids polygamy? There is not. Have the citizens of the Territory of Utah transgressed that instrument so far as this thing is concerned? No. Have they transgressed the laws of any Territory or State of the Union so far as they have any bearing upon this Territory? No. Again, has the Territory of Utah ever passed a law against polygamy? If they have, then as many as have received this doctrine are transgressors of the law. You may search our laws from beginning to end, but you will find nothing in them against polygamy.

The wise legislators of Utah have been actuated by more liberal principles than those who have deprived American citizens of the dearest and most sacred rights granted in the Constitution. What is the result, then? It is, that any people whatsoever who feel disposed to marry more than one wife in this Territory have the privilege to do so. What! the Methodists? Yes. Have the Baptists a right to come into Utah and marry two wives? Yes, so far as the civil law is concerned. Have those who make no profession of religion whatever a right to marry a score or a hundred wives in this Territory? Yes: so far as civil law is concerned, all have equal privileges. Have the Chinese a right to come to this Territory and bring more wives than one, or the Mahometans? Yes. Every nation under heaven have a right to come and enjoy perfect liberty so far as this thing is concerned; and I have already shown that there is no law in the Bible to bear against them.

You cannot condemn us temporally, or spiritually, or by the civil law; neither can you condemn us by the Bible. There is no law that condemns us, unless the law in the Book of Mormon does so; and I have already shown that the Book of Mormon does not, provided the Lord has commanded it. But if we have not been commanded in regard to this matter, then there is one thing that will condemn us, and that is the Book of Mormon. This is a little more strict than any other Divine revelation, in regard to polygamy. Thirteen years after the publication of the Book of Mormon, the same Prophet that translated the Book of Mormon received a revelation upon marriage, which commanded certain individuals in this Church to take unto themselves a plurality of wives for time and all eternity, declaring that it is a righteous principle, and was practised by inspired men in times of old.

In obedience to this commandment, many have gone forth and taken upon themselves a plurality of wives; consequently, they are not condemned in this thing, so far as the Book of Mormon is concerned; and we consider this book to be a part and portion of our religious creed; and the Constitution of America gives people a right to worship God according to the dictates of their own consciences. But our opponents say no person has a right to commit crime under that saying. I admit it. But prove that polygamy is a crime. You can prove that murder, stealing, and cheating your neighbour are crimes. You can prove a great many things to be criminal, from the Bible and from reason. If you search the great commentaries on law, they will inform you that all criminal law is founded on Divine revelation. When Divine revelation points out a crime, they generally adopt it as such, and attach penalties. The Bible is the foundation of most of the criminal Jaws of Christendom. Point out in the Bible where polygamy is a crime, and then you may say we have no right to embrace it as a part of our religious creed, and pretend it as a part of our constitutional rights. If we embrace murder, stealing, robbing, cheating our neighbour, as a part of our religious rights, then the Constitution will condemn us. Not so with polygamy. If we should embrace adultery in our religious creed, then we may be condemned as criminals by the laws of God and man; but when it comes to polygamy, which is not condemned by the Bible any more than monogamy, and embrace that as a part and portion of our creed, the Constitution gives us an undeniable right of Worshipping God in this respect as in all others: Congress have no more constitutional right to pass a law against polygamy than they have to pass a law against monogamy, or against a man living in celibacy.

A portion of the Shaker’s creed is that they are living in the resurrection, and that they should not marry; and you will find whole communities of them living without husbands and wives. The Government of the United States has no right to say yea shall not live in celibacy, but you shall comply with American institutions; neither have they a right to say that sprinkling infants or worshipping a Chinese idol is criminal. A great variety of peculiarities are embraced by different sects and societies in our nation; and they have a right to hold their creeds, however much they may differ from their neighbours, so long as those creeds are not criminal. We ask no rights that are not guaranteed unto us by the American Constitution. We do not claim, beg, or petition for any other. These rights are guaranteed to us as American citizens. We are entitled to the right of voting as we please, and in doing as we please in religious matters, so long as we do not infringe upon the criminal laws of the nation, neither of this Territory. This is all we claim; and this is what every true-hearted American citizen should be willing to fight for, if our rulers rise up and deprive us of the rights guaranteed to us by the Constitution.

Do you suppose, because we are few in numbers, that we must tamely submit to see our constitutional rights wrested from us by unprincipled rulers? If you suppose this, you have formed an erroneous opinion of the patriotism of American citizens. There are certain rights belonging to every religious sect that inhabits these United States; and every sect has a right to claim them, if they should have to do it at the point of the sword. I have no hesitancy in saying before the whole world that the rights guaranteed by the great Constitution of this country and its national laws are the rights I will claim while I have a being, even if it is necessary to claim them by force; and if the Chief Executive, or the American Congress send their armies to Utah to trample upon these rights, and take from American citizens that which is more dear to them than life, I shall esteem it no treason to resist them. The majority may undertake to trample upon the minority, because they have the power to do so; but this will not hinder the minority from patriotically defending their rights. Liberty or death should be the motto of every true American. These are my views, and I presume that these are the views of all the people in this great Republic who have tasted and realize the sweets of liberty. When we speak against the acts of a President of the United States, is that treason? No. Do all the newspapers published in the American nation speak well of the Presidents? Is there no man in the American nation that tries his best to influence the public against the public acts of President Buchanan? You find them by hundreds. They are denouncing the President continually in the most bitter manner. They do not denounce the particular form of Government, or the Constitution, or laws; but they do denounce the acts of public men when they please; and this right is guaranteed to them, and they are responsible for it. If they do it unjustly, in a slanderous manner, they are accountable to the laws, and may be heavily fined. We claim the same privilege. There are many acts of this Government we dislike, and so do many of the political parties in the nation. Many people throughout the American nation are dissatisfied, not only with the acts of Congress, but with the Chief Magistrate of the nation; and they are not afraid of committing treason by bringing these acts before the public, and commenting upon them. We claim this right in connection with other American citizens.

I have already detained the congregation sufficiently long upon various subjects as they occurred to my mind. I recommend the strangers present to appeal to our works and read them. We have nothing we are ashamed of. All our writings are free and open to the public, and have been for years: hundreds and thousands of copies of pamphlets on polygamy, and books on various subjects have been sent abroad, not only throughout the American nation, but throughout the civilized nations of Europe, published in many languages, which contain our views in relation to the Book of Mormon, to the Gospel of salvation, and to our rights as a people. They all are before the public. There are none of our publications which we wish to hide up in a corner. You can learn and investigate for yourselves. And let those prejudices that have been instilled into your minds, as well as into mine, be set aside for a short time, to inform yourselves concerning these matters. Do not be so much bound down by the creeds of men and public opinion as not to be free enough to investigate for yourselves; and when you find a true principle, embrace it, However you may be condemned by mankind, lay hold of it; it will do you good, and no harm.

May God bless you. Amen.

Celebration of the Fourth of July (Smith)

George A. Smith

An address by Elder George A. Smith, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, July 4, 1854.

Gentlemen and Ladies—Fellow-Citizens—I arise here to address you a few moments upon a subject which has, perhaps, been worn threadbare by craters, statesmen, and divines, for the last seventy years, in the minds of a great portion of those who have been in the habit of listening to speeches upon the battles of the Revolution, and the causes which put it in motion. The subject has become trite. Every school-boy who reads American history is, perhaps, better versed in it than he could be with anything that I can advance, by pursuing the old beaten track, or continuing in the channel which has been so long worn. Yet I may safely say, with all that has been said, its real merits have scarcely been approached.

The causes which produced the American Revolution were so far behind the vail, that the writers of American history and the orators who expatiate on the subject on occasions like this, and on other occasions, have not acknowledged that it was the Almighty—the invisible and omnipotent hand of Him who made the heavens and the earth and the fountains of waters, who worked the secret wires, and opened up the revolutionary scene, to lay a foundation and prepare a people, with a system of government, among whom his work of the last days could be commenced upon this earth.

Persons present to-day may consider that no other country in the world would have allowed the persecutions and oppressions that have fallen upon the work of God in this land, of which many of you have been partakers. But in this you are mistaken; for there is no nation under heaven among whom the kingdom of God could have been established and rolled forth with as little opposition as it has received in the United States. Every species of oppression and opposition, which has aimed at the destruction of the lives and liberties of the members of this Church, has been in open violation of the laws of the country; while, among other nations, the links of the chain of government are so formed that the very constitution and laws of the country would oppose the government of God. This is the case almost without an exception.

I will say, then, the American Revolution had its beginning behind the vail. The invisible providence of the Almighty, by his Spirit, inspired the hearts of the Revolutionary Fathers to resist the Government of England and the oppressions they had submitted to for ages. When ground to dust, as it were, in their mother country, the first settlers in this land looked to the West. They fled from oppression, and planted their standard upon American soil, which was then a wilderness in the possession o savages. The climate, productions extent, and nature of the country was then unknown to distant nations. It appeared, however, to offer an asylum for the oppressed, even at that early day.

A party escaped from oppression, and landed in Massachusetts; another party, for a similar cause, left the mother country, and landed in Connecticut; and so a number of the early States were formed by settlers who fled from their native country through religions oppression. The young colonies grew until they became somewhat formidable, and began to realize that they were entitled to some common national privileges; that they had a right to the protection of certain laws by which their ancestors were protected; and also that they had a right to an equal voice in the making of those laws.

It is my intention to notice a multiplicity of minor circumstances, to portray the tyrannical spirit that prevailed in the English Parliament, and which were only so many sparks to feed the flame of revolution. What was the greatest trouble? The right of making their own laws was denied them by the King and Parliament; and if they made laws, the King claimed the right of abrogating those laws at pleasure, and also appointed officers who could dissolve the National Assembly and levy taxes without the consent of the inhabitants of the Colonies.

These were the main causes of the Revolution. God caused these causes to operate upon the minds of the colonists, until they nobly resisted the power of the mother country. At that time Great Britain stood pre-eminent among the nations of Europe, and had just finished the wars against several of them combined. God inspired our fathers to make the Declaration of Independence, and sustained them in their struggles for liberty until they conquered. Thus they Separated themselves from the parent stock; and, as an historian of that age quaintly said, when they signed that Declaration, if they did not all hang together, they would be sure to all hang separately. Union is strength.

But how Sees this Revolution progress? That is the question. Has the great principle that colonies, territories, states, and nations have the right to make their own laws, yet become established in the world? I think if some of our lawyers would peruse the musty statutes at large, they would find that there are several colonies of the United States who have seen proper, under the limited provisions then given them, to enact laws for their own convenience; but they suffered the mortification of having them vetoed by the General Congress. Look, for instance, at the statutes in relation to the Territory of Florida, and see the number of laws enacted by that people, and repealed by act of Congress.

It is curious to me that the progress of the Revolution has been so small, referring to that which is produced in the minds of the whole American people. Every organized Territory, wherever it exists, has the same right that the early revolutionary fathers claimed of Great Britain, and bled to obtain—that is, of making its own laws and being represented in the General Assembly as a confederate power.

This Revolution may possibly increase in the future, and is, no doubt, progressing at the present time. One individual in particular, during the present session of Congress, has become so enlightened as to say in the House, “You have no business with the domestic relations of Utah;” and, consequently, I think the principle is making headway.

The United States have increased greatly in power, majesty, dominion, and extent, having half-a-dozen Territories at once already organized, and others calling for an organization. Says the General Government to these organized bodies at a distance, “You may send a Delegate here, but he shall have no voice in the General Assembly; and if you make any laws that do not suit us, we will repeal them, and we will send you a Governor who will veto everything you do that does not exactly suit us.” I want to see the Revolution progress, so that the great head of the American ration can say to every separate colony, “Make your own laws, and cleave to the principles of the Constitution which gives that right.”

For me to rehearse the battles of Washington, and the incidents in the struggle for freedom which every school-boy knows, would only be to consume time to little advantage. What has been the result? Our forefathers, by their blood, have purchased for us liberty; but as far as the rights of the weak are concerned, the Revolution has progressed slowly. Joker instance, the Territory of Oregon forms a provisional Government for itself, and then petitions Congress to receive her under their fostering care. The result is, they send them a convoy of Governmental officers, which, by-the-bye, never have time to get there; and if they should happen to arrive there, they are unwilling to stay; and thus the people have been left, a whole year at a time, without a regular set of officers. They are deprived of the privilege of voting in favour of or against the officers who are appointed to rule them, and of being heard, through their Representative, in the halls of Congress. Who wants to go there, and not have a voice with the rest of them? Although we have sent a most eloquent gentleman to represent this portion of the American nation, and one who can cry “poor pussy” among them to a charm, yet, at the same time, he cannot have the privilege of voting on any question, however detrimental to liberty and the Constitution.

But the Revolution is progressing, and the time is not far distant when Territories will enjoy privileges that have been held back for the purpose of pandering to a relict of that monarchy which oppressed the American people. Is it reasonable that people dwelling thousands of miles from the parent Government should not have the same privilege of regulating their own affairs as those who live in its vicinity? It is the same kind of oppression and restraint that was placed upon our Revolutionary Fathers by the King and his Parliament. The American Government has fallen into the same errors, touching this point, as the British Government did at the commencement of the Revolution.

This is what I have to say on the rise and progress of the American Revolution. It is progressing slowly. While the nation is extending itself, and increasing in power, wisdom, and, wealth, it seems, at the same time, to remain, in some respects, on the old ground occupied by the mother country in the early settlement of this land. I raise my voice against it, for I love American Independence: the principle is dear to my heart. When I have been in foreign countries, I have felt proud of the American flag, and have desired that they could have the enjoyment of as much liberty as the American people.

At the same time, we have a right to more liberty; we have a right to elect our own officers and have a voice in Congress in the management of the affairs of the nation. The time is coming when we shall have it. The Revolution will by-and-by spread far and wide, and extend the hand of liberty and the principles of protection to all nations who are willing to place themselves under the broad folds of its banner.

These are about the remarks I wished to make, and the ideas that were in my mind. May God bless us all, and save us in his kingdom. Amen.

Celebration of the Fourth of July (Hyde)

Orson Hyde

An address by Elder Orson Hyde, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, July 4, 1854.

Respected Friends and Fellow Citizens—I am called upon, by the wishes and voice of many persons, to be one of your speakers on this ever memorable day. While I congratulate myself upon the honour which you have done me by this selection, I sincerely regret that I am not more amply qualified to answer your expectations. But humble as my efforts may be on this occasion, they are the more freely offered, knowing that the ears and hearts of a generous people will make every allowance for any deficiency that may appear in the style and subject matter of my discourse.

The bursts of eloquence that have thundered from this stand this morning cannot fail to have awakened in the minds of the audience notions and views so enlarged, that it becomes a very difficult task for your present speaker to sustain and carry forward the interest and excitement with which your minds have already been fired by the speakers that have preceded me.

We are met, fellow-citizens, to celebrate one of the most important events that ever embellished the pages of political history—an event of which every American heart is proud to boast, in whatever land or country he perchance may roam—I mean the bold, manly, and daring act of our fathers in the Declaration of the Independence and Sovereignty of these United States—an act worthy to be engraven in letters of living light upon the tablets of our memory, and to be transmitted to our children, with the sacred charge that they teach it to their children, and to their children’s children, till the “stripes and stars” float over every land, and are mirrored on the crest of every passing billow. They had not only the moral courage to sign the Declaration of our nation’s Independence, but hearts of iron and nerves of steel to defend it by force of arms against the fearful odds arrayed against them—the well-disciplined armies and mercenary allies of the foolish and tyrannical George the III, King of Great Britain.

The progressive spirit of the times, on the one hand, and the chains of cruelty and oppression, on the other, inspired the apostles of American freedom to raise the standard of liberty, and unfurl its banner to the world as a warning to oppressors, and as the star of hope to the oppressed. The very name of America causes a thrill of patriotic devotion to her best interests to quiver in the heart of every citizen of Utah, with a zeal and a pride for the welfare of our country that does honour to the memory of those departed heroes whose ashes are mingled in our soil, and made rich and dear to us by their own blood.

Remember Lexington, and Bunker Hill, and lastly Yorktown, with all the intermediate scenes as narrated in the history of the American Revolution! Remember the immortal Washington, chosen to lead our infant armies through the perils and hardships of an unequal contest, to the climax of victory and the pinnacle of fame! His name, embalmed in the never-dying sympathies of his grateful countrymen, will be heralded in the melody of song “while the earth bears a plant or the ocean rolls a wave.” While Columbia’s sons and daughters regret and mourn his exit hence in accents like the following—

“Cold is the heart where valour reigned, Mute is the tongue that joy inspired, Still is the arm that conquest gained, And dim the eye that glory fired,”

they will comfort themselves and quiet the pangs of their bereaved hearts by chanting like this—

“Too mean for him a world like this; He’s landed on the happy shore, Where all the brave partake of bliss, And heroes meet to part no more.”

In those early and perilous times, our men were few, and our resources limited. Poverty was among the most potent enemies we had to encounter; yet our arms were successful; and it may not be amiss to ask here, by whose power victory so often perched on our banner? It was by the agency of that same angel of God that appeared unto Joseph Smith, and revealed to him the history of the early inhabitants of this country, whose mounds, bones, and remains of towns, cities, and fortifications speak from the dust in the ears of the living with the voice of undeniable truth. This same angel presides over the destinies of America, and feels a lively interest in all our doings. He was in the camp of Washington; and, by an invisible hand, led on our fathers to conquest and victory; and all this to open and prepare the way for the Church and kingdom of God to be established on the western hemisphere, for the redemption of Israel and the salvation of the world.

This same angel was with Columbus, and gave him deep impressions, by dreams and by visions, respecting this New World. Trammelled by poverty and by an unpopular cause, yet his persevering and unyielding heart would not allow an obstacle in his way too great for him to overcome; and the angel of God helped him—was with him on the stormy deep, calmed the troubled elements, and guided his frail vessel to the desired haven. Under the guardianship of this same angel, or Prince of America, have the United States grown, increased, and flourished, like the sturdy oak by the rivers of water.

To what point have the American arms been directed since the Declaration of our National Independence, and proven unsuccessful? Not one!

The peculiar respect that high Heaven has for this country, on account of the promises made to the fathers, and on account of its being the land where the mustard seed of truth was planted and destined to grow in the last days, accounts for all this good fortune to our beloved America.

But since the Prophets have been slain, the Saints persecuted, despoiled of their goods, banished from their homes, and no earthly arm to interpose for their rescue, what will be the future destiny of this highly-favoured country? Should I tell the truth as it clearly passes before my mind’s eye, my friends might censure me, and I might be regarded as an enemy to my country. If I should not tell the truth, but withhold it to please men, or to avoid giving offence to any, I might be regarded, by the powers celestial, as the enemy of God. What shall I do under these circumstances? Shall I be guilty of the crime of hesitating for a moment? No. Neither time nor place to hesitate now.

Were I called upon to give evidence before a court of justice in a case to which my own father was a party litigant, the foolish might regard me as opposed to my father, if conscience, justice, and truth directed me to testify against his interest; but the wise would regard me as possessing that integrity that kindred ties could not swerve nor decoy from the truth and facts in the case. My testimony in relation to the country that gave me birth, that gave birth to my father and my father’s father, is given upon the same principle, and prompted by a similar motive.

So sure and certain as the great water-courses wend their way to the ocean, and there find their level—so sure: as the passing thunder cloud hovers around yonder. Twin Peaks of the Wasatch Mountains, and upon their grey and barren rocks pours the fury of its storm, just so sure and certain will the guardian angel of these United States fly to a remote distance from their borders, and the anger of the Almighty wax hot against them in causing them to drink from the cup of bitterness and division, and the very dregs, stirred up by the hands of foreign powers, in a manner more cruel and fierce than the enemies of the Saints in the day of their greatest distress and anguish; and all this because they laid not to heart the martyrdom of the Saints and Prophets, avenged not their blood by punishing the murderers, neither succoured nor aided the Saints after they were despoiled of their goods and homes.

Would to God that we could forget this part of our experience in the land of our fathers! But we cannot forget it. It is incorporated in our being. We shall carry it to our graves, and in the resurrection it will rise with us. Had the United States been as faithful a guardian to the Latter-day Saints as the angel of God has been to them, she would never know dissolution, nor be humbled in dishonour by the decrees of any foreign powers.

I ask no earthly being to indorse this my testimony, or to adopt it as his own sentiment. A little time will prove whether Orson Hyde alone has declared it, or whether the heavenly powers will back up this testimony in the face of all the world.

When Justice is satisfied and the blood of martyrs atoned for, the guardian angel of America will return to his station, resume his charge, and restore the Constitution of our country to the respect and veneration of the people; for it was given by the inspiration of our God.

One positive decree of Jehovah, respecting this land, is, that no king shall ever be raised up here, and that whosoever seeketh to raise up a king upon this land shall perish. The spirit of this decree is that no king shall bear rule in this country. And the islands contiguous to this land belong unto it by promise, for they are a part and parcel of the land of Joseph, and they geographically belong to it—belong to it by the covenants of the fathers: they also philosophically incline to this nearer and greater land.

Europe may look with a jealous eye upon the movements of this country, and contemplate the settlement and adjustment of a “Western question.” But at present there is an Eastern question pending; and it may be wisdom and policy for the United States’ Government to press the adjustment of the Western question simultaneously with that of the Eastern question. If the Western question is settled at all, now is the time for the United States to settle it to the best advantage.

In case of a general war, nation rising against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, which we have every reason to expect, it will be remembered that we have an extensive coast to defend, not only east and southerly, but also in the west. The transportation of troops will be unavoidable; and the sad and melancholy fate of many destined for the western coast by sea, around the southern cape, should admonish the Government to spare no pains or expense to construct a railroad with all despatch across the continent, passing through the head and centre of Utah Territory; particularly as the transportation of soldiers and the munitions of war are among the less weighty reasons why a railroad should be constructed, connecting the Missouri river with the Pacific coast.

But to confine ourselves for a moment to things within our own Basin. Since the celebration, last year, of our nation’s birth, two of our great and good men have fallen by the hand of death—Doctor Willard Richards and Patriarch John Smith. In them the citizens of Utah have lost true and devoted friends; the country, patriots; the Church, able advocates and defenders; and large families, kind and affectionate husbands and fathers; also several most excellent men shot down by the hostile savage from his ambush. Much suffering has been occasioned by the Indian war. Many of our crops went to waste last year, by reason of it, which has occasioned rather a scanty supply of food. But thanks be to God, never have the fields of the valleys smiled with such glowing prospects of abundant harvest as at the present time.

It is true that some of our settlements lost almost every head of stock they had, by the Indians, last summer, and have been compelled to cultivate their lands with few horses and oxen; yet the extensive fields of wheat now waving in the breeze and fast ripening in the sun are almost incredible.

Praise and thanksgiving be unto our God! This year we have had peace with the red men, and plenty is about to crown the labours of the husbandman.

If the United States are dissatisfied with the expenditure of the twenty thousand dollars appropriated for the building of a State House in this Territory, because a house was purchased that was already built, instead of building one, I have no hesitancy in expressing my conviction that a Government draft on us for the amount would be duly honoured ten days from sight, or ten minutes, perhaps. Our Indian wars and other necessary and indispensable drafts upon our time and money in this new country have prevented us from building a house; and we, therefore, have been under the necessity of purchasing a very good and commodious one, built before our Indian troubles were so serious. My voice would be to pay back the twenty thousand dollars! And as the expenses of the war have been wholly borne by us, without a dime’s appropriation for that purpose having yet reached us, we may expect to rely wholly on our own resources and upon the arm of our God.

If we are deemed abundantly able to foot the bill of the entire expenses of the war, pay back the twenty thousand dollars to the Government, build our own State House, or occupy the one already built, and even then support whole omnibuses full of wives and children, though proscribed as we are from the benefits of the Land Bill, the people of the United States must allow that we far excel all other portions of their population in real smartness.

God and our country, now and for ever, one and inseparable!

Science of Grammar, Etc.

Orson Hyde

A lecture delivered by Elder Orson Hyde, at the opening of his School in the Council Chamber, Great Salt Lake City, January 22, 1855.

Ladies and Gentlemen—The subject that has called us together this evening, to me, is a very interesting and an important one; and I trust that it will be no less so to you, after you shall have understood its import and nature. It is the Science of the English Language.

As this language has been more highly honoured in our day, by the Supreme Ruler above, than any other, in that he hath chosen it as the most beautifully grand and impressive medium through which his mandates could be conveyed to mortal beings here on earth, can we be justified if we remain in a state of indifference with regard to its beauty, its richness, and its strength?

The English language is chiefly derived from the Saxon, Danish, Celtic, and Gothic; but in the progressive stages of its refinement it has been greatly enriched by accessions from the Greek, Latin, French, Spanish. Italian, and German languages. The number of words which it at present consists of, after deducting proper names, and words formed by the inflections of verbs, nouns, and adjectives, may be estimated at over FORTY THOUSAND.

This heterogeneous mass of words, as found in the English vocabulary, when drawn out in line of discourse according to the laws of syntax, and embellished by the force of rhetorical elocution, has made nations to tremble and empires to quake. More glorious conquests have been achieved and victories won by the force and power of language than by all the armed legions that ever marched into the battle-field to meet the foe in deadly conflict. No widow’s tear nor orphan’s sigh detracts from the splendour of the former; no aching heart is left to curse the brutal policy that bereft it of its dearest earthly object. No plaintive notes from the deathbed of thousands of brave and generous warriors to wrap a nation in garments of deeper mourning; and it remains to be disproven that our future destiny, for weal or for woe, is suspended upon our very language. “By thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.”

It is too true that this science has been lightly spoken of by men of years and experience; and I must say that it is never pleasing to me to hear anything by way of jest, or in sober earnest, that may he calculated to beget in the rising generation a dislike for this most important branch of education. Should such an influence prevail among our youth, it needs not a prophetic eye to foretell the results. When the present actors have played their parts and retired from the stage, our successors, in the persons of our children, will not be able to keep a proper journal of the events of their time, to speak or write correctly, or to manage and conduct a periodical for the diffusion of that knowledge which it has pleased an all-wise creator to shed forth from the heavens in our day for the benefit and salvation of man, without foreign aid.

You have, undoubtedly, heard the drunkard speak against drunkenness, the thief against theft, and the profane and profligate person against his course of life, because he has weltered under the smart and sting of his own immoral and criminal acts.

But you never heard the enlightened grammarian speak of this science in terms of the slightest disrespect; and I here predict that you never will, while language remains the agent for the transmission of thought.

The person unacquainted with the science of music, who has no taste or ear for it, might indulge in many slight and ludicrous remarks on hearing a class exercise in some of the first rudiments and rules of the science. But to the skilful musician, his remarks prove no inconsistency or impropriety in the science, but, on the contrary, that he himself is ignorant of it, and also of the path that leads to its attainment. The charms of music consist in the union and harmony of its parts; and when executed by scienced performers, it swells into a melody that holds in spellbound admiration all the finer and more elevated feelings of the soul. But the path that leads to the summit where the flowery charms of this science are wafted on the breath of our most skilful performers, and fall on your ears with such pleasing accents, is winding, steep, and rugged; and it requires patience, perseverance, and industry to gain the eminence.

The music of language consists in the union and harmony of the various parts of speech of which it is composed; and when tastefully selected to clothe a useful thought or valuable idea, and that thought or idea borne to your ear in that dress, awakens emotions almost as vividly pleasing as the maid of your choice, when presented, entwined with the bridal wreath, to receive your most sacred vow.

We are met this evening, ladies and gentlemen, to consider our inclination, strength, and ability to commence or recommence our journey up the rugged steeps of the “Hill of Science.”

The child from five to ten years of age has little or no use for scientific knowledge, from the fact that his childhood bars him against those responsibilities which he is destined to inherit in the progressive periods and stages of his life. But as his mind becomes stronger and more developed by the force of unavoidable circumstances, he is the better qualified to acquire those principles of science which will enable him more success, fully to stem the current of opposition in his upward course to moral and spiritual excellence.

Were I now to refer you to our highly-esteemed Governor and President, whose ear for music and language is, perhaps, more acutely discerning than that of any other gentleman present, and ask him if he has not more use for scientific knowledge now, since the increased cares and responsibilities of both Church and State are resting upon him, together with the planning of public works, machinery, and fortifications against Indians, &c., than when he first embraced this Gospel, some twenty-five years ago, and went preaching without “purse or scrip;” and what do you imagine would be his answer? Apply, then, this same principle and course of reasoning to the Church, and what do we discover? When she was in her infancy, she did not attract the attention and gaze of the world. She had little use for scientific knowledge, and little or no time to acquire it; but having become stronger in her intellectual and physical organization, by the force of unavoidable circumstances, such as mobocracy by earth’s degenerate sons, and the bounteous blessings of a generous Providence upon the loyal subjects of his eternal laws, she begins to have greater use for science, and is more eligibly situated to acquire it in these peaceful valleys than when buffeted in the States upon the waves of political strife and religious intolerance, where, perhaps, the first house erected for educational purposes was lighted up by the torch of the incendiary, whose lurid flames cast a sickly glare upon our prospects for scientific pursuits in that country.

We are fast growing into importance, and the eyes of our nation are upon us. Our words and our acts are duly scanned by her officials in private; but if this were all, we should have little to fear. There is, however, a Power above, high over all, that scrutinizes all our acts and doings with an eye that never sleeps. We are not only watched over with fatherly care at home, but other nations cast an occasional glance at us. Their kings and their queens dream of us, and God showeth them some things as they are and as they will be. There will be Daniels and Mordecais in their courts, and, no doubt, Hamans too.

The political world is about to fall and crumble in pieces, in consequence of the great amount of repulsion which its parts possess. The religious world also, like Babel’s mighty empire, or like the millstone which the angel cast into the sea, will sink in the whirlpools of conflicting interests and sentiments, and her remains be “like the gleaning of grapes when the vintage is done.” As saviours on Mount Zion, and as restorers of every just and holy law, whether emanating from heaven, from nature, or from the legislative councils of earth, let us become qualified to act well our part in the great and eventful scenes that will open to our view, and not sacrifice our birthright at the shrine of an unpardonable indifference in relation to qualifications that come within our grasp.

The rising generation are destined to act a more important part in this drama before us. I therefore call upon them to awake and prepare to do honour to their station, whatever or wherever it may hereafter be, while we yet remain in the chambers of the Almighty, with the ensign of peace gently waving over our heads, and plenty in our garners, and our store-houses full.

Think not, my young friends, that you can spend the prime and vigour of your days in the vanities and pleasures of life, and in your more advanced years store your minds with wisdom and knowledge; but let your youthful energies now be devoted to the acquisition of literary and scientific knowledge, that when you arrive to manly strength, dignity, and wisdom, you may call into immediate requisition the fruits of your youthful labours and toil.

Suffer not a sluggardly or indolent mind to induce you to postpone the period for the commencement of scientific pursuits, with the vain and delusive hope that, by-and-by, the principles of education will become so simplified that you can pick them up with as little labour and trouble as you can pick up the cobble stones of the streets. All the education you can acquire in this easy way will not be as valuable to you even as the cobble stones; for the latter, when collected and laid up into a fence, form a secure and impenetrable fortress, as is clearly proven by reference to the wall in progress of erection around President Kimball’s dwelling. But the former will prove too flimsy and spurious to safely fortify your minds against a thousand evils that will beset you on all sides. The value of an object is often (and not improperly) estimated by the amount of labour and toil required to obtain it. The precious metals are not often found in the streets or highways; but in bye and sequestered places, deeply imbedded in the crevices and subterraneous caverns of the earth. If you will have them, you must dig for them. They will cost you much time and labour; but when obtained, they will richly reward you for all your toil. The gems of the ocean are not found floating upon the flood or ebb tides, but in the bed of the deep blue sea. They are hid from the vulgar gaze of the multitude, and only sought by the few who know their value, and who have courage and resolution enough to embark in the enterprise. Scientific knowledge is hid up in the elements, in the caverns, and storehouses of nature, and is only found by those who seek it with all their heart.

The man who neglects to discipline and train his mind in the science of religion knows but little about God or angels, or the glory of the sanctified. What little he does understand, he has borrowed from the labours and toils of others.

The Presidency of this Church are the lovers of learning; and, in my opinion, you, who need it, can take no step in education to please them more than to engage in the study of your own native language. It is the joy and pride of their hearts to see the attention of the people being turned to education. They do not want you to trust to it, however, as to God; but through it they want you to be able to present those truths that Heaven reveals, in that interesting and engaging light that will reflect honour upon you as the agent, upon God as the Author, and upon the Church as the body to be exalted. Lay hold, then, upon education! If you can get it easily, I have no objections. If, upon any principle, you can acquire it in a more easy manner than has been generally adopted in times gone by, you are doubly guilty if you do not attend to it forthwith. Show me one person that ever did jump into a brilliant education without labour and toil in self-application, and then I may be converted to the easy method of obtaining it. But lest I may be wrong in some of my views, I would say—If you can get education easily, get it, and be thankful to God for it. If it should prove a laborious task for you, do not be discouraged or relinquish your exertions.

Language, being the science through which the knowledge of all other sciences is communicated, demands our first and most candid consideration; and as the English language combines, in its genius and construction, both strength and beauty to an extent far surpassing that of any other language now in use, we ought, as students of that language, to apply ourselves with a zeal and perseverance commensurate with the superior powers which it possesses.

There are few persons in the world who care not for the appearance of their dress. They generally want their garments of a good material, and to fit them in a becoming manner. Our ideas and thoughts are also entitled to a becoming dress; and it should be our pride to clothe them with the most chaste and beautiful language, that they may hang around our person as jewels of unfading beauty, even as “apples of gold in pictures of silver.” We, however, may know the meaning of thousands of the most beautiful words in our language; yet if we cannot discover the legitimate relation they bear to one another, and arrange them in a sentence according to the laws of syntax that govern them, we come as far short of the knowledge of the science of, language as the architect of the knowledge of his profession, if he understand not where to place his timbers in a building, after they are furnished at his hand.

Grammar, well understood, enables us to express our thoughts fully and clearly; and also in a manner that will defy the ingenuity of man to give our words any other meaning than that which we ourselves intended them to convey.

In justification of a neglect to acquire a grammatical knowledge of the English language, some have argued that the best grammarians differ in their views of the science; and if the most enlightened upon that subject cannot agree, what evidence can be shown that there is any particular good in it? It is true, that our best grammarians may differ in their views touching some immaterial or technical points in the science. But this cannot disturb or interrupt the great channel or laws of language. Allow me to prove this to you right here. The Utah Library perhaps contains the productions of some hundreds of the best authors of which many countries can boast. These authors all wrote under different circumstances, at different times, in different countries, and upon different subjects; and very probably no two of them could have been brought to a perfect agreement upon every point and principle of grammar. But will the most learned gentleman in this city go into that Library and point out one grammatical error in the writings of any of them? He may, perchance, do it; yet I seriously doubt it. There may be typographical errors found, which may have produced indirect grammatical ones; but a manifest grammatical error can hardly be found. This argument ought to silence every cavil on the subject, in my opinion.

There is no science so universally applicable to practicable purposes as that of grammar. Arithmetic, geography, astronomy, botany, penmanship, chemistry, and philosophy are highly profitable in their respective places. But there is no condition or circumstance in life in which grammatical knowledge is not essential, wherein mental action may be involved. We cannot think, write, or speak correctly upon any subject, without a knowledge of the laws of language.

Some persons, who possess not this knowledge, are vain and confident enough to think that they can detect and correct any error in language by the ear. It is true that persons of a naturally refined taste may, by carefully reading the productions of good authors, and by conversing with the learned, acquire that knowledge of language which will enable them to avoid those glaring errors that are particularly offensive to the ear; but there are other errors, equally gross, that have not so harsh a sound, and cannot be detected without a knowledge of the laws that are violated

I can hold out no reasons or inducements for you to believe that you can acquire a knowledge of this science by giving it; only a casual thought, or by looking carelessly over your lessons. But I tell you, and tell you plainly, that unless you can resolve to make it a steady and laborious occupation, and carry that resolution into effect, you never can understand the merits of this science. Yet, if you will cast parties out of your minds, with all the gossip about fashions, trash, and other nonsense, that too often check the progress of the most laudable and beneficial pursuits, and allow me to have full control of your minds for thirty evenings, from six till nine o’clock, and faithfully and truly comply with my instructions touching your duties between schools, I will insure that you will have progressed far enough to enable you to prosecute your studies in this branch successfully to any extent you may desire, without a teacher, even if you know not one part of speech from another at this time, provided you possess that degree of intellect and susceptibility for improvement which are common in society.

Remember, my friends, that you live in a progressive age—an age in which the inspiration of the Almighty is resting upon the world to disclose the principles of science, and bring them into requisition to fulfil his purposes, and they know it not! Remember that to us is committed a more sacred charge—a charge to disclose and proclaim to the perishing nations the principles of eternal life and exaltations, and to gather the ripened sheaves, preparatory to the “feast of the HARVEST HOME.” Remember that knowledge is power, and that you now have a little time to acquire it. Forget not that “God helps those who help themselves.” Secure learning and virtue, and you will be great. Love God and honour him, and you will be happy.