{"collection":"scripture-revelation","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_46751/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_46751","id":"gutenberg_46751","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/46751","summary":null,"tags":["Category: Religion/Spirituality","Latter Day Saint churches","Latter Day Saints"],"text":"THE STRENGTH OF THE \"MORMON\" POSITION.\n\nBy Elder Orson F. Whitney,\n\nOf the Council of the Twelve, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day\nSaints.\n\n* * * *\n\nUpon the pinnacle of the Temple in Salt Lake City, there stands\nthe gilded statue of an Angel, in the act of sounding a trumpet,\nsymbolizing the restoration and proclamation of the Everlasting Gospel,\nin fulfillment of the Scripture which says:\n\n\"And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the\neverlasting gospel to preach to them that dwell on the earth, and to\nevery nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people,\n\n\"Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the\nhour of His judgment is come.\"--Revelation 14:6-7.\n\nEarly Christian Annals.\n\nHistory, tinged with tradition, affirms these to be the circumstances\nunder which those words were uttered: The Savior had chosen Twelve\nApostles, and had commissioned them to go into all the world and preach\nthe Gospel to every creature. Obedient to the divine mandate, they\nhad gone forth, and within fifty years had lifted the Gospel standard\nin every considerable city of the Roman Empire, which then had sway\nover the known world. One by one the Apostles had been taken: James\nwas slain with the sword at Jerusalem; Peter was crucified, and Paul\nbeheaded, at Rome; all had suffered martyrdom for the word of God\nand the testimony of Jesus--all save one, concerning whom Peter had\ninquired: \"Lord, what shall this man do?\" And the Savior, answering,\nhad said: \"If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee?\"\n(St. John 21:21-22.)\n\nModern revelation confirms the ancient tradition that John, the beloved\ndisciple, did not die, but obtained a promise from the Lord that he\nshould remain upon earth, not subject to death, and bring souls to Him.\nHe was to \"prophesy before nations, kindreds, tongues and peoples\",\nand continue till the Lord came in His glory. (Doctrine and Covenants,\nSection 7.) An attempt was made upon John's life, but it proved\nineffectual. He was thrown into a cauldron of boiling oil, but escaped\nmiraculously.\n\nJohn on Patmos.\n\nIn the ninety-sixth year of the Christian era, this man was on the Isle\nof Patmos, in the Aegean Sea. Patmos was the Roman Siberia. To that\ndesolate place the Empire banished its criminals, compelling them to\nwork in the mines. John was an exile for the Truth's sake. But the Lord\nhad not forgotten His servant, though men had rejected him and cast him\nout. The Heavens were opened, and he was shown many things pertaining\nto the future. He foresaw the apostasy of the Christian world, its\ndeparture from \"the faith once delivered to the saints\", the \"falling\naway\" foretold by the Apostle Paul (2 Thes. 2:3). But John also looked\nforward to a time when that faith would be restored, and when the hour\nof God's judgment would come. The dead, small and great, would stand\nbefore the Great White Throne, and be \"judged out of the things written\nin the books\", every man according to his works. (Rev. 20:11-13.)\n\nJoseph Smith.\n\nTo the Latter-day Saints, these are the days of that predicted\nrestoration, and Joseph Smith was the divinely appointed agent for\nbringing back the Everlasting Gospel. Who was this Joseph Smith? He was\na farmer's boy, born among the mountains of Vermont, December 23, 1805,\nbut living with his parents in the back-woods of western New York, when\nhis career as a prophet began. He had been much exercised upon the\nsubject of his soul's salvation, a religious revival having recently\noccurred in his neighborhood. The ministers of the various sects united\nin calling upon the people to repent; each one urging them to join his\nparticular congregation, and disputing among themselves upon points of\ndoctrine and authority. The situation bewildered the boy, who was an\nhonest seeker after light, anxious to know the true Church, in order\nthat he might join it. One day while reading the Scriptures, he chanced\nupon the following passage:\n\n\"If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men\nliberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.\" (James 1:5.)\n\nProfoundly impressed by these sacred words, he resolved to test the\npromise by asking from God the wisdom of which he stood in need.\nWith that object in view, he retired to the woods near his father's\nhome, and knelt in prayer. No sooner had he begun to pray, than he\nwas seized upon by a power which filled his soul with horror and\nparalyzed his tongue so that he could no longer speak. So terrible was\nthe visitation, that he almost gave way to despair. But he continued\npraying; for there are two ways of offering prayer--\"orally and in\nsecret.\" He had been praying orally, but could not now supplicate\nin that manner, being unable to move his lips. Yet he continued to\npray--with \"the soul's sincere desire\"; and just at the moment when he\nfeared that he must abandon himself to destruction, he saw, directly\nover his head, a light more brilliant than noonday. In the midst of\na pillar of glory he beheld two beings in human form, One of whom,\npointing to the Other, said: \"This is my beloved Son, hear Him\".\n\nAs soon as the Light appeared, the boy found himself delivered from the\nfettering power of the Evil One. When he could again command utterance,\nhe inquired of his glorious visitants which of all the religious\ndenominations was right--which one was the true Church of Christ?\nTo his astonishment he was told that none of them was right; that\nthey had all gone out of the way, and were teaching for doctrine the\ncommandments of men. The Lord did not recognize any of them, but was\nabout to restore the Gospel and the Priesthood and establish his Church\nonce more in the midst of mankind.\n\nThis was Joseph Smith's first vision and revelation. It came in the\nspring of 1820, when he was a few months over fourteen years of age.\nThe greater part of this wonderful manifestation was the part that did\nnot speak, the silent revealing of God as a personage; a truth plainly\ntaught in the Scriptures (Gen. 1:26, 27; Phil. 2:5-8; Col. 1:13-15;\nHeb. 1-3), but ignored or denied by modern Christianity.\n\nThree years later the youth received a visitation from an Angel, who\ngave his name as Moroni, the same who is represented by the statue\non the Salt Lake Temple. This Angel announced himself as the last of\na line of prophets who had ministered to an ancient people called\nNephites, a branch of the house of Israel--not the Lost Tribes, as is\noften asserted, but a portion of the tribe of Joseph. They had crossed\nover from Jerusalem about the year 600 B. C., and, with a remnant of\nthe tribe of Judah, which joined them later, had inhabited the Americas\ndown to about the beginning of the fourth Christian century. At that\ntime the civilized though degenerate nation was destroyed by a savage\nfaction known as Lamanites, ancestors of the American Indians.\n\nThe Book of Mormon.\n\nThe Angel showed to Joseph where a record of the Nephites had been\ndeposited, and subsequently delivered it into his hands, with\ninterpreters, Urim and Thummim, by means of which the youth translated\nthe record into English and gave to the world the Book of Mormon. It\nwas so named for its compiler, the Nephite prophet Mormon, whose son\nand survivor, Moroni, had buried the metallic plates containing it in\na hill, where they were found September 22nd, 1823. The Hill Cumorah,\ncalled \"Mormon Hill\" by the present day inhabitants of that region,\nis between Palmyra and Manchester, in the State of New York. For\ntheir belief in the Book of Mormon, the Latter-day Saints are termed\n\"Mormons\", and their religion, \"Mormonism\".\n\nThis book tells how the Savior, after his resurrection, made himself\nknown to the Nephites--the \"other sheep\" referred to in John 10:16--and\norganized his Church among them, after the pattern of his Church at\nJerusalem. Choosing twelve special witnesses, he gave to three of them\nthe same promise that he had given to the Apostle John--that they\nshould remain upon earth, superior to death, and bring souls to Him. He\nprophesied concerning America, the Land of Zion, the place for the New\nJerusalem, a holy city to be built by a gathering of scattered Israel\nprior to His second coming. The Nephite record, containing the fulness\nof the Gospel as delivered to that ancient people, is a history of this\nchosen land and a prophecy of its future. It predicts the great work\nintroduced by the Latter-day Prophet, a work so marvelous in some of\nits phases that most men reject it, deeming it a fable.\n\nBut the Christian world, with the Bible in its hands, should have\nbeen prepared for something of this kind. The Hebrew seers prophesied\nconcerning it. Isaiah foretold \"a marvelous work and a wonder\",\ndeclaring at the same time that the wisdom of the wise should perish,\nand the understanding of the prudent be hid; meaning, evidently, that\nhuman sagacity and worldly knowledge would stand confounded before it.\nThat prophet, speaking in the name of the Lord, gave as the reason for\nsuch in innovation: \"This people draw near me with their mouth, and\nwith their lips do honor me, but have removed their heart far from\nme, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men\" (Isaiah\n29:13, 14). A brief yet comprehensive description of the state of the\nreligious world at the time of the advent of \"Mormonism\".\n\nDivine Authority.\n\nWhile the Book of Mormon was in course of translation, John the\nBaptist, as an angel from God, conferred upon Joseph Smith and his\nscribe, Oliver Cowdery, the Aaronic Priesthood, which holds the keys of\noutward ordinances and ministers in temporal things. Subsequently the\nMelchizedek Priesthood, holding the keys of spiritual mysteries, and\nincluding the Aaronic as the greater includes the less, was conferred\nupon them by three other heavenly messengers--the Apostles Peter, James\nand John. Thus empowered, the two young men, with four associates,\norganized on the sixth of April, 1830, the Church of Jesus Christ of\nLatter-day Saints. This event took place in Fayette, Seneca County, New\nYork.\n\nThus was restored the Ancient Faith, with the powers of the Eternal\nPriesthood, the delegated divine authority that enables men to act as\nGod's representatives, and without which no man can lawfully administer\nthe sacred ordinances of the Gospel. \"No man taketh this honor unto\nhimself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron\". (Heb. 5:4.) Thus\nwas re-established the true Church of Christ, and the prophetic Ensign\nlifted for the gathering of scattered Israel (Isaiah 11:12); an event\npreparatory to the Savior's second coming.\n\nA Catholic Utterance.\n\nMany years ago a learned man, a member of the Roman Catholic Church,\ncame to Utah and spoke from the stand of the Salt Lake Tabernacle. I\nbecame well acquainted with him, and we conversed freely and frankly.\nA great scholar, with perhaps a dozen languages at his tongue's end,\nhe seemed to know all about theology, law, literature, science, and\nphilosophy. One day he said to me: \"You Mormons are all ignoramuses.\nYou don't even know the strength of your own position. It is so strong\nthat there is only one other tenable in the whole Christian world,\nand that is the position of the Catholic Church. The issue is between\nCatholicism and Mormonism. If we are right, you are wrong; if you are\nright, we are wrong; and that's all there is to it. The Protestants\nhaven't a leg to stand on. For if we are wrong, they are wrong with\nus, since they were a part of us and went out from us; while if we are\nright, they are apostates whom we cut off long ago. If we have the\napostolic succession from St. Peter, as we claim, there was no need of\nJoseph Smith and Mormonism; but if we have not that succession, then\nsuch a man as Joseph Smith was necessary, and Mormonism's attitude is\nthe only consistent one. It is either the perpetuation of the Gospel\nfrom ancient times, or the restoration of the Gospel in latter days.\"\n\nMy reply was substantially as follows: \"I agree with you, Doctor,\nin nearly all that you have said. But don't deceive yourself with\nthe notion that we \"Mormons\" are not aware of the strength of our\nposition. We are better aware of it than anyone else. We have not all\nbeen to college; we cannot all speak the dead languages; we may be\n'ignoramuses', as you say; but we know that we are right, and we know\nthat you are wrong\". I was just as frank with him as he had been with\nme.\n\nAn Episcopal View.\n\nAt a later period I conversed with another man of culture, a bishop of\nthe Episcopal Church. He affirmed that if Joseph Smith, at the outset\nof his career, had become acquainted with the Episcopalians, he would\nhave been content and would have looked no further for spiritual light.\n\"The trouble is\", said the Bishop, \"Joseph encountered the Methodists,\nthe Baptists, the Presbyterians and others, with their conflicting\ncreeds and claims. These failing to satisfy him, he sought elsewhere.\nNow the Episcopalians have an unbroken succession of authority all down\nthe centuries, and if Joseph Smith had become informed as to them, he\nwould never have taken the trouble to organize another church.\"\n\nAnd these are some of the views that learned men take of \"Mormonism\".\nWith all their learning, they are not able to come to a knowledge of\nthe truth. They do not begin to dream of the greatness of God's work,\nthe grandeur of Christ's cause. They have no idea of the real strength\nof its position. They assume that Joseph Smith stumbled upon something\nof which he did not know the true value, and that it was sheer luck\nwhich gave to \"Mormonism\" its vantage ground, its recognized strength\nof position. Never was there a grosser error. There are concepts as\nmuch higher than these, as the heavens are higher than the earth. The\n\"Mormons\" are not the \"ignoramuses\" when it comes to a consideration of\nthe Gospel's mighty themes.\n\nThe Real Reason.\n\nYet it is not because of human \"smartness\"--not because the followers\nof Joseph Smith are brainier than other people, that they have a\ngreater knowledge of God and are capable of loftier ideals in religion.\nIt is because they have received, through the gift of the Holy Ghost,\na perceptive power, a spiritual illumination which the world, with all\nits culture, does not possess, and without which no man can know God\nor comprehend His purposes. It cannot be had from books and schools.\nColleges and universities cannot impart it. It can come only in one\nway--God's way, not man's. The Latter-day Saints have it, not because\nof any greater natural ability than other men and women possess, but\nbecause they have bowed in obedience to the divine will, thus making\nthemselves worthy to receive this inestimable boon. All mankind may\nhave it upon precisely the same conditions.\n\nAnother Objection.\n\nThe Episcopal Bishop whom I have mentioned remarked to me on another\noccasion, that his main objection to \"Mormonism\" was that we \"Mormons\"\nwere not interested in anything going on outside of our own community.\nHe declared that we gave no credit to other peoples or to other systems\nfor the good they were accomplishing. \"For instance\", said he, \"we\nretranslate the Scriptures, making them more plain, more intelligible,\nwith a view to enlightening mankind thereon; but you give us no credit\nfor that. We uncover ancient cities, buried civilizations, here in\nAmerica and elsewhere; we decipher old-time inscriptions on obelisks,\nin documents, etc., seeking to acquaint the present with the past; but\nyou put no value on such work. We found hospitals and infirmaries,\nmaintain missions, carry the name of Christ to the heathen, publish the\nBible by millions of copies, and are endeavoring to place one in every\nhome. But you take no account of these things; you are not interested\nin our efforts; you think them all vain and of no worth\".\n\nNot a Narrow Religion.\n\nThe remark surprised me. I was astonished that any well informed person\ncould entertain such an opinion respecting us and our religion. There\nmay be such a thing as a narrow \"Mormon\"; there may be such a thing\nas a narrow notion in the mind of some \"Mormon\"; but there never has\nbeen and there never will be such a thing as a narrow \"Mormonism\".\nFar from ignoring what other peoples and other systems are doing, it\ntakes account of everything, and assigns it to its proper place in\nthe universal scheme. \"If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of\ngood report, or praiseworthy, we seek after these things.\" So says the\nChurch of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in one of its Articles of\nFaith.\n\n\"Mormonism\" is a much bigger thing than Catholic scholars or Episcopal\nbishops imagine. It is the greatest system of philosophy that the world\nhas ever known, the grandest poem that Divine Genius ever created, the\nmightiest melody ever struck from the vibrant harps of Eternity. It\nis the sublime drama of all the ages, and the last act is now on, the\nfinal scene about to unfold.\n\nWhat \"Mormonism\" Stands For\n\n\"Mormonism\" stands for the restoration of the Gospel in this\ndispensation; but that is not all. It stands for the Gospel itself in\nall the dispensations, as those periods are termed during which God\nhas spoken to man and dispensed from heaven these saving principles\nand powers. This is but one of a number of such periods, reaching from\nthe days of Adam down to the present time. The Gospel preached by the\nancient Twelve was a restored Gospel, just as much as it is to-day. It\nhad been upon Earth before the age of the Apostles. \"Christianity\",\nthe faith of the once despised \"Christians\", is now \"Mormonism\", the\nreligion of the unpopular \"Mormons\". What matter the names bestowed\nupon it by men? Truth is not to be disposed of by pelting it with\nepithets. The character of a jewel is not changed by covering it with\nrubbish and dirt. A diamond is a diamond, whether it sparkle in the\ndust at your feet, or glitter in the diadem of a queen.\n\n\"Mormonism\" is not a product of the Nineteenth Century. Joseph Smith\ndid not originate it, nor did any other man. What is called \"Mormonism\"\nis the Everlasting Gospel, the religion of all the ages, God's great\nplan for the salvation of the human family; and not only their\nsalvation, but their exaltation if they obey it in fulness. The Gospel\nhas a three fold power; it redeems, saves, and glorifies. Redemption\nis resurrection, but that is not sufficient; it is not enough that\nman be brought forth from the grave. All men, good and bad, will be\nresurrected; but resurrection is not salvation, any more than salvation\nis exaltation. Many redeemed from the grave will be condemned at the\nfinal judgment, for evil deeds done in the body; and many will be\nsaved, yet come short of the glory that constitutes exaltation.\n\nGod's greatest gift, eternal life, has been offered to man again and\nagain, in a series of dispensations of which this is the greatest and\nthe last. The \"winding up scene\", the final act of the play--such is\nthe dispensation now opened, wherein will be brought to a glorious\nfinale the whole of God's mighty work pertaining to this planet; a\nwork begun at the very dawn of creation, and continued down to this\nday. \"That in the dispensation of the fulness of times He might gather\ntogether in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and\nwhich are on earth; even in Him\". (Eph. 1:10.)\n\nThe God Story.\n\nWhat is generally termed \"The Gospel\" relates to \"the laws and\nordinances of the Gospel\". (See L.D.S. Articles of Faith.) But the\nterm in its broadest sense means far more. The English word \"Gospel\"\ncomes from the Anglo-Saxon \"Godspell\" or God-Story. Hence we have \"the\nfour gospels\"--Matthew, Mark, Luke and John--all narratives of the\nChrist, but in reality only parts of the complete God Story, which\ncomprises the heavenly as well as the earthly career of our Redeemer.\nThree personages compose the Godhead--the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost;\nand it was the second of these who became the Saviour, \"The Word\" who\nwas \"made flesh\", as mentioned by St. John. (1:1-4.) The Gospel in\nits fulness signifies everything connected with Jesus Christ, past or\npresent--the Son's entire career, from the time he left his celestial\nthrone, to the time he returned thither, glorified with that glory\nwhich he had with the Father before the world was. The Son is one with\nthe Father--not in person, but in power, will, wisdom, and authority.\nHe is God, but is called the Son of God because he came forth from the\nFather to manifest in the flesh the \"fulness of the Godhead bodily.\"\n\nThe Path to Perfection.\n\nThe Gospel had its origin before the foundation of the world. God,\n\"finding he was in the midst of spirits and glory, because he was\nmore intelligent, saw proper to institute laws whereby the rest could\nhave a privilege to advance like himself\". (Joseph Smith, \"Times and\nSeasons,\" August 15, 1844.) The Gospel, therefore, is not a mere\nfire-escape--a way out of a perilous situation. It is a divine plan\nfor human progress, the Path to Perfection, and was instituted as such\nbefore man was in a position to be redeemed or saved, before any such\nexigency had arisen. It was established before Adam's fall, and in the\nprospect of that fall, which was a step in the onward march to the\neternal goal. \"Adam fell that men might be\"--that is, mortal men; for\nby the fall those spirits in the midst of which God found himself were\nto secure bodies and become souls, capable of endless increase and\nadvancement. Adam did that for the race; he gave us one of the most\nprecious boons that man can possess--a body, without which the spirit\nwould be imperfect and could not be exalted.\n\nBut Adam could do no more, and a still greater boon had to be given,\nin order that the fall might be effectual, and the Gospel plan be\nmade operative for the ends in view. The machinery was ready, but the\nPower had to be turned on. The fall had a twofold direction--downward,\nyet forward; and though designed as a blessing, there was a penalty\nattached. Death came into the world--spiritual and temporal death,\neternal banishment from the Divine Presence; and man's progress would\nhave halted then and there, would have utterly and permanently ceased,\nhad not something been done to lift him from his fallen state, and\nopen the way that he might go on to perfection. Adam gave us earthly\nlife; but the greater boon--eternal life--is the gift of the Redeemer\nand Saviour. Descending from his glorious throne, he became mortal for\nman's sake, and by dying burst the bands of death, thus making eternal\nprogression possible.\n\nFall and Redemption.\n\nAdam's transgression was _malum prohibitum_, or wrong because\nforbidden; not _malum in se_, or wrong in itself. It had a beneficent\npurpose, but it put the world in pawn, and Death was the pawnbroker,\nwith a twofold claim upon all creation. Adam could not redeem himself,\nand the human race, which sprang from him, was likewise powerless. No\npart of what had been pledged could be used as the means of redemption.\nSomething not subject to death was the required ransom. The life of a\nGod was the price of the world's freedom; and that price was paid by\nthe sinless One, the Lamb \"without spot or blemish\", who made himself\na redemptive sacrifice, to mend the broken law, pay the debt to\njustice, repoise the unbalanced scale, and restore the equilibrium of\nright. Christ, the World-Deliverer, was as a greater Moses, leading an\nenslaved universe out from the Egypt of sin, out from the bondage of\ndeath.\n\nThe Principle of Obedience.\n\nIn return for this mighty deliverance, and in order to perfect his\nwork--to save and glorify what he died to redeem, our Lord requires\nfrom us obedience, the great fundamental principle upon which all\nblessings are predicated, and upon which alone they can be obtained.\n(Doc. and Cov. 130:20, 21.) This principle redeemed Adam from the\nFall. It is the only way whereby man can be redeemed. There is but one\npath to God, and it is open to the peasant as well as to the king.\nAll secure salvation upon the same terms. There is no royal road to\nheaven--no favoritism. There is nothing so absolutely democratic as the\nGospel of Jesus Christ. Every man may share it, but he must help to\nsave himself. He is in a pit and must come up out of it. A ladder has\nbeen provided and let down to him, and he must climb that ladder, or he\nwill never rise above his fallen state, never re-enter the presence of\nGod.\n\nRound by Round.\n\nThe first round of salvation's ladder is faith in Jesus Christ; the\nsecond, repentance, or turning away from sin; third, baptism by\nimmersion for the remission of sins; and fourth, the gift of the Holy\nGhost by the laying on of hands of men having divine authority. But\nthere are other rounds to the ladder, other principles to be obeyed by\nthose who would attain the fulness of God's glory. These principles\nhave been revealed to man many times. But there is a proneness in human\nnature to depart from the truth and \"turn to fables\"; the \"natural man\"\nbeing \"an enemy to God\". And this has rendered necessary the various\nrestorations of the Gospel.\n\nAll in One.\n\nIn order to understand \"Mormonism\" aright, one must grasp the idea of\na series of Gospel dispensations, interrelated and connected like the\nlinks of a mighty chain, extending through the whole course of time.\nThe Dispensation of the Fulness of Times proposes to bring together\nand weld into one the broken links of the Gospel chain. This was the\ndominant thought in the mind of the Prophet Joseph Smith as his last\nday on earth drew near. He expressed it in these words:\n\n\"It is necessary, in the ushering in of the dispensation of the fulness\nof times, ... that a whole and complete and perfect union and welding\ntogether of dispensations, and keys, and powers, and glories should\ntake place and be revealed from the days of Adam even to the present\ntime; and not only this, but things which never have been revealed\nfrom the foundation of the world, but have been kept hid from the wise\nand prudent, shall be revealed unto babes and sucklings in this the\ndispensation of the fulness of times.\" (Doc. & Cov. 128:18.)\n\n\"Mormonism\" is all-comprehensive. It claims the past and lays its hand\nupon the future. The past is necessary to explain the present and the\nfuture. What Is cannot be clearly understood without some knowledge\nof What Has Been and What Will Be. Accordingly, the Spirit of Truth,\nmanifesting the things of God, \"brings things past to remembrance\", and\n\"shows things to come.\"\n\nThe Mission of Elijah.\n\n\"Mormonism\" signifies the restitution of all things. It stands for law\nand order--a place for everything, and everything in its place. This is\nthe significance of the mission of Elijah--the turning of the hearts\nof the children to the fathers, lest earth be cursed and smitten at\nthe Saviour's coming. (Malachi 4:5, 6.) Past and present are related;\nit is the relationship of parent and child; and they must be joined,\nin order that perfection may reign. We cannot be made perfect without\nour ancestors, nor can they be made perfect without us. Consequently\ntemples are built by God's people, and work done in them--vicarious\nwork, for and in behalf of the departed. Baptisms, endowments,\nmarriages for eternity, in person or by proxy, are prominent features\nof this sacred labor. Joseph Smith received the keys of Elijah (Doc. &\nCov. 110:14-16), and ministered for the sealing of the present to the\npast, the union of the living and the dead. It was the beginning of the\nrestitution of all things.\n\nMany Gospel Dispensations.\n\n\"Mormonism\" is the religion that saved Adam. Adam, therefore, was the\noriginal \"Mormon.\" His religion was also that of Enoch, of Noah, of\nAbraham, of Moses and Aaron, and of the Apostles upon both hemispheres.\nAnd it has come back, in this final dispensation, to bring together all\nthings that are Christ's.\n\nIn the Pearl of Great Price, one of four doctrinal standards with\nthe Latter-day Saints--the other three being the Bible, the Book of\nMormon, and the Doctrine and Covenants--we are informed that Adam,\nafter his fall, was divinely commanded to build an altar and offer a\nlamb thereon, typical of the Lamb of God who was to take away the sin\nof the world. Already slain theoretically in the heavens, where he had\nbeen chosen for his earthly mission, he was yet to be slain literally\nupon this planet; and Adam was told to look forward to that sacrificial\nevent, and in the light of it to practice the principles of salvation.\n\n\"And thus the Gospel began to be preached from the beginning, being\ndeclared by holy angels, sent forth from the presence of God, and by\nhis own voice, and by the gift of the Holy Ghost. And thus all things\nwere confirmed unto Adam by a holy ordinance, and the gospel preached,\nand a decree sent forth that it should be in the world until the end\nthereof. And thus it was, Amen\". (Moses 5:58, 59.)\n\nJoseph Smith \"saw Adam in the valley of Adam-ondi-Ahman\". (Doc. & Cov.\n116.) That is, he beheld him in vision, retrospectively. Bowed with\nage, the great Patriarch blessed his posterity, foretelling what should\nbefall them to the latest generation. It was the mightiest patriarchal\nblessing ever given. Joseph affirms that Adam will come again, will\ncome as the Ancient of Days, and call his children together at that\nvery place, Adam-ondi-Ahman, and hold a council to prepare them for\nthe coming of the Lord. Thus is indicated the relationship between\nthe First and the Final Dispensations. Adam presides over all the\ndispensations (Church History, Vol. 4, pp. 207-209), and all must be\nbound together in the great day of unity and restoration.\n\nIn Enoch's day the Gospel was preached with such power and success,\nthat his City became sanctified and was translated or taken into\nHeaven: a symbol, a foreshadowing of the greater Zion of the last\ndays, which is to prepare the way for the Lord's glorious advent. As\npart of the universal restitution, that ancient city will return;\nZion from above will meet and blend with Zion from below, and a\nsocial order prevail similar to that which characterized Enoch's\ncommonwealth, concerning which it is written: \"And the Lord called his\npeople Zion, because they were of one heart and one mind, and dwelt\nin righteousness; and there was no poor among them\". (Moses 7:18.)\nSuch a condition must again be realized before the Lord comes. \"This\nis Zion--the pure in heart\"; \"every man seeking the interest of his\nneighbor, and doing all things with an eye single to the glory of God\".\n(Doc. & Cov. 97:21; 82:19.)\n\nNext we reckon with the dispensation of Noah. He preached the Gospel\nfor a hundred and twenty years, but saved only eight souls, including\nhis own. All the rest were swept away by the Deluge, their disembodied\nspirits being shut up in the prison house to await the due time\nof their deliverance (Moses 8:24). The Savior said regarding that\ndispensation: \"As the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of\nthe Son of Man be\". (Matt. 24:37-39.) In the days of Noah this planet\nwas baptized with water; in a day to come it will be baptized with\ncleansing fire. Its elements will melt with fervent heat; it will die\nand be resurrected, or converted into a celestial sphere, an abode of\nthe righteous forever. Such is the destiny of Mother Earth. \"Mormonism\"\nwill not have accomplished its mission until it has made of earth a\nHeaven, and of man a God.\n\nThe House of Israel.\n\nAbraham held the keys of a dispensation, and Elias delivered those\nkeys to Joseph the Prophet (Doc. & Cov. 110:12.) Abraham is \"the\nfather of the faithful.\" Through Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, those great\nprogenitors of the House of Israel, the world had been sprinkled with\nbelieving blood, and spirits answering to that blood have been sent\nthrough their lineage to minister for the salvation of mankind. This is\nthe reason--the main reason why Israel was dispersed among the nations,\nand why he still suffers persecution. Through that chosen seed comes\nsalvation, and it comes by no other route. It is the lineage of the\none and only Saviour. They who have scattered Israel, and trampled him\nin the dust, are dependent upon him for their eternal welfare. Christ\nhimself is the model. He died that the human race might live. \"Greater\nlove than this hath no man, that he will lay down his life for his\nfriends.\" More than man is he who lays down his life for his enemies.\nThe Son of God died not only for his friends, but for his foes, that\nsalvation might come to all. In a lesser degree the House of Israel\nhas been martyred for a similar purpose--that the whole world might be\nblessed.\n\nThe Latter-day Saints are numbered among Abraham's descendants. The\nfirst to embrace the restored Gospel were called out from the nations\nbecause they had his blood in their veins. Joseph Smith lifted the\nEnsign for the gathering of scattered Israel, but lived only long\nenough to assemble a portion of the half tribe of Ephraim, to which he\nbelonged. The work that he commenced, however, will go on until all the\ntribes of Israel are gathered and the way prepared before the coming of\nthe Son of God.\n\n\"The Shoulders of the Philistines.\"\n\nEphraim, in ancient times, \"mixed himself among the people\". (Hosea\n7:8.) Consequently the Latter-day Saints, who are mostly of Ephraim,\nalso have \"Gentile\" blood in their veins. \"Gentile\" is not a term of\nreproach with us. It springs from \"gentilis\", meaning \"of a nation\",\nand was used anciently to designate those nations that were not of\nIsrael. Japheth, son of Noah, is the sire of the \"Gentile\" race, while\nAbraham and his seed are descended from Japheth's brother Shem. We\n\"Mormons\" have no quarrel with the \"Gentiles\". They are virtually our\nco-laborers in this great work of preparation. We cannot do it alone.\nIt is too vast, too arduous. We need the help of the \"Gentiles\",\ntheir wealth, their power, their wonderful insight into and command\nover material things, their intelligence and skill in manipulating\ntemporalities. We need their means of rapid transit and communication.\nWe could not gather God's people without the aid of the \"Gentiles\".\n\"They shall fly upon the shoulders of the Philistines toward the West.\"\nSo wrote Isaiah concerning Israel, with prophetic eye upon this very\nperiod. \"The shoulders of the Philistines\" are the ships and railroads\nof the \"Gentiles\".\n\nOur friends on the outside--our fellow \"Gentiles\" shall I call\nthem?--have not always understood us, nor have we always understood\nthem. There has been much bitterness and estrangement between the two\nclasses. I am convinced that if the \"Gentiles\" knew us better, and we\nmore fully realized our relationship to them, all would feel kinder and\nmore charitable. We would recognize that we are engaged in the same\ngreat cause--for so we are, in a general way--and that we have no right\nto hate each other, no right to work against each other--that is, when\nin the line of our duty, doing what God has given us to do.\n\nThe \"Gentiles\" have not the fulness of the Gospel, nor the powers of\nthe Priesthood; they are not the oracles of God, nor the ministers\nof salvation. These are prerogatives of the House of Israel. But the\nchildren of Japheth doubtless have their special mission, and it is a\npart of the divine plan for human progression. This is God's work, and\nhe is doing it in his own way. He has instruments outside as well as\ninside the Church. Whether men know it or not, they are working out the\nends he has in view. He may not always notify them of their appointment\nto serve him, nor does he ask permission to use them; but he uses them\njust the same. We are here not only to act, but to be acted upon. The\nLord put his spirit upon Columbus and impelled him across the great\nwaters to discover the Land of Zion. He nerved the arm and fired the\nsoul of Washington, when he and his ragged regiments were fighting for\nfreedom, for independence, for the founding of a government--though\nthey knew it not--under which God's work could come forth and not be\ncrushed out by the tyranny of man. The God of Israel was with those\n\"Gentiles\", the founders of the American Republic, who were probably of\na mixed lineage, having much of the blood of Israel in their veins. And\nHe is with all good and great men whose hearts are set to do right and\nto uplift humanity. He is with them, whether they recognize it or not.\nTheir strength is a part of his omnipotence.\n\nMoses and the Gathering.\n\nMoses, who led Israel out of Egypt, held the keys for the gathering of\nGod's people; and those keys had to be restored, that there might be\na greater gathering, of which the Egyptian exodus was typical. Moses,\nas a ministering angel, delivered to Joseph Smith the keys of the\nGathering. (Doc. & Cov. 110:11.) But for this, the children of Ephraim,\nsuch as are now Latter-day Saints, would still be in Babylon, many of\nthem in distant lands, from which they have come like sheep at the call\nof the Shepherd. Moses had a dispensation of the Gospel, and sought to\nsanctify his people that they might look upon the face of God, as he\nhad done. But they were not prepared for it; and so Moses was taken,\nwith the Melchizedeck Priesthood and the fulness of the Gospel (Doc.\n& Cov. 84:19-28), and Israel was left for fifteen centuries under\nthe Aaronic Priesthood and the Lesser Law, which Paul likened unto a\nschoolmaster, to bring them to Christ.\n\nIn due time came the Saviour and the Meridian Dispensation. Twelve\nApostles were chosen upon the Eastern Hemisphere, and Twelve upon the\nWestern, and sent forth to preach the Gospel as a witness before the\nend. And the end came--the end decreed at that time-the downfall of the\nJewish commonwealth, and later the destruction of the Nephite nation.\nThose terrible calamities were typical of one more terrible still--the\ndownfall of all wickedness, the approaching End of the World.\n\nAnd now, after the lapse of nearly two thousand years, the Gospel and\nthe Priesthood have come back again. Once more, the pure word of God\nis going forth, this time as the immediate forerunner of the decreed\nConsummation.\n\n\"Mormonism\" means far more than the restoration of the Gospel at\nthe beginning of the Nineteenth Century. Such a definition, such a\npresentation of the subject would be manifestly imperfect. Ignorant\nindeed would be that \"Mormon\" who confined his thinking to so narrow\na field. \"Mormonism\" is not a mere sect among sects, one more broken\noff fragment of a degenerate and crumbling Christianity. It is the\npure, primitive Christianity restored--the original faith, the root of\nall religion; and it was not accident, but design, that gave it the\nstrength of its position.\n\nAlma's Aspiration.\n\nLet me now quote a passage from the Book of Mormon, the words of the\nNephite prophet Alma, who lived about seventy-five years before the\nbirth of the Saviour:\n\n\"Oh, that I were an angel, and could have the wish of mine heart, that\nI might go forth and speak with the trump of God, with a voice to shake\nthe earth, and cry repentance unto every people;\n\n\"Yea, I would declare unto every soul, as with the voice of thunder,\nrepentance, and the plan of redemption, that they should repent and\ncome unto our God, that there might not be more sorrow upon all the\nface of the earth.\n\n\"But behold, I am a man, and do sin in my wish; for I ought to be\ncontent with the things which the Lord hath allotted unto me.\n\n\"I ought not to harrow up in my desires the firm decree of a just God,\nfor I know that he granteth unto men according to their desire, whether\nit be unto death or unto life; yea, I know that he allotteth unto\nmen according to their will, whether they be unto salvation or unto\ndestruction.\n\n\"Yea, and I know that good and evil have come before all men; he that\nknoweth not good from evil is blameless; but he that knoweth good and\nevil, to him it is given according to his desires, whether he desireth\ngood or evil, life or death, joy or remorse of conscience.\n\n\"Now, seeing that I know these things, why should I desire more than to\nperform the work to which I have been called?\n\n\"Why should I desire that I was an angel, that I could speak unto all\nthe ends of the earth?\n\n\"For behold, the Lord doth grant unto all nations, of their own nation\nand tongue, to teach his word; yea, in wisdom, all that he seeth fit\nthat they should have; therefore we see that the Lord doth counsel in\nwisdom, according to that which is just and true.\n\n\"I know that which the Lord hath commanded me, and I glory in it; I do\nnot glory of myself, but I glory in that which the Lord hath commanded\nme; yea, and this is my glory, that perhaps I may be an instrument in\nthe hands of God, to bring some soul to repentance; and this is my\njoy.\" (Alma 29:1-9.)\n\nDoes that sound as if \"Mormonism\" took no cognizance of what is going\non in the outside world? How can any intelligent reader arise from a\nstudy of the \"Mormon\" religion, honestly convinced that the Latter-day\nSaints are interested in nothing beyond the bounds of their own system?\nThat one passage from the Book of Mormon suffices to refute the false\nnotion.\n\n\"Of Their Own Nation and Tongue.\"\n\nGod's truth has been taught all down the ages by men bearing the\nPriesthood, the authority to represent Deity. But other men, not\nbearing that authority, wise and worthy teachers, have been raised\nup in various nations to give them that measure of truth which they\nwere able to receive. Hence, such men as Confucius, the Chinese\nsage; Zoroaster, the Persian; and Guatama of the Hindus; men not\nwielding divine authority, not empowered to present the Gospel, nor to\nofficiate in its ordinances; but nevertheless endowed with wisdom, with\nprofundity of thought and learning, to deliver, each to his own people,\nthat portion of truth which the all-wise Dispenser sees fit that they\nshould have; people who, if given a fulness of the truth, might trample\nit under foot to their condemnation. Therefore they \"die without law\"\n(Doc. & Cov. 76:72); that is, without the higher law, the Gospel,\nwhich, however, will reach after them in a future life.\n\nThe world's poets and philosophers, artists and musicians, scientists,\ndiscoverers, warriors and statesmen, good and great characters\nin general--all have their work and mission under an over-ruling\nProvidence. If some of God's children are not worthy of the fulness of\nTruth, and would not make a wise use of it were it sent to them, that\nis no reason why they should not be given as much truth as they can\nwisely use?\n\nThe Case of Islam.\n\nCarlyle, in splendid phrasing, presents this view most strikingly, in\nhis vivid portrayal the coming of Mahomet to the Arabs, who were thus\nconverted from idolatry, the worship of \"sticks and stones\", to the\nworship of one god--Allah, with Mahomet as his prophet:\n\n\"To the Arab Nation it was as a birth from darkness into light;\nArabia first became alive by means of it. A poor shepherd people,\nroaming unnoticed in its deserts since the creation of the world: A\nHero-Prophet was sent down to them with a word they could believe: see,\nthe unnoticed becomes world-notable, the small has grown world great;\nwithin one century afterwards, Arabia is at Grenada on this hand, at\nDelhi on that--glancing in valor and splendor and the light of genius,\nArabia shines through long ages over a great section of the world.\nBelief is great, life-giving. The history of a Nation becomes fruitful,\nsoul-elevating, great, _so soon as it believes_. These Arabs, the man\nMahomet, and that one century--is it not as if a spark had fallen,\none spark, on a world of what seemed black unnoticeable sand; but lo,\nthe sand proves explosive power, blazes heaven-high from Delhi to\nGrenada! I said, the Great Man was always as lightning out of Heaven;\nthe rest of men waited for him like fuel, and then they too would\nflame.\"--Heroes and Hero Worship--Lecture II, p. 306.\n\nPresident Smith's Pronouncement.\n\nPresident Joseph F. Smith, until recently the head of God's Church\non earth, touched in a discourse the general theme here under\nconsideration. Said he:\n\n\"Knowledge is increasing throughout the world, with reference to\nmaterial things; and all this knowledge that has been restored to the\nworld through science has been inspired of God. ... The men who are led\nto wonderful discoveries are inspired by the spirit of understanding\nthat cometh from God, that giveth them light and knowledge. ...\nSo, Latter-day Saints acknowledge those men who discovered how to\ncontrol the lightning, how to control and utilize the power of steam\nthat prevails so universally among men today, and all those who have\ndiscovered all the other secrets of nature, like the telegraph, the\ntelephone, and all other means of communication--all these discoveries\nare by the promptings of the Spirit of God that giveth to the mind and\nspirit of men understanding.\" (Improvement Era, July, 1917)\n\nPresident Smith, however, drew a distinction, as do all orthodox\npreachers of \"Mormonism\", between the light that illumines, in greater\nor less degree, every soul that comes into the world, and the Holy\nGhost as a personage, the third in the Godhead. He also differentiated\nthe universal divine spirit, enjoyed to some extent by all men, from\nthe gift of the Holy Ghost, a special endowment reserved for the\nmembers of the Church of Christ.\n\nThe Poet's Mission.\n\nAn American poet, Doctor J. G. Holland, has this to say of the poet and\nhis mission: \"The poets of the world are the prophets of humanity. They\nforever reach after and foresee the ultimate good. They are evermore\nbuilding the Paradise that it is to be, painting the Millennium that is\nto come. When the world shall reach the poet's ideal, it will arrive\nat perfection, and much good will it do the world to measure itself by\nthis ideal and struggle to lift the real to its lofty level.\"\n\nIn the light of such a noble utterance, how paltry the ordinary concept\nof the poet as a mere verse builder. His true mission is to lift up\nthe ideal and encourage the real to advance towards it and eventually\nattain perfection. The poet, in this age of money worship, is often\nridiculed as a \"dreamer\"; but the ridicule, when applied to a genuine\nson of song, is pointless. The poet _is_ a dreamer; but so is the\narchitect, and the projector of railroads. If there were no dreamers,\nthere would be no builders; if there were no poets, there would be\nno progress. Poets are prophets of a lesser degree, and the prophets\nare the mightiest of the poets. They hold the key to the symbolism of\nthe universe, and they alone are qualified to interpret it. There are\nplenty of rhymesters who are neither poets nor prophets, and there are\npoets and prophets who never build a verse, nor make a rhyme.\n\nRhyme is no essential element of poetry. Versification is an art\nemployed by the poet to make his thought more attractive. The rhyme\nhelps the sentiment to reach the heart. A musical instrument, say a\npiano or an organ is painted and gilded, not to improve its musical\npowers, but to make it beautiful to the eye, poetry as paint or gold\nleaf to the organ or piano, and no more.\n\nThe essence of poetry is in its idealism. God has built his universe\nupon symbols, the lesser suggesting and leading up to the greater; and\nthe poetic faculty, possessed by the prophet in fulness, recognizes and\ninterprets it. All creations testify of their creator. They point to\nsomething above and beyond. That is why poetry of the highest order is\nalways prophetic, or infinitely suggestive; and that is why the poet is\na prophet, and why there is such a thing as poetic prose.\n\nA thing is poetic when it suggests something greater than itself. Man,\nfashioned in the divine image, suggests God, and is therefore \"a symbol\nof God\", as Carlyle affirms. But Joseph Smith goes further. He declares\nGod to be \"an exalted Man.\" To narrow minds this is blasphemy; but to\nthe broad-minded it is poetry--poetry of the sublimest type.\n\nIn the sacrament of the Lord's Supper, what is there of sacred efficacy\nin the bread and water, taken alone? There is not water enough in the\nocean, nor bread enough in all the bakeries of the world, to constitute\nthe Lord's Supper. All that makes it effective as a sacrament is the\nblessing pronounced upon it by the priesthood, and the symbolism\nwhereby those elements are made to represent something greater than\nthemselves, namely, the body and blood of the Saviour. What is done\nthen becomes a holy ordinance, full of force and effect, a poem in\naction.\n\nThe same is true of baptism. Jesus said: \"Except a man be born of water\nand of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the Kingdom of God.\" He meant\nbaptism, which symbolizes birth or begetting. The priest when baptizing\nperforms in a mystical or spiritual way the function of fatherhood.\nMotherhood is symbolized by the baptismal font. \"Children of my\nbegetting\", is a phrase used by the ancient apostles to characterize\ntheir converts, who are also referred to as \"babes in Christ\", fed upon\n\"the milk of the word\". Paul says, concerning baptism: \"We are buried\nwith Him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from\nthe dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in\nnewness of life\". (Romans 6:4.) This shows that baptism, when properly\nadministered, is a symbol of burial and resurrection--rebirth. But\nthe symbolism must be perfect or the ordinance is void. To sprinkle\nor pour water upon the candidate for baptism, destroys the symbolism,\nor the poetry of the ordinance. It does not represent a birth--a\nburial and a resurrection. When the body is immersed, however,--and\nthat is the meaning of the Greek term to baptize--descent into the\ngrave is typified; and when the body is brought up out of the water,\nbirth or coming forth from the grave is symbolized. To be baptized or\nresurrected is equivalent to being \"born again.\" The soul, cleansed\nfrom sin, is typical of the soul raised to immortality. Such is the\npoetry of baptism and the resurrection.\n\nJesus Christ, the greatest of all prophets, was likewise the greatest\nof all poets. He comprehended the universe and its symbolism as no one\nelse ever did, and he taught in poetic parables, taking simple things\nas types, and teaching lessons that lead the mind upward and onward\ntoward the ideal, toward perfection. We must not despise poetry; it\nis indispensable, even in practical affairs. The Gospel of Christ is\nreplete with poetry. None but the ignorant pass it by as a thing of\nnaught.\n\nWhat of Philosophy?\n\nPhilosophy is \"the account which the human mind gives to itself of the\nconstitution of the world\". So says that great modern philosopher,\nRalph Waldo Emerson. Here is a passage from Plato the Greek, as\ntranslated by Emerson the American: \"Let us declare the cause which led\nthe Supreme Ordainer to produce and compose the universe. He was good;\nand he who is good has no kind of envy. Exempt from envy, he wished\nthat all things should be as much as possible like himself. Whosoever,\ntaught by wise men, shall admit this as the prime cause of the origin\nand foundation of the world, will be in the truth.\"--Representative\nMen, Lecture II.\n\nVery similar to this, is that utterance of Joseph Smith's giving the\norigin and purpose of the Gospel. (See paragraph \"Path to Perfection\";\nalso \"The Book of Abraham\" 3:22-26.) But Joseph did not get his\nphilosophy from Plato; he had it directly from God, the source of\nPlato's inspiration. There is no plagiarism in this semi-paralleling\nof a sublime thought. Confucius taught, in a negative way, the Golden\nRule, afterwards taught affirmatively and more fully by Jesus of\nNazareth.\n\n  \"Truth is truth, where'er 'tis found,\n  On Christian or on heathen ground;\"\n\nAnd whether uttered by an ancient sage or by a modern seer, it is\nworthy of all acceptance. I have mentioned Emerson. Here is a sample of\nthat great writer's wisdom:\n\n\"Our strength grows out of our weakness. Not until we are pricked and\nstung and sorely shot at, awakens the indignation which arms itself\nwith secret forces. A great man is always willing to be little. While\nhe sits on the cushion of advantages he goes to sleep. When he is\npushed, tormented, defeated, he has a chance to learn something; he\nhas been put on his wits, on his manhood; he has gained facts; learns\nhis ignorance; is cured of the insanity of conceit; has got moderation\nand real skill. Blame is safer than praise. I hate to be defended\nin a newspaper. As long as all that is said is said against me, I\nfeel a certain assurance of success, but as soon as honeyed words of\npraise are spoken for me I feel as one that lies unprotected before\nhis enemies. In general, every evil to which we do not succumb, is a\nbenefactor.\n\n\"The history of persecution is a history of endeavors to cheat nature,\nto make water run up hill, to twist a rope of sand. The martyr cannot\nbe dishonored. Every lash inflicted is a tongue of flame; every prison\na more illustrious abode; every burned book or house enlightens the\nworld; every suppressed or expunged word reverberates through the earth\nfrom side to side. The minds of men are at last aroused; reason looks\nout and justifies her own, and malice finds all her work vain. It is\nthe whipper who is whipped and the tyrant who is undone.\n\n\"Such, also, is the natural history of calamity. The changes which\nbreak up at short intervals the prosperity of men, are advertisements\nof a nature whose law is growth. Evermore it is the order of nature to\ngrow ... We cannot part with our friends. We cannot let our angels go.\nWe do not see that they only go out, that archangels may come in. We\nare idolaters of the old ... We do not believe there is any force in\nto-day to rival or recreate that beautiful yesterday ...\n\n\"And yet the compensations of calamity are made apparent to the\nunderstanding also, after long intervals of time. A fever, a\nmutilation, a cruel disappointment, a loss of wealth, a loss of friends\nseems at the moment unpaid loss, and unpayable. But the sure years\nreveal the deep remedial force that underlies all facts. The death\nof a dear friend, wife, brother, lover, which seemed nothing but\nprivation, somewhat later assumes the aspect of a guide or genius; for\nit commonly operates revolutions in our way of life, terminates an\nepoch of infancy or of youth which was waiting to be closed, breaks up\na wonted occupation, or a household, or style of living, and allows\nthe formation of new ones more friendly to the growth of character.\nIt permits or constrains the formation of new acquaintances and the\nreception of new influences that prove of the first importance to\nthe next years; and the man or woman who would have remained a sunny\ngarden flower, with no room for its roots and too much sunshine for\nits head, by the falling of the walls and the neglect of the gardener,\nis made the banyan of the forest, yielding shade and fruit to wide\nneighborhoods of men.\"--Essay III. Compensation.\n\nPoetry and philosophy appeal to some, when the Gospel in its fulness\nmight offend; \"the meat of the word\" being too strong for them. The\nplain blunt message of the man of God, who comes proclaiming, \"Thus\nsaith the Lord,\" antagonizes many. They turn from it; but will listen\nto the philosopher, with his clear, delightful reasoning, or to the\npoet, with his apt and appealing illustrations. All kinds of teachers\ngo before the prophet, preparing his way, or come after him, confirming\nhis testimony. And the sum of it all will be the betterment and\neventual salvation of the race.\n\nThe Power of Music--Seeing for One's Self.\n\nMusic softens the heart, and helps men and women to receive the Gospel.\nTourists come in a constant stream, to listen to the wonderful tones\nof the great organ and the singing of the splendid choir in the Salt\nlake Tabernacle. The Gospel is not always preached to them; they do not\nalways want the Gospel; but they are mellowed by the music, and they go\naway with kinder feelings toward, and a better understanding of, the\npeople who build such instruments, who organize such choirs, and rear\nsuch structures. Their works speak for them. Grapes are not gathered\nfrom thorns, nor figs from thistles. Depraved wretches, such as the\n\"Mormons\" are falsely represented to be, do not love music, poetry and\nphilosophy, do not cultivate the arts and sciences, do not turn deserts\ninto gardens, nor rear Tabernacles and Temples unto God.\n\nI well remember when President Grant came to Utah--the first President\nof the United States to set foot within the Territory, now a State. It\nwas at a time when, all over this broad land, the bitterest prejudice\nprevailed against the Latter-day Saints; and it was freely asserted\nthat the man who had finished with the South, would \"make short work\nof Utah and the Mormons.\" Among the places visited by the President\nand his party while in Salt Lake City, was the Tabernacle, where they\nheard the great organ. I do not know what he thought of it, but Mrs.\nGrant, her face streaming with tears, turned to Captain Hooper, who had\nbeen Utah's delegate in Congress, and said with deep feeling: \"I wish I\ncould do something for these good Mormon people.\" The music had touched\nher heart, and perhaps the heart of her noble husband; for General\nGrant was noble, though yielding at times to strong prejudice.\n\nBefore reaching the Tabernacle, he had passed up South Temple Street,\nlined on both sides with Sunday School children, neatly and tastefully\nattired, waving banners and mottoes of welcome to the Nation's Chief.\nRiding in an open carriage, and running the gauntlet of applause and\ncheers, the honored guest turned to Governor Emery, who sat at his\nside, and inquired concerning the juvenile host: \"What children are\nthese?\" \"Mormon children,\" replied Emery. Grant was silent for a\nmoment, and then was heard to murmur, \"I have been deceived.\"\n\nBut he never was deceived again--not in the same way. He could trust\nhis eyes when he looked upon those beautiful children: they were not\nthe product of crime and depravity, not the offspring of savages and\ncriminals. He could trust his ears, too, when he heard that choir and\norgan. No one could make him believe, after that, that the \"Mormons\"\nwere as black as they had been painted.\n\nNo Substitute for the Gospel.\n\nThere is more than one way to reach the human heart, and God has\nlegitimate use for everything good, wise, virtuous and praiseworthy.\nLet it not be supposed, however, that music, poetry, painting,\nsculpture, philosophy, science, or anything else, can take the place\nof the Divine Plan whereby He proposes to save this world, as He has\nsaved millions of worlds like it. He will use everything good and true\nand beautiful to melt the hearts of his children and prepare them for\nsalvation; but salvation itself comes only by one route--the Lord Jesus\nChrist. This is the Great Ideal, and it must be honored as such. In\ndealing with it, no Procrustean process is permissible. It must not be\nchopped off because men think it too long, nor stretched out because\nthey deem it too short. God did not send his Truth into the world to\nbe mutilated. Men's theories, however plausible, cannot supersede\ndivine revelation. The gifts of God, however precious, are no standard\nby which to judge the Giver. The Truth as Heaven reveals it is the\nStandard, and the opinions and theories of men must give way. There is\nno substitute for the Gospel of Jesus Christ.\n\nPropositions to be Reconciled.\n\nReferring now to a passage previously quoted, concerning the days of\nAdam, when a decree went forth that the Gospel should be in the world\n\"until the end thereof.\" I was once asked to reconcile that passage\nwith the idea of a new dispensation, the question coming in this form:\n\"If the Gospel was to be in the world from the days of Adam 'until the\nend', what was the need of restoring it--bringing it back again?\"\n\nThere are two ways of reconciling these propositions. They do not\nreally contradict each other. The Gospel has been in the world from the\nbeginning by a series of dispensations, reaching through the entire\nrange of human history. Our finite minds are prone to tangle themselves\nup in little details that cause endless quibbles and often give us\na great deal of trouble; but God sweeps the whole universe with his\ninfinite gaze, and what seem mountains to men are less than molehills\nin his sight. The gaps between the Gospel dispensations are not so\nwide to Deity as they are to us. The Lord has found it necessary at\ndifferent times to temporarily withdraw the Gospel and the Priesthood\nfrom the midst of men; and yet, by repeated restorations, forming a\ncontinuous chain of dispensations, he has kept them in the world from\nthe beginning down to the present, thus making good his ancient decree.\n\nA Twofold Creation.\n\nBut there is more to this argument. God's works are two-fold, firstly\nspiritual, secondly temporal; and the most important part of creation\nis the spiritual part. Man and woman were made first as spirits, and\nthe same is true of earth and all that it contains--beasts, birds,\nfishes, trees, plants and flowers; in short, all created things. (Moses\n3:4-9.) Given bodies, they become souls--not all human souls, but\nsouls nevertheless; for the spirit and the body constitute the soul.\nIt is the soul that is redeemed and glorified. The spirit alone cannot\nadvance that far; it can live without the body, but the body without\nthe spirit is dead. Evidently, therefore, the spirit is the more\nimportant. What wonder? God created the spirit; but when it came to\ncreating the body--bodies in general--He delegated to man that portion\nof His work. Man can make the body of man, and can destroy it, but\ncannot destroy the spirit; it is beyond his power.\n\nNow the planet upon which we dwell has a spirit. Hence there is a\nSpirit World; and there the Gospel has been preached for ages, so that\nthe dead, or the departed--for they are no more dead than we are--might\nhave opportunity to embrace it and be \"judged according to men in\nthe flesh\". (1 Peter 4:6.) And the withdrawal of the Gospel from the\ntemporal world would not necessarily involve its withdrawal from the\nspiritual world. Thus the divine decree, that the Gospel should be in\nthe world \"until the end thereof,\" receives additional vindication.\nGod's word cannot fail.\n\nThe World of Spirits.\n\n\"The Spirit World,\" says Parley P. Pratt, \"is not the heaven where\nJesus Christ, His Father, and other beings dwell, who have, by\nresurrection or translation, ascended to eternal mansions and been\ncrowned and seated on thrones of power; but it is an intermediate\nstate, a probation, a place of preparation, improvement, instruction,\nor education, where spirits are chastened or improved, and where,\nif found worthy, they may be taught a knowledge of the Gospel. In\nshort, it is a place where the Gospel is preached, and where faith,\nrepentance, hope and charity may be exercised, a place of waiting for\nthe resurrection or redemption of the body; while, to those who deserve\nit, it is a place of punishment, or purgatory or hell, where spirits\nare buffeted till the day of redemption. As to its location, it is here\non the very planet where we were born\" (Key to Theology, Chapter 14.\nCompare Alma 40:11-14).\n\nJoseph Smith tells us that our departed friends are very near to us. We\nneed not sail off into space to be in the spirit world. We have only to\npass out of the body; for the spirit world is right around us. Parley\ncontinues:\n\n\"The earth and other planets of a like order have their inward or\nspirit spheres, as well as their outward or temporal. The one is\npeopled by temporal tabernacles, and the other by spirits. In this\nspirit world there are all the varieties and grades of intellectual\nbeings which exist in the present world. For instance, Jesus Christ\nand the thief on the cross both went to the same place, and found\nthemselves associated in the spirit world.\"\n\nJesus, it will be borne in mind, had been crucified between two\nthieves, one of whom derided him, insulting his dying agonies. The\nother, being penitent, prayed: \"Lord, remember me when thou comest\ninto thy kingdom.\" To him the Savior said: \"To-day thou shalt be\nwith me in Paradise.\" Because of this utterance, well meaning though\nuninspired minds have jumped to the conclusion that the penitent\nthief was promised immediate heavenly exaltation, for repenting at\nthe last moment and professing faith in the Redeemer. And this notion\nis still entertained. The criminal who has forfeited his life and is\nunder sentence of death because unfit to dwell among his fallen fellow\ncreatures, is made to believe that by confessing Christ even upon the\nscaffold, he is fitted at once for the society of Gods and Angels, and\nwill be wafted to eternal bliss. Jesus never taught such a doctrine,\nnor did any authorized servant of God. It is a man-made theory, based\nupon faulty inference and misinterpretation. The Bible plainly teaches\nthat men will be judged according to their works. (Rev. 20:12-13.)\nIt was best for the thief, of course, to repent even at the eleventh\nhour; but he could not be exalted until prepared for it, if it took a\nthousand years. Jesus Christ and the thief both went to the world of\nspirits, a place of rest for the righteous, a place of correction for\nthe wicked. Parley goes on to say:\n\n\"But the One was there in all the intelligence, happiness, benevolence\nand charity which characterized a teacher, a messenger anointed to\npreach glad tidings to the meek, to bind up the broken-hearted, to\ncomfort those who mourned, to preach deliverance to the captive,\nand open the prison to those who were bound; or, in other words, to\npreach the Gospel to the spirits in prison, that they might be judged\naccording to men in the flesh; while the other was there as a thief,\nwho had expired on the cross for crime, and who was guilty, ignorant,\nuncultivated, and unprepared for resurrection, having need of remission\nof sins and to be instructed in the science of salvation.\n\n\"In the world of spirits there are Apostles, Prophets, Elders, and\nmembers of the Church of the Saints, holding keys of priesthood, and\npower to teach, comfort, instruct and proclaim the Gospel to their\nfellow spirits, after the pattern of Jesus Christ.\n\n\"In the same world there are also the spirits of Catholics, and\nProtestants of every sect, who have all need to be taught and to\ncome to the knowledge of the true unchangeable gospel in its fulness\nand simplicity, that they may be judged the same as if they had been\nprivileged with the same in the flesh.\n\n\"There is also the Jew, the Mahometan, the infidel, who did not believe\nin Christ while in the flesh. All these must be taught, must come to\nthe knowledge of the crucified and risen Redeemer, and hear the glad\ntidings of the Gospel.\n\n\"There are also all the varieties of the heathen spirits; the noble and\nrefined philosopher, poet, patriot, or statesman of Rome or Greece, the\nenlightened Socrates and Plato, and their like, together with every\ngrade of spirits, down to the most uncultivated of the savage world.\n\n\"All these must be taught, enlightened, and must bow the knee to the\neternal King, for the decree hath gone forth, that unto Him every knee\nshall bow and every tongue confess.\n\n\"Oh, what a field of labor, of benevolence, of missionary enterprise\nnow opens to the apostles and elders of the Church of the Saints! As\nthis field opens they will begin to realize more fully the extent of\ntheir divine mission, and the meaning of the great command to 'preach\nthe gospel to every creature'.\"\n\nParley P. Pratt, a modern Apostle, was a friend and follower of Joseph\nSmith. He sat at the feet of Joseph, as Paul at the feet of Gamaliel.\nThese are Joseph's doctrines, the doctrines of \"Mormonism\", which\nstands for the Gospel in all the ages, and for the salvation of the\nliving and the dead. God will judge no man for an opportunity that he\nnever possessed. Faith and repentance are just as possible and just\nas effectual in the spirit world as they are in this sphere. But the\nordinance of baptism--immersion in water for the remission of sins,\nand the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost--with other\nsacred ceremonies, must be done here, in places dedicated for the\npurpose. This vicarious work is absolutely essential, in order that the\ndeparted may be duly admitted into the Church of Christ and share in\nall its blessings.\n\nThe Hell of Dante.\n\nIn the Thirteenth Century a great Italian poet, the immortal Dante,\nproduced a wonderful work, \"La Divina Comedia\" (\"The Divine Comedy\").\nIn one part of the poem, the author represents himself as passing\nthrough Hades or Hell. In the first circle of the infernal depths--a\nregion called \"Limbo\", which a footnote in my copy of the poem\ndescribes as a place \"containing the souls of unbaptized children and\nof those virtuous men and women who lived before the birth of our\nSavior\"--he meets some of the noble characters whom the Apostle Parley\nmentions as inhabiting the Spirit World, and the guide says to him:\n\n    --\"Inquirest thou not what spirits\n  Are these, which thou beholdest? Ere thou pass\n  Farther, I would thou know, that these of sin\n  Were blameless; and if aught they merited,\n  It profits not, since baptism was not theirs,\n  The portal to thy faith. If they before\n  The Gospel lived, they served not God aright;\n  And among such am I. For these defects\n  And for no other evil, we are lost;\n  Only so far afflicted, that we live\n  Desiring without hope.\"--Hell, Canto IV, Lines 29-39.\n\nAnd this was all that Thirteenth Century theology could say for such\nmen as Homer, Virgil, Plato, Aristotle and others, the best and\nbrightest spirits of their times!\n\nAccording to Their Works.\n\nWas it not imperative that the Heavens should again open and God's Word\ngo forth once more upon its mission of justice and mercy? The Gospel\nof Christ is consistent and reasonable. It does not pre-judge men,\nnor save nor damn them regardless of merit or demerit. Rewarding all\naccording to their works, it gives to every creature, living or dead, a\nchance to accept or reject it, before final judgment. Is it not evident\nthat Joseph Smith and \"Mormonism\" were indeed a necessity at the dawn\nof the Nineteenth Century, when even the Christian world had lost the\nknowledge of the true God, proclaiming him either a nonentity incapable\nof act or utterance, or a monster unmerciful and unjust?\n\nSons of Perdition.\n\nGod is not trying to damn the world, but to save it. All will be saved\nexcept \"the sons of perdition\", those who have had every opportunity\nto be saved--yes, saved and exalted. They who have known God, and have\n\"tasted of the powers of the world to come\", and then have thrown it\nall away, trampling upon the Truth as a thing of naught, denying the\nHoly Ghost, and \"crucifying the Lord afresh\";--these cannot be saved,\nfor salvation is predicated upon repentance, and such have sinned\naway the power to repent. This is what makes their case hopeless.\nBut comparatively few go that far. All the rest will be saved, and\neventually glorified.\n\nDifferent Degrees of Glory.\n\nThere are different degrees of glory--a glory of the sun, a glory of\nthe moon, and a glory of the stars. So Paul taught (1 Cor. 15:40-42);\nand Joseph Smith taught it even more plainly. (Doc. & Cov. 76.) They\nwho inherit celestial glory, of which the sun in the firmament is\ntypical, are they who receive the Gospel in this life, and are valiant\nfor it and endure to the end, giving to God the fulness of their\nobedience. They who inherit terrestrial glory, which differs from the\ncelestial as the moon differs from the sun, are they who receive not\nthe Gospel here, but afterwards receive it; souls not valiant, and\nwho therefore \"win not the crown\". The inheritors of telestial glory,\ntypified by the stars, \"are they who are thrust down to hell\", where\nthey pay their debt to Justice, after which Mercy claims its own, and\nthey are ushered into a light and freedom greater than the finite mind\ncan comprehend.\n\nSuch is \"Mormonism's\" astounding declaration--the only religion on\nearth that dares to say THE DAMNED CAN BE SAVED! Yes, anyone can be\nsaved who will repent, even in the depths of hell. But why go there to\nrepent? Why not make Peace with Heaven here?\n\nA Nautical Illustration.\n\nI was crossing the Atlantic on an ocean liner. I was a first cabin\npassenger; and besides myself there were upwards of a hundred others\nin that part of the vessel. The second cabin had about twice as many\npassengers, and in the steerage were several hundred more. The first\ncabin berths were not only the best furnished, but the most favorably\nsituated for comfort, convenience, and safety. Every courtesy was\nshown to the passengers; the captain and other officers were their\nassociates; their food was of the choicest, and they had the full\nfreedom of the ship. They might go down into the second cabin, or lower\ndown, into the steerage, and return, without hindrance or question.\nThey had paid for these privileges and were therefore entitled to\nthem. But it was different in the second cabin. There the food was not\nso good, the berths were less comfortable, and the privileges fewer.\nPassengers might descend into the steerage, but were not permitted upon\nthe upper deck. In the steerage, conditions were even less favorable.\nThe food was still poorer, and the restrictions were more rigid. The\noccupants of that section were not allowed even in the second cabin.\nHaving paid only for steerage accommodations, these were all that they\ncould consistently claim. Viewing the situation, I said to myself:\nWhat a striking analogy to the final destiny of the human race, as set\nforth in the revelations of God! All men rewarded according to their\nworks--saved according to their merits, in the eternal mansions of the\nFather! And I resolved anew that I would be a first cabin passenger\nover the ocean of life into the haven of Celestial glory.\n\nMormonism's Magnanimity.\n\nJoseph the Seer, after gazing upon the glories of eternity, outlining\nthe ultimate destiny of the human race, had another vision in which he\n\"beheld that all children who die before they arrive at the years of\naccountability, are saved in the Celestial Kingdom\". He also saw his\nfather, his mother, and his brother Alvin in that Kingdom. His parents\nhad received the Gospel; but Alvin died before it came. He was a good\nman, however, and had faith in what the Prophet told him. He simply had\nnot been baptized. Nevertheless, Joseph beheld him in celestial glory,\nthe highest glory of all, and it caused him to marvel. Then fell this\nword from Heaven:\n\n\"All who have died without a knowledge of this Gospel, who would have\nreceived it if they had been permitted to tarry, shall be heirs of the\nCelestial Kingdom of God; also all that shall die henceforth without\na knowledge of it, who would have received it with all their hearts,\nshall be heirs of that Kingdom, for I, the Lord, will judge all men\naccording to their works, according to the desire of their hearts.\"\n(Joseph Smith's Teachings, p. 19; Church History, Vol. 2, pp. 380-318).\n\nCould justice, mercy, magnanimity, go further? And yet there are people\nwho imagine \"Mormonism\" to be something small, narrow and illiberal.\nBy the contrary, it is broad, generous and charitable, as all its\nteachings testify.\n\nThe Source of Its Strength.\n\n\"Mormonism's\" strength is not in the number of its adherents, who are\ncomparatively few; nor in the sagacity of its leading men, who are only\nmortals. Rather does it reside in the fact that every worthy man and\nwoman connected with it is entitled to and receives a personal, direct\ntestimony of its truth. The Church of Christ is founded upon this\nrock--the Rock of Revelation--against which the waves of sophistry,\nthe billows of bigotry, the breakers of persecution, beat and dash in\nvain. All who fight the truth are fordoomed to defeat. The Gates of\nHell cannot prevail against it. \"Mormonism\" is strong because God is\nits Author--the Engineer directing its course; and all the might of\nOmnipotence is behind it, impelling it on to its destiny. It is the\nEverlasting Gospel, the saving, glorifying power of God, the power by\nwhich He carries on His mighty and marvelous work, bringing to pass the\nimmortality and eternal life of man.\n\n\nPublished by the Missions of the Church of Jesus Christ of\nLatter-day Saints in the United States\n\n  BUREAU OF INFORMATION--Temple Block, Salt Lake City, Utah.\n  CALIFORNIA MISSION--153 W. Adams St., Los Angeles, Calif.\n  CANADIAN MISSION--36 Ferndale Avenue, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.\n  CENTRAL STATES MISSION--302 S. Pleasant St., Independence, Mo.\n  EASTERN STATES MISSION--273 Gates Ave., Brooklyn, N. Y.\n  HAWAIIAN MISSION--P. O. Box 3228, Honolulu, Hawaii.\n  MEXICAN MISSION--3531 Fort Blvd., El Paso, Texas, U. S. A.\n  NORTHERN STATES MISSION--2555 N. Sawyer Ave., Chicago. 111.\n  NORTHWESTERN STATES MISSION--810 E. Madison, Portland, Ore.\n  SOUTHERN STATES MISSION--371 E. North Ave., Atlanta, Ga.\n  WESTERN STATES MISSION--538 East 7th Ave., Denver, Colo.","title":"The Strength of the \"Mormon\" Position","tradition":"scripture-revelation","translated_text":null,"word_count":13441}