Discourse by President John Taylor, delivered in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday Morning, Aug. 3, 1879.

I wish to make a very few remarks on the present occasion; and I desire that order and quietness may prevail.

We are met today on what may be termed a very sorrowful occasion. We see before us the body of a murdered man, cut off in the bloom and flower of his youth, with brilliant prospects before him of a useful and glorious future. It is sorrowful to reflect that men in a land of liberty, a land that boasts of its enlightenment, its religious liberty and its liberal institutions, should be guilty of imbruing their hands in the blood of an upright honorable man because he dared to worship God according to the dictates of his own conscience and to teach his fellow man the ways of life. It is a sorrowful reflection to feel that liberty is only a name and that protection and even equal rights, is only a figment, an exploded theory; and we may say, how has the glory of this nation become sullied! How has the fine gold become dim! How have the high and noble principles that inspired the founders of this nation, in whose breasts burned the spirit of freedom been desecrated, and those glorious principles for which they battled been trailed in the dust. And what a miserable showing we have before us of the efficacy of those sacred principles for which the founders of those institutions battled and died. It is sorrowful to reflect upon it. And on the other hand it is a matter of pride to Latter-day Saints to see one of our youth firm and unshaken in the principles of our holy religion, and ready to maintain them in the midst of fanaticism and hate even unto death. Pride, indeed mingled with sorrow. Pride to see the heroism of the dying martyr, and poignant grief for his loss, and more especially have we met here to sympathize with his parents, the family and friends, and to mingle our tears with theirs, and to reflect that although he died, he died with the harness on, he died battling for the principles of the everlasting Gospel; he died maintaining those eternal truths as they have emanated from God our heavenly father; and that having died he still lives and is numbered with those who are beneath the altar, crying, how long, O Lord, holy, just and true, wilt thou not avenge us of our adversaries? He has gone. Peace be to his ashes. I would rather by ten thousand million times be lying where he is than be in the position of those who imbrued their hands in his blood, who, wherever they may be cannot help seeing and feeling the horror of their fiendish act—their hellish deed, and they will go down to the grave execrated as murderers and men who have no friends or hope either in time or in eternity.

That young man has gone where others have gone whom I have seen leave this earth under circumstances of a very similar nature. I was with Joseph and Hyrum Smith when they were killed; and then, their murderers tried to dispatch me too, and came very near doing so. They shot at me and hit me a number of times. But I am here yet; I suppose my time had not come. That is all right, however. They have gone, and this our brother has followed, and that is all right too, so far as he is concerned. His father here, I have been acquainted with for upwards of forty years; and his son, whose remains now lie before us, was born in this city; he is one of our boys. He received, as has been stated, the truths of the everlasting Gospel; he believed them with all his heart and advocated them, going forth as a messenger of life clothed with the Spirit of the living God. But this generation does not like the truth, and indeed the generations have been very few that have not rejected the truth when it has been proclaimed to them. Stephen said in his day, “Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted? and they have slain them, which showed before of the coming of the just one of whom ye have been now the betrayers and murderers.” They lauded the dead prophets, but killed the living ones.

Many of the people today are actuated by the same malignant feelings, not knowing what spirit it is that incites them to fight against and feel inimical to the principles of the everlasting Gospel. And were Jesus here today, appearing as he did before, meek and lowly as the Savior of the world, preaching the same doctrines, there would be as loud a cry by the professed Christians throughout this land as there was in the land of Judea by the Scribes and Pharisees: “Crucify him, crucify him! let him be crucified,” and there are many in our midst today who would imbrue their hands in our blood, as those murderers in Georgia did in the blood of this young martyr, if they dared do it.

God has committed to us the principles of truth, and has commanded us to proclaim them to the ends of the earth, and regardless of consequences and in the name of Israel’s God we will do it and let all Israel say Amen. (The vast congregation, as with one voice, responded, “Amen.”) We are not scared of bonds, imprisonment or death. A few days ago they were talking about putting me in prison because I chose to decline to betray a trust committed to me by this people, and turn over to them certain properties entrusted to my care. I said, You may take me to prison, gentlemen; I am ready, but I am not ready to forsake my principles, I am not ready to betray my people, I am not going to barter away my honor nor the things that God has communicated to me and that his people have vested in my hands. I can afford to go to prison if you can afford to send me there; I can stand it if you can. These are my feelings.

The same feeling exists in our midst that laid that young man low. Men may clamor for our property; they may clamor for our blood just as much as men have at any other time: but in the name of Israel’s God Zion will go on and prosper; the principles of truth will prevail; the things that God has committed to us we will bear off triumphantly, God being our helper, and there is no power in this land, nor in any other land, nor on this side of hell nor in hell itself that can prevent it. If we will cleave to God and do our duty and purge ourselves from unrighteousness and live our religion and keep His commandments, Zion will arise and shine, and the glory of God will rest upon her. And when this nation and other nations shall crumble to pieces, Zion and the glory thereof will extend from nation to nation, and it will continue to spread and grow until the kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdoms of our God and his Christ, and every creature in heaven and on the earth will be heard to say, Blessing and glory and honor and praise and power, and might and majesty and dominion be ascribed to Him that sits upon the throne, and to the Lamb forever. In God is our trust. He will sustain his Israel. Our course is onward; and purity, virtue, truth, integrity, the laws of God and equality to all men is our motto, and protection to every honest man under all circumstances. We are friends of God and the friends of humanity. Like Brother Cannon, I do not mourn over the departed dead. He has gone to associate among an honorable band who dared during their lifetime to do their duty, and who battled valiantly for the cause of truth. Here is Brother Rudger Clawson, who was with Brother Standing when he was shot. The mob threatened his life and leveled their guns to take it. He calmly folded his arms and looking his adversaries in the face told them to shoot. But they did not do it. God preserved him, that’s all. Here is Brother John Morgan, who has labored and traveled extensively in that region of country. He and Brother Standing as one of his co-laborers had preached the Gospel and succeeded in baptizing a number of people. This had aroused the feeling of opposition in the hearts of some, and the reason they were opposed to these things was because people believed the Gospel, and they did not want them to. That’s all. Did they hurt anybody? No. Are they honorable men? Yes. Did either of them interfere with the rights or privileges of anyone? No. For what then was this young man killed? Because he dared to believe in God, and dared to proclaim that God had revealed himself in these latter days as he did in former days. Because he dared to tell the people to repent of their sins and be baptized for the remission of them, promising all that would do so that they should receive the Holy Ghost. What a great crime for him to die for! That is what I am sorry for. I am sorry to see that vindictive and revengeful spirit existing among mankind. We have very different feelings from this, as our history from the beginning abundantly proves. David, you know, on a certain occasion, feeling angry with the people by whom he was surrounded because of their wickedness, prayed that God would send them to hell quickly. Jesus, while suffering the agonies of death, exclaimed, “Father, forgive them, they know not what they do.” How much better the latter is than the former. Let us cultivate that spirit. But while we do that, do not let your enemies think you are asleep; but woe to those men who fight against Israel. In the name of Israel’s God, they shall be wasted away, and you may write it down and see whether it comes to pass or not. And let all Israel say Amen. (Again the congregation responded, “Amen.”) But Zion will arise and shine, and the glory of God will rest upon her.

Brother Standing (the speaker turned and addressed himself to the father of the deceased, who was seated on the stand) it is right you should mourn; it is right that you and your family and friends should be sorrowful and possess those feelings of sympathy; but your son has gone to prepare a place for you that where he is you may be also.

What do you propose to do? To do good to all men as far as they will let us; but to prevent them from robbing us and interfering with us, as God gives us power; and maintain our rights, the rights of freemen, the rights that God has committed to us, and honor our priesthood and calling and still go to the ends of the earth and proclaim the unsearchable things of the kingdom; gather together the honest in heart from among all nations, build temples and administer in them, honor the Lord our God and keep his commandments; and by and by, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God, and come forth, that young man, with Joseph and Hyrum Smith, whom I saw butchered by a mob, while under the protection of the law—under the protection of the Governor of the State, who pledged his honor and the faith of the State to me and to Dr. Bernhisel, that if we would go there without any arms, that we should be protected; and soon after we had complied with his request, these men were murdered in cold blood. These are things I am personally conversant with. Well, what of them? They are gone to mingle with the Gods, so has Brother Joseph Standing. Brother Standing, (addressing the father of the deceased) do not be troubled, your son is all right. I am glad to see the care that has been manifested by Brothers Clawson and Morgan in regard to getting the body of their fellow laborer here that we might have an opportunity of paying the last tribute of respect to this our departed brother, who was faithful to the end, and who will receive a crown of light and glory among the Gods in the eternal worlds.

Brethren, let us be faithful to God, let us live our religion, keep his commandments, treat everybody well even all men who do right; treat them well and be kind and just to them whether of your faith or not; but do not allow those miserable miscreants that exist in our midst to have dominion over you. We must maintain our rights—rights that are guaranteed unto us by the constitution of our country and which God has given to us; and if we do this he will stand by us. Amen.

Discourse by President John Taylor, delivered in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, July 6th, 1879.

I have been very much interested in listening to the remarks made by my brethren both this morning and afternoon. And I feel with the aid of the Almighty, like making a few remarks myself.

We are living in a peculiar day and age of the world, in a time that has been spoken of by prophets, seers, revelators and apostles, by men who have been inspired by the Spirit of the living God and who comprehended the purposes and designs of God in relation to the world on which we live; in relation to the people who now live upon it, to those who have lived upon it in the various ages of time and to those who will live upon it, and who have had a general conception and manifestation of the various events that should transpire associated with what is termed in scripture, “the dispensation of the fulness of times,” in which God would gather together all things in one, whether they be things in the heavens or things on the earth. As a commencement of this operation he has communicated his will again to man, and by revelation of that will, by the opening of the heavens, by the ministering of holy angels and by the voice of God have we had revealed unto us those great and eternal principles in which the interests of a world are concerned, past, present and future.

We have had a good deal spoken unto us pertaining to the Gospel of the Son of God and the power and blessing associated therewith, as well as arguments advanced and scriptures quoted to show the various manifestations of the Spirit of God in other ages. But the Gospel itself is a principle of revelation, and without revelation we can have no Gospel; for we are emphatically told that life and immortality are brought to light by the Gospel; that through its influence men are able to comprehend the position and relationship they sustain to each other, and to God, to the past, to the present and to the future and can alone comprehend the final destinies of man. The Gospel is a living, abiding, eternal principle. And hence when John on the Isle of Patmos wrapped in prophetic vision gazing upon the events that should transpire in the latter days, saw, among other things, “another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting Gospel to preach to them that dwell upon the earth,” not a new Gospel, not some new theory or principles or dogma; but the everlasting Gospel, as it had existed with the Gods in eternity—the medium through which God conveys intelligence to the human mind; the principle by which Gods are governed and all nations controlled, the everlasting Gospel.

This principle has been referred to as being a personal thing in which every body that is brought in contact therewith and obeys its requirements is made a participator and becomes one of the vast multitude that has existed, does exist and will exist in seeking to carry out the purposes and designs of God in relation to the welfare, happiness and exaltation of the human family. Therefore, the relevancy of the remarks we read, such as we have heard today, calling upon the people to repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins and they should receive the Holy Ghost. Who? Those who repent, those who believe, those who obey, those who are governed by the principles contained in the Gospel of the Son of God. And what should that do for them? Take of the things of God and show them to them, and bring them into communion with the Lord Jesus Christ and with the Father and into communion with the holy angels and prophets who lived before, enjoying the same Gospel, the same light, the same intelligence, the same spirit and the same power; that they might be one with each other, one with the ancient apostles, prophets, patriarchs and men of God who have lived in the different ages; one with the Lord Jesus Christ, operating together for the one great purpose of Jehovah pertaining to the welfare, happiness and exaltation of the world and the people thereof. And hence, say the scriptures, you have all been baptized into one baptism. And what else? You have all partaken of the same spirit, as Jesus says, “that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them, and they in me, that they may be made perfect in one.” And hence those who have obeyed the Gospel—although in many instances they do not comprehend it in all its bearing, and very few do, in fact we only see as through a glass darkly, see in part, know in part, prophesy in part, and comprehend in part until that which is perfect shall come and that which is in part shall be done away, that we may all then see as we are seen, and know as we are known. But although we have not arrived at that condition, yet all who have received the Holy Ghost through obedience to the laws of God and the ordinances thereof, administered by men holding authority, know for themselves not only that this is the work of God, that this is the church and kingdom of God and that we are engaged in establishing and bringing to pass the things that have been spoken of by the holy prophets since the world was. They know at least that they have passed from death into life, the Holy Ghost bearing witness thereof. That is the case of every individual who has lived his religion, keeping the commandments of God. They realize this and know it for themselves, and consequently it is, as has been referred to, with every one a personal thing. That principle is not for somebody else; it is for ourselves, and if we follow the leading of that spirit and grieve not the Spirit of God, whereby we are sealed to the day of redemption, that spirit will grow and increase in us, and we shall add to our faith virtue, and to virtue knowledge, and to knowledge brotherly kindness, to brotherly kindness charity, and so forth; increasing in every good word and work until we shall see as we are seen and know as we are known. This is to be brought by the Gospel of Jesus Christ—the everlasting Gospel.

Now this is a personal thing, it belongs to each one individually to every man, to every woman, to every boy, to every girl who has arrived at the years of accountability. If they are living their religion and keeping the commandments of God they have the Spirit of God within them that bears witness unto them that they are the children of God, even heirs of God and joint heirs with Jesus Christ our Lord.

Now then, we come to other things. This eternal principle of which we speak is not to be confined to ourselves alone. It reaches out and seeks to bless, and while being blessed it seeks to communicate the same to others; it seeks to advance and promote the welfare of humanity in all conditions in every sphere and among all people, just as God does, for it emanates from him, and he is the God and Father of us all not only of the Latter-day Saints but all other people; but having committed to us the true riches of eternal life, he expects us to communicate the same to others. And hence in former times he said unto his disciples, “Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.” Also “Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” But he has prepared men for the accomplishment of this work. In former times, both on this continent and the continent of Asia and other places, he communicated with men himself, organized his church, established his priesthood, endowed men with authority, placed them in positions and gave them power to act; and they became priests of the Most High God, the dispensers of salvation to a fallen world, and the medium through which he communicated intelligence and knowledge of himself, his laws, and of his eternal purposes pertaining to the human family. And hence, in former times, he said to his disciples, “Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you;” go ye forth then and proclaim these tidings to all people. And what else? And take care also of the flock of Christ, watch over my sheep. And hence, when he said to Peter on a certain occasion, after he had manifested his weakness and infirmity, “Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these?” He saith unto him, “Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee.” He saith unto him, “Feed my sheep.” A second and a third time he asked the same question. A second and a third time he was answered in the same way. One thing was to spread forth the light of truth, to preach the Gospel, to unfold the principles of eternal truth; and then when people had received the first principles of the Gospel, to teach them and more fully instruct them in the principles of eternal life. And hence the necessity of the priesthood. And what is that? The rule and government of God through the medium of which men whom he selects and chooses, which he has done in the different ages of time, are duly authorized and qualified to proclaim his will and administer his ordinances. There is more than one priesthood spoken of in the scriptures. There is one especially associated with the Gospel which Paul speaks of as being without beginning of days or end of years; or, rather, he speaks of a man, Melchizedek by name, who was without beginning of days or end of years, and he abides a priest forever. Some people have thought that he was a very singular kind of character, without father and without mother. However, that is very easily comprehended when you are made acquainted with the principle. In the Levitical priesthood, they had to prove by the records that they were literal descendants of Aaron and of the tribe of Levi, before they could be admitted to the priesthood. But speaking of this, the Melchizedek priesthood, he said it was without father and mother. It is an organization independent of these considerations, and those who have it abide priests continually, and administer both in time and eternity. What, does it continue so long? Yes. How do you know? By the revelations of Jesus Christ. For your information I will take the scriptures for it, and examine for a moment some principles there developed.

I find that when Jesus was upon the earth, he, on a certain occasion, took Peter, James and John with him to the top of a mountain; and he was transfigured before them, and Moses and Elias appeared before them. And Peter said: Master, it is good for us to be here: and let us make three tabernacles; one for thee, one for Moses, and one for Elias.” For whom? “One for thee.” Who else? “One for Moses.” What was Moses doing there? “And one for Elias.” What was Elias doing there? Where did these strangers come from, both having existed generations before. They held the priesthood in time. Moses preached the Gospel in time, and Elias did the same thing; both of them held the priesthood, and now they come to administer to Jesus; having existed in the eternal world, they come again to earth and administer to him and to Peter, James and John on the mountain. Why? Because they held the everlasting priesthood, that administers in time and eternity.

I again turn to the Bible, and find in the Revelation of St. John there was a great and mighty personage presented himself to him, arrayed in glory, magnificence and power. And John fell down to worship him. Said he, “See thou do it not.” Why? Who art thou? “I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus.” I am one of thy fellowservants, the prophets that lived upon the earth, that ministered in time and operated as thou art now doing, seeking to carry out the will of my Father; having held the priesthood and ministering therein in time, I am now continuing to administer this everlasting priesthood, which is associated with the everlasting Gospel. Well, so much for this. We will let it pass.

Now then, what is the position we occupy? We have had the same things restored to us through Joseph Smith, by the revelations of God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ, and Moroni and Mormon, and Peter, James and John, and John the Baptist and others who communicated the same and revealed things pertaining to the priesthood they held, and conferred authority upon him, and he upon others, to administer in regard to these great and eternal principles. And hence we have our church organized upon this basis, our presidency, our apostles, our seventies, our high priests, our elders, our high councils, our bishops and their counselors, our priests, teachers and deacons, and all the various organizations of the church and kingdom of God. What else? The edifying of the body of Christ. Edifying the body of Christ? Yes. Go and preach the Gospel to all nations. What then? Gather them together. What then? Says the prophet Jeremiah, “I will take you one of a city, and two of a family and bring you to Zion: and I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding,” and “edify the body of Christ,” that they may be prepared to fulfill their destiny and magnify their calling on the earth. But what then? We go to work to build temples. What for? That we may administer therein. For whom? For the living and for the dead, that as the scriptures say, “Saviors may come up on mount Zion, and the kingdom be the Lord’s.” And that by gathering together a nucleus of people from among the various nations of the earth, we may be under the influence of the Spirit of the Lord, united together in one and through the medium of the holy priesthood and our union and communion with God, we may go to work and operate with the apostles, prophets, patriarchs and men of God who have lived in the different ages of the world, and with God and with Jesus, the Mediator of the New Covenant that we may operate with them in the accomplishment of the purposes of God pertaining to the salvation of the living and the redemption of the dead.

These are some of the works that we are engaged in and expect to be engaged in, and expect to carry out, and to do the things that God requires at our hands, and we expect God and the holy angels and the priesthood behind the veil and all heaven to be on the side of Israel, and all hell to be opposed to us; and we will risk the consequences under any circumstances.

We talk about the Saints; are they good people? Yes, many of them are very good people. And the balance of them? Well, some of them are sinners; some of them the meanest of men you can find anywhere. How is this? It is exactly in the way the Scripture says. I think it says: “The kingdom of heaven is like unto a net that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind.” And so it is among us, and so it has been and so it will be. If we take the history of the ages past, it has been precisely so. The very first start we read that Adam had two sons, one Cain, and one Abel. Abel was a man that feared God, but Cain did not. That is like some of us here. Some of us fear God, and some of us do not; and those who do not always consider they are injured or oppressed, or there is always something wrong; they labor under an immense amount of difficulty; but the good folks sing, Hallelujah, hallelujah, the Lord God Omnipotent reigneth, and will reign until he puts all enemies under His feet; and they feel peaceful and rejoice in the Lord of hosts. Cain thought he was injured because the Lord did not accept of his sacrifice, and he thought his brother had something to do with it, and his jealousy prompted him to slay him, and he did so. That was rather a bad start when you come to look at it. According to the Bible, there were only two of them; and the wicked man was left to represent what? Outside of Adam, God’s creation on the earth, for at least one hundred and thirty years, except that Adam had other sons. That, however, we will not talk about today. Well, the Lord came along after a while, and, says he, “What have you been doing? Where is thy brother Abel?” He replied, “I do not know anything about him, I am not my brother’s keeper.” Says the Lord, “The voice of thy brother’s blood crieth unto me from the ground; and because thou hast done this thing, I will set a mark upon thee, and thou shalt be a vagabond upon the earth;” and so will every man be who fights against Zion; and if anybody does not believe it, let him try it, and he will find out before he gets through that there is a God that rules in the heavens, and that he is all the day long crying, “Touch not mine anointed, and do my prophets no harm.” And said he on another occasion, “Whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depths of the sea.” This is how I read the Bible.

I find in tracing out the scriptures, that from the beginning there have existed two powers—the powers of light and the powers of darkness; that both these things existed in the heavens before they came here, that the powers of darkness were cast out, and thus became the devil and his angels. This antagonism, then, existed before, and it is necessary it should exist. It is necessary men should be tried and purged and purified and made perfect through suffering. And hence we find men in the different ages that have passed through trials and afflictions of every kind, and they had to learn to put their faith in God, and in God alone. Such was the wickedness and corruptions of men in the early ages that it was necessary that God should sweep the face of the earth by a flood, in order that men might be deprived of their power to do evil.

I have heard some people say that they thought it was very hard for God to do such a thing. I think it would have been very cruel on his part if he had not done it. Why? Because man is a dual being, associated with time and eternity, being in possession of a spirit as well as a body; and as God is the God and Father of the spirits of all flesh that ever did exist or will have a being on the earth, it was necessary under certain circumstances, that he should operate in his judgment upon the wicked whenever they should become as corrupt as they did at that time. Why so? For God is the God and Father of the spirits of all flesh and all flesh at that time had corrupted itself. And would it be just for those unborn spirits to have to come and inhabit bodies of those unclean and corrupt people and have to suffer the judgments of God? No, it was not just; and it would be very reasonable for them to say, “Father, look at that world of people; see their crimes, their degradation, their iniquity, their theft and robbery, their murders and whoredoms and every kind of evil; they have left the good and have gone to the bad, and the imaginations and thoughts of their hearts are evil; Father, is it proper that we should have to go there and inhabit such low, fallen, degraded bodies as they possess, and thus not have a fair chance upon the earth?” “No,” says he, “it is not; and I will destroy them and raise up another people.” And hence, he destroyed them. But was the spirit of antagonism to God extinct by this act? No, it still continued to operate. We find, for instance, that in the days of Job the sons of God met together before the Lord, and that Satan was among them. This may seem strange, that the devil should be permitted to move among the sons of God, but nevertheless it was so. And the Lord conversed with him, asking him if he had considered his servant Job, who was a perfect man, etc. “O yes,” Satan remarked, “I know all about him; but allow me to have a rap at him. Job does not fear God for nought. You have made a hedge around him and fenced him in; under those circumstances who would not serve God? I would if you would serve me so.” “You may try him,” says the Lord. The devil took his leave; and the next thing we hear of is a series of troubles that befell this good man. We are told that the Sabians and Chaldeans, as they do here sometimes, fell upon his oxen and camels and took them away, and that they spared not the herdsmen, but slew them with the edge of the sword. This report had no sooner been made to him when another followed, representing that fire had fallen from heaven and destroyed his sheep and their herdsmen, save only the one who brought the intelligence. And while he was speaking, we are told that another messenger arrived, informing his master, Job, that while his sons and daughters were feasting in their elder brother’s house, a great wind from the wilderness blew up and smote the house until it fell, killing the young men. But withal, Job’s integrity was not shaken. “Naked,” said he, “came I unto the earth, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away, and blessed be the name of the Lord.” Again, there came a day when the sons of God assembled together before the Lord; and the devil also presented himself. And the Lord said unto Satan, “Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God and escheweth evil? and still he holdeth fast his integrity, although thou movedst me against him to destroy him without cause.” And Satan answered the Lord, and said, “Skin for skin, yea, all that a man hath will he give for his life. But put forth thine hand now, and touch his backbone and his flesh, and he will curse thee to thy face.” And the Lord said unto Satan, “Behold, he is in thine hand; but save his life.” Then Satan smote Job with boils, from the crown of his head to the souls of his feet; and he set his friends upon him, and they accused him, and his enemies taunted him, and finally his wife came along when he was in this miserable condition, and said, “Dost thou still retain thine integrity? curse God and die.” But Job answered and said unto her, “Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? The Lord gave and the Lord hath taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord.” This was his feeling; and it is pleasant to feel that way after all—much better than the other way. He said further: “Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him.” And why? Because he had the everlasting gospel. What! Job had the Gospel? Yes, to be sure he had. How do I know? Because the Gospel brings life and immortality to light; and he had a knowledge of that. And hence he says, “For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me.”

That is the kind of feeling he had; that is the kind of feeling we want to possess, and feel that God is ours and we are his, and that we are associated with his Church and his kingdom, and are doing his will and carrying out his purposes upon the earth. And it is all the same with us then, whether in peace or war; nobody need have any trembling in the knees, for no power can harm the Saints of God if they continue to be followers of that which is good. The Psalmist says, “Surely the wrath of men shall praise thee: the remainder of wrath shalt thou restrain.” He will turn and overturn, until ultimately the kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdoms of our God and his Christ; and he will rule forever and ever. Whilst those that set themselves and run against the bosses of Jehovah’s buckler, shall find that they have God to cope with, and that they are but potsherds of the earth, and that they will wilt and wither and die and be damned. There is no power on earth that can hurt Israel as long as they shall be found doing what is right, obeying the commandments of God, keeping their covenants and preserving themselves in purity and honor before him.

God bless you and lead you in the paths of life, in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Discourse by President John Taylor, delivered at Ephraim, Sanpete County, on Sunday Morning, April 13th, 1879.

I am pleased to have the opportunity of meeting with the brethren and sisters of this place, and of looking at your faces; and I would like to hear more of the brethren speak to you, but I know you want me to talk awhile; and as I have to leave this afternoon I will occupy the time now, and we will leave some of the brethren to preach to you then. I desire your faith and prayers, for we are all dependent upon the Lord; none of us can do or say anything that is good or useful or beneficial to society unless we are under the aid, guidance and control of the Lord. A man cannot speak aright unless he speaks under the inspiration of the Almighty; and then the people cannot hear aright, nor understand aright unless they have a portion of the same Spirit. And hence there was something peculiar in the expression made by Jesus upon this subject. He understood this principle very well, and in speaking on it, says, “My sheep hear my voice, and know me, and follow me; but a stranger they will not follow for they know not the voice of a stranger.” And hence when the elders were sent out to preach the Gospel at first, they were told to go forth and God would go with them, and his Spirit would accompany them and his angels should go before them. The Lord had his sheep scattered all over the face of the earth; and those sheep, when they heard the sound of the Gospel, understood it; there was something that bore testimony to their hearts, which they could not well describe, and that something directed you, my brethren and sisters, to those who brought the everlasting Gospel; and when you heard it you said, “That is true.” And people might say what they pleased, still you believed and felt that it was true. You experienced this feeling, but you could hardly account for it. This was the Spirit that Jesus alluded to when he said, “If I be lifted up from the earth, I will draw all men unto me.” He has his own way of accomplishing that object, and it takes time, a great deal of time to do that. But he was not going to drive them nor force them, nor in any way to coerce them; but he would present to their minds such beautiful principles, such lovely sentiments and develop such glorious things among them, that they could not but see and appreciate them, nor could they find them anywhere else. And then when those principles were confirmed by the influence of the holy priesthood through the revelations of God to the people, it produced the effect upon them that we have seen. And hence you have gathered here, left your homes in the old world—the major part of you from Scandinavia. I was one of those brethren that started out in an early day with this message of glad tidings; and Brother Erastus Snow found his way to you folks, while I went to others in a different part of the world, and still others of the brethren hunted up other sheep in other places. What was the result of our preaching? We see it here today; the result is that you have been brought to a knowledge of the truth, and through obedience to the ordinances of the Lord, you have received the Holy Spirit of God, which has led you into the truth, so that you, as did the ancient Saints before you, sit in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. You no longer experience the kind of uncertainty you used to be afflicted with, but you have a certainty, an abiding reality. You do not care to die; that is a matter of very little importance. Jesus said to a woman on a certain occasion, whom he had asked to give him water to drink, “If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldst have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water.” We have drunk of that stream which makes glad the city of our God. And we want to realize and appreciate the position we occupy before God, and the great blessings and privileges that are within our reach. We have just commenced, as it were, in the great work. We have received a great many precious principles, and have seen and experienced a great many things. But how was it? Simply through a glass, darkly; and we yet, in many instances, see them through a glass, darkly—at least very many of them; and sometimes we can scarcely perceive the difference between ourselves and the rest of mankind, or between the religion we have embraced and that which other people have. If we could only reflect upon it, there is as much difference as there is between light and darkness. But we do not always comprehend these things, and hence we labor under difficulties pertaining to this matter; because we do not see, we do not comprehend the position and relationship that subsists between us and our God. God is our Father; we are his children. He has brought us into his covenant, and it is our privilege to go on from wisdom to wisdom, from intelligence to intelligence, from understanding of one principle to that of another, to go forward and progress in the development of truth until we can comprehend God. For we are his children, we are his sons and daughters, and he is our Father. He has organized this Church in order that we may be educated in the principles of life, that we may comprehend those principles that exist in the bosom of God, that we may be able to teach our children correct principles, in order that we may be placed in a position whereby we can be assimilated into the likeness of our heavenly Father, and have a communication opened between angels and us, that we may feel that we are of the family of God and of the household of faith, and that we can operate with them; and that while part of his family who have lived upon the earth and who live again in another state of existence behind the veil, are operating with him and with the angels of God and with the whole of the Holy Priesthood in developing his purposes in the heavens, that we may be prepared to operate with him on the earth in carrying out his purposes here; that his people may be preserved from the powers of darkness, that the light, intelligence and revelations of God may be upon us, that we may comprehend our true position to him, to each other, to his Church and kingdom, and to the living and the dead; that we may realize the position we occupy in relation to all the various duties and the responsibilities of life. And then after realizing them, magnify our callings, unite ourselves together as the heart of one man under the influences of the Spirit of eternal truth as the family of God upon the earth, and purge out everything from us that is evil, corrupt, low and degrading, and elevate our minds and feelings to a higher standard of intelligence, morality and obedience to his laws, and thus prepare ourselves to carry out the things of God in relation to the earth whereon we dwell, and each of us take a part in bringing to pass his purposes here upon the earth, not by any intelligence we may have; but by the wisdom and intelligence that God shall impart from time to time, until we shall progress in every principle that is calculated to elevate and ennoble mankind, until finally we shall see as we are seen and know as we are known.

We are now gathered together to Zion. For what? To build up Zion, and to accomplish the purposes of the Lord pertaining to the human family upon the earth. And being gathered together we are organized with apostles and prophets, with presidents and their counselors, with bishops and their counselors, with elders, priests, teachers and deacons. We are organized according to the order of God, and these very principles that look small to us emanate from God. We have seventies and high priests, and all these men hold certain positions which it is expected of them that they will fulfill and magnify, here in the flesh, in the interests of truth and righteousness; in the interests of the kingdom of God and in the establishment of correct principles among the Saints of the Most High. We are here to cooperate with God in the salvation of the living, in the redemption of the dead, in the blessings of our ancestors, in the pouring out blessings upon our children; we are here for the purpose of redeeming and regenerating the earth on which we live, and God has placed his authority and his counsels here upon the earth for that purpose, that men may learn to do the will of God on the earth as it is done in heaven. This is the object of our existence; and it is for us to comprehend the position.

For instance, Joseph Smith in the first place was set apart by the Almighty according to the counsels of the gods in the eternal worlds, to introduce the principles of life among the people, of which the Gospel is the grand power and influence, and through which salvation can extend to all peoples, all nations, all kindreds, all tongues and all worlds. It is the principle that brings life and immortality to light, and places us in communication with God. God selected him for that purpose, and he fulfilled his mission and lived honorably and died honorably. I know of what I speak for I was very well acquainted with him and was with him a great deal during his life, and was with him when he died. The principles which he had, placed him in communication with the Lord, and not only with the Lord, but with the ancient apostles and prophets; such men, for instance, as Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Noah, Adam, Seth, Enoch, and Jesus and the Father, and the apostles that lived on this continent as well as those who lived on the Asiastic continent. He seemed to be as familiar with these people as we are with one another. Why? Because he had to introduce a dispensation which was called the dispensation of the fulness of times, and it was known as such by the ancient servants of God. What is meant by the dispensation of the fulness of times? It is a dispensation in which all other dispensations are merged or concentrated. It embraces and embodies all the other dispensations that have existed upon the earth wherein God communicated himself to the human family. Did they have the Aaronic priesthood in former times? Yes. So have we. Did they have the Melchizedek priesthood in former times? Yes. So have we. Did they have a gathering dispensation in former times, when Moses led the children of Israel out of Egypt? Yes. So have we, just as it was predicted by the prophet Jeremiah: “I will take you one of a city and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion.” And what will you do with them when you get them there? “And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding.” We have that dispensation. Moses, when he appeared to Joseph Smith, committed to him “the keys of the dispensation of the gathering of Israel from the four quarters of the earth and the restitution of the ten tribes.” Read it in the Doctrine and Covenants: it is there plainly written. Why are you here today, from Scandinavia and other parts of the world? Because God has, among other dispensations, restored the dispensation of the gathering.

In relation to other matters. Was there a time to transpire that Elijah should come to “turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers?” That Elias has come, and has introduced that dispensation; and in that are associated the very things you are engaged in and which we have come to attend to, namely the laying of the foundation stone of the Temple. Now, I will ask, whoever thought of building Temples until God revealed it? Did you? If you did, I wish you would tell us of it. And did you know how to build them? No. And did you know how to administer in them after they were built. No, you did not. We are indebted to the Lord for these things. And when Elijah the prophet appeared to Joseph Smith he committed to him the keys of this dispensation; and hence we are at work building Temples; but some of us hardly know why. We go at it the same as we follow plowing, sowing, planting, reaping and such kinds of pursuits. There are other things behind that. There are ordinances associated behind these things that go back into eternity; and forward unto eternity; that are the offspring of God, that are intended for the welfare, the happiness and exaltation of mankind; for those who are living and those that are dead and for those that will live hereafter, pertaining both to our progenitors and our posterity. And that is one of those keys that have been turned. Do you think that the elders who brought the Gospel to you in far off lands could have gathered you here if they were not the bearers of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, and if this had not been a gathering dispensation? I think not. As I have said, the elders went to different parts of the earth, for we have preached a great deal. I, myself, have traveled hundreds of thousands of miles preaching the Gospel; and without purse or scrip, trusting in the Lord. Did he ever forsake me? Never, no never. I always was provided for, for which I feel to praise God my heavenly Father. I was engaged in his work and he told me that he would sustain me in it; he has been true to his trust, and if I have not been true to mine I hope he will forgive me and help me to do better. But the Lord has been true and faithful, and I have never needed anything to eat or drink or wear, and was never prevented for want of means of traveling where I pleased.

Well, to return. After you received the Gospel and the spirit of the same, the great desire of your hearts was to go to Zion. And in order to accomplish this you put away your little savings and you began to contrive how to dispose of your little properties, and many of you were almost ready to sell yourselves to get to Zion. You could not tell why you had such feelings, but you did have them, and you could not get rid of them until you were brought here. You would not have come here had it not been for that, would you? I have no idea that you would. When you were told to build Temples, what made you build them? Because you had received the Gospel in your hearts, associated with which was the mission of Elijah which was to turn the hearts of the children to the fathers, and the hearts of the fathers to the children. I wish I could tell it to you as I understand some of these things, and I wish you could understand those principles. Suffice it to say that Satan has tried from the beginning of the world to overturn the works of God, and in some instances he has apparently succeeded admirably. He was the cause at one time of all the people of the earth being destroyed except a little seed which was saved to propagate the human species. Probably the devil would laugh pretty heartily over that, thinking that he had accomplished his purposes. However that was not the end. It is true that the judgments of God overtook them; it is true they were destroyed by a flood in the flesh, and were shut up in prison in the spirit; but it is also true that the same Savior who is our Savior, when he was put to death in the flesh, was quickened by the spirit, and that he visited those spirits in prison, opening up the door of salvation to them that they might be redeemed and come forth and accomplish certain purposes which God had designed; and hence we find the Savior operating among all that body of people that the devil thought were destroyed, but through this visitation were placed within the reach of deliverance. But has Satan prevailed to a great extent? He has. Has darkness spread itself over the earth? Yes. Have people wandered away from God and forsaken him and his laws? They have. But then the Lord will be merciful towards them, they not having received the light that we have, hence he feels towards them as a father feels towards his children, being desirous to promote their happiness as far as it lays in his power; and if he could not save them while in the flesh, he understands certain eternal laws and principles whereby they may hereafter be redeemed. The Judge of all the earth will do right. And while the priesthood behind the veil are operating and preaching to the spirits that are in prison that have been there from the different ages, he called upon us to build temples that we may administer for the bodies of these people that have died without the Gospel, that they may be judged according to men in the flesh and live after God in the spirit. At the commencement of the dispensations he sends out his elders generally to all the world to preach the Gospel to every creature. In this dispensation he not only does this; but as we live in a gathering dispensation, he also gathers in the people, and when they learn a little of his law, there are many ordained to the priesthood and sent out as messengers, and we keep sending them out to preach the Gospel and to gather in the elect; and we send them to their own people to tell them what God has done and is doing. And they keep coming and going. And whom do we send? If we send to England we send Englishmen, or men who can speak the English language; if to Scandinavia, we send Scandinavians: we send generally their own people, accompanied with men of experience, after the Gospel has been introduced to them. Why? That they may go and teach their own people the way of life and salvation. What then? They come back again and build Temples. And what then? They and their people from the various nations of the earth go into these Temples and administer for their fathers, and grandfathers, their uncles and aunts, their friends and relatives, and thus reach back, back into distant times to redeem and save others. And who are these men? Just such as the ancient prophets talked about. They are saviors upon Mount Zion, are they not, saving and redeeming their people—and those men who are quarrying and hauling the rock, and those who are engaged in laying up these terrace and temple walls, and those who are otherwise engaged in making the necessary preparation for the building of the temple are all laboring in the same direction. The Lord requires this work at our hands in order to test us, to see whether we will carry out his laws or not. And when we build our temples and he accepts of them, we will then enter into them and administer in the name of God; and administering in them we become saviors upon Mount Zion, as it is written, “And saviors shall come up on Mount Zion to judge the Mount of Esau, and the kingdom shall be the Lord’s.” Don’t your Bible read so? The one I have does. Who shall they save? These men become saviors of their own nations; they administer and operate in their interests and in the interests of their fathers and their friends and associates. Hence this is one thing we are engaged in, and is part of the dispensation of the fulness of times.

Then what does one of the prophets say? “Behold, I will send you Elijah the Prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.” And what shall he do? “And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to the fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.” And what shall be done? Saviors shall come up on Mount Zion; and the kingdom shall be the Lord’s. It is written, they shall all be taught of God, but the kingdom shall be the Lord’s, not man’s. We do not want to lean upon man nor put our trust in man. While we are obedient to every ordinance of man that is proper and right, and which does not conflict with the law of God, while we are obedient to these things we do not want to sell ourselves to the wicked and ungodly. We do not care much about their ways or their theories or ideas. “The Lord,” says one, “shall be our judge, the Lord shall be our king, the Lord shall be our lawgiver and he shall rule over us.” And we, under the inspiration of the Almighty, will introduce the laws of God that exist in the heavens and upon the earth, and form a nucleus of truth, of virtue and intelligence, of law and order, of principles pertaining to morals, to philosophy, to politics, to religion and to everything that is pure, exalting and ennobling, and the kingdom will be the Lord’s. And we will operate together, we will try to frustrate the works of darkness and the powers of the adversary, to save the living and redeem the dead, have our hearts turned towards our fathers who have lived before us who have been ignorant of the principles of life and salvation which God has been pleased to confer upon us, while the brethren behind the veil are feeling after us who are their children. The Lord will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to the fathers through Elias who was to come, which if not accomplished, it is written, “the earth would be smitten with a curse.”

Hence we are operating with the ancient patriarchs, apostles, prophets and men of God who lived on the continent of Asia and America, and we will gather together all things in one according to the word of God, gather his Israel in one from the four quarters of the earth and also the ten tribes before we get through; and Judah will listen to the words of life, and the principles of eternal truth will go forth and spread and grow, “until the kingdoms of this world become the kingdoms of our God and his Christ; and to him every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Christ is God to the glory of God the Father.” And we are here for that purpose. Do you think we are going to fail? Do you think the Lord is going to back down? I think not. Men may combine against us ignorantly, for many of them are very ignorant. I do not cherish the least feeling of wrath in my heart when I see the courts, legislators or Congress take steps inimical to us. They do not know what they do, hence we should feel charitably disposed to those who seek our injury. David prayed that God would send his enemies to hell quickly. Jesus, when he was being crucified, suffering the pain of a cruel death, said, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.” I like that prayer much better than the other one. Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do. They are thy children, though in the dark. Thou hast enlightened our minds, for which we feel thankful; but, O Lord, forgive them and lead them, if thou canst, in the way of life. This is the feeling we ought to have. We ought to have it one towards another, and treat one another with kindness and not get up hard feelings. Talking about people giving away to passion and giving expression to hard words; such things do not belong to the Gospel, to no part of it; they come from beneath. This has been pointed out and made very plain to us. Every spirit, says one, that tends to good is of God; and every spirit that tends to evil is of the wicked one and comes from beneath. I hear a man say sometimes, “I hate such a man.” Why, I do not know of a person that I hate in the world. The command is to love one another. When Jesus was about to leave his disciples, the burden of his prayer was, “Father, I pray for these whom thou hast given me; thine they were, and thou gavest them me. I pray for them, Father, that they may be one, even as I and thou art one, that they may be one in us.” What, a sister or a brother, a citizen of the kingdom of God, a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, one who has received peradventure of the ordinances of the house of God, and who expects to associate with the Saints of God, quarrels with his brother about peanuts and baby toys and then talk about your honor being infringed upon! I tell you if you take care of yourselves, your honor will take care of itself and you need not be concerned about it. Treat one another aright. Have you sinned one against another? Then go and make restitution. Have you defrauded one another? Go and make it right. Have you spoken unkindly to your brother or sister? Then go and acknowledge your wrong and ask to be forgiven, promising to do better in the future. And then he or she might say, on the other hand, “Yes, and I said so and so the other day, won’t you please forgive me?” How much better and how much more in keeping with the calling of a Saint of God such a course would be than to harbor hard feelings in the heart. And you parents, get your families in the morning and evening and call upon the Lord, and ask his blessing upon your families, your flocks and herds, and upon everything that you have, and do not be quarreling one with another because you are scarce of water. I tell you in the name of the Lord God that if you will do your duties, God will do his, and furnish you with what water is necessary. Try me, “and prove me herewith, saith the Lord of Hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.” Husbands, treat your wives right; treat them with kindness and with sympathy; try to make them comfortable, and make their houses and surroundings comfortable and do all you can to make them happy. And you wives, treat your husbands right; try to make their homes a little heaven, and seek earnestly that the blessings of the Lord may abide in your dwellings. And parents, treat your children aright; train them up in the fear of the Lord, they are of more importance to you than many things that you give your attention to. And you, children, obey your parents; respect your fathers and mothers. Your mothers have watched over you, and your fathers are desirous for your welfare, and their hearts and feelings and affections are drawn out towards you. Do not give them pain by departing from correct principles; but walk in the paths of life. And parents, and children, husbands and wives and all people, fear God and put your trust in him and carry out the principles of your holy religion which God has revealed to us.

I would speak a few words of praise of many of our brethren; I think it would apply to many of you here. I have no disposition to find fault, but I have a disposition to speak kindly of many of my brethren and sisters in many of their opera– tions. In the tithing operations, for instance, I think that during the last year there has been paid some 50,000 dollars more than the year before. This speaks well for the Latter-day Saints; not but what the Lord could get along very well without these things, but he wants to test his people. This, however, proves that there is an increase in the right direction, and a proper feeling that ought to exist among the Saints. Hence, says the Lord, “Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, if I will not open the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.” The Lord wants to prove his people and he will have a tried and proven people, and this is one of the ways he has chosen to do it. In addition to this tithing, there has been expended on this Temple and the Temple in Logan in the neighborhood of 250,000 dollars; this is very creditable, besides a very fair tithing on the back of that. I think I can speak good in the name of the Lord to a people that will do that, that is, if we will lay aside all evil things. Let us keep doing good. You have done about as much here as they have done in Logan, and they expect to get their Temple up to the square this summer. But then they did not have to make the foundation you have had to make here. They made some mistake in fixing up the mountains here; they do not seem to be in a right shape; but then we can put them in a right shape, you know. The scriptures talk about the mountains being thrown down. Well, you have done considerable towards leveling this down. God is pleased with you, and everything is going on right, and I speak this for your encouragement. I am pleased to see the sisters take the part they do in their Relief Societies. They are doing a good work and their labors are a credit to them. And then there are our Young Men’s and our Young Ladies’ Mutual Improvement Associations; they are going on very well. And then your educational interests are doing pretty well. Do I not so understand you, Brother Petersen? [President Canute Petersen—Yes, Sir; pretty well.] We do not want outside folks to teach our children, do we? I think not. We do not want them to teach us how to get to heaven, do we? If we did, it would be of no use, for they do not know the way. Well, then, we do not want them to tamper with the minds of our little ones. You will see the day that Zion will be as far ahead of the outside world in everything pertaining to learning of every kind as we are today in regard to religious matters. You mark my words, and write them down, and see if they do not come to pass. We are not dependent upon them, but we are upon the Lord. We did not get our priesthood nor our information in regard to his law from them; it came from God. The world profess to know a little about what they call science, literature and the arts. Where did they get their knowledge of these things from? And what is it they really do know? They know something about the laws of Nature. Who made those laws? God made them; and he knows how to govern them; and it is by his almighty power that they are governed.

I remember talking with some celebrated scientists from Europe some time ago, and I explained to them some of the principles relative to the heavenly bodies that were revealed through the Prophet Joseph Smith. They were astonished to know that ideas so grand could be developed through one that was comparatively unlearned. One of them remarked that they were the most magnificent principles he had ever heard of; another one said that he had read and studied a great deal, but he had a good deal more yet to learn. We are, as the French would say, en rapport, with God; that is in communication with God. Let us live so that we can keep that up, so that angels can minister to us and the Holy Spirit dwell with us. We have received his guidance and instruction. It is for us now to go on from truth to truth, from intelligence to intelligence and from wisdom to wisdom. And while nations shall crumble and thrones be cast down, and the God of heaven arise and shake terribly the earth, while the elements melt with fervent heat in fulfillment of ancient as well as modern prophecy; while these things are going on he will whisper, peace to Zion. But the judgments will begin at the house of God. We have to pass through some of these things, but it will only be a very little compared with the terrible destruction, the misery and suffering that will overtake the world who are doomed to suffer the wrath of God. It behooves us, as the Saints of God, to stand firm and faithful in the observance of his laws, that we may be worthy of his preserving care and blessing.

Now a word about other things. We want elders to go and preach the Gospel. But some people will say, “Here is such a young man who is a little wild; if he were to go abroad perhaps he would reform.” Brother Peterson, we do not want such folks to go as representatives of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. And I say to you, Presidents of Stakes, we do not want such an order of things; we want men that have got within them the gift of the Holy Ghost, men who have the gift and power of God in them. We do not want men to go abroad to be reformed. They are not fit to live in Zion if they cannot reform themselves at home. We must have men filled with faith and the Holy Ghost. And you seventies and high priests, wake up to a sense of the responsibility of your callings, and purge away your follies and nonsense and feel that you are indeed the servants of the living God; for God will hold you responsible for the priesthood you bear. Then honor the Lord and magnify the priesthood, and when you go forth to the nations bearing precious seed, angels will go with you and the gift of the Holy Ghost will accompany you in your administrations and though you may go weeping, bearing the precious seed of the Gospel, you will return rejoicing bringing your sheaves with you.

I do not know but what I have talked enough. Brethren and sisters God bless you. And God bless the relief societies and the young men’s and the young ladies’ societies, and God bless your president and his counselors, and your bishops and their counselors, and all that fear God, and work righteousness. And the Lord God put a hook in the jaws of our enemies that seek our injury and overthrow, that they may not have power against the Israel of God. And God bless all Israel, that Zion may arise and shine and the glory of God rest upon her. I ask it in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Discourse by President John Taylor, delivered at the Semi-Annual Conference, Held in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, April 9, 1879.

It has been very properly remarked that we are becoming a great people; and there are a great many interests of a temporal, as well as spiritual nature, that must necessarily be attended to—in fact it had been so contemplated from the beginning. We talk sometimes of earthly things: at other times we speak of heavenly things. Sometimes we speak of things pertaining to time, and at other times of things pertaining to eternity. We have to do with both or we could not have been here. And being here it is proper we should come to a right understanding in regard to the position we occupy; and especially that we should comprehend our duties relating to our temporal affairs and by acting truthfully, honorably and conscientiously avoid so much annoyance, trouble, litigation and difficulty that so frequently exists. In relation to the Gospel of the Son of God, it gives us information pertaining to our existence and to our general relationship to God and to each other, pointing out our various duties and responsibilities. Associated with it is a priesthood which among other things is to promulgate the will of God to the ends of the earth; it has taught us principles pertaining to our future, both in relation to the living and the dead, relative to the present, past and future. We talk a great deal about our Gospel, about our spiritual affairs; we have our church organized according to certain principles associated therewith. We have a priesthood organization, embracing our Stake organization; we have organizations pertaining to spiritual things, if you may so call them, and also for temporal things, for we have to do both with time and with eternity, both with earthly and with heavenly things, and consequently it is necessary we should be interested in all. When we reflect upon our position, there is something peculiar associated with it. At first the Elders of this Church were told to go forth and preach the Gospel to every creature; then they were instructed to gather together those who believed. According to the Scriptures, “I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion: And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding.” We are gathered together; but being gathered together there is something more than spirituality associated with our existence. We brought our bodies with us when we came, and we necessarily have to eat and drink and to have houses to live in, etc.; in fact, we require the common necessaries of life just as much as any other people. And then, if we have children, as Bishop Hunter says, “there are none of them born with shoes and stockings;” but these things have to be provided. Furthermore, being gathered together, we necessarily form a body politic, if you please, and we cannot help ourselves if we would; but we do not want to. We frame laws according to the usage of the nation we are associated with; for being here and finding ourselves in the territory of the United States, we necessarily have had to organize a government which has assumed a territorial form; and that means a legislature with its enactments and all the various adjuncts of a government. Laws have to be made, officers must be created to execute those laws; and we necessarily become an integral part of these United States, and have to perform all the political functions associated therewith.

These things naturally flow unto us, and they will continue to grow and increase, if it be true what the Scriptures say, and if it be true what many of our brethren have preached to you since the assembling of this Conference. Then it becomes a matter for us to reflect upon that we understand our true position, how we can best sustain ourselves religiously, socially, politically and financially, and among other lessons learn to produce at home those articles we stand in need of.

We have been brought up in the world, and have imbibed many ideas in common with mankind generally pertaining to commerce, trade and manufactures. But we need the inspiration of the Almighty in all of the affairs of life; for we profess emphatically to be the people of God, and as it is with us in our religion so it ought to be with our politics, our trade and manufactures. They ought, in all things, to be subservient to one grand principle, and that is the acknowledgment of God and his laws. Permit me here to state that before the revelations of God to man in these last days, there were no people that had a correct knowledge of God, that we have any knowledge of, anywhere upon the earth. All were without prophecy, without revelation, without a knowledge of the doctrine or ordinances of the Gospel. And to whom are we indebted for a knowledge of these things? Certainly not to ourselves, and as assuredly not to any earthly body or system in existence. We are indebted alone to God for a knowledge of these things; through His revelations made first by himself and by his well beloved Son, and then by the ministering of holy angels, by communication from the heavens to the earth. We are indebted to him for all the light and intelligence we possess in relation to these things. What did we know about the first principles of the Gospel? Nothing. What did we know about the gathering, or about Zion, or about the ordinances of the Gospel or about the holy priesthood? Nothing at all. Nor did we know anything about the building of Temples, or about the mode of administering in them until directed by the Almighty; it was He who revealed the necessity of the construction of those sacred edifices and the mode of administering therein. What does the outside world know about these things? Nothing. And if they had our Temples they could not administer therein. We are indebted to God alone for the light and intelligence we have received.

Again in regard to political matters, where is there a nation today, under the face of the whole heavens that is under the guidance and direction of the Lord in the management of their public affairs? You cannot find one. It is true that the founders of this nation, as a preliminary step for the introduction of more correct principles and that liberty and the rights of man might be recognized, and that all men might become equal before the law of the land, had that great palladium of liberty, the Constitution of the United States, framed. This was the entering wedge for the introduction of a new era, and in it were introduced principles for the birth and organization of a new world. The Prophet Joseph Smith said that “The Constitution of the United States was given by the inspiration of God.” But good, virtuous and holy principles may be perverted by corrupt and wicked men. The Lord was opposed by Satan, Jesus had his Judas, and this nation abounds with traitors who ignore that sacred palladium of liberty and seek to trample it under foot. Joseph Smith said they would do so, and that when deserted by all, the elders of Israel would rally around its shattered fragments and save and preserve it inviolate. But even this, good as it was, was not a perfect instrument; it was one of those stepping stones to a future development in the progress of a man to the intelligence and light, the power and union that God alone can impart to the human family. And while we acknowledge, as citizens of the United States, the laws and institutions thereof (which by the way are very easily complied with), we have a higher law, more noble principles, ideas that are more elevated and expansive; principles that reach to the whole human family, and which he will continue to reveal to us. Does that prevent us from obeying the laws of the land? Certainly not. But then, is that a perfect system? I do not think that many of you will say it is, nor do I think that the people of the United States of any political party will tell you it is. I do not wish to cast any reflections or refer to any events that have taken place; I am merely speaking on religious principles, and principles too in which we as Latter-day Saints are interested. We are united, then, as a body politic, as an integral part of this Government, and it becomes our duty to submit to the laws and institutions of that Government—to all that are constitutional, framed and based upon correct principles, and not in violation of what the fathers of the country instituted.

But have we any higher aim than this? We have. Do any object? If so why should they? Do we in anywise interfere with any man’s rights, Government, or make war upon any parties? No, but we are interested in the preservation of justice, equality and the rights of man in the development of peace, the further establishment of correct, more elevated, refined and exalted principles, in placing ourselves in a position more in accordance with things as they exist in the heavens, for the welfare and happiness of the human family. God has given unto us certain principles which we feel bound to observe. Is there anything wrong in this? I think not. We have all kinds of institutions here in the United States and in other nations, such as Odd Fellows, Free Masons, and others; and they have a right to their ideas and manner of doing things as long as they observe the laws, and so have we, and have a right to be protected also in those rights. But to say we must stand still is a thing not connected with our creed. If others do not desire to accompany or keep pace with us, we must still go on under the guidance of the Lord. As was said of ancient Israel, “The Lord is our God, the Lord is our king, the Lord is our judge; and he shall rule over us,” so we say. We need information and revelation in regard to our religious matters, we also need information, intelligence and revelation in regard to our political, social and all temporal matters. If we humble ourselves and purify ourselves, and magnify our callings as the Elders of Israel, according to the Scriptures, we will yet teach the princes of this world wisdom and their kings know– ledge and understanding; for these things that are spoken of will assuredly come to pass when “out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.” The purposes of God shall yet be fulfilled in relation to these matters; God’s work will most assuredly progress, until “the kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdoms of our God and his Christ, and he will rule for ever and ever,” not in war, not in confusion and strife and discussions, not in evil and corruption; but in the interests of humanity, according to the laws of life and in accordance with the intelligence that dwells in the bosoms of the Gods, and in the interests of a fallen world.

Now we come to other matters pertaining to our mercantile associations. I might talk further about our social relations, etc., however, these are subjects we hear a good deal about; we are pretty well informed in relation to them. The information we have pertaining to our associations with our wives, and wives with their husbands has been revealed to us by God, and we are striving to carry out those eternal principles—principles that will exalt us, our progenitors and our posterity in the celestial kingdom, where we can enjoy the presence of God and that of the celestial hosts who have gone before.

We come again to our temporal interests. Has the world been our exemplar with regard to any of these things that I have mentioned? No, the Lord has been our teacher, He has been our guide and director; without him we could have accomplished nothing, for we knew no more naturally than anybody else did.

In relation to temporal things. Are we capable, as Latter-day Saints, of fulfilling our destiny on the earth, and procuring a full temporal salvation and sustaining ourselves, on temporal principles without the interposition of the Almighty? I tell you no, we are not, no more than we are in regard to any other things. We read in the Scriptures of a time that is coming when there will be a howling among the merchants in Babylon, for men will not be found to buy their merchandise. This is in accordance with the prediction of John the Revelator. And the gold and the silver and the fine linen, etc., in Babylon will be of no avail. But before that time comes, we as a people must prepare for those events, that we may be able to live and sustain ourselves when in the midst of convulsions that by and by will overtake the nations of the earth, and among others, this nation. The time that is spoken of is not very far distant. “He that will not take up his sword against his neighbor, must needs flee to Zion for safety.” And Zion herself must flee to the God of Israel and hide herself in the shadow of his wing, seeking for his guidance and direction to lead her in the right path, both as regards spiritual and temporal affairs; things social and things political, and everything pertaining to human existence. We are not prepared as a people today for the accomplishment of this object; we need the interposition and guidance of the Almighty. It is just as necessary that we be under his guidance in relation to these matters, as it is in regard to any other matters. Who made the earth? The same being that made the heavens. Who made our bodies? The same being that made our souls; and it takes the “body and the spirit to make the soul of man.” We need not arrogate to ourselves any particular intelligence, whether of mercantile, manufacturing, chemical or scientific nature, for if there is anything good or intelligent, it is the Lord who has imparted it, whether man acknowledge it or not. We want to acknowledge the Lord in all things, temporal as well as spiritual.

I wish now more directly to touch upon some other principles associated therewith. Some of us seem to be very much confused in our minds as to how we shall operate in regard to temporal affairs. We have brought with us the feelings, views and ideas of the people from whence we came, which are conflicting, and which tend to disintegration and division, and lead to covetousness and fraud, which ought not to have an existence among the Saints of God. We have advertisements published in our newspapers by the Latter-day Saints too, things that are infamous, that are untrue, that are a shame and a disgrace among honorable people, and stand as a living lie. The community at large should not countenance such things as we see daily in our papers to attract the attention of the unwary and bring what they call grists to their mill, in the interest of the individual. We as a people are not called together to act in individual interests; we are called together as Saints of God to operate in the interests of the Zion of God, for the welfare of Israel, and not let ourselves float along with the balance, and all swim together, or all sink together. We ought to be governed by principles of union, fellowship and right feeling, carrying out honorable and upright principles that should be acknowledged before God, the holy angels and all honorable men.

Now after speaking so much upon general principles, let me touch upon some things referred to here about these reports, etc. We have long talked about the united order and about cooperation; and we have started in a good deal like some of our little boys when they begin to run—we have made a great many stumbles in this matter. Little Willie and Annie often think they can manage things better than Daddy and Mammy; and we, like them, have assumed to ourselves strength, and the first thing we know are pulling this way, that way and the other. Then, have the institutions been exactly right? No, all kinds of foolishness and all kinds of blunderings have occurred in their administration. But shall we quit? I think not; that is just what the devil would like, just what many of our merchants want, and it would be the very thing that would suit the world, and the devil would laugh at us. What we want to do is to purge out the things that are wrong, and correct them and place them upon a correct basis, and then adhere to them as we would any other part of our religion. In the Church, if a man lies or swears, or commits adultery, or does anything wrong, we deal with him according to the laws of the Church. But because men do wrong, we do not abandon our principles, nor leave the Church, but we turn such individuals out that will not be righted, and we aim to adjust all things and place them on a proper basis. Why not do the same in temporal things? We have, for instance, Zion’s Cooperative Mercantile Institution; it is called the Parent Institution, and it ought to be the parent of all these institutions and act as a father and protector and benefactor, doing all it can to promote the welfare and prosperity of the people. And then the people, on the other hand, ought to protect it and sustain it by doing their busi– ness through that institution and act prudently, wisely, orderly and unitedly in regard to these matters, that we may be one; for our revelations tell us, If we are not one, we are not the Lord’s. And if we are not the Lord’s, whose are we?

We talk sometimes about the United Order. I do not propose to read to you on this occasion from any of the revelations bearing on this subject, but will quote to you in substance from one of them. The Lord has told us that those who would not comply with the requirements connected with this order should have their names erased from the book of the law of God, and their genealogies must not be found on any church records or history, their names shall not be found nor the names of the fathers, nor the names of the children written in the book of the Law of God. These words are to us, Latter-day Saints; they are true and are binding upon us.

Another thing; what did we do when President Young was among us, urging these things upon us? Did we not enter into covenant by rebaptism to be subject to the Priesthood in temporal as well as spiritual things, when we took upon ourselves the obligations of the United Order? Let me ask you, what do we mean by doing this? Is it a mere form, a farce, or do we intend to carry out the covenants we made? I tell you in the name of Israel’s God they will be carried out, and no man can plow around these things, for God has decreed that they shall be accomplished; and any man who sets himself in opposition to these principles which God has established, he will root him out; but the principle itself will not be rooted out, for God will see that it is accomplished. And in the name of Israel’s God we will help him to do it; and all who feel to do it, say amen. (The large congregation responded with a loud, “Amen.”)

We have started cooperative institutions, and I will touch on a principle now, showing how they ought to be governed. God has ordained two priesthoods upon the earth—the Melchizedek and the Aaronic. The Melchizedek presides more especially over the spiritual affairs of the Church, and has done in all ages when it has existed upon the earth. You will find this provided for in the Doctrine and Covenants; you can hunt it up at your leisure, I do not wish to stop to make the quotation now. The Aaronic priesthood is presided over by the presiding bishop. If we had a literal descendant of Aaron he would have a right to preside over the bishopric, and to operate and manage and direct these things without the aid of counselors. In the absence of such men the Lord has directed us to take men from the high priesthood and set them apart to be bishops to administer in temporal things. This Aaronic priesthood is an appendage to the Melchizedek priesthood, and its province is to administer in temporal affairs. One reason why we want men of this class to administer in temporal things is because there is a special provision made for it. Nevertheless, a High Priest that is after the order of Melchizedek may be set apart to administer in temporal things, having a knowledge of them by the Spirit of truth. And before a man attempts to administer in Zion in temporal things, he ought to obtain a knowledge of that spirit of truth to administer according to the intelligence which that spirit of truth imparts. Thus we have the Aaronic priest– hood in its place; the Melchizedek priesthood in its place. And in all the various functions it is necessary to enter into all the various organizations. It is on one or two particular points that I wish to speak now.

In the first place the Lord requires certain things to be done to meet his approbation; and everything has to be done under the direction of the presidency of the Twelve, both temporal things and spiritual things. The bishops and the presidents of Stakes and all the officers in the Church of God are subject to this authority and they cannot get around it. And when any officer of this Church who by virtue of his calling does things without counseling with the proper authorities of the Church, he takes upon himself things that he has no right to do, and such a course cannot be acceptable before God and the Priesthood.

Now then, we come to the bishopric. Ought the bishops to be consulted in regard to temporal things? Yes, they ought. And as an example, let me tell you that for the last year Bishop Hunter has associated with the Council of the Twelve whenever they have met to consider temporal matters. And I may say we have been pleased to have his company, because it was his place to understand the position of temporal things, that we may know his feelings, and counsel with him and he with us, that everything may be done according to the order and laws of God, that there may be perfect unanimity. With this view he was placed as one of the counselors to the Trustee-in-Trust—because the Trustee-in-Trust thought it belonged to him to hold that position, and thinks so today. But then, does he preside over the Melchizedek Priesthood? No, he does not. Who and what is he? A high priest ordained and set apart to the bishopric. By whom? The Presidency. Does he control the Presidency? No, he is set apart by them; as bishop he is an appendage to the higher priesthood, and does not control it. No man controls it. I remember a remark made on one occasion by Joseph Smith, in speaking with Bishop Partridge, who was then Bishop. He was a splendid good man, as Bishop Hunter is. But he got some crooked ideas into his head; he thought he ought to manage some things irrespective of Joseph, which caused Joseph to speak rather sharply to him. Joseph said, I wish you to understand that I am President of this Church, and I am your president, and I preside over you and all your affairs. Is that correct doctrine? Yes. It was true then and it is true today.

Well, it is necessary that we should have an understanding of these things, that we may make no mistakes in our administration. I want, then, in all our operations to confer with our bishops. And if this institution of ours is “Zion’s Cooperative,” then it should be under the direction of Zion, under the direction of the Priesthood; and if it is not “Zion’s Cooperative,” then it is a living lie. But do we wish to interfere with them? No, we do not. Do we wish to interrupt them in any of their operations? No, we want to help them; we want to unite them and all the people into one, with God at our head, governed by the holy priesthood. Have they rights? Yes. Do we respect them? Yes. Have the people rights? Yes. Shall the people be respected in their rights? Yes, they shall, all the people in all the Stakes; and while we sustain them they must sustain us; and if they expect to have our support, they must give us theirs.

Having said so much, I will tell you that I believe sincerely that the men managing our Cooperative Institution are doing just as well as they know how. And I will state further, that I don’t know of any persons in this community who know how better than they do. And I have been now for some time associated with them, and am acquainted with their proceedings.

There are other principles besides this; we want to learn to manufacture our own goods. And while on the one hand we use the best talent and financial ability we can get to attend to our mercantile institutions; on the other hand, we need to cherish a spirit to encourage home manufactures of every kind, and we want to get this institution to help us do it. If we manufacture cloths and boots and shoes or anything else, we want the institution to dispose of our goods. If we need encouragement in regard to the introduction of any manufactures of any kind, we want them to help us, and we have a right to expect this of them so far as is wise, prudent and legitimate. I will state that the directors of Z. C. M. I. feel interested in the very things that I am talking about, and I say it to their credit and for your satisfaction. I do not think there is an institution in the United States in a better condition than that is today; and it is improving all the time, not after any fictitious manner, but on a solid, firm, reliable basis. Now then, I have proposed to these brethren, which they quite coincide with, that when they shall be able to pay a certain amount as dividends on the means invested, after reserving a sufficient amount to preserve the institution intact against any sudden emergency that may arise, which is proper among all wise and intelligent men, that then the profits of the institution outside of this, should be appropriated for the development of the home manufactures, the making of machinery, the introduction of self-sustaining principles and the building up of the Territory generally, and they acquiesced in this feeling; and I say it to their honor and credit. And I will tell you again that the Church has got a large interest in that institution, consequently we wish to see everything go aright, not on any wild erratic principle, but on a solid, firm, reliable basis, that can be carried out and that will elicit the admiration and confidence of all good and honorable men.

Sometimes little difficulties have arisen outside through interested individuals who have resorted to a good deal of trickery; other times perhaps from just causes. And I will say too that complaints have been made that we have not sufficiently sustained our home manufactures. I will say however that the Institution has stood in a very delicate position. We have been struggling with the financial crisis that has cast a gloom over all this nation for the last number of years—since 1873. But we are now getting into a solid, firm position, and when we declared 3 percent for the six months dividend, it was because the Institution was able to do so. And when we are able to extend this a little farther we will be quite willing to do so.

Some of the complaints that have been made against the institution we have heard; and we have thought best to have a board and refer to that board any complaints that might be made from any part of the Territory. This board that has been temporarily organized has given us these various reports which have been read in your hearing, which indicate their views and feelings in regard to these things. We wish a board of that kind to be organized upon a correct basis according to the order of this Church and Kingdom of God; and then as the people throughout the Territory send to purchase their goods from them, let the people that make these purchases be represented; and if there is anything not straight in their operations let them be made straight. And this is what this committee is for, that the people may be protected as well as the Institution.

Then Stake organizations are recommended, with a representative from each Stake at the general or central board, and it will make it much more pleasant for the management of that Institution to have a criticism of that kind. And it will also tend to allay many of these foolish things which are frequently put in circulation in different parts of the Territory. The object then, of this Board is that the people may be represented, and that Zion’s Cooperative may also be properly represented, that it may serve as a balance wheel to adjust and correct any matters of difficulty that may arise.

I am happy to say that in many parts of the Territory they are introducing the manufacture of leather and boots and shoes and a variety of other articles. And suffice it to say that, according to these reports, the Parent Institution has sustained the manufacturers of these homemade articles quite liberally; and we want it to be in that position that everything we use can be bought there. This is, too, the feeling in relation to this matter. And when we get things into a proper fix we will pull with a long pull and a strong pull and a pull altogether. We will strive to be one; and if we cannot go so far as to sustain cooperation in regard to these things, how in the name of common sense are we ever going into the United Order? But we will begin with this, and then cooperate in all the different Stakes, not only in your merchandising, but in your manufacturing affairs and in your producing affairs; and in everything it will be the duty of this general Board of Trade to regulate the interests of the whole community, honestly and faithfully, at least we will do it according to the best ability we have; and if there should any mistakes arise, we will try to correct them; if they are on the part of the people, we will talk to them about it, if on the part of the institution, we will talk to its management about it. And we will keep working and operating until we succeed in introducing and establishing these things that God has desired, and until Zion shall be a united people and the glory of all the earth.

God bless you and lead you in the path of life, in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Discourse by President John Taylor, delivered at the General Conference, Tuesday Afternoon, April 8, 1879.

I will state that I feel very much obliged to my brethren for the generous feeling manifested to myself. Permit me, however, to say, with regard to some of these ideas presented to the Conference by Brother George Q. and which he has said, he has frequently presented to me and others of the Twelve, that while I duly appreciate the feelings and views of my brethren, and am not ignorant of the proprieties of life, individually I would not wish to change my position. Personally I care nothing about the outside show, the glitter and appearance of men; but I do care about the great eternal principles associated with the Church and Kingdom of God upon the earth. And as has been stated, it was some time before I could make up my mind to accept a proposition of this kind. And I accept it now simply in the capacity of your servant for Christ’s sake for the benefit of the Kingdom of God and that all things may be conducted in a proper manner.

Now we will let this pass, and talk about something else.

I have been very much interested in the remarks that have been made at this Conference. It is now forty– nine years since the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was organized. There were then, as you heard stated and as we very well know, six members organized. There were however, more than six persons in the Church, as was remarked by Brother Snow, the organization being effected for the purpose of legal recognition, still there were only a very few, and as the spirit of revelation rested down upon God’s servant Joseph in these early days, who like Adam, Moses, Abraham, Jesus, Jared, Nephi, Moroni and others, had the heavens unfolded to his view, and although the Church was so few in number the principles and purposes of God were developed fully to the vision of his mind, and he gazed upon the things that are to transpire in the latter days associated with the dispensation that he was called upon by the Almighty to introduce. He learned by communication from the heavens, from time to time, of the great events that should transpire in the latter days. He understood things that were past, and comprehended the various dispensations and the designs of those dispensations. He not only had the principles developed, but he was conversant with the parties who officiated as the leading men of those dispensations, and from a number of them he received authority and keys and priesthood and power for the carrying out of the great purposes of the Lord in the last days, who were sent and commissioned specially by the Almighty to confer upon him those keys and this authority, and hence he introduced what was spoken of by all the prophets since the world was; the dispensation in which we live, which differs from all other dispensations in that it is the dispensation of the fulness of times, embracing all other dispensations, all other powers, all other keys and all other privileges and immunities that ever existed upon the face of the earth. At that time he was a feeble youth, inexperienced, without a knowledge of the learning of the day. But God put him in possession of that kind of intelligence, and what may be termed a scientific knowledge of all things pertaining to this earth, and the heavens, if you please, which was altogether ahead of all the intelligence that existed in the world. He commenced as opportunity presented by following the education he had received from the Almighty, by teaching the principles of life and salvation, the principles of the everlasting Gospel, by conferring upon others that priesthood which had been conferred upon him, and by organizing a state of things that was after the pattern of the heavens, that was calculated to live and grow and increase, that had the principle of life and vitality within itself, and that was calculated to draw together the honest in heart and assimilate them in their ideas and views and feelings and faith, and empower them to operate with him and with the Lord and with the holy priesthood that had existed in former ages. And thus he commenced to organize the Church with all its various offices under the direct inspiration, guidance and revelation of the Lord. The First Presidency was pointed out, the Twelve were also pointed out and designated, and these quorums were ordained. The high priesthood was organized however before these other quorums took shape. Then there were the quorums of Seventies, then the quorums of Elders, then the Bishops, then the quorums of Priests, Teachers and Deacons, together with the High Councils and all that we know about these things. He taught us all that we know about them; God taught him. Hence in the various organizations of the several quorums of priesthood whether it relates to the Melchizedek, Aaronic or Levitical priesthood, all of these, together with the duties devolving upon each, were given by the Lord. And hence the church that we are associated with is called the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Hence Jesus Christ is the medium through whom we are to approach the Father, calling upon him in the name of Jesus; for there is no name given under heaven, nor known among men, whereby we can be saved but the name of Jesus Christ. And although they do not do it now, yet the time is approaching when to him “every knee will bow and every tongue confess that he is the Christ, to the glory of God the Father.” And hence the religion we profess is one that has been given us from the heavens. We cannot dispense with it; we cannot dispense with any part of it. It is not of man, but from the Lord God, our Heavenly Father, through our Lord Jesus Christ, making use of his servant Joseph and those whom he should call by revelation as the instruments to carry out the purposes of God upon the earth. The priesthood we have received we received not of man nor by man, but by revelation. And Latter-day President Young, a little before his death, organized all the various branches of the Church into Stakes, with the officers thereof, carrying out the design of God and his revelations to Joseph Smith; and placed them upon the foundation that was first laid by Joseph Smith under the immediate revelations of the Lord. And God expects it at our hands that we magnify our calling, and that we cleave unto him as his servants upon whom he has conferred this priesthood. He expects it at our hands that we shall magnify it, and not operate according to our peculiar notions, but according to the will and law and guidance and revelations of God in all things and under all circumstances; for we are here as Jesus was here—not to do our own will, but the will of our Heavenly Father who has sent us, and who has called us to this high calling, and has made us to sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.

In accordance with the order of God, the Twelve, the Seventies, the High Priests and Elders have been abroad among the nations of the earth, delivering the testimony which God gave to them, and the Spirit and power of God has operated with us in our ministrations; and the results of these operations and these labors, and the faith and the self-abnegation and self-denial and the desire to do the will of God, and the testimonies that have been borne, are manifested in the Saints gathered today as we are in the valleys of the mountains. These things have been brought about by the interposition of the Almighty; we are, as such dependent upon him today, and as we ever were in all the days of our lives, for guidance, for support, for revelation, for the Spirit of God to guide us that we may not make any false steps; but as a people we must magnify the Lord our God in our hearts and honor him and observe his laws and keep his commandments. There has quite a change taken place since this Gospel was introduced, as the thousands of people who inhabit these valleys sufficiently attest. And if we continue to progress in faith, in union, in intelligence, in virtue, in purity, in knowledge, and especially in the knowledge of God and in the observance of his ordinances, the work of the Lord will continue to roll with tenfold rapidity. We are just commencing our labors, and are just getting ready to perform the work that God has laid upon our shoulders, and are just commencing to perform the work that God intends us to accomplish; everything that has been prophesied by all the ancient prophets, as contained in the Bible and the Book of Mormon, and those things predicted by Joseph Smith, and every other prophet of God, will as surely be fulfilled as we are here today, without any faltering, or flagging, or hesitation.

We go on and attend to many things. Our organizations are very good; but we need, I think sometimes, the breath of life from God breathing into them all through, that, the Spirit and power of the Most High may be in our midst, and that the power and blessings of God that come through the ordinances may be in our midst, and that the power and blessings of God, that come through the ordinances may be imparted to us; and such will be the case if we are faithful in the performance of the duties devolving upon us. It is not with us a question of what we shall eat, or what we shall drink, or what kind of houses we shall live in; it is not a matter of so much importance as it is to be doing the will of God to have our hearts engaged in his service, to feel that we are building up the Zion of the Lord of Hosts, to feel that we are recognized of the heavens, to feel that we are associated with the priesthood behind the veil who have lived and operated in time and are now operating in eternity; for they without us cannot be made perfect, neither can we without them be made perfect. We need their assistance from the heavens, and we ought to seek it all the time.

Let me speak of this not only to the Twelve, but to the presidents of Stakes and their counselors, and to all men holding authority, to seek to God, seek for wisdom, seek for faith, and learn to approach God, that we may draw down blessings from heaven and partake of that faith which was once delivered to the Saints. We are trying to do some things and are doing them pretty well. Do I wish to find fault? No. Or to censure anybody? No. But I wish everybody would so live and act that they would not censure themselves, that their minds would not condemn them; for if your own hearts condemn you, God is greater than your hearts.

We are doing pretty well. We are building our Temples, and there is a laudable spirit manifested in relation to these things generally. Do all do it? No. Have all this spirit? No. I wish they had; but then we would be expecting too much perhaps. But there is a growing interest in these things, which I am glad to give the Saints credit for. And in speaking of our Temples, I sup– pose there are no less than 500 men engaged today in building Temples in this Territory. Some people would consider this quite a tax upon them, and, I may say, we have some who call themselves Latter-day Saints who have a little of this feeling, not much, but a little of it. But men who feel right, they feel that they and all they have belong to the Lord; they feel that they are on hand to perform the work of God, to build up his kingdom, to operate with him and with the holy priesthood, and to prepare Temples to administer for the living and for the dead; that we may indeed be not poor and helpless dolts; but feel that we are saviors upon Mount Zion, and that the kingdom is the Lord’s.

There is a good feeling manifested among the brethren and also among the sisters, who are quite as zealous in most interests as the brethren are. Notwithstanding the immense labors we are performing in our building, for we are doing a good deal, we are not unmindful of other matters. There is constant labor going on in the Temple at St. George, with very little intermission, and a corps of persons steadily engaged administering in the ordinances of the Lord’s House there; while in these other places, as you have heard read over, according to the financial accounts pertaining to the Temple being built in Manti and Logan—there has been expended in a short time on these two Temples nearly two hundred and fifty thousand dollars. The brethren have taken hold of it with a will, and there seems to be a feeling among many of them to see who shall do the most, instead of who can do the least. And notwithstanding this there is about fifty thousand, I think, in round numbers, more tithing paid this last year than there was before these things commenced. I speak this for the credit of the Latter-day Saints. Honor, as the Scriptures say, to whom honor is due. And I am pleased to see a spirit of that kind grow and increase among the brethren.

There has been a good deal of care bestowed on the sending forth of missionaries whom we have sent forth among the different nations abroad and to this nation. There is a duty devolving upon the Twelve and the Seventies especially, to see that this work is performed; and we have been alive to this matter, and have aimed to call men that would not be embarrassed or perplexed in their minds, but such as would go forth as the servants of the Living God, who would not, when they got about two hundred miles from home, commence to think when it would be time for them to return; and the fruits are fast beginning to be borne in the European, the Scandinavian and other missions, and also in the United States. And we wish it to be understood among the Elders and Seventies that we do not want men to go on missions who look upon it as a painful duty for them to fulfill; we would rather such men stay at home. But he that hath a desire to preach the Gospel to the world, whose life is upright, pure and virtuous, and who is capable of presenting the principles of the Gospel to the world; he is the kind of man we are desirous to send. We do not want anybody to go simply because it might be thought that a mission would do him good, or that it might save him from some evil he might be likely to fall into. We do not want men to go abroad representing the Captain of our salvation to reform themselves; let the work of reformation be done at home. We want men to preach the Gospel who are honorable and upright men, and full of the Holy Ghost; and when such men go they go with our faith, carrying with them our esteem and love and affection; and if they need anything, we will give it to them. If their families need anything, we will have them looked after, we will feed them and clothe them and take care of them, and consider that they are our brethren and not that they are poor, miserable paupers, or that their wives and families are a trouble to us; we want to do away with all such feelings. Let us cultivate the spirit of magnanimity and kindness, and as the Lord blesses us, let us bless others; and that is all the things of the earth are worth. Do good to all men, especially to the household of faith. And by and by, as was the case formerly, those who go forth weeping, bearing precious seed, will return rejoicing, bringing their sheaves with them.

Furthermore, we have an auxiliary among our sisters here. Brother Geo. Q. Cannon represented how they were imposed on in many lands and how they had been. Why should they be? Are they not our mothers? Are they not our wives? Are they not our sisters? Are they not our children? Should we not protect them? Do we profess to be in the image of God, holding the holy priesthood of God, and then would we treat the fair daughters of Zion with contempt, or permit them to be injured or imposed upon in any way? God forbid. They are flesh of our flesh, bone of our bone; they are our helpmeets, and our associations and our relations with them ought to be pleasant and agreeable and with all long-suffering and fidelity. And then the sisters should turn round and help to bless one another, and act as our teachers are doing in other respects—teaching their sisters, looking after the poor and assisting the bishops in the performance of their labors. And the Relief Societies which have been organized have been of very great benefit to the Saints of God. And I say, God bless the sisters, and inspire them with more of that heavenly spirit, that they may assist their husbands and their brethren and their children—their sons and their daughters—to promote correct principles, to stem the tide of iniquity, and to promulgate virtue, truth and purity among the Saints of God. And I would say, it is the duty of the bishops and presidents of Stakes to assist them all they can, which I believe they generally do, to carry out everything that is good and praiseworthy.

There is another class of people among us doing a great deal of good; that is our Mutual Improvement Associations; both Young Men’s and Young Women’s. How much more pleasant it is to see our youth grow up in the fear of God, trying to instruct one another in the principles of life and salvation, than to see them ignore the laws of God. How pleasing to us! How pleasing to God and the holy angels! Let us encourage these things, and instruct our sons and daughters, that they may grow up in intelligence, virtue, purity and holiness before the Lord.

And then we want to study also the principles of education, and to get the very best teachers we can to teach our children; see that they are men and women who fear God and keep his commandments. We do not want men or women to teach the children of the Latter-day Saints who are not Latter-day Saints themselves. Hear it, you Elders of Israel and you school– trustees! We want none of these things. Let others who fear not God take their course; but it is for us to train our children up in the fear of God. God will hold us responsible for this trust. Hear it, you Elders of Israel and you fathers and you mothers! Talking about education, as I said before, Joseph Smith knew more in regard to the education than all the philosophers and scientists of the earth; and he knew it by the revelations of God. We want to get together to train our children up in the fear of God, to teach them correct principles ourselves, and place them in possession of such things as will lead them in the paths of life.

I find it is time for me to quit. I feel to thank you for your attendance at this Conference, and for the kind of spirit that has been manifested here. And to thank the members of our choir who have made for us sweet music; and I would say that our choir is a credit to our Territory and to our people. And furthermore they are meeting together for the purpose of cultivating the art of music, and that we may be organized and be more perfect in relation to these things.

I would like to have said something about our Sunday Schools. I do not believe we are behind any people on the face of the earth in relation to these matters. I am informed by the general Superintendent that we have 29,000 children attending Sunday Schools; and I would not be afraid to say that that is more than attend the Sunday Schools in all the Territories put together, outside of Utah. (A voice from the stand—“And in half the States.”) Some one remarks, and in half of the States. I do not know how that is. But they do say our children are Utah’s surest and best crop. Let us try to train them up in the fear of God, that we may have his blessing to be with us.

I would like to have said something, too, about our cooperative associations. I am pleased to inform you that the Cooperative Institution of this city is doing remarkably well; it is on a solid foundation and everything is moving along pleasantly and agreeably. We have organized for some time a Trade’s Union, through which all the people of Utah can be represented. And while the Co-op calls upon us to sustain them, which is right and proper, we want the Co-op to sustain us. There are two sides to this question, hence we have an organization called a Board of Trade in a number of the Stakes, and expect to perfect them in all the Stakes, that the whole people may be represented at our general board. Then we expect to spread and grow in manufactures of all kinds, that we may become a self-sustaining people, a people who shall be independent, under God, of all other powers.

I will not detain you. God bless Israel, and all that bless Israel, and let our enemies be confounded. And God grant unto us power to serve him and observe his laws that we may have a claim upon his blessings, and at last obtain eternal life in his kingdom, in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Discourse by President John Taylor, delivered at Kaysville, on Sunday Afternoon, March 2nd, 1879.

I am pleased to have the opportunity of meeting with the Saints in this place. I have come to talk with you, and to have a little visit; to tell you how I feel, and to learn how you feel, and how things are moving generally.

I desire to talk a while on some of the plain principles of “Mormonism,” as we used to understand them in former times, and as we understand them today when we reflect and use our judgment dispassionately. Our feelings and ideas are not much different from what they used to be. Many of us started in this work many years ago, and we entered into it because we believed it was true, and that the principles taught and inculcated were from God; and when it came to us, we received it as a message from God to us. These were about the sentiments that we entertained some twenty and thirty, and as long as forty-five years ago; and I suppose the majority of us have still the same ideas of the work that we then entertained. Before we embraced the Gospel, we were beset with the weaknesses of the flesh, and after we embraced it, these natural infirmities still followed us. We have had difficulties and trials, and have passed through many circumstances calculated to perplex and annoy, and caused, too, many times, by the unkind acts of others. And then we ourselves have not always been the most considerate and kind one towards another. And then we have not always done exactly right, ourselves being the judges, and other people were of the same opinion. And hence we have experienced, to no inconsiderable extent, little annoyances and difficulties, for which we have no one to blame but our own folly and weakness. And this too, in many instances, because when we had done wrong, we failed to go to God and our brother whom we had offended, making acknowledgements and asking forgiveness. And in too many instances difficulties that have arisen have been allowed to run on to our injury and annoyance, and we have been sometimes ready to ask, “Is this Zion?” “Yes, this is Zion.” What, with all of our infirmities, weaknesses and follies? Yes. I think that Jesus, when upon the earth, said that “the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind.” That is the way my Bible used to read; how does your’s read? Some of those were good fish, fit for any market; others rather small, poor eating, and perhaps a little bony and horny. And being gathered together as we are from different nations, with various customs, habits and traditions, with all our peculiarities and odd notions, we, as a matter of course, do not agree in many particulars, and hence difficulties sometimes arise in our midst. Sometimes some of us keep these things to ourselves, and sometimes they leak out; but if they were not there, they could not come out; could they? When there’s nothing bad in, nothing bad can come out. And I believe Jesus will bear me out in his saying, “Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth evil things.” Then again, there is another curious Scripture which James makes use of: “The tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth.” It “setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.” That is a peculiar expression. What do you think it means? “Therewith bless we God, even the Father; and therewith curse we men, which are made after the similitude of God. Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing.” And then, reasons the apostle; “Doth a fountain send forth at the same place sweet water and bitter? Can a fig tree, my brethren, bear olive berries? either a vine, figs? so can no fountain both yield salt water and fresh.” And says the Savior, in speaking of men, “Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?” I find many curious things, and you must excuse me if I do not preach a very connected sermon; we will talk over some matters of fact, as we would in a fireside chat.

We all of us want to be good Latter-day Saints; we all want to secure the favor and approbation of God, and when we get through with this life, we all want to be numbered among those who will secure a celestial inheritance. This is the general feeling of the people I am talking to today. We sometimes pray, “Thy will be done on earth as in heaven.” And then we sometimes make little mistakes in our intercourse one with another, and we sometimes go to him we have offended, asking forgiveness; and then we pray the Father, saying, “Forgive our sins as we forgive them that sin against us.” Is not this so, my brethren? And would you like to be measured in that half-bushel? But if when you pray after this manner, you do not forgive your neighbor his trespasses, could you feel as our red brethren say, “honest Injun?” Would it be consistent with your profession to ask this favor of God, when you yourselves are not willing to grant the same to one another? I believe you will readily agree with me in answering that in the negative; but at the same time, if any of you have any doubt concerning it, you can easily reduce it to a mathematical basis, and so decide. “But,” says one, “there should not be any of these things in Zion.” I agree with you. In the first place, you should not do wrong, or harbor or sustain it when done; neither should your neighbor. And what then? Is this Zion? Yes, so we say. Have I got a treasure? Yes, but we are told that it is held in “earthen vessels,” which are subject to all the weaknesses, infirmities and follies, incident to humanity. Now this is the fact, and God would exalt us and place us on high among men, and pour upon us intelligence, and give unto us knowledge of his will and his law, and he would like to prepare us as a people that would acknowledge his hand in all things, and be submissive to his will, and who would say, both by precept and example, “Thy will be done on earth, as in heaven.” I would like we should do this, but then we have not done it. And we feel sometimes as though we cannot do it, and sometimes as though we won’t do it. But if we could submit ourselves to the law of God, and to the order of God, and to the priesthood of God, and that Priesthood submit itself to the law of God, and all be under his guidance and direction, Zion would arise and shine, and the glory of God would rest upon her, and the power of God would be manifested in our midst, and we would see and comprehend things we never dreamed of.

I find, in examining things, that we are human in every sense of the word. I look at myself, for instance. Am I perfect? No, not by a long way; neither are my brethren of the priesthood of the various quorums. And I look at people, male and female, generally, and am forced to the same conclusion respecting them. We do not come up to the standard, we fail to fulfil the requirements which God makes of us.

We have had an idea, which is quite correct, that God has gathered us from among the nations that he might place his name among us, and that his priesthood might be organized, that men thus ordained might be prepared to establish his kingdom and reign on the earth. But we find men in the priesthood, yes, in all grades of the priesthood, who are weak. Is there anything astonishing in that? Oh, no. Go back, for instance, to the days of Jesus, and you will read of some men who were rather of an aspiring turn, and one of them got his mother to assist him. Said she, “Grant that these my two sons may sit, the one on thy right hand, and the other on the left, in thy kingdom.” She might just as well have added, that she herself would like to occupy some important position. But the Savior told her, saying, “Ye know not what ye ask;” such a position “is not mine to give, but, it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared of my Father.” Then there was another circumstance, in which Peter made himself conspicuous. Jesus was telling them of approaching trouble, and intimating what would take place the approaching night, against which Peter boldly demurred, saying, “Though all men shall be offended because of thee, yet will I never be offended.” Whereupon Jesus said unto him, “Verily I say unto thee, That this night, before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice.” Peter could not believe it; but he did just as the Savior said he would do. Was he weak? Yes, after the manner of men. If he had said, Lord, though all men be offended because of thee, I will not, according to my present feelings, nor will I at all if thou wilt give me power to carry them out. But he felt sure that he could stand side by side with the Savior under all circumstances, but he could not. He did not look so very valiant when the trial came; it is easy enough to talk about it in the distance, at least much easier than to meet it and overcome it. But were these two brothers, whose mother made such a request of Jesus, bad men? No; but she had a notion that she would like to see her sons occupying such a position, and probably they would not have objected to it themselves; this we are not informed of. Then was it right in Peter to say he would stand by his Lord? How often have we said it? I will not condemn anybody, but merely speak of that thing to bring forth for good, and exhibit men as they were and as they are. Was Peter a weak man? No; but he was not without the infirmities of human nature, and when the trial came he faltered a little. After all I do not think the mistake so grievous, all the circumstances considered, for he was surrounded by, and speaking to, a riotous, corrupt and bloodthirsty people, only he had said he would not do it, but he did it, that’s all. Was Peter valiant for the truth? He was. Was he imprisoned for the truth? Yes. Did he proclaim against vice and advocate virtue? He did. And did he go forth and feed the lambs and flock of God? Yes; and he acted every way becoming to a man of God, and finally suffered a martyr’s death. Shall we find fault with either of these men? No, we love them for their good deeds, and for their fidelity and integrity, and the great work which they accomplished in their day, in bringing forth the truths of the everlasting Gospel. Shall we condemn our brethren here with like weakness? No. What did you call them? Some of them very weak sisters; some of them very foolish and some very ignorant. We won’t make use of any hard words at all; but I would rather feel like saying to them, as the old lady who was teaching school said to her children—“When you come to a hard word and you cannot spell or speak it right, pass over it and call it a hard word.” I was a little amused this morning, you know I have heard of a little of your foolishness, and I find that we are all in the same box, all tarred with the same stick. And when listening to these things, one of the brethren remarked to me that this is a good people. What, and still do these foolish things? Yes, there are none of us so very bad after all, when you come to shake us up, we do not mean to be bad. But notwithstanding, many foolish things have existed among us. The Priesthood sometimes have not done exactly right; and then the people have not been without blame, and consequently we make all kinds of curious errors. Now, I would like if we could go at it, act “honest Injun” and get right to the bottom of things, and then go as near right as we can, being guided by the principles of the Gospel, and not influenced by the follies of men.

The fact of our having some amongst us who have weaknesses, does not make untrue any of the laws of God which he has revealed unto us, neither does it affect our belief in them. We still believe that the priesthood emanated from God; and that he has instituted it for the benefit, salvation and exaltation of the human family. And as a proof of this we are here today, and the reason of our coming here is that God raised up and inspired men to go forth and preach the Gospel to every nation, and we heard such men preach and believed their message. Says Jesus, “My sheep hear my voice, and a stranger they will not follow, but flee from him for they know not the voice of strangers.” Was it the Priesthood that did it then? Yes and no. It was they in obedience to the commandments of God that went forth, but it was the power of God in them, and the power of God operating upon our hearts that led us to the truth; and had God not operated with them they could have done nothing, and unless God had revealed from the heavens the principles of the gathering and the priesthood and power thereof and sealed that upon Joseph Smith, and he in turn conferred the same upon his brethren, they never could have got this people here, as they are today. You all know that this is a fact when you give the matter thought and reflection. We learn from the Doctrine and Covenants that on a certain occasion Jesus and other heavenly messengers appeared to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery, and among them was Moses, who conferred upon them the keys of the gathering, which should extend to all Israel, and also bring back the ten tribes. And my brethren, let me say to you, that if the Lord had not sent us these keys in the manner he did, you would not be here today. But that principle was unlocked, and when you received the Gospel you received it, because it is a part of the Gospel, and the consequence was you wanted to gather and you hardly knew why. You used to sing the songs of Zion in far off lands with much earnestness, and the gathering was the theme of your conversation and also your preaching, and in your dreams you have many times seen yourself among the Saints of God, long before you managed to get here. The Lord as we well know has an object in thus gathering his people from among the nations of the earth, but it would take me too long to talk about that this morning; suffice it to say that the scripture is being fulfilled, which says, “I will take you one of a city and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion: and I will give you pastors according to my heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding.” And this is why we are here. He designed that here his Priesthood should be organized, that his will and mind should be made known here and his power made manifest. And it is expected that we will not barter away or trample under our feet this knowledge when we get it, but use it in a proper manner; and in order for us to do so we must comprehend our position and understand the relationship that exists between us and God and his kingdom. It is true our organization has been greatly perfected of late, but then there needs to be a great many other developments and much more willing obedience and submission to the law and word of God. It is “not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.” Let me quote a little further. “Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then I will profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.” Or in other words, you are not my sheep, I have never approved of your actions. Who does this scripture refer to? Is it the unbelieving Gentiles? I think not; I don’t think they can cast out many devils, at least I never heard of their having done so, I have never heard of their having prophesied or done any wonderful thing in His name. No, it does not mean them at all; it refers to those who once held the priesthood, and instead of honoring it, tampered with it, losing its power and efficiency and also the Holy Spirit by treating lightly the things of God and violating their covenants with him. Although they once enjoyed the power to work miracles by virtue of their priesthood, they no longer possess it; but as “the dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire,” so have they turned to error and wrong doing; and to such men the Savior will thus address himself.

It is not because a man holds the priesthood or whether he be or may have been an apostle, a high priest, a seventy, an elder, a president or bishop, and may have had power with God in former times, doing many mighty works in his name but it is they who not only are thus favored and blessed but who endure faithful to the end, that shall be saved and owned by our Lord.

There are some things that strike my mind that I will refer to. I do not know of a time when there was a more perfect organization of the priesthood on the earth than there is today. There may have been in the days of Enoch, and there may have been upon this continent in those days when there were no rich nor poor, but when they had all things common among them, and every one dealt justly one with another; but I do not know, because there is not among us any record of the fact. And what is this organization for? Is it for my individual interests? I do not so understand it. Is it in the interest of the Twelve? I think not. Or in the interest of the presidents of Stakes or any of the bishops, or any individual? No, but it is in the interest of God and humanity, to assist in establishing righteousness upon the earth, and union and fellowship one with another, and to elevate us in the scale of society, and that we may stand head and shoulders in all other matters, as we now do in regard to our religious sentiments, that Zion may be the head and not the tail, and that God may be honored by us and through us and among us, and that we may in very deed be the “Zion of God,” which means the pure in heart.

Now if I talk a little plainly upon some of our secular affairs, I trust you will not be offended, you surely will not as long as I confine myself strictly to the truth, will you? Well, we have talked one time and another, a good deal about the United Order, and also about cooperative institutions; let me ask the good people of Kaysville, what have we done in that direction, how much have we entered into them? As the Indian would say, describing it by the size of his thumbnail, about so much. Do we believe in these movements? Some of us do, and some do not know whether they do or not. Some of us would believe in them much more readily if they would make us rich, and give us prominence and position among men. I will tell you, Latter-day Saints, that unless we can enter into our cooperative institutions and the United Order with singleness of heart and pure motives, as the Elders do when they go forth to preach the Gospel, because it is God’s command, your efforts will be of small avail. We do not want to stop and ask, Is there money in it? Is it his will, his law and principle? When we combine our interests on this principle, and work to it, we will succeed and prosper. But in too many instances our cooperative institutions have jumped the track. What, the big Co-op? Yes, and little Co-ops too. Have you got a Co-op here? No, you have not. Do you know of any? We find little institutions they call Co-ops in most of our settlements, but when you come to inquire into affairs connected with them we generally find, that, instead of their being run in the interest of the community, and with a view to build up the kingdom of God, a few individuals represent the Co-op, who are the ones, who are benefited by it. That is the trouble. But is the principle right? Yes, if you can live it, dealing honestly one with another; but if you cannot, you need not try it, for instead of giving satisfaction, it will only be a disappointment. But I will promise the Latter-day Saints that if they will go into these things allowing God to dictate in the interests of Israel and the building up of his Zion on the earth, and take themselves and their individual interests out of the question, feeling they are acting for him and his kingdom, they will become the wealthiest of all people, and God will bless them and pour out wealth and intelligence and all the blessings that earth can afford; but if you will not, you will go downward, and keep going the downward road to disappointment and poverty in things spiritual as well as temporal. I dare prophesy that, in the name of the Lord. That is the way that I look at these things, and that is the way I figure them up, and not in the light of every man looking for gain from his own quarter. These things are stumblingblocks in the way of the people, and have been for some time. Well, what shall we do? Why, do the best we can, and keep on trying to improve upon our present condition, always keeping in view the object to be gained, dealing honestly upon a fair basis and correct principles, then we will succeed and things will move on pleasantly, and we shall be a united people, owned and blessed of the Lord. It was on this principle that the Nephites became a prosperous, a blessed and happy people; it was not because one was a little smarter than another, or through his smartness taking advantage of his neighbor; it was not that a man was a good financier, that he should “financier” other peoples’ property into his own pockets and leave them without. I will relate here an anecdote which comes to my mind. A smart young man had just returned from college, and at table he wished to show his parents what extraordinary advancements he had made. “Why, father, says he, you can hardly conceive of the advance I have made.” “Well, my son,” says the father, “I am sure I am glad to hear you say so, and I trust you will make a great man.” There happened to be two ducks on the table for dinner, and this young man proposed to give his father a specimen of his smartness. “Now,” he says, “you see there are only two ducks, don’t you?” “Yes,” answered the father. “Well, I can prove to you that there are three ducks.” “Can you,” says the father, “that’s quite extraordinary really, how can you do it?” “Well,” says the son, “I will show you. That’s one?” “Yes.” “And that’s two?” “Yes.” “Well, two and one makes three, don’t they?” “Quite so,” says the father, “it is very extraordinary, and to show how much I appreciate it, I will eat one of these ducks, and your mother will eat the other, and we will leave the third for you.” Some of our “financiers” have made this kind of discovery, but when it comes to the practical thing they, like the boy, have got to fall back on father’s duck or mother’s duck. This kind of proficiency may be all very well in its place, but then we have no place for it; we want to act honestly and begin right, and then carry it out right. Let the big Co-op straighten itself out, and then the little Co-ops do the same, and let us stick to one another and all act one with another, and lay aside our scheming; and let us have honest, honorable men, Elders of Israel who have at heart the building up of God’s kingdom, to do our business, who will act for the welfare of all. That is my doctrine on that point. I can see plenty of faults in these things, but we will let them go, they are the weaknesses of humanity, and they carry with them their own reward. If people do right, the right stands by them and sustains them; if they do wrong it works them down, down, down. Men cannot afford to do wrong if they could but understand their true position. A few dollars, a little land, a few houses, a few of the comforts of this short life, cannot be compared to the glory laid up for those who are true and faithful. But I am afraid it will be said of some of those, as was said of the rich man, “Thou in thy lifetime received thy good things and likewise Lazarus his evil things, but now he is comforted and thou art tormented.” We do not want anything to cling to us but what is right, and honest, and truthful, and whenever we can act for the benefit of all, then we are doing right, free from this narrow contracted feeling and this personal, selfish, aggrandizing spirit. Do you not think you can get up something of that sort if you try? Do not be in a big hurry; do not break your necks; go at it quietly, and start one industry and then another, and make your leather, and your harness and shoes, and prepare to raise silk. Brethren, operate together, and sisters operate together, and let all act in the welfare of each other, that all may be encouraged and benefited. The presidency of this Stake ought, and all ought to unite with them, in producing everything as far as possible, and as fast as possible, that you require among yourselves; and also find employment for every man and woman and child within this Stake that wants to labor. That is what you should do, Brother Smith. That is the way I read these things. And then we should not try to hunt up anything against one another, and our little weaknesses, for we all have enough of them, God knows; and I would say if I were one of them, Tom, if you cry quits, I will; Mary, if you will forgive me, I will forgive you; and Dick, if you will overlook my faults, I will overlook yours; Susan, if I have done wrong please forgive me. Let us try, one and all, to straighten up, and get up a good common surprise, a brotherhood and sisterhood, that we may be one; and then if we are desirous to help one another, and pray God for his spirit to enlighten us, we will go and improve in these things; and we will go on from truth to truth, from wisdom to wisdom and from intelligence to intelligence, and God will help us, if we will help ourselves by taking a course to accomplish these objects.

There is another thing I want to talk about, and that is the priesthood. What is your idea about it? Don’t you think that the priesthood should rule in spiritual things, and the other “hood” in temporal things, or how do you fix it up? I don’t know. What other “hood” do you call it? It is not brotherhood, nor sisterhood, perhaps you may call it divisionhood. Is that the right way, do you think? Let me talk upon some of the first principles upon this subject. To whom are we indebted for the knowledge of the principles of truth which we possess today? To Joseph Smith, to Hyrum Smith, to Oliver Cowdery, to Sidney Rigdon, Brigham Young or the Twelve? I think not. We are indebted to God for this knowledge, from the fact that the time had come, in the councils of heaven, that it was necessary to start the latter-day work, and to prepare a people, gathering them together to build up Zion and establish the kingdom of God upon the earth, that His will might be done upon the earth as it is done in heaven. And if God and the Priesthood with him had never turned the key, and given their consent to have these things done we would have been in the dark, every one of us; or in other words, we would have been where we came from—on the other side of Jordan or somewhere else. At any rate, we would not have been here. Do you not think it would have been well for the Lord to have come down to consult our opinion about these things first? But he did not do it, and we knew nothing about it until the elders brought us word. Then we had nothing to do about it, did we? We knew nothing about it until God sent the messengers among us, did we? I think not. Did we know any more when we came here? Who of us knew how to build temples or thought about such thing? None. Who knew how to administer in them! None, not even Joseph or any other man, until God revealed it. We talk about being baptized for our dead; what avail would that have been if God had not directed it? Do you think, you are going into a Temple to accomplish anything except God direct it? No; what you might do would amount to nothing at all.

God has established his Church, and we sometimes say his kingdom. What do we mean by “the kingdom of God?” I wish somebody would tell me what we mean by using that term. There is the Church of God and the kingdom of God. The Church, of course, refers more particularly to spiritual things, and the kingdom to temporal rule and government and management and to temporal affairs. If it does not, what does it mean, I would like some one to tell me? We sometimes preach about “the kingdoms of this world becoming the kingdoms of our God and his Christ,” don’t we? Will the kingdom of God be the kingdom of men? I think not. What does it mean, then, where it says, if we keep the laws of God, we need not break the laws of the land? Because the laws of Gods are so much more pure and elevated, so much more adapted to the wants and situation of humanity, that we walk right over everything of that sort; and it is nothing comparatively for us to do; what is required we can easily do it, and a great deal on the back of it. But when the will of God shall be done on earth as in heaven, and the kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdoms of our God and his Christ, how will it be done? I have heard lots of you preach this: “Out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. Shall it? O, yes. Do you mean to say that is in the Bible? Yes, and what is the meaning of that scripture? The law cannot go forth from Zion unless it is made in Zion, can it? Who is going to make that law? And who is going to give the word of the Lord from Jerusalem? How are these things to be accomplished? Are we to have a lot of opposition Tickets to do it, do you think? You that feel you can manage things without the priesthood, try it and see how far you will go. Go back to your ordination and baptism, go back to the spreading of the Gospel through the land and the pouring out of intelligence upon the priesthood, and God ruling and dictating, and “The Lord shall be our judge, the Lord shall be our king, the Lord shall be our lawgiver, said Israel, and he shall reign over us.” Was not that the way we used to talk? I had a visit from some of your folks during the session of the Legislature. How was it, and which was right? None of them was right, just as it was when the Prophet Joseph asked the angel which of the sects was right that he might join it. The answer was that none of them are right. What, none of them? No. We will not stop to argue that question; the angel merely told him to join none of them that none of them were right. Anything wrong here? Yes, considerable. There wants to be perfect freedom about all these matters, the feelings of our brethren should be consulted. A bishop has not the right to crowd or oppress, the priesthood is not given to him for that purpose; but everything should move on harmoniously, and the wishes of the people should be consulted and respected. I understand there was a little crowding in your election affairs, you were not more than ten minutes getting through your business. It is better to take ten days, than to have such shameful operations as you had here, and you would have spent your time much better doing something else. What next? Some thought there was a little pressure, that they were not properly represented. I do not know, how this was, but I am inclined to think it was a little hasty. I think it would have been much better and very much more in keeping with our profession, if the leaders could have been got together, and acted in unanimity and good feeling, all anxious to sustain the principles of right and to select for office those who are good, virtuous and competent men, and men who are capable of filling offices with honor, and then do it unanimously. But as soon as a feeling to crowd is manifested on one side, the feeling on the other side, when expressed is, if this is going to be the way, we will buck against that, and if we cannot get our rights with the priesthood, we will fall back upon our political rights as men, and we will frustrate you in your operations if we can. Now both are wrong. There should have been a free and full consultation on the one hand, the right of all respected, and on the other I would rather submit myself a thousand times, even to an imposition than to act as you did—to speak plainly, if a bishop wish to crowd on me, I would let him crowd. I could stand it if he could. I am instructed to be obedient to the priesthood, and if he would do wrong he might do it, but I would not. Two wrongs never make a right. I will not say how far you were wrong, but I will say you both were wrong, and that another course would have been much better and more satisfactory and praiseworthy. What is the result, you men who would fall back on your reserved rights? The first thing that you do is to persuade the people to give up their rights and franchise. If God gives us certain rights, and we trample them under our feet and throw them away to suit some little ideas of our own, we are very foolish and deserve to be chastened. If I had thought the bishop was wrong, I would have gone to him and talked to him respectfully, and seen if things could not be modified. But you take the other way and brusquely say, “I will show you: Here, Tom, Bill, Ned, get up your team and see what a devil of a fuss we can kick up.” And you are elders in Israel, and you are engaged in building up the kingdom of God, are you? Pretty elders you are! Pretty kingdom builders you are, using all the influence and power of your priesthood to pull down and destroy the kingdom by attacking the rights of the people and bartering them away, sending a petition to the Legislature asking that body to take away your rights, for you do not want them. And this done by Elders in Israel. I feel a little ashamed of you, and when I heard it, said, “Tell it not in Gath, publish it not in Askalom.” What, high priests, seventies and elders conspiring to take away the people’s rights? That’s the way I figure it up. And why all this? To show others we are free men. Are we free? Yes, free to do right, but not to do wrong. Have we all rights? Yes, we have rights to do right, but we have, every one of us, covenanted to be true to God and his cause, have we not? And when we depart from that we do wrong. You have lots of sheep here, and you have doubtless seen them sometimes make a break: one will start, and the others follow and away they go. Where are they going? They do not know. Do you know? No. But the sheep perhaps thought they were in bondage and wanted to get out; the lead sheep jumps, perhaps into a mire-hole, it does not matter, they all follow the leader.

Let us operate together as men, as Saints. If you have got to have elections, meet together honestly and consider and talk plainly, with a view of accomplishing the welfare and good of the whole. We cannot elect everybody, we cannot all be officers, we cannot make magistrates, mayors, councilors and aldermen of you all. But as long as we have good and competent men for office, that is all I care about, and we have plenty of them, and we should all pull one way—a long pull, and a strong pull and a pull altogether.

They have had quite enough of division in Tooele County. When the time came for the people of that County to be represented in the Legislature, their representative was in California, and when matters of importance pertaining to that County were pending, they had no one to represent them. Then again, they elected a County Superintendent of Common Schools, and was he there? No, he was off somewhere, and they could not get any of his school money. Would you like to be in the hands of such men? You would soon want to get back again, and you would feel a little like Esau did, after he had sold his birthright; he sought to get it back with tears, but could not regain its possession. Our strength lies in our union, but our union alone would not accomplish much unaided by God; and He will help us if we are united in the accomplishment of his purposes.

I will now refer to some other things. We have Relief Societies here, and we should encourage them. We brethren, you know, should assist our “female brethren,” and we should have the loyalty and patriotism to do it all times and under all circumstances; and when they are seeking to do a good work, help them all we can. And if they are trying to get together a little wheat, let us help them, it will not do us much harm, and possibly we may find it by and by of advantage to us. The women are not always such fools as we men sometimes take them to be. I am reminded of a circumstance which I will relate. There was a certain lady who had a husband who was very free and generous, would give away anything he had; she saw that he was a little too liberal and careless, and that there evidently would come a time when he would be in a pinch. So she asked him one day if he would not allow her a certain amount to keep house. “O, yes, how much do you want?” “So much a week.” He gave her quite a liberal allowance, so much that she could manage to keep house and put away a certain portion every week; she put her savings in the Bible, until by and by it amounted to quite a sum, and the Bible was full of greenbacks. Some years afterwards there came a financial crisis, and the husband was troubled. The wife readily perceived the change in her husband’s countenance, and she asked him to tell her the cause of his trouble. He told her that he had a note coming due, and he was afraid he could not meet it. She tried to encourage him by telling him to have faith in God, and referred him to the good, old Book, telling him to read it, that he might get some comfort from it. She handed him the Bible, and as he opened it and turned over the leaves the bills began to drop out. Why, Susan, says he, what does this mean, I find it full of greenbacks? She quietly answered him saying, “I thought you were very generous and a little extravagant, and I was afraid there would come a time when we would need money; so I put away so much a week in the Bible.” He blessed his wife, and I think she was the better man of the two, and perhaps should have worn the breeches. Now we may find a time when we may need this wheat that our sisters are storing up; let us not be too confident about our affairs, and do what we can by way of helping them. I am pleased to witness the spirit manifested by our sisters generally. I hear that you are going into silk culture, and am glad of it. Tim Legislature appropriated $1,500 to help our sisters, simply because they were our sisters and because they were trying to do good. You go to work and help them here, and help about all these things, and do all you can. You are a little famous in some of these parts—in Farmington I believe, they profess to be in advance of everything in the silk line.

And then with regard to our educational pursuits, let us do all we can in that direction. Some people talk about the means it takes; why money is not to be compared with intelligence. I wish we had our own text books, published by ourselves and read by our children. I think such things are indicated in the Doctrine and Covenants. Then let us have our high schools, that our children may be taught in the common branches, that we may be as far ahead of the world in regard to literacy, mechanism, the arts and sciences, and everything else, as we are now in regard to religious principles.

I am also glad to see our Young Men’s and Young Ladies’ Mutual Improvement Societies doing so well. It will be well for you to come together as conjoint societies once in a while; it will afford an agreeable change, as well as do much good. I met with a very intelligent gentleman a few days ago, who told me that he had attended one of the Young Men’s meetings, and was astonished at the intelligence and talent displayed. He said that he had not seen the like anywhere among young people.

We should not only try to excel in literary institutions, but in mechanism as well. We must unite together and make our leather, and our boots and shoes, our harness and our implements of husbandry, and everything we need for our use, until we become self-sustaining, and import nothing more than is absolutely necessary, and then we shall find full employment for all our people.

I have perhaps said enough. Husbands, love your wives; treat them kindly; bear with their frailties and imperfections, and love them as you used to do when you went a courting them; it would do you good, many of you, to do your courting over again. Wives, treat your husbands right; do not “nag” with them and find fault, but be full of kindness and try to make your homes a heaven. Children, obey your parents, and treat them right. And parents, you that have servants, treat them right, pay them honest wages, and deal with them on honorable principles. And in your deal one with another, be honest and manly; do not seek to take advantage one of another. Do not come and tell what a splendid bargain you have made, unless the other party made as good a bargain as you did; if he did, it’s all right, but if he did not, it’s not all right.

And now I will turn teacher before I close. Have any of you hard feelings against your neighbor? If you have, go to him, not in a captious, quarrelsome way, but as a friend. For instance—“Thomas, you and I have had a little difficulty; I thought I would come and talk the matter over and see if we cannot settle it.” But if Thomas will not be reconciled, then take a third party with you, somebody whom you think would have more influence with him than yourself, and if he still refuses to yield, let him be reported to his bishop, and if he will not listen to the Church, let him be considered as a “heathen man.” Mary, Helen, Susan, how is it with you? Any little unkind feeling existing between you? Do you feel as though you can be good sisters, and treat one another right? Then seek one another’s welfare, as the Scripture’s says: “Be kindly affectionate one with another with brotherly love; in honor preferring one another.” You say that is rather hard; well, but you had better do it. We are told to love our neighbor as ourselves. If we can do this, and then prefer our neighbors to ourselves, and if there is a little advantage put it on their side, we not only fulfill the law and the prophets, but the Gospel. Let us cultivate the spirit of love and kindness, and let every little unpleasantness be buried, let us forget the election difficulty and our neighbor’s difficulty, and be one, brethren and sisters together, united in building up Zion and establishing the Kingdom of God upon the earth.

Brethren and sisters, God bless you and lead you in the paths of life, and God help you to do right. And I ask an interest in your pray– ers, that I may be able to do right, and be guided by the Lord in the interests of Israel; and that my brethren of the Twelve and the presidency of your Stake, together with all of the brethren, may be aided and blessed of the Lord, and be enabled to sustain God and His kingdom and every principle of right, and then the people sustain them, and they the people, and everything work harmoniously together, and all of us do right, no matter where it cuts. Do right and pay our tithes and offerings and be free before God, angels and men.

Praying God to bless you and lead you in the paths of life, in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Discourse by President John Taylor, delivered in the Ogden Tabernacle, on Sunday, March 2, 1879.

I thought I would come down and talk with you a little this morning. I am pleased to hear the remarks made by Brother Joseph F.; they are very well worthy of all acceptation by all good men. We indeed, as he said, are engaged in a great work the ushering in of the dispensation of the fulness of times, wherein it has been decreed thousands of years ago, that God would “gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him.” And for this purpose he has manifested himself; for this purpose the Son of God has manifested himself; for this purpose those holy prophets, referred to in the revelation read to you by Brother Joseph, manifested themselves; for this purpose the heavens and the intelligences around the throne of God are united; for this purpose the Holy Priesthood that have existed in the various dispensations of time are interested, and for this purpose those who held the keys of the several dispensations that have passed, have brought those keys and conferred them upon the Church of the latter days, through the medium of Joseph Smith. The work that we are engaged in is associated with the interest of all humanity—all men that have ever lived, those that now live, and those that will live, and the salvation of the living and the dead is mixed up with these matters.

We are not here for the purpose of looking after our own individual affairs and interests, or to carry out our own peculiar notions or feelings associated with any of our interests or the interest of any particular party or clique, or anything of that kind. But the Priesthood of the Son of God has been manifested in the interests of God, in the interests of the heavens, and in the interest of all humanity; embracing all people and extending to all nations and tongues. The Lord has gathered us together for the express purpose of forming a nucleus, an organism, a people to whom he could communicate and reveal his will, and to whom he could make known his designs, and among whom he could establish the principles of eternal truth and the light, intelligence, rule and law of God, as they exist in the eternal worlds. This is why we are gathered here today, if we can comprehend it.

Jesus, when here upon the earth, had a people and called them his sheep. Said he, “My sheep hear my voice, and they know me and they follow me, and a stranger will they not follow, for they know not the voice of a stranger.” And again he says while supplicating the Father, “I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine. Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me,” that they may have evidence of a union that exists nowhere else in the world of the love and affection of those godly principles that cement and bind men together, which nothing but the power and spirit of revelation can do; that they may have evidence of something more exalting, more ennobling, and which will unite and associate men together in indissoluble bonds of eternal truth according to the laws of God; that there may be evidence in existence in the world that thou hast sent me, and that the principles that thou hast given me have been revealed to them and that they are to be governed by them: “thine they were, and thou hast given them me.”

That was the feeling that existed in former times among the Saints of God, and these were some of the teachings unto them. The sheep have been scattered abroad among the nations of the earth to whom this communication has been sent and thousands have heard and obeyed the voice of the good Shepherd and have gathered themselves together, as we are here and as they are over this Territory, according to the impulses originating from the Spirit of God, which has operated and worked upon our minds and brought us together as we are here today.

Now then, what was this for? To preach first the Gospel of repentance and baptism for the remission of sins, and the laying on of hands for the reception of the Holy Ghost, to be followed by the gathering together, etc. And what was it for? That we all might be baptized into one baptism, that we all might partake of the same spirit, that we all might be brought into communication with the Almighty and derive wisdom and intelligence from the same fountain, having “One Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, through all, and in you all.” When Jesus sent forth his servants formerly he sent them to preach this Gospel. When the Father and the Son and Moroni and others came to Joseph Smith, he had a priesthood conferred upon him which he conferred upon others for the purpose of manifesting the laws of life, the Gospel of the Son of God, by direct authority, that light and truth might be spread forth among all nations. There was a number of men selected by the Savior anciently, to whom he said: “Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you.” What to do? To do the things you have seen me do, as I have come to do what I have seen my Father do. The words which I speak, I speak not of myself; but the Father who dwells in me, he doeth the works.

Now then, we have got a priesthood organized here upon the earth, as there was one organized in the days of Jesus, only with this distinctive difference—that that was a dispensation of God to them; this we live in is the dispensation of the fulness of times, embracing all other dispensations and times and powers and authorities that have existed upon the face of the earth, in the various ages, from the commencement to the present time. Herein it differs from others. Hence we are requested to gather together, something which they were not commanded to do. We are told to build Temples: they were not. We are told to administer for the living and the dead, which ordinances were only performed then to a very limited extent. We are called upon to build up not only the Church, but the kingdom of God, and to introduce the rule and government of God upon the earth. We are here just as Jesus was, not to do our own will, not for the purpose of carrying out our own ideas or theories, but to do the will of God who sent us. That is the way Jesus preached: “For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.” Sometimes it was trying and perplexing, sometimes it was hard to endure; but he did endure and suffer it, and he accomplished the work he was sent to do. But sometimes when struggling with the powers of darkness, and environed with the corrupt and ungodly, he gazed upon and comprehended the gravity of the situation and things before him, it so operated upon him, that in mortal agony he sweat great drops of blood. “For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings.” “For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but one who was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.” He endured everything possible for mortal to endure on the earth. Finally, when the last struggle came, said he, “Father,” if thou art willing, “if it be possible, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.” What were his feelings in the midst of all this sorrow? Did he give railing for railing, contumely for contumely? No, he did not. David, you know, prayed that God would send his enemies to hell quickly. He was quite in a hurry about it, as we are sometimes. Jesus said, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do;” they are ignorant, they are foolish, and blinded through superstition; they comprehend not thy laws, they know nothing of my mission. Father, forgive them. I admire the sentiments and feelings of the Savior under such circumstances, very much more than those of David.

As I understand it we are called upon to be saviors. And as saviors of men, endowed with the holy priesthood, we should, with one feeling and spirit, operate together in the interests of Zion; we ought to humble ourselves before God and seek for His Holy Spirit to lead us in the right path, that all may comprehend His law, and that we may operate together in the interests of Israel, and in the building up of the Kingdom of God upon the earth; and every other feeling and idea ought to be esteemed subservient to that, and that ought to be the first, leading, guiding, and controlling sentiment of all the elders of Israel, and especially of those who take the lead in Israel.

We get tried sometimes, and we sometimes try one another; and we sometimes feel as David did on a certain occasion, when he exclaimed: “For it was not an enemy that reproached me; then I could have borne it; neither was it he that hated me that did magnify himself against me; then I could have hid myself from him. But it was thou, a man mine equal, my guide, and my acquaintance.”

Did you ever know it is necessary that we should be tried in all things? If you do not, you will find it out before you get through, and we are not through yet quite. In this connection, I am reminded of what I heard the Prophet Joseph say, speaking more particularly with reference to the Twelve, “The Lord will feel after your heartstrings, and will wrench them and twist them around, and you will have to learn to rely upon God and upon God alone.” Has he done it? I think he has pretty thoroughly. The Prophet himself was tried about as much as anybody I know of, and his Brother Hyrum had his full share, the Twelve also have been tried as much as any men that I know of, and a great deal more than you know anything about. He furthermore said, “If God could in any other way more keenly have tried Abraham than by calling upon him to offer up his son Isaac, he would have done it.” And as I have said, Jesus himself sweat great drops of blood, and in the agony of his suffering cried out, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” And why is it thus? We are told by one of old, “For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings.” For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.” Oh, what a happy thing it would be if we could follow in his footsteps in that particular! But we have our weaknesses and infirmities in common with all men. It is incident to humanity, and the devourer is at work seeking to destroy, to contaminate, to corrupt and defile, and to lead men down to perdition, to produce discord and envy, hatred and strife, and every evil that proceeds from that source. Shall I tell you its fruits? Envy is one; hatred is another; malice is another; uncharitableness is another; evil speaking is another; and so on—all these things proceed from an evil spirit; and it is said, “That to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or obedience unto righteousness.” Men sometimes falter? Yes, sometimes they think they are strong; but no man is strong unless he be strong in the Lord. No man is sustained only as God sustains him; and if he do not sustain him, I would not give much for his ideas or position. We sometimes think we are strong and that we can do a great deal. So thought Peter on a certain occasion—at the time when Christ said to his disciples, “All ye shall be offended because of me this night.” But Peter answered him, saying, “Though all men shall be offended because of thee, yet will I never be offended.” The Savior doubtless appreciated his feelings, but knowing better than he the frailty of humanity, he said unto him, “Verily I say unto thee, That this night, before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice.” Did he do it? Yes he did; but Jesus did not get angry with him, nor begin to upbraid him and speak angry words to him. He knew too well the weakness of mortal man, and he knew it before that time. But he says, “Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee.” If you love me, if you are my friend and my disciple, “Feed my Lambs.” That was not very hard to do; he had been called for that purpose. “He saith to him again the second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He said unto him, Feed my Sheep.” And the third time the Savior put the same question to Peter, and which on being answered as before, he said to him, “Feed my Sheep.” What is the duty of the Apostles, the Presidents of Stakes, the High Priests, and Seventies, especially of those that are generally presiding? If Jesus was here, he would tell you to lay aside your nonsense, your follies and weaknesses, and act more like men and Saints, and go to work and “Feed my Sheep.” Said he, “If I be lifted up, I will draw all men to me,” not that I will rule with an iron hand, not that I will trample upon them, not that I will let you see that I possess power and authority; but “I will draw all men to me.” That will not be accomplished until the time spoken of when every knee shall bow, and every tongue shall be heard to say, “Glory, honor, majesty and power, be unto him that sits upon the throne, and to the Lamb forever;” but it will be done through the influence of the Gospel, through its cementing and harmonizing influences, through the aid of the Almighty and the operations of the holy priesthood combined together, united as the heart of one man in the accomplishment of the purposes of God; with kindness and brotherly affections, with long suffering and with every principle of righteousness that is calculated to draw the feelings and affections of men, that they may see the truth and know it for themselves, and that they may know also that we are their friends, acting for the welfare of all men, living and dead, and in the interest of the Church and Kingdom of God upon the earth. And where this principle does not exist, there is something wrong, the principles of the Gospel are not lived up to. For God is love, and they that dwell in God, dwell in love; and “If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar,” so said the word of God formerly, and it says today. God is love, and they that dwell in God, dwell in love. They are surrounded by that element, it is the fountain of life within them. Jesus said to the woman of Samaria, whom he asked to give him drink, “Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up unto everlasting life.” If we will live so as to be entitled to drink of the well streams that flow from the fountain of all light, all these little, narrow, contracted, bygone influences, will vanish like the dew before the rising sun, and the light, the Spirit and revelations of God, will rest upon the priesthood, and Israel will be one and his priesthood one, and they will fight side by side in the defense of truth, and in the maintenance of those principles calculated to exalt men through all time and all eternity.

These things referred to by Brother Joseph F. are too small for men to have anything to do with. It might be excusable in babies, but for men to be engaged in such things is a shame upon the priesthood, and an outrage upon the holy principles that God has been pleased to reveal to us. That is the way I look at these things. And it is a trick of the devil to decoy and destroy, to divide and disrupt, and to lead men down to perdition. What would be the result if these things are carried out a little further? The whole head would be sick and the whole heart faint. I say, shame on the Elders of Israel! Shame on men holding the holy priesthood that cannot be united and operate together in the interest of the Church and the Kingdom of God, but must drag in their mean, low, contemptible ideas and notions, forgetting the high calling with which they are called.

What shall we do? Why, lay them aside and repent of your foolishness, and forgive one another of your hard speeches and words, and your rash and hard treatment made use of to produce stings, trouble and annoyance among men; and study from this time henceforth one another’s feelings, and act the part of a brother and friend one towards another, live your religion and keep the commandments of God. How did Jesus teach his disciples to pray? When you pray, say, “Our Father which art in heaven.” What? I must tell a little story here. There was a poor man once called upon a minister for assistance; the minister tried to cheat him, and would not give him what he had agreed to for some labor performed by him; the man was not very well suited about it. The minister, it would seem, was one of those fellows who, if he could squeeze a little out of the poor man, was quite willing to do it. “Well,” said the man, “I will take what you offer me, although it is not what you agreed to give me, providing you will teach me the Lord’s prayer.” To this the minister agreed and said, “Repeat after me and say, ‘Our Father which art in heaven—’“What!” says the man, “is God your Father and my Father, too?” “You must repeat what I say,” said the minister, “Our Father,” etc. “What,” said the man, “my father and your Father?” “Yes, yes.” “Then,” broke in the man again, “is he indeed my Father as well as your Father?” “Yes,” replied the minister, but you must repeat my words.” “Well, what a rascal you must be to try to cheat your poor brother in this way?” We should all feel that God is our Father, and that we are all brethren and sisters. There are none of us very big; in fact we are all very little when you come to know all about us. None of us can do anything except the Lord helps us, and if he does not help us, we, as a certain lady said, are “all poor, miserable, independent sinners.” There is none of the “big I and little you” amongst us. We should have a common sympathy one for another, and feel a kindly regard for the lowest of God’s creations, and especially for the Saints of God, no matter what position they occupy. If any are in error, try to reclaim them by kindness; if they have a bad spirit, show them a better one; if any do not do right, do right yourselves and say, “Come follow me, as I follow Christ.” Would not that be the right course to pursue? I think it would; that is the way I understand the Gospel. We do not, any of us, have the priesthood for self aggrandizement, or to be used to oppress, or take advantage of anybody, or to use improper language; but with all kindness and long-suffering and forbearance and with love unfeigned. I will read from the Doctrine and Covenants something bearing on this, from page 386.

“Behold, there are many called, but few are chosen. And why are they not chosen? Because their hearts are set so much upon the things of this world, and aspire to the honors of men, and they do not learn this one lesson”—just the very thing I have been talking about—“That the rights of the priesthood are inseparably connected with the powers of heaven, and that the powers of heaven cannot be controlled nor handled only upon the principles of righteousness.” Do you think that God will give power to any man only to carry out his own contracted or selfish purposes? I tell you he never will, never, no never. “That they may be conferred on us, it is true; but when we undertake to cover our sins, or to gratify our pride, our vain ambition, or to exercise control or dominion or compulsion upon the souls of the children of men, in any degree of unrighteousness, behold, the heavens withdraw themselves; the Spirit of the Lord is grieved; and when it is withdrawn, Amen to the priesthood or the authority of that man.”

We think sometimes, we are standing in heavenly places in Christ Jesus; and so we are. But there is no priesthood of the Son of God that authorizes one man to oppress another or to intrude upon his rights in any way. There is no such thing in the category; it does not exist; as it is said—“Behold, ere he is aware, he is left unto himself, to kick against the pricks, to persecute the saints, and to fight against God. We have learned by sad experience that it is the nature and disposition of almost all men, as soon as they get a little authority, as they suppose, they will immediately begin to exercise unrighteous dominion. Hence many are called, but few are chosen. No power or influence can or ought to be maintained by virtue of the priesthood, only by persuasion, by long-suffering, by gentleness and meekness, and by love unfeigned; By kindness, and pure knowledge, which shall greatly enlarge the soul without hypocrisy, and without guile—Reproving betimes with sharpness, when moved upon by the Holy Ghost; and then showing forth afterwards an increase of love toward him whom thou hast reproved, lest he esteem thee to be his enemy; That he may know that thy faithfulness is stronger than the cords of death. Let thy bowels also be full of charity towards all men,” not of envy, not of hate, not of faultfinding, but “be full of charity towards all men, and to the household of faith, and let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God; and the doctrine of the priesthood shall distill upon thy soul as the dews from heaven.” Then shall you feel the power of the Holy Ghost resting upon you and its influence penetrating your soul, and then it will grow and spread until its influence extends everywhere; and then will men respect, esteem, and venerate you for your fidelity and for your adherence to the truth. “The Holy Ghost shall be thy constant companion, and thy scepter an unchanging scepter of righteousness and truth; and thy dominion shall be an everlasting dominion, and without compulsory means it shall flow unto thee forever and ever.”

These are great truths for us to reflect upon. And in connection with this I wish to say, we not only need to have confidence in men, but we must exhibit that confidence. “Be kindly affectionate one to another with brotherly love; in honor preferring one another,” not preferring ourselves, but “in honor preferring one another.” This may be a hard lesson for some to learn, but we have got it to learn, or we never shall be fitted to hold any important position in carrying out the designs of God, in building up His Church and Kingdom on the earth. We want to feel a free interchange of that union one with another, not for one man to stand up among his fellows as though he were unapproachable, and say to others, “Stand off, I am holier than thou.” Nothing of this kind; but entertain a kindness, a sympathy and a desire to promote the happiness and welfare of all men, just as God does. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and he sends his rain on the just and on the unjust.

There is something I thought I would refer to in order that it might be known and properly understood. There is a feeling generally entertained that President Young, in his lifetime, got possession of a certain square here in Ogden wrongfully. Certain things are continually being originated by certain minds, and rumors get circulated, and it is too often the case that people do not stop to consider as to their truthfulness and in many instances conclusions are formed, and I would venture to say that in nine cases out of every ten such conclusions are wrong. Brother Lorin Farr is present: he was Mayor at the time this land in question was transferred to President Young, and is conversant with the whole transaction. I will therefore call upon Brother Farr to come forward and relate the same fully, yet concisely, that you may be apprized of the facts.

Elder Lorin Farr then made the following statement:

President Young spoke to me, as Mayor, either once or twice—I think it was twice—wishing to know if Ogden City would let him have the “Union Square” for the purpose of making a Utah Central Railroad Passenger Depot, saying that if he could obtain it for this purpose he would also make of it an ornamental square, suitable for a summer resort; which I believe he fully contemplated doing, and would have done, or have made the necessary provisions for it to be done, had he known he was so soon to leave us. I have no doubt in my mind but what he intended to make a very nice public resort of it, and believing so, I laid the matter before the City Council, informing that body that President Young had a claim on this city which arose in this way: when he located Ogden City, between the forks of the two rivers, there was then a very desirable farm here which was owned by Father Bingham, containing 160 acres more or less. The President intimated to Father Bingham his design of locating a city hereabouts, and that he knew of no situation so good and suitable as that commanded by his farm and proposed to purchase his farm for that purpose. Father Bingham consented to the proposition, the purchase was affected, President Young paying for the land out of his own pocket, and turned it over to the city. I supposed, as one of the members of the City Council, that that piece of land belonged to the city and belonged to the Church, as President Young belonged to the Church. I thought so, and we all thought so, and there was no thought given to it. It passed along for about twenty years in that way. It is true, I sent down to President Young at one time the sum of sixty dollars of City money to apply on the interest then due on the money he advanced for the purchase of the land—the money we sent to him was the proceeds of City lots which we sold at five dollars each, which about paid the expense of surveying and recording, leaving a small part of pay for President Young. It was understood that he was to have his pay sometime. I think I sent down a small amount of money another time, but the amount I do not now remember. I laid this matter before the City Council, stating to that body how President Young looked at it, and I told them I thought it quite right and proper that President Young should have his pay, but that I disliked very much to give up the square; but, I said, seeing that President Young intended to make of it an ornamental square, I would consent; without the other consideration I was in favor of sending a committee to wait on President Young to ascertain how much he paid for the land previously owned by Father Bingham, and refund him the money with ten percent interest. I requested the Council to appoint such a committee; but some differed from me, while a few, I believe, favored my suggestion. We agreed, however, seeing that President Young had advanced the means to buy the location of our city, and actually purchased and possessed it, which probably no other man but he could have done, and that he had requested the City to deed him the square in payment of his claim, and that he had proposed to beautify it for the benefit of the public, we concluded to deed him the square; and when the time of filing the land came, which was shortly afterwards, President Young filed upon the square and got his deed for it.

I will here take occasion to remark that when I gave this explanation at our Caucus meeting lately held in Ogden, that a gentleman, an editor from the East, afterwards spoke to me about it, and in telling you what he thought about the matter will illustrate my feelings in regard to it. He said—that is before this land jumping—I think that you did nothing more than right, I think President Young has done enough for this people, and he richly deserved that square, and you would not have exceeded fairness to have given him more than that ten acres for the 160 acres which you say he purchased and turned over to the city for city purposes.

President Taylor then resumed, the stand. Some people will say “Oh, don’t talk about it.” I think a full, free talk is frequently of great use; we want nothing secret nor underhanded, and for one I want no association with things that cannot be talked about and will not bear investigation. I wanted to hear Brother Farr’s statement about this affair, and I wanted you to hear it, because out of such things, unless properly understood, a great many misunderstandings arise. I have heard it stated that President Young had exacted too much in getting possession of this ten acre square; I wonder now if any of you speculating men had owned this 160 acres of land in this locality if you would have been satisfied to take ten acres of this swampy land for it? There is no decent man anywhere that would object to anything of that kind, neither Jew, Gentile, or Mormon, and such unpleasantness frequently arises from a miscomprehension of affairs. Had President Young, because he was President of the Church, no right to have pay for that which belonged to him? And if he furnished 160 acres of land and got sixty dollars for it, I think nobody was injured very seriously in giving him ten acres in lieu of it. Some of you would have thought your toes were trodden on pretty heavily had you been required to trade on any such terms. I heard a man say not long ago, when something perplexing occurred, he did not know what excuse, to make about it. I said to him, a right needs no excuse, and an excuse will not make a wrong right. We want facts, and when we get them let us appreciate them, and lay aside our nonsense which so frequently arises from our misconception of things.

There is another thing I wish to refer to pertaining to your local officers. I have heard it said that the City Council was in trouble about the land on which the Tabernacle stands, because it was thought the Church would get the benefit of it. Why? Because they have occupied it so long. Who for? For the Church generally? No; but for the local church in this place. The Church, as a Church, has bought a part of that square above referred to, and has paid the estate for it. Brother Joseph F. Smith and Brother F. Richards here are cognizant of the fact, as auditors. I refer to the land where our Tithing Office stands; but this other matter is something that pertains to yourselves and not to the Church. You have had this for upwards of twenty years. (Brother Joseph F., addressing himself to President Taylor, said: “This place was designated by President Young, when the city was first laid out, as a place to build a meetinghouse.”) I am informed that this place was designated by President Young, when the city was laid out, as a place for Church purposes. (A voice from the stand—“That’s cor– rect, and Brother D. H. Wells carried the flag when it was surveyed.”) Brother Herrick testifies to its correctness. (Brother Wells said, “I am also conversant with the fact; I carried the flag-pole when this square was laid out.” Brother Wells also bears testimony to the same thing, he carried the flag-pole when the Square was surveyed. I want these matters understood, open and above board; we have nothing to conceal from anybody. But there was some inattention manifested by your local authorities—for the general authorities of the Church have nothing to do with it; this place through neglect, was not entered at the time the city entries were made, and because of this technicality some of the City Councilors seemed to object to the Church having two-and-half acres of the ten acres, which was all they asked for, and that, too, on behalf of the citizens of Ogden, by paying for it what it had cost the city, the same as they have done with private individuals, I believe as provided by law. But somebody seems to think that somebody is injured. Who is injured? If the Church had ten acres and only desired two-and-half acres, or if they desired the whole of it, I don’t think it any great stretch of liberality of anybody, and I do not see why anyone should be at all exercised about it. They will say, What will the Gentiles say? No honorable Gentile would say it is wrong, or take any exception to it, and as for those who are not so, we do not care anything at all about them. That is my idea. Somebody said the City Council had given two-and-half acres to some outside religious sect. Well, if they had it to spare, who cares? We do not want to be pinched up in a nutshell. But then, I think the Latter-day Saints have just as much right to lands surveyed and owned by them upwards of twenty years ago, as the Gentiles to receive a free gift. I do not know why this kind of feeling should exist, and therefore I speak of it. We are all one, or ought to be; and therefore I speak of these things as they have been presented to me. Is there anything wrong in that? Again, here the Seventies, I understand, have given a large hall over to the city. Anything wrong in that? No, not if they felt able to do so. I would not think it very good policy, however, to give such a hall away and then be left without any place to meet in. But then it belonged to them and they have done it, and who cares? I don’t. But if the city has got things of that kind from the Seventies, if they have done an act of that kind, why not the city turn around and be a little generous? Can’t the city be as generous and kind? Who are the city? I suppose you are, along with a few outsiders. Brother Richards mentioned to me, as Trustee-in-Trust, that there were five acres of land here, joining the schoolhouse, in the lane, saying, “We would like to get it, for we wish to use it for the purposes of a high school or academy.” I said, “I will mention it to the brethren of the Council.” We have since turned it over. Whose business is it? The city is not injured, and the Church is not. I mention these things that we may have a proper understanding of them, and not be found talking about things we do not understand. I feel very liberal towards the liberal class of Gentiles; but do I feel liberal in my feelings to every miserable “unprincipled man?” No. But to the good, and virtuous, and upright everywhere.

What was our message to the world? Salvation. What was the promise to Abraham? “In thee and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed,” not cursed. The priesthood of God was not given to curse men or destroy them, but to bless them.

Again, we are told to go and preach the Gospel to every creature; and there is a great deal of pains being taken to do this. What is it? The Gospel of life and salvation. Is it free to all? Yes, free as the streams that pass your city, and all are invited. Some do not like it. What of that? We cannot help that; we are going to perform the work that God has set us at, and we will treat all men right. When they come here, as strangers in our midst, will we treat them right? Yes. Do they treat us right? Not quite. Will we be liberal and generous and kind? Yes; I would give to every man of whatever name, or creed, or color, all his rights without his ever asking for them; we need no plot, or intrigue, or anything of that kind. We expect to build up and establish the kingdom of God, that will contain in it, admiration, protection of the virtuous and good among all nations. The time will yet come when he that will not take up his sword to fight against his neighbor, must needs flee to Zion for safety. All those who are not fond of blood and carnage and desolation, if they want to be preserved will flee to Zion. Have we not got to have a Zion for them to flee to? Yes. And what is Zion? The pure in heart. We want to organize in such a way, and advocate and maintain such correct principles, that they will become the admiration of all honest men, who will feel that they can be protected and find safety and an asylum in Zion. What of that? Are we going to follow them then? No, no, no, we are not. Are we going to be governed by their notions? No, we are not. Are we going to mix up with their Babylonish ideas? No, we are not; we are going in for Israel and for the Church and kingdom of God, but we will protect every man in his rights so far as God gives us power to do so, but we will not mix up with their iniquities, their frauds and corruptions, that they are seeking in many instances to crowd in upon us; we want to be free from these evils, and put our trust in the living God and cleave to the right and the truth. If a man is a good man, won’t I treat him right? Yes; but at the same time, our moral and social ideas are very different, and while I accord to them all the civil liberties that any reasonable men should want, I do not wish to be governed by his standard of morality, nor do I wish him to teach my children. Why? Simply because I do not wish them perverted. No Gentile or reasonable man would find fault with me for that. He does not want me to teach his children my faith. All right, he can keep them away, and I want to keep mine from his influences. Why? Because we are associated with things that are eternal in their consequences. We are aiming at the celestial glory. We believe they will get as big a glory as they are looking for, but it will not be that which we anticipate; therefore we don’t want them to train our children and lead them down to death. We want to manage these things ourselves, but injure nobody. Is anybody injured by it? No. “I cannot see as you see,” say some. All right, we cannot help that. Would I find fault with the City Council because they give a burying ground to some who prefer to have their dead by themselves? No, not if you have it to spare; but on the other hand, don’t let us shut out our own people and our own interests, but maintain every right wisely, to the building up of the kingdom of God. We will be as generous as the world dare to be; and we expect the principles of the everlasting Gospel will go on and increase until the kingdoms of this world become the kingdoms of our God and his Christ.

I say to those men who may have any differences, settle them like men and don’t act the baby any more, but conduct yourselves as servants of the Most High God. And may he enable you to do so and bless us all and lead us in the paths of life, is my prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Remarks by President John Taylor, at the Funeral Services of Brother Dimick B. Huntington, in the 16th Ward Meetinghouse, Salt Lake City, on Sunday Morning, February 2nd, 1879.

There are a great many things associated with human existence that call upon people to reflect. We came into the world, and people are coming into it in a continuous stream—children are being born as all of us were in our turn; and whilst some are coming into the world giving pleasure to their parents and friends, there are trials, anxieties, cares and perplexities attending the nurture of the babe and the care of youth until they arrive at years of maturity. Then comes the struggles of life with all its attendant cares and responsibilities.

With us particularly the greatest thing that we think of associated with the welfare of our youth is that they become acquainted with the principles of truth, with the order and organization of the kingdom of God, that they comprehend in some measure the laws of life and prepare to live for the future that is before them.

Brother Huntington has lived a great length of time associated with this church and kingdom, and has arrived to what is often termed “the sere and yellow leaf,” when it is expected, according to the common course of humanity, that people must leave and go into another state of existence. For quite a long time it has been known by his more intimate friends that he was shortly to leave. I visited him not long ago myself, and had a very pleasant interview with him, and since then I never thought of his living long; in fact I expected to attend his funeral as we are now doing. But there was no compunction of feeling —no desire to continue to live; but he felt as though he had accomplished the work that was assigned him. Speaking to him, as I sometimes do to our aged brethren on some occasions, I said, “Well, Brother Dimick, you are about leaving, and, when you go carry my best respects to our friends who are already there, and tell them I will continue to do the best I can in the hope of by and by meeting with them.” And that is about the way that I look at these things. We have our entries into the world, our struggles in the world, and when we get through with these, and the weary wheels of life stand still, then we pass into another state of existence. The Gospel has revealed to us some of the most glorious, exalting, ennobling and encouraging principles; and when we are in possession of these principles and the feelings they produce, there is no terror in the approach of death. I have seen the time myself when I could have died just as easy as not if my time had come, and would just as soon have done so as not, and I do not feel much otherwise today.

There is something very interesting in all the affairs of human life, especially is there associated with us as a people. Brother Huntington has been with us for a great many years, and has passed through many trying scenes with the church in Missouri and elsewhere, and while they are not of the most pleasant nature to contemplate, at the same time they serve to show the faithfulness and integrity of those who have been associated with them. I see around me a good many of the brethren who, by experience, know all about these things, and I see too that their hair, like mine, is getting—I will not call it gray, but a little white. Some people felt sorry for us when enduring these things, but we did not feel sorry for ourselves nor do we today. Some felt as though it was impossible to bear up under the continued struggles that we had to pass through; but the Latter-day Saints had no such feelings. They reflected upon the future and upon those great principles of eternal life which God had given unto them, and these thoughts stimulate us with hope and joy today; and as the effervescent affairs of time slide and pass away the Saints of God rejoice in the knowledge that an inheritance which is incorruptible, undefiled, and that fadeth not away, is reserved in the heavens for them. And they feel also that they have been called, and chosen, and elected by the Almighty to help to establish his kingdom on the earth, to introduce among men those principles that exist in the eternal worlds and to maintain them by the Spirit, the power and strength of the living God. They feel that they have a work to perform, and doing that work they realize that God is with them and that all will be right, whether it relates to this world or the world to come; that is the feeling which the Gospel of the Son of God inspires in the hearts of those who live up to its requirements, obey its demands, and fulfil the various duties devolving upon them.

It is not with them simply a personal matter. The Latter-day Saints feel as though they occupy a peculiar position in the world—that God has selected them from among the nations of the earth and gathered them together that he might place his name among them; and that in the coming struggle, in the great revolutions that shall transpire upon the face of the earth, it will be for them to manage, to direct, to control and adjust, and under the influence and guidance of the Spirit of the living God, to promulgate the principles of eternal truth to all people, that all mankind may have the opportunity of listening to the great and glorious principles that God has revealed to them, that they may be inducted into the laws of life and comprehend the principles of truth as they exist in the bosom of God; and holding the priesthood in all its various forms, organizations and powers, they feel that they are associated with the priesthood on the other side of the veil, who are interested in their welfare, in the progress of the work in which they are engaged, and in the accomplishment of the purposes which God has designed from before the commencement of the world. This is the kind of feeling that the Latter-day Saints are inspired with who comprehend their true position. And hence there are organizations of High Priests, Seventies, Elders and others, whose duty it is to go to the nations of the earth to proclaim to all peoples the glad tidings of salvation. And whilst men ignorantly, and without knowledge, seek to persecute, proscribe and interfere with the rights of Israel, the God of Israel stands forth as their defender and will protect them under all circumstances, and every arm that is raised against them will fall, and every power that is marshaled against them will crumble to pieces, for he will assuredly take care of his people, and protect them in every emergency.

And when we comprehend these things, we realize that we are here not to do our will, but the will of the Father who sent us. We are here to introduce those eternal principles that exist in the bosom of the Almighty; we are here to build up the Church and kingdom of God upon the earth, and to form a nucleus through which and by which the God of heaven can work, operate, lead, dictate, and control the affairs of all men. He has introduced a little leaven which will by and by leaven the whole lump. And although wars, commotions, troubles, difficulties, bloodshed, plagues, pestilence and famine will stalk over the earth, the nations totter and fall, thrones be cast down and the powers of the earth be shaken, yet God will protect Israel, he will maintain his people, if they will cleave to him and obey his laws and keep his commandments; and we are here to introduce and establish these heavenly principles that exist with God, and to teach the principles of life to the people, that all mankind may have the opportunity of hearing and knowing of the great things that God has revealed for the salvation of the human family. We are here, then, for the accomplishment of these things. We are here not only to proclaim salvation to the living, not only to introduce the principles of law, and government, and religion, and everything calculated to exalt and ennoble man upon the earth, until the kingdoms of this earth shall grow and increase, and become the kingdoms of our God and his Christ, but we are here also to redeem the dead, to build temples and administer therein, and to accomplish all the various works that God requires us as his servants to attend to. And when one after another of our friends passes away, what of it? It is only the ordinary course of nature, and it makes very little difference whether a man be on this side of the veil or on the other. Brother Dimick has gone where paralysis cannot strike him any more, where sorrow and sighing with him are passed, and where everything is pleasant, joyous and happifying, and where he can rejoice with his brethren who have gone before him. Do we feel to sorrow because of the change? No, not in the least. We feel about this as you, my brethren and sisters, did in years gone by, when leaving your friends and, perhaps families, to gather to Zion, and as your friends did in seeing you take your departure. They would shake you heartily by the hand and say: “Well, I am sorry you are going and yet I am glad, and I will try to follow you as soon as I can.” That is about the feeling. It is an ordeal that God has placed upon all men, and we have got to meet it, and having met it, like all other things, we are prepared for what follows.

But let us speak of the living, for it is with those actualities we have now to do in relation to things that are transpiring. Sometimes people will say, “Don’t you feel a little scared about things now?” referring to inimical legislation. Not much; at least I do not. I do not know that it makes my knees tremble much. I feel as pleasant, joyous, comfortable and happy today as at any other time; all is right. Men cannot do as they please. God rules in the heavens; and the Prophet has said, “Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee, and the remainder of wrath shalt thou restrain.” It is His duty to take care of His Saints, and why need we trouble much about it? We have children, and it is our duty to take care of them; and it appears that they are not much concerned where their dinner or their clothes come from; they believe that “daddy” will take care of that.

As regards brother Dimick, it is all right with him. I would say to him, “Peace to his ashes,” and I would say to his family and friends, “Be comforted, peace be multiplied to you, and have confidence in God and all will be right.” And by and by you will pass along, and we will come and see you if you do not come and see us; that is, we will bury you if you do not bury us first. And by and by we will all be on the other side of Jordan, singing “Hallelujah, hallelujah, the Lord God omnipotent reigneth.”

Let us seek to do right. That is the main thing for us Saints to do. I do not fear the world, nor any of its affairs or influences, or powers, or any of its intrigues, nor anything it can devise; for God will take care of his people if they do right. The only fear that I have is, that people will forsake their God, and lose faith in him and his promises, and be found serving the evil one instead of serving the Lord. If we fear God and keep his com– mandments, live our religion, and pursue a proper course, all will be well with us in time and through eternity.

Brother Huntington for many years was associated with the High Council; he has gone now to associate with the councils above, and with the various organizations of priesthood that are eternal, endless and everlasting. And we, by and by, will follow to join our quorums, our friends and associates who have gone before.

I am reminded of an item in Brother Dimick’s written request, desiring that only his good deeds should be spoken of at his funeral, and also of a remark by Brother Taylor, in referring to it, that we should not speak anything but good of our friends whether living or dead. I am really astonished sometimes to witness the hard feelings and rancor that exist among men. They come—I do not know where they come from; yes, I do too, they come from beneath. The fruits of the Spirit of God are love, peace, joy, gentleness, long-suffering, kindness, affection, and everything that is good and amiable. The fruits of the spirit of the devil are envy, hatred, malice, irritableness, everything that tends to destroy mankind, and to make them feel uncomfortable and unhappy. The fruits of the Spirit of God are love, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost; and the man that says he loves God and hateth his brother, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. I do not care who he may be, or what his name, or where he lives. This is the way I read the Scripture, and the way the Gospel teaches me. “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.” Even an outside poet has sung:

“Then speak no ill, a kindly word Can never leave a sting behind,” etc.

Let us be governed by these principles, and cleave to everything that is ennobling, that we may be associated together in the bonds of fraternity, love and affection, live our religion, keep God’s commandments, and cultivate his holy Spirit, and the spirit of kindness, affection, love and fraternity among ourselves; so that when we get through with our affairs on this earth, we may meet with joy all those with whom we have associated on the earth below.

God bless the family of Brother Huntington—his wives and children and grandchildren, and all pertaining to him. To his children I would say: follow the example of your father, and God will bless you and save you ultimately with him in his kingdom. And may God help us all to be humble and diligent in keeping his commandments, that we may be saved in his kingdom, in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Discourse by President John Taylor, delivered at the Quarterly Conference of the Salt Lake Stake of Zion, in the Salt Lake Theater, Sunday Afternoon, Jan. 6, 1879.

I have been interested in listening to the remarks that have been made by the brethren who have addressed us during this Conference: and I propose myself to offer a few reflections that have passed through my mind while listening to the teaching and instruction that has been presented.

There is a feeling prevailing more or less among all the branches of the human family, that the nation or people to which they belong is superior in many respects to others, either in government, in morals, in science, in manufactures, in the arts or in religion, as the case may be, and the Latter-day Saints are not without this sentiment. We feel that God has blessed us more abundantly with wisdom and knowledge regarding himself, his ways, his laws and in relation to eternal things, through our obedience to his will than he has others, and that we are moving in a higher plane than the rest of the sons and daughters of Adam. Admitting this to be correct, there is nothing whereof we as individuals or as a people ought to boast. If we have received any intelligence or knowledge pertaining either to the present or the future, it has been solely through the communications that God has been pleased to make known to us. For naturally we are very like other men—not much taller, not much shorter, not much more intelligent, not much more ignorant, than they are. There is not so great a diversity among peoples as some imagine, other things being equal; it may be well for us to reflect a little on the position we occupy in relation to others, in relation to our God, in relation to the world in which we live and the peoples by which we are surrounded; to reflect upon the past, the present, and the future; and to comprehend, if possible, our true status before the Almighty and before all men.

It is indeed true that God has conferred upon us many great and peculiar blessings for which we are indebted to him; but at the same the Lord feels interested in the welfare of all men, and all peoples of all nations, of all creeds and all religions—not in their religions as religions, but in the people who profess to believe in them; and he is acquainted with the peculiar ideas, habits, dispositions and feel– ings of men everywhere. One of the old apostles in speaking upon these things, says, “God hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth; and hath determined the times before appointed and the bounds of their habitations; that they should seek the Lord if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us.” It is further said, “that we are all his offspring,” and again “that he is the God and the Father of the spirits of all flesh;” and consequently he is interested in the welfare of all the human family, everywhere—among all peoples, all nations, all kindreds and all tongues.

Now if this be the case, which we have no reason to doubt—then he is interested in all the human family, and will try to promote their welfare and happiness so far as he is capable of doing, according to certain laws by which he himself is governed, as well as all things in creation, and the learning we have heard so much about is simply a knowledge of some principles associated with those laws which are generally denominated the laws of nature. In relation to the nations or peoples the Lord will do as well by them as they will let him, and as far as the laws by which he is governed will permit, just the same as we would towards our children. We fathers and mothers, have children; they do not always do as we would like to have them do; but we wish to look over their frailties and imperfections as much as possible; but when it comes to certain points, then both father and mother have to stop. If our children violate the laws of the land, they have to be judged by those laws and we cannot prevent it, neither should we try to. Still our feelings are drawn out towards our families, and it is right and natural they should be, for these paternal feelings are planted in the human breast by the Almighty. It is therefore proper that we should have affection and to manifest kindness, forbearance and long-suffering towards all our children and all those with whom we are associated. God has this kind of feeling towards his children; and it is a portion of the spirit that emanates from him that prompts this affection and regard for our offspring.

These things are connected also with other matters. We try to look after the welfare of our children; we try—that is, those who are not utterly depraved—to lead them in the right paths, and to influence their minds and their morals and to teach them correctly both in relation to religion, education and morals, as well as secular matters, in order that they may become intelligent men and women, capable of sustaining themselves, that they may improve the talents God has given them, and that they may be able to comprehend some few of the laws, at least, by which the creations, the worlds are governed and the principles by which we are surrounded in this world, as also a knowledge of the laws of life. This is all very proper; and it is also proper that men should cultivate pleasant relations and have a good kind feeling towards others. One of the greatest evils alluded to in holy writ that, it is said, would develop itself in the last days is thus delineated: “in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves” instead of having that kind, brotherly, affectionate feeling towards others, they shall be “lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those who are good, Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof.” This is spoken of as being one of the greatest evils that could exist among men.

As I before stated, we have a regard for our children, and God has also a regard for us. We wish to train our children in the way we wish them to go; other people wish to do the same. Talk about the Catholics, Methodists, Presbyterians, Baptists and other denominations, no matter what their ideas or feelings may be, no matter how inconsistent and foolish we may regard their manner of worship, yet many of them are quite sincere in trying to benefit their children. And God is sincere in trying to promote their happiness and welfare as well as he is ours, both in regard to this world and the world to come. And hence he will do the best he possibly can with all peoples. But as I stated before, being governed by law, he can only treat them “according to the deeds done in the body, whether those deeds be good or evil.” And when that judgment takes place all men will have to abide its award; there is no appeal from it. No court to which they can have access whereby they can change the decree of the Almighty. The Lord knows this and he has prepared certain classes, so to speak, in his school here upon the earth for his people and for all the world. And he has provided a means of instruction for the inhabitants of the earth, looking upon them as eternal, immortal beings, having to do with time and eternity. But all things, as I remarked, are under the influence, control and government of law, just as much as the planetary system with which we are connected is governed by law. It makes no difference what a few of us may do, or how the world may act, the sun rises and sets regularly, the earth revolves upon its axis, and so it is with all the planetary systems; there is no confusion, no disorder in any of the movements of the heavenly bodies. They are governed by a science and intelligence that is beyond the reach of men in mortality; yet they move strictly according to certain laws by which all of them have been, are and will be governed. And these laws are under the surveillance and control of the great lawgiver, who manages, controls and directs all these worlds. If it were not the case they would move through space in wild confusion, and system would rush against system, and worlds upon worlds would be destroyed, together with their inhabitants. But they are governed by a superhuman power, by a spirit and intelligence that dwells in the bosom of the Gods, about which mankind knows but very little. It is so with regard to all the forces of nature—the earth on which we stand, the elements of which it is composed, the air we breathe, the water we drink and everything in nature is governed strictly according to immutable, eternal, unchangeable laws, practical, philosophical, and strictly scientific, if these terms are preferred; but they are, nevertheless, placed there by the Almighty.

Now, in regard to the world, and the position we occupy in it. There is something peculiar about the relationship we sustain to the world of mankind with which we are surrounded. It is not proper for us to be censorious, to upbraid people for things that they do not comprehend and that are beyond their ken; we should be courteous and charitable to all, and not find fault with men because they do not comprehend things as we understand them. But try to understand our true position and the relationship we sustain to our heavenly Father, to his laws, to the peoples with whom we associate, and to the world in which we live.

We read of many prominent men who have existed in the world in various ages. For instance, there was Adam, Seth, Enoch, Methuselah, Noah, Abraham, Moses, the Prophets, Jesus and his disciples, the people who came to this continent, Ether, and the brother of Jared, Lehi and Nephi, Alma, Moroni, and many other prominent individuals who held intercourse with the Almighty, who were placed by the Lord in a position whereby they could receive communications from him, could learn his will and teach it to others. We look upon these men as great men, and justly too, as wise men, as intelligent and philanthropic men; as men who were interested not only in their welfare, but in the welfare of the peoples by whom they were surrounded and the world in which they lived. These men did not come as the censors of the world; they did not come to aggrandize themselves, to build themselves up, nor to control or coerce others. What was the great blessing conferred upon Abraham? “In thee shall all the families of the earth be blessed;” not cursed, not destroyed, not annihilated; but as a messenger of God, as the elect of heaven, as a man whom he had chosen to accomplish his work, and whom he would use through those principles that existed in eternity to pour blessings upon fallen humanity. That was the feeling which was manifested, as I understand it. It is true that Abraham, when a parcel of thieves came along in the shape of a confederation of kings, and took away his nephew and others, and despoiled them of their goods, that he gathered together his household, pursued them and smote many of them, and delivered those they designed to oppress and brought the captives back again to their own places. And when he had done it, what then? Why, said they, Abraham you have done a good deed, you have delivered us and brought back this spoil, take what you please. But he told them that he did not want any of it: “You were injured, robbed and despoiled, and carried captive: these men came upon you and fraudulently despoiled you of your goods; and here is my nephew, Lot, who is an honorable man and one in whom I am particularly interested, and I was only doing for you what one man ought to do for another; I will take none of the spoils. Here are these young men who were with me, you may give them what you like, but you shall not have cause to say that you made Abraham rich.”

Prominent men who were the descendants of Abraham acted in the same way; true benevolence makes all cosmopolitans. It has been the feeling, the design of all good men to benefit their fellow men; and even the philosophy of the heathen has advocated this to a certain extent. What was the message of Moses when he was sent as a deliverer to the children of Israel, whom the ungodly Egyptians had oppressed and made slaves of? He, as the sent of God, delivered a message, Thus saith the Lord, let my people Israel go. A message of mercy to Israel, and not even injurious to the Egyptians, unless opposed by them. Did he deliver them by any inherent wisdom or intelligence in him? No, but by the power of the Almighty, by the revelations of God and by the intelligence that God gave to him. His labor was especially a message to deliver Israel from bondage and unjust oppression. He brought them out, and God worked with him. And when their enemies pursued them, he protected them; he opened the sea and made the waves stand up while they passed over dry shod. Some of these philosophical people—I do not call them scientists, but ignoramuses—say, that is contrary to the laws of nature. But it is not contrary to the laws of God, nor the power of God, for he can do things just as he pleases, and manage them according to his own will and purposes; and he is acquainted with other laws in nature, of which men are ignorant. Moses, we are told, was a stranger in a strange land, where he saw a bush that burned with fire and the bush was not consumed (it might be said that this was contrary to nature’s laws also); and a voice spoke to him which proceeded from the bush, telling him to take the shoes from off his feet, for the ground whereon he stood was holy; also telling him that he was a chosen messenger of the Lord to accomplish a certain work. And the Lord taught and instructed him. And Moses went before the king of Egypt and the powers thereof, and delivered the message that God had given unto him. It was not a very agreeable message for them to hear, nor a very pleasant one for him to communicate. But he was a man of God and had the fear of God before him; the Lord had selected him as an instrument, and although comprehending his weaknesses he shrank not from the responsibility, but went forth in the name of Israel’s God to perform the commission committed to his care, and he delivered the Israelites. It is true they were rebellious and ignorant, and it is true they were self-willed, and many of them were very corrupt; it is true they could not endure the light of the blessings of the Gospel; and it is also true that when God would have made of them a kingdom of priests they could not receive that priesthood, nor be governed by its influence. He then took from them the Melchizedek Priesthood, leaving them the lesser or Aaronic Priesthood, because they would not and were not competent to magnify the duties of the greater, and of that they were necessarily deprived. What then? God did the best he could with them as he has done with every nation and every people; he, however, sent prophets among them from time to time.

Now we will pass on. What was the message that Jesus came to proclaim to the people, a message of destruction? A message of death? A message of condemnation? No, no; it was a message of glad tidings and great joy to all peoples. And what did he tell his disciples to go and preach? Destruction to all people? No; his commission to them was: “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” Where? To all the world. And what was the nature of that Gospel? Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, repentance and baptism for the remission of sins, and the laying on of hands for the reception of the Holy Ghost, which would place men in a position whereby they could have communication with God their heavenly Father, having a hope blooming with immortality and eternal life that entered within the veil, whither Christ their forerunner had gone. Hence it was a message of mercy, salvation and exaltation to all people who would receive it. “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.” If they were condemned, if they suffered the wrath of God, it was not because they had not life and salvation held out to them; it was because they rejected that life and salvation through the preaching of his word and the atonement of his only begotten Son. Was there anything injurious in this? No, nothing of the kind. It was in the interests of humanity; it was for the welfare of the world; it was to teach man, through those heavenly principles which he had communicated, the laws of God, to put them in possession of those rich treasures of eternal life, opening the kingdom of heaven to the believer who would obey his laws and be governed by them. This is the message that God has always proclaimed to the people.

When Joseph Smith came, what did he preach? Just the same as all the others had done. Was it because of any peculiar philosophy, or any remarkable intelligence that he had in and of himself in the first place to comprehend those principles that he revealed? No. It is true that he was a chosen instrument of the Almighty for that purpose; it is true that being one of the seed of Abraham, that peculiar blessing belonging to him. It is true that Abraham in former years through his genealogy was made acquainted with the rights pertaining to the priesthood, and that Joseph Smith had those rights in common with Abraham, being one of his seed. And it is true that he was selected for this purpose; but until the Lord made himself known unto him and revealed his purposes, he knew nothing about the things of God any more than you or I did. I know this for I have talked with him upon these subjects. Well what was the nature of his mission? It was to restore the ancient Gospel; it was to bring forth the record of the Gospel upon this continent, which the people who lived here in former years had forfeited, because of their transgressions; it was that the stick of Joseph in the hands of Ephraim might be united with the stick of Judah, in their testimony, evidence, prophecies, doctrines and ordinances, developing correct principles, that things as they exist in the heavens might be made more plain to men upon the earth, and that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word should be established. Was it to condemn the world? Not unless the world rejected it. What was the Gospel Joseph taught? Just the same as that which Jesus and his disciples taught. He called upon the people to repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus for the remission of sins, and they should receive the Holy Ghost. And did he and his brethren go forth and preach this doctrine? They did. And was the promise they made fulfilled to those who believed and obeyed? It was; and you are my witnesses today that these things are true, it having been made known to us by the Holy Spirit of promise, the Holy Ghost, which takes of the things of the Father and reveals them unto man. And is anybody harmed by this? What is injured? Whose rights are interfered with? Whose principles are trampled under foot. Nobody’s! Is anybody forced to obey this Gospel? No! Has anybody been coerced into any measure pertaining to these matters? No! It has always been proclaimed and is today, “It is all free grace, it is all free will.” Would you curtail anybody in their religious rights? Not by any means; I would leave them with their God. If they cannot comprehend, or comprehending have not the inclination to obey correct principle, I would leave them with their God, in whose hands we all are, and in whose hands are the issues of life and death. If men do not love the truth we cannot help it; if men become corrupt and unrighteous and full of infidelity we cannot help it, we did not place them in that position, it is their own act. Can you find a set of men today in the wide world, men who are filled with more philanthropy and benevolence, or greater benefactors to mankind than these Elders who are around me? You cannot find them on this little earth; you cannot find men anywhere that have and will make the sacrifices for principle that the Elders of this Church have done. I see those around me that have traveled hundreds and thousands of miles without purse or scrip, in the midst of persecution, contumely and reproach, to deliver the message of life to the people, because God had commanded it, and because they were desirous to promote the weal and happiness of the human family. How have they been treated? Just as Jesus was treated; just as his Apostles and just as the prophets of old were treated. Men have always killed the prophets and stoned those who were sent to them. But then what of that? That is all the worse for those who did this; they have the hardest row to hoe, for they as well as we have yet to appear before the Judge of the whole earth, and he will say, I called but you refused; I stretched out my hand but you heeded it not; hence, “I will laugh at your calamity; and will mock when your fear cometh.” That is the way he puts it. I offered you light; I offered you truth; I offered you intelligence; I desired to promote your happiness, your well being, but you would not have it, and therefore you are left without excuse. Are they his children? Yes. Does he feel sorry to see them act that way? Yes; but he cannot help it, he is governed by law, and those laws are inexorable and just and they cannot be departed from.

What next? As eternal beings we all have to stand before him to be judged; and he has provided different degrees of glory—the celestial, the terrestrial, and the telestial glories—which are provided according to certain unchangeable laws which cannot be controverted. What will he do with them? For those who are ready to listen to him and be brought under the influence of the Spirit of God and be led by the principles of revelation and the light of heaven, and who are willing to yield obedience to his commands at all times and carry out his purposes upon the earth, and who are willing to abide a celestial law, he has prepared for them a celestial glory, that they may be with him forever and ever. And what about the others? They are not prepared to go there any more than lead is prepared to stand the same test as gold or silver; and there they cannot go. And there is a great gulf between them. But he will do with them just as well as he can. A great many of these people in the world, thousands and hundreds of millions of them, will be a great deal better off through the interposition of the Almighty than they have any idea of. But they cannot enter into the celestial kingdom of God; where God and Christ are they cannot come.

God has made use of various means, in various ages of the world, to teach and lead men in the right path. He sent forth his servants in different ages into the vineyard, and gathered a few here and a few there who would obey his law, that they might be saved in his kingdom. And what, let me ask, have the other people of the world to do with it? They would not listen to the words of life; can the messengers of God help it? No, they cannot. Theirs is not a very enviable position. It was not a very pleasant thing for Moses to go to the Egyptian king to tell him the message he had to bear, nor to see the plagues roll on one after another. But God set him to work at it, and he did it. It was the Lord that managed that matter; he was simply the instrument. Who was it that inspired the prophets to predict many things that were very unpleasant to the ear? It was God. Could they have helped it? No. And when Joseph Smith came, for instance, could he help being born? No. And being born, could he help being called by the Almighty? No. He had either to do the thing that God required at his hand, or not do it, and have suffered the consequences; and if he had not done it others would, for God’s work is destined to be performed. But he did his part of it, and did it well and faithfully, and I know it, for I was there when he was killed by some of our highly reverend Christian brethren.

You Elders of Israel who meet together in the capacity of a Conference, you have had the priesthood conferred upon you. Where did it come from? From the Lord. The Aaronic Priesthood was delivered by John the Baptist, who held it in former times upon the earth. He communicated that to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery. And then Peter, James and John, who had operated in the Melchizedek Priesthood in their day, came and conferred it upon them, then the apostleship was organized, and then the order of the priesthood was manifested unto us as it exists in the heavens. Why? That we might be put in possession of principles that emanate from God, and that we might be able to act our part in carrying out the purposes of God; not only pertaining to ourselves, but more especially to the nations of the earth, and then to operate for the dead as well as the living. Had we anything to do with it particularly? I did not introduce it, neither did Brigham Young, nor Parley P. Pratt, nor Orson Hyde, nor Heber C. Kimball, nor Joseph Smith; no man introduced it only as God gave it. Joseph Smith was made use of as an instrument in introducing it; and then having organized the Church in all its various branches, with Presidents, Apostles, Patriarchs, High Priests, Seventies, Elders, Priests, Teachers, and Deacons, with Bishops and High Councils, and all the various organizations of the Church. These things were given us for what? To gratify our ambition? To enable us to ride over and trample under foot our fellow creatures? To place power and authority upon us? No, not for any individual affair, not for any man’s emolument or aggrandizement. Although there is nothing more honorable, nothing more dignified, nothing which a man ought so much to aspire to, as to be a servant of the living God, and to be commissioned by him to do his work upon the earth. And what is it for? To spread correct principles among men; to combat priestcraft, states-craft, oppression, fraud and iniquity of all kinds, and to introduce among men those pure and holy principles by which the Gods are governed in the eternal worlds. It is not for you and me particularly; the Lord could get along very well without us, if we could without him. But God, and the holy priesthood behind the veil, that have lived and operated upon the earth, and who operate in eternity, felt interested in regard to the things that we are connected with, and interested in the welfare of the world. We talk about the wisdom of men. What true wisdom or intelligence has man that he receives not from the Almighty? I will tell you what the wisdom of men will come to by and by, and it is not so far in the future as many people think, “when the wisdom of the wise shall fail, and the understanding of the prudent shall be hid,” their power and glory will fade, and you will see their thrones totter to their base; it is not long before you will see war, desolation, carnage and death run riot through the nations, plagues, pestilence and famine depopulating the earth. And then where will their wisdom, philosophy and intelligence be? Men get a little smattering of knowledge and philosophy, and of some of the lesser laws that God has planted in nature, and they give glory to themselves, as did the Babylonish monarch who said, “Is not this great Babylon, that I have built?” They do not know that they are poor, blind, foolish, ignorant, naked, destitute, and in the way of death. The nations of the earth, with their false philosophy, with their wealth, their corruptions, their power and might, will become, by and by like the chaff of the summer’s threshingfloor before the wind, as represented by the Prophet Daniel. Why? Because eternal justice cries to the great God in relation to all the people of the earth. That is the reason, and because of their own acts and of their own corruptions. Hear what the Lord has coupled with his commission to his servants in this our day, and, when he said it, he said that which is verily true; Go forth and bear your testimony to the world; and after your testimony cometh the testimony of war and of fire, and of sword and bloodshed, and the waves of the sea heaving beyond their bounds, etc. He gives them fair warning, and they heed it not; but these things must and will most assuredly come.

What next? Does he destroy them for their good sometimes? Yes. After Noah had preached the Gospel to the antediluvian world, and after their cup of iniquity was full, and Zion and her cities had fled, then followed the judgments of God; then came desolation and destruction. And why this wholesale sweeping out of existence of humanity? To stop them from propagating a corrupt species. Was not that right? Yes it was. He said, I will cut them off; I will prepare a prison for them, in which they shall be confined for generations, where they shall not have power to propagate their species; for these pure spirits in the eternal worlds shall not be contaminated with their corruptions: I will take them off the earth, and I will raise up another people. And He did do it. What then? He was still merciful. When Jesus was put to death in the flesh, he remembered them. “He went,” says Peter, “and preached unto the spirits in prison; Which sometimes were disobedient, when once the longsuffer– ing of God waited in the days of Noah, etc.” What did he preach? The Gospel. And what is it he has told us to do today? Not only to preach the Gospel and gather the people, but to build Temples. What for? To administer in them. Who for? For the dead who have died without a knowledge of the Gospel, that they might participate with us in the blessings which they had not the privilege of enjoying on the earth. We are doing this; hence we are doing more than preaching the Gospel to the living; we are making preparations for saving the dead, according to the word of God.

Reference was made this morning to the wisdom and learning of the world. I don’t know where it is. I have traveled quite extensively in various parts of the earth, and I must say that I have not met with their intelligence. I tell you what I have met with very frequently; I have witnessed a great deal of ignorance, superstition and wickedness, and any amount of corruption, and notwithstanding the little advancement that some few have made in the true principles of science, what do they know of things as they exist before God? I told a few scientific gentlemen whom I happened to meet with a few days ago, a few things that Joseph Smith, that unlettered, ignorant boy told me in regard to the heavenly bodies and certain things associated with them, and when I had done so, one of them said, Mr. Taylor, those are some of the most comprehensive ideas I ever heard in my life. I said these ideas are from Joseph Smith, that unlearned man; but God gave them to him by revelation. Another remarked: I have read a good deal and studied a good deal; but I have a great deal to learn yet. Was it anything I knew? No, I simply told them something that Joseph Smith told me. We have a great many ignorant, learned fools; but when you meet sensible, intelligent men, as these were, they will acknowledge principle when it is presented to them. But many men have not the understanding to do it. Talking about saving themselves, who among the philosophers can save themselves? Who knows anything of God or heaven? They know a very little of the earth whereon we dwell, much less do they know of things pertaining to the heavens or of God or of eternity. And let me tell them furthermore, that no man knoweth the things of God, save by the spirit of God—or, to use the text as it is given: “For what man knoweth the things of man, save by the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.” And they cannot get that spirit without first obeying the first principles of the Gospel of Christ. Talk about their intelligence, it is a curious sort of intelligence to me. What do they do when they have to grapple with the sting of death, and when it stares them in the face? Why, they take a leap in the dark. And this darkness is the end of all their philosophy and all their science. And the little they do know in divining the laws of God is only with regard to some very few of the fundamental principles of those laws that God has planted everywhere throughout the universe and I do not therefore have that reverence for their theories, notions and vagaries, nor do I attach that importance to their intelligence that some people do.

I remember on a certain occasion, while in Paris, France, (I have referred to this subject before, but it will not hurt to repeat it again) quite a number of professed philosophers called on me and presented so many foolish, dreamy, intangible, mysterious, incomprehensible ideas and visionary theories, that I thought of all the ignoramuses I ever met with, they beat all. They have a certain kind of bread in that city, a kind of light cake, which they make there. It is so light that you could blow it away with a breath, and you might eat all day of it and not be satisfied. A brother who was there visiting me asked if I knew the name of that bread. I said I did not know the French name for it, but could give it a name. What name would you give it, he asked? Well, I said, you may call it philosophy or fried froth, just as you please.

Professor Huxley, in visiting Niagara Falls, made some remarks which I remember were published and copied extensively in the papers, to the effect that here was another evidence afforded of the many thousands or millions of years (I forget the number now) that it had taken to wash away the rocks below these falls. And this evidence was advanced in support of geological ideas. I thought to myself; yes, professor Huxley is a very learned man. I wonder if he knew that rock was once in a friable, plastic condition, when, by the force of the watery element the soft stratum might be disintegrated, excavated and removed by the washing process in perhaps a very few days. We have seen large gaps washed away out of some of our ditches in a few hours. Such are common occurrences here. If a change were to take place in the elements comprising such washouts; which might very easily occur here as elsewhere, and they become petrified, the same condition of things would exist as may be seen at Niagara Falls, and some other philosopher hereafter might expatiate on the years it took to remove so much rock. If we have to submit to their theories, we should really be in a sorry condition. I, for one, will not fall down and worship at any such shrine.

We talk about our organizations; are they right according to the order of God? Yes. Will they exist in the heavens? Yes. Are we all magnifying our calling? No; we are not. We have indeed a sort of skeleton fixed up; but I think sometimes it needs flesh on the bones and the breath of life, the spirit of the living God breathed into it. We need to realize the position we occupy and the duties devolving upon us. We see this in almost everything around us associated with the Church and kingdom of God. While many men are diligent and their whole hearts are engaged in the work of God, there are a great many astride of the fence, saying Good Lord and Good Devil, not knowing whose hands they will fall into. And yet they are High Priests, and Seventies and Elders. What will be the condition of such! We are told that, “Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?” Yet to all such he will say, “I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.” You say, that means the outsiders. No, it does not. Do they do many wonderful works in the name of Jesus? No; if they do anything, it is done in the name of themselves or of the Devil. Sometimes they will do things in the name of God; but it is simply an act of blasphemy. This means you, Latter-day Saints, who heal the sick, cast out devils, and do many wonderful things in the name of Jesus. And yet how many we see among this people of this class, that become careless, and treat lightly the ordinances of God’s house and the priesthood of the Son of God; yet they think they are going, by and by, to slide into the kingdom of God. But I tell you unless they are righteous and keep their covenants they will never go there. Hear it, ye Latter-day Saints! Hear it, ye Seventies and High Priests! “Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.” You have the priesthood, and if you do not magnify that priesthood God will require it at your hands. He expects us all to be alive and energetic, honoring our calling, our priesthood and our God, for he expects it of all of us. Now hear it, for as sure as God lives it will be so. It will not be “how we apples swim!” You must swim yourselves; for every man “will be judged according to the deeds done in the body.” If you aim at a celestial glory, you must have a celestial spirit and be governed by it. You must be honest, virtuous and benevolent; you must be men full of the Holy Ghost, magnifying your calling, and honoring your priesthood, if you would obtain an entrance into the kingdom of God. And so in regard to the sisters, they stand precisely on the same ground. What are we to do? To listen to and be guided by the world? No; but to regulate our temporal and spiritual affairs—things per– taining to time and things pertaining to eternity, according to the influence, the law, and direction of the Almighty.

Let us come again to this intelligence. Who would know today anywhere in the world how to build a temple that would be accepted of the Lord? Nobody. Who would know how to administer in them acceptably to him when built? Nobody. Let them bring forth their wise men, if they have any, and tell us how we shall obtain an inheritance in the kingdom of God. This is something they cannot do. Why? Because they have not the Gospel; and it is the Gospel that brings life and immortality to light, and this is the kind of intelligence we are after. To redeem and save the living and the dead; to build up the Zion of our God, that a people may be prepared who shall be pure in heart, and prepared to associate with the intelligences around the throne of God.

These are some things associated with our duties and responsibilities. Have the apostles duties to perform? Yes. Does God require it at their hands! Yes. If they do not do it, will he hold them guiltless? No. Have the Seventies? Yes. What are they? To go to the nations of the earth as bearers of the Gospel. That is your duty, you Seventies; and if you do not do it God will remove your candlestick out of its place. Do you hear it, you Seventies? And you High Priests and Elders, God has not conferred the priesthood upon you to dream about, to trifle or tamper with or treat it with contempt: he will spew you out of his mouth unless you take another course, many of you. God expects his message to go to all nations, and the priesthood ought to be seeking after God and to be clothed upon with the power of God and with the light of revelation, that they may stand forth as his messengers to the nations: and then by and by, after having cleared their garments from the blood of this generation, to go and administer for the dead in the temples of the Lord, and keep laboring and doing until God shall have accomplished his purposes.

What else are you going to do? To build up the kingdom of heaven upon the earth, where the voice of God shall rule and where the law of God shall have the dominion, and where men shall be instructed with laws of heaven and be taught of God. A great many revelations and changes have yet to take place, we have got to put ourselves in a position to be guided and directed of the Lord in temporal as well as spiritual things, or we will never obtain that glory for which many of us are looking.

Well, what shall we do? Do right, following the counsels of those who are placed over us. Follow the counsel of the Twelve, you whose business it is to do it; follow the counsel of your bishops, you who live in the wards, and you bishops follow the counsel of the presidents of Stakes, and you presidents of Stakes seek for and follow the counsel of the Twelve. And you people, be taught of your teachers; and you teachers, get the Spirit of the Lord that you may teach aright, and you Seventies and Elders prepare yourselves to go to the nations of the earth. Say, here am I, send me; I am on hand, I am ready to fulfil my duty and to magnify my calling, and with the help of the Lord I will lift up a warning voice to my fellow men. And as High Councils to sit in judgment with honesty, truth, fidelity and integrity, without fear or favor of any man to act and administer in righteousness. And you Bishops, act as fathers over the flock of Christ, that you may magnify your calling, and that in your judgment you may seek for the inspiration of the Almighty, that you may administer justice among the people; that righteousness may prevail in Zion, and that it may spread and grow and increase, that the glory of God may rest upon us, and that we may rejoice together in the fullness of the Gospel of peace. And will it go on? It will. Will the kingdom spread? It will, “until the kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdoms of our God, and his Christ; and he will reign forever and ever.” And about the wicked and the ungodly, protect yourselves against them as well as you can; unite yourselves together and be one, and never mind their ideas and feelings. God has called us to be one, to be united; and that man who tampers with the Gentiles and with their vices and follies will go down to death. We are sent to teach the principles of life, not to be taught of them; and we are required to be governed by the principles, laws, intelligence and truth that come from God, that we may magnify our calling, build up His kingdom, gather together the elect, save the living and redeem the dead, and then when we get through, unite with the assembled throng in the Celestial kingdom of God; and honor and praise and glory and power and majesty and dominion be ascribed to Him that sits upon the throne, and to the Lamb, forever and ever. Amen.

Discourse by President John Taylor, delivered at the 17th Ward Meetinghouse, on Sunday Afternoon, December 15, 1878.

We meet together from time to time to attend to the worship of the Almighty, because we think it is proper for us to pay due respect unto the Lord God, our heavenly Father; we assemble ourselves for the purpose of praying to him, of singing his praises, of speaking of principles, doctrines, ordinances and other matters in which we are individually and collectively interested, all of which is more or less connected with the worship of our God.

There is something associated with our religious views that differs materially from those of many others. The Lord has revealed unto us his will, or law; he has given unto us a knowledge of the principles of truth and righteousness; and he is seeking by the means he has appointed—the medium of the everlasting Gospel, to prepare us for the events that will necessarily take place in a short time, and to enable us to introduce among men those pure, holy and heavenly principles which exist with the Gods in the eternal worlds, and to prepare us, through the medium of the Gospel, to operate with him and with the holy priesthood that has existed in former ages, in the development of the purposes of God upon the earth. It is a great and important work in which we are engaged, and we need continually the direction and the guidance of the Almighty; for it stands to reason, when we reflect upon it, that no man, as is spoken of in the Scriptures, can know the things of God unless they are revealed to him by the Spirit of God. We talk of these things sometimes rather flippantly, and probably, in many instances without due reflection. But when we look upon man as he is organized, and the limit and bounds of his intelligence, and then reflect upon the position that he sustains to the Almighty, we shall find that there is nothing very mysterious in these remarks, but that there is a great amount of truth and reason associated therewith. For instance, men know very little about themselves, or about the things of man or how to control their passions and habits and the various evils with which they are surrounded and have to combat. They know very little about the true condition of man and his relation to God, to the world, to the past, present, or future, as is evidenced by the position of the world everywhere wherever we turn our attention. We are beginning to find out some few things in relation to the laws of nature and the earth on which we dwell, but our knowledge of these things is very small comparatively, and yet we boast sometimes quite freely of our intelligence. But when we reflect on our true position, we know very little in reality even about the world in which we live, or about the properties of matter or the elements with which we are surrounded; and yet a few years ago the world knew much less than we know today. I can remember the time very well when there was no such thing as steamboats. I remember sailing across the Atlantic more times than one when no such thing as a steamboat was used for that purpose. I remember the time, too, when there were no such things as locomotives or railroads; and many of you know very well how it was in regard to the telegraph, the photograph and a great many other things. They are simply certain principles that exist in the laws of nature that have been unveiled to us; but there are thousands of other things that we know very little about. And then what do we know about the future? What do we know about the heavens that are above us? We can get some scanty ideas and we boast very much of them, but really there is not very much to boast of when we reflect upon these things. These things are simple principles that we have become acquainted with through study and research by chemical analysis and the development of eternal laws. We are simply becoming acquainted with some of the principles that exist in nature. The question necessarily arises, who placed those principles there? Who organized this earth on which we dwell and man upon it and all creation as it exists? Some superior intelligence, or power—we call it the power of God. “By faith we understand that the worlds were made by the power of God, so that things which are now seen were not made of things that do appear.” There is not a particle of the human system but what is full of intelligence and displays forethought, prescience, design, skill and creative power; and everything bespeaks the handiwork of a wise, intelligent, omnipotent Creator, or God. When a little boy I used to ask myself, Who am I? Where did I come from? What am I doing here? And why am I here? etc. These things still puzzle us, at least many of them do, yet these are thoughts we cannot help reflecting upon. We see children born into the world, and we see spring and summer, autumn and winter follow each other in regular succession, and we ask ourselves, By what power were these things brought about? Why are we here, and what is the object of all these things which we see around us? Not to say anything about the worlds with which we are environed. For speaking of ourselves, we are only a speck in creation; there is nothing to or of us scarcely, or in the world we inhabit, in comparison to the myriads of worlds with which we are surrounded.

Now we frequently want to know the object of our existence and why we are here; and the Saints will still go a little further by asking, Why have we to battle with the affairs of this world, and to struggle, to be tried and tempted? And we go still further and ask, when we see our friends pass away from this state of existence one after another, and the body that was once full of life, animation and vitality now lying helpless and void of life, and our minds reach back into the years that are past and we think of the thousands of millions, yea, of myriads who have inhabited this earth and who have gone into another state of existence, and we are led to ask ourselves, Why is it thus? And we are led to ask ourselves further, Why are we thus situated? And why should we thus come into life, have an existence and then fade and decay? And it is proper that we should have such thoughts and such reflections. Who can unravel these things? Who can tell us upon natural principles the meaning of this strange phenomena, the whys and wherefores in relation to these matters? Nobody. We have peculiar feelings and sensations in common with all men in regard to the future. But what are the views, ideas and feelings of men generally in relation to these matters? And if they have views, what is the source of their intelligence? What scientist, philosopher, or divine can unravel to us many of these mysterious principles which we see every day exhibited before us? It is very difficult for man to comprehend, and nothing as I said before, but the Spirit which organized the creations of God can reveal those principles and give us a knowledge of that fitness of things as they exist in the mind of the Creator, of our relationship to God and to each other and the world in which we exist and the worlds that are to come. Nothing but superhuman intelligence, even the inspiration of the Almighty, can reveal these things. We have ten thousand ideas, notions and feelings; the world is full of every kind of theory in relation to these matters. But what does it amount to? We may theorize as much as we please, but unless we receive some communication from the beings possessing intelligence superior to anything mortal, that are associated with these vast creations and know something of their origin and object, what can we know? We need communication with and revelation from God enlightening us thereon, or we shall still be in the dark and know nothing concerning the future and many things of the present and past. Some of our poets in rather beautiful metaphor point us to some place “beyond the bounds of time and space,” where we are to look forward to a heavenly place, the Saint’s secure abode. There is something very pleasing about such reflections, but at the same time there is something very foolish. I do not know how or upon what principle we are to get beyond the bounds of time and space; it is beyond my comprehension, and I very much question whether the person who wrote it could; in fact I know he could not. We sing sometimes, too, about “singing ourselves away to everlasting bliss.” What is this and where is it? How shall we enjoy it and under what circumstances? Certainly those who talk about these things display no intelligence. We can never comprehend anything about these things but by the revelations of God either made directly to us or to us through others.

Now we Latter-day Saints are indebted—I was going to say to Joseph Smith, for what knowledge we have; but this would not be strictly true, for we are not indebted to him or any other man for the knowledge we possess; we are indebted to the Lord, and the Prophet Joseph was made use of by him as the medium to reveal, in the midst of the chaotic mass that existed in the world, the principles of life, light and intelligence and the laws by which the Gods are governed in the eternal worlds, to teach us what course we should pursue, that we might act wisely, prudently and intelligently, and comprehend the position we occupy here upon the earth, and the relationship that subsists between man and his Maker, and that we might understand things pertaining to the future as well as things pertaining to the present. And the religion we have had unfolded to us is to prepare us to take part in these things both in this world and the world to come; to teach us how to approach our Maker and to get further knowledge of his laws and the principles of truth that have been revealed to us. The world generally treats these things very lightly. The reason is they do not comprehend them, and therein lies the difficulty. And we only know them in part and see them in part and comprehend them in part; but without communion with the Almighty we certainly should not have understood anything at all about these things. There is something very peculiar in the world and we as well as others are sometimes apt to be quite narrow and contracted in our ideas pertaining to the world in which we live and the people with whom we are surrounded. We are told that “the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.” And I would state further that all true intelligence which men possess in regard to the laws, nature and their operations, as well as any moral, scientific or philosophical ideas we may form that are correct proceed from the same source, whether acknowledged by men or not. And furthermore, whatever correct religious ideas that the world possess in relation to the future state, proceed from that portion of the Spirit that is given to every man to profit withal—not unto us only, but to every man, and to the influence of that Spirit all men are indebted for the degree of honor and integrity that exists among men. It is true there is very little comparatively, but for the amount there is they are indebted to God just as much as we are. The Apostle Paul, on a certain occasion, said that God had not left himself without witness. This is a general principle that exists everywhere and among all mankind. But there is another principle which is separate and distinct from that, and that is the principle that brings men into closer communion with the Almighty. And what is that? It is the Spirit of the Lord in a more eminent degree, and is called in the Scriptures the Holy Ghost. How do men obtain that? Through a certain medium that God has appointed, viz., by faith, repentance, baptism administered by proper authority and laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost. Now the Lord has had his “witness” upon the earth in different ages of time. When he has had this witness the Gospel has generally been associated therewith; it is a part and parcel of the great program. There is a very foolish idea prevailing in the world, that there was no such thing as the Gospel until Jesus came. It is the greatest folly in creation. No Gospel until Jesus introduced it! Say you, “Do not the Scriptures say that life and immortality are brought about through the Gospel?” Yes. “And did not Jesus introduce the Gospel?” Yes. “Well, then, if he came and introduced the Gospel, why do you say that they had the Gospel before?” They always had the Gospel whenever men had a knowledge of God. It is the Gospel that brings life and immortality to light; it is the Gospel that places man in a position to obtain a just knowledge of God and of the eternities to come, of their position on the earth, and of their position as it will be hereafter. It is that very principle that brings, as we are told, life and immortality to light. And if you will trace out the records of either the Book of Mormon or the Bible or those of any people that have lived upon the earth, and find anywhere a people that had a knowledge of life and immortality, then I will point you out a people that had the Gospel. It was through that principle that men before the flood had a knowledge of God and had communication with him. It was through that that Enoch understood the principles of heaven, and applied those to his position, and it was by that power and through that principle that he, with the cities in which he lived, was translated, as well as the thousands who lived then and also after that time were translated; it was through the principle and power of the Gospel that brings life and immortality to light. It was through the same principle that Noah was saved; he had communication with God, who revealed to him what was coming on the earth and the results of it. God warned him and prepared him and told him what to do and how to do it, and he pursued the course given him, and he received his reward. It was through that principle that Abraham comprehended God and had revelation and communication with him, for without it he would have known nothing about God. But he understood, through the records of his fathers, of certain privileges that are mentioned in his history—certain privileges pertaining to himself and his progenitors, which he traced clear back to the days of Adam, by which he learned that he was an heir to the holy priesthood; and when he ascertained this he sought an ordination from the Lord. And when he was persecuted for his faith he left the land in which he lived, and he did so at the insistance of the Lord: “Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will show thee.” And the Lord greatly favored him and blessed him, and said unto him: “I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all the families of the earth be blessed.” Was that so? Yes, it has been fulfilled. Let us look at this for a moment and see whether it has or not. Who were Isaac and Jacob? Did they have communication with God? Yes. How did they obtain it? Through the medium of the Gospel and through the promises made to their father Abraham. And when Israel was in Egypt who delivered them? Moses. And who was Moses? A descendant of Abraham. Did he lead the people out of Egyptian bondage? Yes; God manifested his power in their behalf. Did Moses have the Gospel? Yes, and so did Abraham. The Apostle Paul says, in his epistle to the Galatians, “that God foreseeing that he would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the Gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed.” The Israelites had the Gospel preached to them in the wilderness; but, as the Apostle says in speaking of them, “The word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it.” But Moses did lead some of them into the presence of God—those who were prepared to receive it; the others, when they heard the thunders and saw the lightning and heard the voice of God, they said unto Moses, “Speak thou unto us and we will hear; but let not God speak with us, lest we die;” we are not prepared for this glory, for this kind of manifestation which has been given unto us.

Well, they were foolish; they departed from correct principles, they violated the laws of God and therefore incurred his displeasure, and his Spirit was withdrawn from them, and the Gospel was taken from them and they were left under a law of carnal commandments, and the law was given them as a schoolmaster, we are told, until Christ came. And what did Christ do? He restored the fulness of the Gospel that they had forfeited, because of their former transgressions. What next? We go to the promise made to Abraham, which was that in him and in his seed all the families of the earth should be blessed. Moses, as I have said was of his seed, and he was the deliverer of the whole of that nation. And who were the prophets that existed among ancient Israel? They were descendants of Abraham; and to them came the word of God and the light of revelation. Who was Jesus? After the flesh of the seed of Abraham. Who were his Twelve Apostles? Of the seed of Abraham. Who were the people that came to this continent—Lehi and his family, about 600 years B.C.? Of the seed of Abraham. Who were the Apostles they had among them that spread forth among the millions that then lived upon this continent? Of the seed of Abraham. Who was Joseph Smith? Of the seed of Abraham; and he, we are told, was to be the son of Joseph, and should himself be called Joseph. And he was raised up for what purpose? To injure or destroy mankind? No; but to bring life and immortality to light through the Gospel. He, like other prominent men of God, came in the fulness of times to do the work which the Lord had appointed unto him, being called of God and taught of God; and being thus taught he possessed an intelligence second to none on the earth. He introduced principles, that no philosopher, or scientist, or all the wisdom of this world combined was capable of developing; neither was it possible for anybody to bring to light such principles, unless through the revelations of God—principles of truth, principles of intelligence, principles which affect man in time and in eternity; principles which affect the world in which we live; principles which affect thousands and myriads that have lived before; principles of salvation that extend to all nations and all peoples living or dead, pertaining to time and pertaining to eternity.

In what manner were these principles to be made known? How were men to get acquainted with these things? By being brought into communion with the Lord. And how was this to be done? Jesus, when upon the earth, ordained and set apart others and told them to go into all the world and preach the Gospel. What Gospel? That Gospel that brings life and immortality to light; that Gospel that brings men into communication with their Maker; that Gospel that will show us who we are and what we are, and why we are here, and the object of our existence, and what lies before us. Jesus said to his disciples in his day, “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them: they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover. And, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.” Was he with them? Yes. How did they preach? They called upon the people to repent and be baptized for the remission of their sins. Who did? Men authorized of God and commissioned of him, and not by somebody else. And what then? If they did this, they should receive the Holy Ghost. And what should that do for them? It should take of the things of God and show them unto them; it should bring life and immortality to light; it should place them in communication with the Lord; it should enable them to comprehend principles that no man could comprehend nor ever ought to comprehend, without the Spirit; it should bring to their remembrance things that were past; it should lead them into all truth, and it, should show them things to come. Was it so? Yes. Did they have that Spirit? Yes. The spirit of prophecy? Yes. The spirit of revelation? Yes. Did they have the ministry of angels? Yes. Was the vision of all truth open to their mind? Yes. They comprehended the manifestations of God until the winding up scene, and until the dead small and great shall stand before God, and until this earth shall not only be redeemed but become celestialized, and celestial beings inhabit it. They understood these things and prophesied and wrote about them. Is it so with our Gospel? Precisely the same. Have we had these things communicated to us? We have. Have the Elders been called upon to go forth to the nation’s of the earth to call upon people to repent and be baptized as in former times? They have. Have most of you heard this Gospel preached among the different nations of the earth? You have. Have you received it? Have you obeyed it? Yes. Did you receive the Holy Ghost accompanying it? You did, and you know and can bear testimony of it. It is the selfsame Gospel; and why the same? Because it is the everlasting Gospel, not something started eighteen hundred years ago. Says John; “I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, etc.” What Gospel? The everlasting Gospel; the Gospel that existed with the Gods before this world rolled into existence or the morning stars sang together for joy; the Gospel that was preached to Adam and which he preached to his posterity; the Gospel that was preached by Enoch and Noah, by Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and all the ancient prophets; the Gospel that was preached by Jesus and his Disciples when he commanded them to go and preach it to all nations; in fine, the Gospel that brings life and immortality to light. It can be said of us as of them of whom it was said, “Ye have been baptized into one baptism, and have all partaken of the same spirit.” Did they? Yes. It was not many baptisms, it was not many faiths and many ideas and many notions; but it was “one faith, one Lord and one baptism and one God who is above all, and through all, and in you all.”

There are a great many things associated with these principles in which the children of men are very deeply interested and in which more especially the Latter-day Saints are very, very deeply interested. The Lord has gathered us from among the nations of the earth, just as he told some of his ancient prophets, who wrote it, that he would do. And one of them while wrapped in prophetic vision gazed upon the purposes of Jehovah in relation to this generation, and saw the people of God gathering together, exclaimed: “Who are these that fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows?” And another says: “I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion.” What will you do with them when you get them there? “I will give you pastors according to mine own heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding.” “Saviors shall come upon mount Zion,” says another, “and the kingdom shall be the Lord’s.” Very peculiar expressions and very significant some of these remarks are. Yet they were made by men when under the influence of the Holy Ghost, the spirit of revelation which unfolded to their view things that should transpire in the latter days which is emphatically, what is called in the Scriptures, “The dispensation of the fulness of times,” when he would “gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him.” He would gather his people in one to commence with, and hence our position today in these valleys of the mountains. Why are we here? We came here because it was according to the eternal purposes of God that we should gather together; and because God has restored this principle among other principles through the ministration of holy angels, and by the manifestation of his power by the revelation of his will through the ancient priesthood that existed upon the earth. And what made us gather together? You could hardly tell, many of you, if I were to ask you. I know very well that when you received this Gospel in foreign lands you could not rest until you gathered to Zion; and there was a correspondent feeling among the Saints here to help to bring about these things. Before the railroad across the plains was built, you used to send out your teams as many as five hundred at a time. What made you do it? It was the spirit of the gathering that associated itself with the latter-day dispensation, if there were time I might tell you how peculiarly some people were moved upon.

The Prophet Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery baptized each other. Why? Because John the Baptist appeared and conferred upon them this priesthood, and they went and administered in it. Why did Joseph Smith and others lay hands upon men for the reception of the Holy Ghost? Because Peter, James and John, who held the keys of the priesthood and of this Gospel in former days conferred that power upon them and they operated in it. Why did the people feel inclined to gather? Because Moses who was at the head of the gathering dispensation and to whom the keys of this dispensation were given, came and conferred upon them the power to gather the house of Israel and the ten tribes from their dispersion; and when you received this Gospel you received this as a part. This dispensation of the fulness of times embraces all other dispensations that have ever existed upon the earth, with all their powers. That is the reason you desired so to gather together, and for these peculiar impulses which many of you could not account for.

Why do we build temples? Because Elijah appeared and conferred the powers of his priesthood which were to “turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers.” And why do you expend so much—even your enemies are complaining because of the millions of dollars that are used in the erection of temples. Why do you do it? Simply because God has commanded us to do it and we know it and because the spirit attending this peculiar work rests upon us until we feel its impulses in our very bones. And is it a trouble to do it? No. We feel a pleasure in it. And then when we build our temples we feel a pleasure in administering in them, not only for ourselves but for our fathers and mothers and those of our progenitors who have died without the Gospel and then to help to save all that have been worthy of salvation that have ever lived upon the earth. And we have got to continue our labors in this direction, we have only just commenced; and if this little thing troubles men all the consolation I can give them is that they will be worse troubled yet. If others know not what we are doing, we do; we know in whom we have believed, and consequently we operate in these things.

Now then, what shall we do? Continue to do good; continue to live our religion; continue to carry out the purposes of God; continue to humble ourselves before the Lord and cultivate his Holy Spirit that we may comprehend his laws and know his will concerning us. You have received the Holy Ghost. Now I will tell you a piece of instruction that Joseph Smith once gave me, and it won’t hurt you. Said he, “Elder Taylor, you have received the Holy Ghost: now follow the leadings of that spirit; and if you do, by-and-by it will become in you a principle of revelation that you will know all things as they come along and understand what is right and what is wrong in relation to them.” That is just as applicable to you if you can receive it and live up to it and enjoy it.

Well, what are we? We ought to be the Saints of God without rebuke in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation. We ought to be full of charity, of brotherly kindness and affection and love one towards another and love towards all men. We ought to feel as our heavenly Father does. What does he do? “He maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.” He will save all men to such a degree of salvation and exaltation as they are capable of receiving; but he cannot bestow upon people what they are not prepared to receive. There is a celestial glory and a terrestrial glory and a telestial glory; “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.” But there is, we must bear in mind, a celestial glory which is one, and there is a terrestrial glory which is one, etc. And we want as Latter-day Saints to comprehend the position we occupy; and while God has conferred many great and precious privileges upon us, we want to appreciate them and honor them. Are we Seventies? We ought to be full of light and life and the power and spirit of the Living God and feel that we are messengers to the nations of the earth; we ought to feel the word of God burning like fire in our bones, feeling desirous to go and snatch men from the powers of darkness and the chains of corruption with which they are bound, and lead them in the paths of life. We ought to be prepared to go forth weeping, bearing precious seed that we might come back again rejoicing bringing our sheaves with us. If we are High Priests, we ought to magnify our calling in that portion of the priesthood and to prepare ourselves for the duties and responsibilities that are devolving upon us associated with that priesthood, that we may be prepared according to the revelations we have received in regard to these subjects, to preside over and among the different Stakes when they shall be organized and to be prepared to operate in all things according to the mind and will of God. If we are Elders we should seek to magnify our calling in every particular, and put away from us every evil and satisfy ourselves that we are accepted of God, living so that it will be a pleasure as well as a duty to carry out the will of God in all things. If we are fathers, we should treat our children properly and train them in the fear of God; we should treat our wives with mercy and tenderness and with love; we ought to bear with their infirmities and sustain them in the pathway of life, pour joy and happiness into their bosoms, and help them to bear the struggles and difficulties that they have to cope with. If we are wives, we should try to make a heaven of our homes. And as children and as parents and as Latter-day Saints and as Elders of Israel, we should seek by the prayer of faith to fulfil the various duties that devolve upon us, that we may honor our God, magnify our calling and fill the measure of our creation here upon the earth, and purge ourselves from all unrighteousness, and be full of love, kindness, generosity and philanthropy, and also full of honesty, of truthfulness and integrity, feeling in our hearts to say, O God, search me and try me and prove me, and if there is any evil in me, help me to purge it out from me, and help me to honor and magnify my priesthood and every duty devolving upon me. And as fathers and mothers we should never utter a word or do an act that we should be ashamed for God, or angels, or our children to hear or see. And if we will do right and cherish and cultivate the spirit of God to the extent that it can prevail and predominate in our midst, we will see Zion arise and shine, and the glory of God will rest upon her.

God help us to do right and preserve our purity, keep his laws and lead us in the paths of life, that while we live upon the earth we may operate with him in the salvation of the living and the dead, and be saved ultimately in his celestial kingdom, having fought the good fight, finished our course, and kept the faith. In the name of Jesus. Amen.