The Resurrection--The Universality of the Atonement--The Promises to
those who Overcome--The Gospel--Its First Principles--Faith,
Repentance, Baptism and the Gift of the Holy Ghost--Its Antiquity--
It is Preached in Various Dispensations, from Adam until the
Present--The Final Triumph of the Saints.
The great pre-requisites having been fulfilled, it now becomes our
duty to enquire what next had to be done to consummate the great
object obtainable through the fulfilment of this law, or what was
accomplished by the atonement.
First, the Resurrection. The penalty of the broken law in Adam's day
was death; and death is passed upon all. The word of the Lord was, "In
the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die." The atonement
made by Jesus Christ brought about the resurrection from the dead, and
restored life. And hence Jesus said: "I am the Resurrection and the
Life; he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he
live;" and Jesus Himself became the first fruits of those who slept.
The next question that arises is, how far does this principle extend
and to whom is it applicable? It extends to all the human family; to
all men of every nation: as it is written:
"For, if by one man's offence death reigneth by one; much more they
which receive abundance of grace, and of the gift of righteousness,
shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ. Therefore, as by the offence
of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation, even so by the
righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto
justification of life."--Romans, v, 17, 18.
This will not all take place at once. "But every man in his own order:
Christ, the first fruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his
coming."--1 Cor., xv, 23. "But the rest of the dead lived not again
until the thousand years were finished."--Rev., xx, 5.
Hence what was lost in Adam was restored in Jesus Christ, so far as
all men are concerned in all ages, with some very slight exceptions
arising from an abuse of privileges. Transgression of the law brought
death upon all the posterity of Adam, the restoration through the
atonement restored all the human family to life. "For since by man
came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in
Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." So that
whatever was lost by Adam, was restored by Jesus Christ.
The penalty of the transgression of the law was the death of the body.
The atonement made by Jesus Christ resulted in the resurrection of the
human body. Its scope embraced all peoples, nations and tongues.
"For all my Lord was crucified,
For all, for all my Savior died."
This is one part of the restoration. This is the restoration of the
body. The next question for us to examine is, How, and in what manner
are men benefitted by the atonement and by the resurrection? In this,
that the atonement having restored man to his former position before
the Lord, it has placed him in a position and made it possible for him
to obtain that exaltation and glory which it would have been
impossible for him to have received without it; even to become a son
of God by adoption; and being a son then an heir of God, and a joint
heir with Jesus Christ; and that, as Christ overcame, He has made it
possible, and has placed it within the power of believers in Him, also
to overcome; and as He is authorized to inherit His Father's glory
which He had with Him before the world was, with His resurrected body,
so through the adoption, may we overcome and sit down with Him upon
His throne, as He has overcome and has sat down upon His Father's
throne. And as he has said, "I and the Father are one," so are the
obedient saints one with Him, as He is one with the Father, even as He
prayed:
"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. And the glory which thou gavest me, I have given them;
that they may be one, even as we are one; I in them, and thou in me,
that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that
thou hast sent me, and hast loved them as thou hast loved me."--John,
xvii, 21-23.
Being the sons of God through the atonement and adoption, and through
faith in Jesus Christ, they rise to the dignity and glory of the
Godhead, even to be Gods; as it is promised:
"Him that overcometh, will I make a pillar in the temple of my God,
and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my
God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which
cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my
new name."--Rev., iii, 12.
Again, "To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my
throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his
throne."--Rev., iii, 21.
Yet again, "He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be
his God, and he shall be my son."--Rev., xxi, 7.
Hence, through His atonement, believers in Christ, and those who obey
His law, partake of His glory and exaltation, and are inheritors of
the Godhead; whilst those who do not obey His law although resurrected
cannot inherit this exaltation; they are raised from the dead, but
cannot inherit a celestial glory without being obedient to a celestial
law, and thus we come again to a scripture quoted before. Jesus said,
"Thus it is written, and thus it behooved Christ to suffer, and to
rise from the dead the third day: and that repentance and remission of
sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at
Jerusalem."
Having noticed the great blessings, privileges, powers and exaltations
that are placed within the reach of man, through the atonement of
Jesus Christ, it next becomes our duty to enquire what is required of
man to place him in possession of them.
That the world might be benefitted through the redemption brought
about by Jesus Christ, He called and ordained twelve Apostles, and
commanded them to go forth into all the world, and preach the Gospel
to every creature, saying, "He that believeth and is baptized shall be
saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned," or condemned. Thus
placing it within the reach of every man to obtain the glory and
exaltation referred to above, and leaving all men without excuse who
would not obey the law and be subject to the conditions imposed. The
penalty of Adam's sin having been removed through the atonement, it
now became the privilege of all men, in all nations, to partake of the
salvation provided by the great Mediator.
And this provision applies not only to the living, but also to the
dead, so that all men who have existed in all ages, who do exist now,
or who will exist while the earth shall stand, may be placed upon the
same footing, and that all men may have the privilege, living or dead,
of accepting the conditions of the great plan of redemption provided
by the Father, through the Son, before the world was; and that the
justice and mercy of God may be applied to every being, living or
dead, that ever has existed, that does now exist, or that ever will
exist.
The conditions required of the human family to enable them to obtain
the high exaltation which the atonement makes it possible for them to
receive, are: First, Faith in God as our Father and the great Supreme
Ruler of the universe; in whose hands are the destinies of the human
family; in whom we live and move and have our being. And in His Son
Jesus Christ, as the Lamb slain from before the foundation of the
world, as the great Mediator and great propitiatory sacrifice provided
by the Father before the creation, and consummated by the offering of
Himself upon the cross. For "God so loved the world, that he gave his
only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish,
but have everlasting life." Or, to use the words of the Nephite King
Benjamin:
"Believe in God; believe that he is, and that he created all things,
both in heaven and in earth; believe that he has all wisdom, and all
power, both in heaven and in earth; believe that man doth not
comprehend all the things which the Lord can comprehend."
Or as Paul writes; "He that cometh to God must believe that he is, and
that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him."
The second principle of the Gospel of salvation, is repentance. It is
a sincere and godly sorrow for and a forsaking of sin, combined with
full purpose of heart to keep God's commandments. As is written by the
Prophet Isaiah: "Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous
man his thoughts; and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have
mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon." And to
quote from the Book of Mormon:
"And again: Believe that ye must repent of your sins and forsake them,
and humble yourselves before God; and ask in sincerity of heart that
he would forgive you; and now, if you believe all these things, see
that ye do them."--Mosiah, iv, 10.
Thirdly, Baptism for the remission of sins, of our personal
transgressions, which, through this means, provided by divine mercy,
are, by reason of the atonement, blotted out. To use the words of
Paul: "Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that
like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father,
even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been
planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the
likeness of his resurrection."
Next, the reception of the Holy Ghost through the laying on of hands
of those who have received the Holy Priesthood, and are duly
authorized, ordained, and empowered to impart this blessing: Thus
Peter preached on the day of Pentecost:
"Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ,
for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy
Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all
that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall
call."--Acts, ii, 38, 39.
These are the introductory or first principles of the everlasting,
unchangeable Gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, that is and
has been the same to all men, amongst all nations, in all ages,
whenever, or wherever it has been taught by the authority of heaven.
Hence we read: It was "preached from the beginning, being declared by
holy angels, sent from the presence of God, and by his own voice, and
by the gift of the Holy Ghost. And thus all things were confirmed unto
Adam, by an holy ordinance, and the Gospel preached, and a decree sent
forth, that it should be in the world, until the end thereof."--Pearl
of Great Price.
And in that day "the Lord God called upon men by the Holy Ghost
everywhere, and commanded them that they should repent; and as many as
believed in the Son, and repented of their sins, should be saved; and
as many as believed not and repented not, should be damned; and the
words went forth out of the mouth of God in a firm decree; wherefore
they must be fulfilled."--Ibid.
This same Gospel was preached to Seth, and to all the antediluvian
Patriarchs, and they ministered under its authority. By its power, as
we have already shown, Enoch and his people were translated. Of Noah
it is written: "And the Lord ordained Noah after his own order, and
commanded him that he should go forth and declare his gospel unto the
children of men, even as it was given unto Enoch." And further, to
quote from the testimony of Noah before the flood: "And it came to
pass that Noah continued his preaching unto the people, saying,
Hearken, and give heed unto my words; believe and repent of your sins,
and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, even as
our fathers did, and ye shall receive the Holy Ghost, that ye may have
all things made manifest; and if ye do not this, the floods will come
in upon you."
From this we learn that the principles of the Gospel in the first ages
of the world were identical with those taught in our day.
The Gospel and the Holy Priesthood continued from Noah to Abraham.
"Abraham received the priesthood from Melchizedek, who received it
through the lineage of his fathers, even till Noah." (Doc and Cov.,
lxxxiv, 14, p. 289.) As Paul writes, "And the Scripture, foreseeing
that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the
Gospel unto Abraham, saying, "In thee shall all nations be blessed;"
whilst Jesus declared, "Abraham saw my day and was glad." The
knowledge and practice of the Gospel were perpetuated through Isaac,
Jacob, Joseph and other Patriarchs, until the age of Moses, who, it is
said, esteemed "the reproach of Christ greater riches than the
treasures in Egypt;" and of the Israelites, of whom he was the great
lawgiver, Paul writes:
"Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant how that
all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea;
and were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; and did
all eat the same spiritual meat; and did all drink the same spiritual
drink: (For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and
that Rock was Christ.) But with many of them God was not pleased: for
they were overthrown in the wilderness."--1 Cor., x, 1-5.
The further history of the Gospel in its relation to the house of
Israel is briefly told in the following paragraphs from the Book of
Doctrine and Covenants:
"Now this Moses plainly taught to the children of Israel in the
wilderness, and sought diligently to sanctify his people that they
might behold the face of God; but they hardened their hearts and could
not endure his presence, therefore the Lord in his wrath (for his
anger was kindled against them) swore that they should not enter into
his rest while in the wilderness, which rest is the fulness of his
glory. Therefore he took Moses out of their midst, and the Holy
Priesthood also; and the lesser priesthood continued, which priesthood
holdeth the key of the ministering of angels and the preparatory
gospel; which gospel is the gospel of repentance and of baptism, and
the remission of sins, and the law of carnal commandments, which the
Lord in his wrath caused to continue with the house of Aaron among the
children of Israel until John, whom God raised up, being filled with
the Holy Ghost from his mother's womb; for he was baptized while he
was yet in his childhood, and was ordained by the angel of God at the
time he was eight days old unto this power, to overthrow the kingdom
of the Jews, and to make straight the way of the Lord before the face
of his people, to prepare them for the coming of the Lord, in whose
hand is given all power."--Sec. lxxxiv, 23-28, p. 290, 291.
It was this same Gospel that the crucified Redeemer commanded His
disciples to preach, when "he said unto them, 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."--Mark, xvi, 15-18.
And Mark testifies: "They went forth, and preached every where, the
Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following."
Hence we find on the day of Pentecost, Peter, the senior of the
Apostles, in answer to the cry of the believing multitude, "Men and
brethren, what shall we do?" replying in the words already quoted:
"Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus
Christ, for the remission of sins; and ye shall receive the gift of
the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you and your children, and to
all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call."--
Acts, ii, 38, 39.
Again, it was this same everlasting, unalterable, unchangeable Gospel
whose restoration to the earth John, the Apostle, spoke of as follows:
"And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the
everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to
every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying with a loud
voice, Fear God and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is
come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and
the fountains of waters."--Revelation, xiv, 6, 7.
From the Bible, we turn to the Book of Mormon, and in its pages
discover that the same Gospel which Jesus directed His disciples to go
into all the world and preach, was preached on this continent, from
the earliest ages. The Jaredites became acquainted with it through the
revelations given to the brother of Jared; in one of which Jesus said
unto him:
"Behold, I am he who was prepared from the foundation of the world to
redeem my people. Behold, I am Jesus Christ. I am the Father and the
Son. In me shall all mankind have light and that eternally, even they
who shall believe on my name; and they shall become my sons and my
daughters."--Ether, iii, 14.
"And he ministered unto him, even as he ministered unto the
Nephites."--Ether, iii, 18.
The principles of this Gospel were very fully understood by the
Nephites before the advent of the Messiah. We quote from a sermon of
the younger Alma. He says:
"Now if it had not been for the plan of redemption, which was laid
from the foundation of the world, there could have been no
resurrection of the dead; but there was a plan of redemption laid,
which shall bring to pass the resurrection of the dead, of which has
been spoken. And now behold, if it were possible that our first
parents could have went forth and partaken of the tree of life, they
would have been for ever miserable, having no preparatory state; and
thus the plan of redemption would have been frustrated, and the word
of God would have been void, taking none effect. But behold, it was
not so; but it was appointed unto man that they must die; and after
death they must come to judgment; even that same judgment of which we
have spoken, which is the end. And after God had appointed that these
things should come unto man, behold, then he saw that it was expedient
that man should know concerning the things whereof he had appointed
unto them; therefore he sent angels to converse with them, who caused
men to behold of his glory."--Alma, xii, 25-29.
It will be seen from this, in the first place, that, as we have before
stated, God's plan in relation to man was that he should fall, and
having fallen and obtained a knowledge of good and evil, (which
knowledge he could not have obtained without placing himself in that
position,) then it became necessary that he should know concerning the
atonement and redemption which should be brought about through the
mediation of Jesus Christ; and hence the angel communicated, as before
related, this knowledge to Adam, and Alma's testimony on this
continent is found to agree precisely with the testimony given in the
Pearl of Great Price, pertaining to the revelation of God's will
through an angel to Adam. We again quote from the same discourse:
"And they began from that time forth to call on his name; therefore
God conversed with men, and made known unto them the plan of
redemption, which had been prepared from the foundation of the world;
and this he made known unto them according to their faith and
repentance, and their holy works; wherefore he gave commandments unto
men, they having first transgressed the first commandments as to
things which were temporal, and becoming as Gods, knowing good from
evil, placing themselves in a state to act, or being placed in a state
to act according to their wills and pleasures, whether to do evil or
to do good; therefore God gave unto them commandments, after having
made known unto them the plan of redemption, that they should not do
evil, the penalty thereof being a second death, which was an
everlasting death as to things pertaining unto righteousness; for on
such the plan of redemption could have no power, for the works of
justice could not be destroyed, according to the supreme goodness of
God. But God did call on men, in the name of his Son, (this being the
plan of redemption which was laid,) saying, If ye will repent, and
harden not your hearts, then will I have mercy upon you, through mine
only begotten Son; therefore, whosoever repenteth, and hardeneth not
his heart, he shall have claim on mercy through mine only begotten
Son, unto a remission of his sins; and these shall enter into my rest.
And whosoever will harden his heart, and will do iniquity, behold, I
swear in my wrath that he shall not enter into my rest."--Alma, xii,
30-35.
When Jesus Himself appeared to the Nephites, He preached the same
identical principles that He had previously taught to the Jews, adding
occasionally further truths, because of the greater faith of the first
named people; "And he did expound all things, even from the beginning
even until the time he should come in his glory." Amongst other things
He said: "Whosoever will hearken unto my words and repenteth, and is
baptized, the same shall be saved. Search the prophets, for many there
be that testify of these things."--3 Nephi, xxiii, 5.
And it is this same Gospel, attended by the same power and spirit,
blessed by the same inspiration, and led by the same Priesthood, that
is now being preached to all the world for a witness. Through its
principles, and by its power the Kingdom of God will be established,
righteousness spread, evil overcome, and Satan be vanquished; by it
Zion and the New Jerusalem will be built up, Enoch and his city be
received, the work of the Millennium be done, the renovation of the
earth accomplished, and all God's glorious will be fulfilled, until
the vision becomes a reality which Daniel saw and wrote:
"Behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and
came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. And
there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all
people, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an
everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom, that
which shall not be destroyed. * * * And the kingdom and dominion, and
the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to
the people of the saints of the Most High, whose kingdom is an
everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey
him."--Daniel, vii, 13, 14, 27.
APPENDIX.
The Ideas of a General Atonement and Redemption, Entertained by
Ancient Heathen Nations, Derived Originally from the Teachings of
Earlier Servants of God.
The following are some natural deductions drawn from the theories
entertained by men and recorded in history, which tend to establish
rather than to overturn the principles which are so clearly
demonstrated in the foregoing pages, exhibiting and showing that the
atonement was a great plan of the Almighty for the salvation,
redemption and exaltation of the human family; and that the pretenders
in the various ages had drawn whatever of truth they possessed, from a
knowledge of those principles taught by the Priesthood from the
earliest periods of recorded time; instead of Christianity being
indebted, as some late writers would allege, to the turbid systems of
heathen mythology and to pagan ceremonials.
We believe in the foregoing pages it has been clearly demonstrated to
all Latter-day Saints, that the prophecy and promise of the coming of
the Son of God was fully understood in every dispensation of God's
providence from the earliest period of the world's history, down
through the succeeding ages, everywhere and at all times when the
Church of God existed on the earth. Furthermore, that the doctrine of
the atonement, as understood by us, was understood in like manner by
the ancient servants of the Lord, and that it was the central
principle of their faith, the foundation of their hope for eternal
felicity and salvation, and their only trust for the resurrection of
their bodies and life everlasting in the presence of the Father. Again
that the ancient Patriarchs, Seers, Prophets, High Priests and others,
were almost as intimately acquainted with the earthly life and
ministry of the Savior, by and through the gift of prophecy and the
spirit of revelation, as we are by the perusal of His history, given
to us in the sacred Scriptures. These worthies of olden time knew
where He would be born and the names that would be given to Him; that
His mother would be called Mary, and be a virgin of the tribe of Judah
and house of David. Herod's massacre of the Innocents, and the flight
of the holy family into Egypt, were not hidden from them. They spake
of Christ's baptism by John in Jordan, and of the Divine approval that
would follow; they prophesied of His ministry, rejoiced in His
wonderful works of power and deeds of charity and love; they
understood that He should be betrayed for thirty pieces of silver;
they mourned at the vision of His sufferings and death, and rejoiced
at his triumph and resurrection. Even the minor details of the
soldiers parting His raiment among them, His death between two
malefactors, and His burial in the rich man's tomb were revealed; and
still further, His descent into Hades, His preaching to the spirits in
prison, His visits to the Nephites and His ultimate ascension to the
Father, were all comprehended. They knew that He would triumph over
death, hell and the grave, be crowned with glory at the right hand of
the Majesty on high, and that all power would be given to Him in
heaven and on earth. These and many more details were understood,
prophesied of, talked about and rejoiced in by the Priesthood and
Saints from the days of Adam to the hour that they began to be
fulfilled by His advent and incarnation.
It is needless for us to go backward to the days before the flood to
learn to what extent these truths were understood by the antediluvian
races; for all the accounts that we have of those peoples come down to
us through the channel of the Holy Priesthood, and all the records,
books, traditions, etc., of those early inhabitants of our globe were
brought to the children of the renovated earth through one family,
that of Noah; and that Patriarch, by right of universal fatherhood to
the new generations, ruled them as High Priest, Patriarch and King, as
one to whom the living God revealed His mind and will, through whom
the keys, rights and powers of the everlasting Priesthood were
continued upon the earth, and with whom special covenants were made by
the Almighty and the bow set in the clouds as an everlasting token of
their perpetuity and unchangeableness.
It will be perceived that in the first days after the flood there was
but one religion, and that was the worship of the true God under the
ministration and guidance of His duly authorized servants. Further,
that the belief of the first inhabitants of the postdiluvian age was
not only the true one, but it was accompanied by the power and
authority of the Holy Priesthood, which received revelations direct
from the Almighty. Thus the young world, like the old, was opened with
a dispensation of God's mercy, and the posterity of Noah were not left
to grope in the dark for light and truth, anymore than had been the
immediate descendants of our great original father. The effects of
thus repeopling the earth under the direct and immediate guidance of
Jehovah, through His duly appointed servants, have been felt through
all succeeding generations; for men, as they scattered over the earth,
took with them the seeds of Divine truth, and though, frequently, in
after ages, they disfigured it with false and base theories of their
own, introduced all manner of corruptions into their forms of worship,
established orders of uninspired and unauthorized priesthood, and
replaced the worship of the true God by idolatry, yet the fact of the
existence of God the universal Father was not entirely forgotten, nor
was the doctrine of the atonement ever utterly obliterated from the
minds of men. So strong and so universal a hold had this principle in
the varied religions of antiquity, that its very strength has been
used as an argument against the doctrine; and it has been vigorously
asserted that the Gospel taught by the Savior was of pagan origin, and
that He was simply a reformer who took the most excellent wisdom of
past ages and framed it into a code of morals and system of religious
faith to suit His own ideas and accomplish His own purposes, however
noble those purposes might have been.
The earliest departures from the straight and narrow path to the lives
that are eternal, appear to have been made in Chaldea and Egypt. In
the former land, Nimrod was one of the first leaders in apostacy and
wickedness.[A] These evils so rapidly spread, that as early as the
days of Melchizedec and Abraham, the worship of false deities and
idols seems to have become almost universal; and even those who did
not worship graven images, the starry hosts of heaven, or the forces
of nature, had so far perverted the principles of the Gospel, that
they taught numerous soul destroying errors, totally inconsistent with
the plan devised by heaven. In Egypt the apostacy began, and an
unauthorized priesthood was established as early as the days of the
grandson of Ham. The origin of this defection is explained in the Book
of Abraham, as follows:
[Footnote A: Josephus' Antiquities, Book I, Chap. 4.]
"Now the first government of Egypt was established by Pharaoh, the
eldest son of Egyptus, the daughter of Ham, and it was after the
manner of the government of Ham, which was Patriarchal. Pharaoh being
a righteous man, established his kingdom and judged his people wisely
and justly all his days, seeking earnestly to imitate that order
established by the fathers in the first generations, in the days of
the first Patriarchal reign, even in the reign of Adam, and also of
Noah, his father, who blessed him with the blessings of the earth, and
with the blessings of wisdom, but cursed him as pertaining to the
Priesthood.
"Now, Pharaoh being of that lineage by which he could not have the
right of Priesthood, notwithstanding the Pharaohs would fain claim it
from Noah, through Ham."
As the idolatries of Chaldea and Egypt gave marked tone and color to
the mythologies of the dominant races of antiquity on the eastern
hemisphere, we shall not trace the growth and development of the
religions of Persia, Greece, Rome, etc., through their various
branches and ramifications. Such an effort would require a volume; but
we shall confine ourselves simply to a brief consideration of the
doctrine of the atonement, as understood by the ancient Gentile
nations; referring only to such other theories and ideas as have
naturally a bearing on that doctrine.
As a starting point we believe we may state with assurance of its
truth that the expectation of the coming of a Son of God, a Messiah,
in the flesh was universal with all the leading nations that
flourished in the ages previous to the advent of the Redeemer. This is
true of the people of Egypt, Babylon, Arabia, Persia, Hindostan,
Greece and Rome; as also of the races that inhabited the American
continent. And so strong in certain cases had this idea grown that by
gradual stages it became changed into the belief that that expected
Son of God had already come, and such a being was reverenced and
worshiped under various names. In Greece and Rome this idea became so
prevalent that nearly every very eminent man was thought to be a son
of one of the gods; and evil designing men sometimes personated these
deities on purpose to seduce the virtuous of the other sex, whose
chastity they could overcome in no other way than by falsely declaring
themselves to be the god for whom such women had particular reverence
and esteem.[A] Whilst on the other hand young women who found
themselves mothers without husbands would cunningly declare that their
children were the offspring of a god; or, to use the words of the
historian Grote, when speaking of Greece, "the furtive pregnancy of
young women, often by a god, is one of the most frequently recurring
incidents in the legendary narratives of the country." To such an
extent did this excess run, that at a later period a decree was issued
subjecting to a very severe penalty any woman who should pretend that
her child was of divine parentage. One writer states: "Many are the
cases noted in history of young maidens claiming a paternity for their
male offspring by a god. In Greece it became so common that the
reigning king issued an edict, decreeing the death of all young women
who should offer such an insult to Deity as to lay to him the charge
of begetting their children." Whilst on this point Mr. Draper writes:
"Immaculate conceptions and celestial descents were so currently
received in those days, that whoever had greatly distinguished himself
in the affairs of men was thought to be of supernatural lineage. Even
in Rome, centuries later, no one could with safety have denied that
that city owed its founder, Romulus, to an accidental meeting of the
god Mars with the virgin Rhea Sylvia, as she went with her pitcher for
water to the spring. The Egyptian disciples of Plato would have looked
with anger on those who rejected the legend that Perictione, the
mother of the great philosopher, a pure virgin, had suffered an
immaculate conception through the influences of Apollo, and that the
god had declared to Ariston, to whom she was betrothed, the parentage
of the child. When Alexander issued his letters, orders and decrees,
styling himself 'King Alexander, the son of Jupiter Amnion,' they came
to the inhabitants of Egypt and Syria with an authority that now can
hardly be realized. The freethinking Greeks, however, put on such a
supernatural pedigree its proper value. Olympias [Alexander's mother],
who, of course, better than all others knew the facts of the case,
used jestingly to say, that 'she wished Alexander would cease from
incessantly embroiling her with Jupiter's wife.'"--Draper's Conflict
between Religion and Science.
[Footnote A: See Josephus' Antiquities, Book xviii, Chapter iii.]
Returning to Egypt where, as before stated, a priesthood, disowned of
God, had been set up, we are informed[A] that those who were initiated
into the inner mysteries of its mythology, were taught that God
created all things at the first, by His first born, who was the author
and giver of all knowledge in heaven and on earth, being at the same
time the wisdom and the word of God. The incarnation and earthly life
of this important being constituted the grand mystery of their entire
religious system. So great was their faith in the advent of this Holy
One, that they had chambers prepared in their temples for His
nativity.
[Footnote A: See Osborn's "Religions of the World."]
The priesthood of the Egyptians, though entirely without Divine
authority, taught many great truths which they had received from Noah,
through Ham and Pharaoh, and it took generations before these Gospel
truths were so entirely overlaid and corrupted by falsehood and pagan
innovations, that they became undiscernable to all but the initiated.
It is an important fact, holding good of other ancient civilizations
as well as that of Egypt, that the farther we trace back their
religious beliefs and mythologies, the purer does the creed become,
the nearer it approaches to heavenly truth, and the stronger and more
evident are the traces of Gospel teachings. This fact alone is
sufficient to prove that paganism had its origin in the revelations of
heaven, from which, in its various diverse branches, it had turned and
strayed, and by gradual growth, had become the vile, inconsistent,
degrading and loathsome system which is abhorred by all pure minded,
honorable and intelligent people. Had the various forms of ancient
dominant pagan worship been radically and entirely different, with
only those features in common that could reasonably be attributed to
accident or the inter-communication of races, the inference would be
strong that they had different origins; but when, as is the case,
there is a strong family likeness, and that likeness grows stronger
the further it is traced back, and continually points to a common
parentage, and that parentage is the truth as taught by the early
patriarchs and inspired servants of heaven, our conclusions must
necessarily be that these correct and God-given teachings were the
source from whence the whole sprang, and the differences in
development arose from the varied incidents in the history, and the
peculiar surroundings of the various races that gave a local hue and
tinge to their forms of belief. It is also noteworthy that the
fundamental principles of the everlasting plan devised by infinite
wisdom, and which were the most widely taught and accepted, are those
which prevailed the most extensively in pagan creeds, and which
longest retained their hold in the faith of the different races.[A]
Amongst these ideas or principles we will mention a few that were so
general that they might almost be called universal:
[Footnote A: See writings of Hitzig, Hyde, Faber, Goodsir, Higgins,
Osborn, Levy, etc.]
1st. The belief in one great father God.
2d, The expectation of the coming of His Son to dwell in the flesh and
redeem mankind.
3d. The belief in a resurrection, and in future rewards and
punishments for acts done in this life.
4th. The observance of the rite of sacrifice.
5th. The doctrine of repentance, and in certain cases the ordinance of
baptism.
We ask, when it is proved that all these principles were taught by the
duly appointed servants of God in the earliest ages, where else but
from them could the ancient Gentile races have obtained their
knowledge thereof?
Men have been ever prone to apostacy; our fallen nature is at enmity
with a godly life; sometimes in one way, sometimes in another, Satan
led men from the right path and under the influences of a false or
diabolic inspiration many errors were introduced; as well as through
the natural corrupt ambition of men who sought to obtain power over
their fellows by promulgating new theories in the name of God and
under the auspices of religion. The "ologies" of to-day would have
been impossible in the days of Pharaoh and Nimrod. The style of
apostacy was necessarily fashioned by the condition of men's minds,
their advance in civilization, and their understanding of physical
laws. In the rudimentary condition of the nations who scattered at
Babel, the easiest thing for them to do was to worship their dead
ancestors and the heavenly orbs. In due course naturally followed the
framing of idols, which at first only represented the being or thing
worshiped, but which were afterwards regarded as gods themselves, and
as such reverenced. The idea of God's anger at men's sins, associated
with the law of sacrifice, led mankind to believe that the more
precious and beloved was the offering to him who offered it, the more
acceptable would it be to heaven. As a result, men soon began to offer
up their sons and their daughters to appease the wrath of their gods.
Abraham informs us:
"Now, at this time it was the custom of the priest of Pharaoh, the
king of Egypt, to offer up upon the altar which was built in the land
of Chaldea, for the offering unto these strange gods, men, women and
children. And it came to pass that the priest made an offering unto
the god of Pharaoh, and also unto the god of Shagreel, even after the
manner of the Egyptians. Now the god of Shagreel was the Sun. Even the
thank-offering of a child did the priest of Pharaoh offer upon the
altar which stood by the hill called Potiphar's Hill, at the head of
the plain of Olishem. Now, this priest had offered upon this altar
three virgins at one time, who were the daughters of Onitah, one of
the royal descent directly from the loins of Ham. These virgins were
offered up because of their virtue; they would not bow down to worship
gods of wood or of stone, therefore they were killed upon this altar,
and it was done after the manner of the Egyptians."--Book of Abraham.
This practice of offering human sacrifices had become very general on
the eastern continent in Abraham's day.
One peculiar phase of false doctrine with regard to the atonement had
grown strong in the days of this Patriarch. It was "that the blood of
the righteous Abel was shed for sins."[A] This was a very natural
mental outgrowth among people who believed in the consequences of the
fall of Adam and had been taught the necessity of a redeemer. It was a
very easy thing to fall into the error that as Adam had transgressed,
so his immediate son atoned by his blood for his father's act. And in
the spread of this incorrect idea of Abel's atonement amongst the
early peoples, may be found the origin of the many diversified legends
of a sacrificed redeemer. This theory was taught at a day so early in
the world's history, that it spread with the migrating races in every
direction, so that traces of it can be found from Hindostan to Spain,
from the Baltic to Ethiopia. Of course, every people in their own
language had their peculiar name for this savior, and each race
claimed him as theirs, as Abel certainly belonged as much to one as
the other, having no posterity; and by degrees they wove many fanciful
and mythical legends round his life and death, varying according to
the tastes, imaginative power and environment of the different races.
This, to a very great extent, explains that enigma to Christians, who
believe that Gospel truths were first taught by Jesus when in the
flesh, how the knowledge of the principle of the atonement and the
tradition of a Savior was so wide spread throughout the world before
His actual coming.
[Footnote A: Inspired translation of Genesis, xvii, 7.]
There is another way by which the knowledge of these truths was
taught. We refer to the extended preaching of such worthies as
Melchizedec, Abraham, Jethro, Job, Jeremiah, Jonah and others; and
above all to that of the Apostles after the Redeemer's death.
Dispensation succeeded dispensation, as age succeeded age; time and
time again the people apostatized, but each time some little remnant
of divine truth remained with them. Jesus Christ was preached by name
soon after the creation, as Cyrus was named by divine revelation about
two hundred years before his birth. Thus, in some languages, we have
accounts of great men of God or gods, as the case may be, whose acts
are said to have been, in a greater or less degree, the counterpart of
those of the Messiah when He tabernacled in the flesh; and whose names
bear a most remarkable likeness to that of the Son of God. Hence we
have Checsna or Chrishna of Hindostan, and Hesus of the Druids, both
of which names bear a marked similarity to those of the Redeemer; the
first to Christ, the second to Jesus. It appears altogether probable
that the histories of these men are simply the shadowy traditions of
the Savior, the faint recollection of the teachings of inspired men,
which were localized to suit sectional vanity or pride of race; or
that some ancient teacher of their own peoples has been clothed with
the attributes and works of Christ, and during the lapse of ages the
acts and deeds of the two lives have been intermingled in one, until
at this day a rightful separation is impossible. This habit of mixing
and mingling the great deeds of several distinct persons, and forming
therefrom one grand, if not altogether harmonious whole is one well
understood by those who have studied the traditions of mankind; it is
not peculiar to any age or race, and even in our day we often find a
certain anecdote, whether real or imaginary, told of various
celebrities, some of whom may be yet living, while others are among
the recent dead. The effects of this habit, when continued through
long ages, amongst semi-civilized or barbarous nations, went far to
fashion the history of their gods, and often to manufacture deities
out of altogether imaginary personages.
Modern revelation has restored another most important key to unlock
the mystery of the almost universal knowledge of the Redeemer and of
the plan of the atonement. It is found in the statement that Jesus,
after his resurrection, visited at least the inhabitants of two
distinct portions of the earth, which could not have been reached
through the ministry of His Jewish Apostles. These two peoples were
the Nephites on this land, and the Ten Tribes in their distant
northern home. The knowledge that the Mexicans, and other aboriginal
races of America had, at the time of their discovery by the Spaniards,
of the life of the Savior, was so exact, that the Catholics suggested
two theories (both incorrect, however) to solve the mystery. One was
that the devil had invented an imitation gospel to delude the Indians;
the other, that the Apostle Thomas had visited America and taught its
people the plan of salvation.
The story of the life of the Mexican divinity, Quetzalcoatl, closely
resembles that of the Savior; so closely, indeed, that we can come to
no other conclusion than that Quetzalcoatl and Christ are the same
being. But the history of the former has been handed down to us
through an impure Lamanitish source, which has sadly disfigured and
perverted the original incidents and teachings of the Savior's life
and ministry. Regarding this god, Humboldt writes: "How truly
surprising is it to find that the Mexicans, who seem to have been
unacquainted with the doctrine of the migration of the soul and the
Metempsychosis _should have believed in the incarnation of the only
Son of the supreme God, Tomacateuctli_. For Mexican mythology,
speaking of no other Son of God, except Quetzalcoatl, who was born of
Chimelman, the virgin of Tula (without man), by His breath alone, by
which may be signified his word or will, when it was announced to
Chimelman, by the celestial messenger, whom He dispatched to inform
her that she should conceive a son, it must be presumed this was
Quetzalcoatl, who was the only son. Other authors might be adduced to
show that the Mexicans believe that this Quetzalcoatl was both God and
man; that He had previously to His incarnation existed from eternity,
and that He had been the Creator both of the world and man; and that
He had descended to reform the world by endurance, and being king of
Tula, was crucified for the sins of mankind, etc., as is plainly
declared in the tradition of Yucatan, and mysteriously represented in
the Mexican paintings."
The following brief extracts relating to Quetzalcoatl, are from Lord
Kingsborough's "Antiquities of Mexico." Speaking of a certain plate,
he observes: "Quetzalcoatl is there painted in the attitude of a
person crucified, with the impression of nails in his hands and feet,
but not actually upon the cross." Again: "The seventy-third plate of
the Borgian MS. is the most remarkable of all, for Quetzalcoatl is not
only represented there as crucified upon a cross of Greek form, but
his burial and descent into hell are also depicted in a very curious
manner." In another place he observes: "The Mexicans believe that
Quetzalcoatl took human nature upon him, partaking of all the
infirmities of man, and was not exempt from sorrow, pain or death,
which he suffered _voluntarily to atone for the sins of man_."
Rosales, in his history, when speaking of the people of the extreme
southern portion of America, states: "They had heard their fathers
say, a wonderful man had come to that country * * * who performed many
miracles, cured the sick with water, caused it to rain that their
crops of grain might grow, kindled fire at a breath, healing the sick
and giving sight to the blind; and that he spoke with as much
propriety and elegance in the language of their country as if he had
always resided in it, addressing them in words very sweet and new to
them, telling them that the Creator of the universe resided in the
highest place of heaven, and that many men and women, resplendent as
the sun, dwelt with him."
Thus we see that in the tradition's with regard to this especial God,
we have an almost complete life of the Savior, from the announcement
of His birth to His virgin mother by an angel, to His resurrection
from the grave. Had we space, other extracts could be given, showing
that there were many details, not above mentioned, ascribed to
Quetzalcoatl, that relate to incidents in the life of Christ. The Book
of Mormon alone explains the mystery. The account there given of
Christ's ministrations amongst the forefathers of these peoples makes
the whole thing plain. We understand, through that record, how and by
what means they obtained this great knowledge, and can also readily
perceive how the unworthy descendants of those whom the Savior
visited, gradually added much childish rubbish to the original facts;
making their story, like almost all other mythology, an unseemly
compound of heavenly truth and puerile fable. But, in view of these
facts, when all things are considered, it is almost a wonder that so
much of the truth was retained to the days when America became known
to Europeans.
We find, in the mythology of the Northmen, certain traditions that
lead us to imagine that it is possible that the visit of the Savior to
the Ten Tribes was by some means communicated to them. But this is
simply a conjecture. However, it is asserted that they claimed that
Woden, one of their principal deities, was a descendant of King David,
a very curious circumstance, that it is difficult to explain, only on
the supposition of Christ's visit, and that Woden, with them, occupied
the place that Quetzalcoatl did with the Mexicans.
There is yet another source from which the ancients obtained their
ideas of the life and mission of the Son of God. It is to be found in
the translation of Enoch and his city. The fact of Enoch's translation
was generally known by the people who lived immediately after the
flood. It had occurred so short a time before, that it was almost a
matter of personal recollection with the sons of Noah. They must also
have been acquainted with the fact that others were caught up by the
power of heaven into Zion, and it would appear strongly probable that
Melchizedec and many of his people were also translated. Revelation
does not state this in so many words, but the inference to be drawn
from what is said, points clearly in that direction. The fact of these
translations, the frequent visits of angels to men holding the
Priesthood, and the manifestation of God's power over the elements of
nature made manifest through His servants, laid a foundation for many
of the fables of ancient mythology; some of which, if we were to
change the names and localities to those of Bible history, would not
be as far from the truth as many suppose. This era of
inter-communication with the holy beings of the other world was easily
magnified and distorted into the Golden Age when gods dwelt with men,
associated with much of earth life, and were swayed by passions very
much as were their mortal companions. And, as before remarked, the
simplicity of these traditions was greatly changed as the ages rolled
around, until they were completely overlaid and hidden by abominable
and monstrous fables, invented, taught and used by the priests and
their associates for their own sinister and unholy purposes.
From the whole of these statements, we gather that while men, who have
written in relation to the various gods, or virgins who have, each in
her turn, conceived and borne a god or a messiah, would argue that the
accounts of the birth, ministry, death, resurrection, etc., of the
Savior, were simply a backing up and resuscitating of some of the old
legends of heathen mythology which had been in existence in ages long
antecedent to His advent, and that, therefore, the account of the life
and works of the Redeemer was simply an act of priestcraft, to
introduce another messiah, and another establishment of religion in
the interests of the projectors, and that Christianity was simply a
copy of the old paganisms that had exhibited themselves in the forms
above referred to, whereas the reverse is clearly demonstrated in the
foregoing chapters on the atonement. The fact is clearly proved,
instead of Christianity deriving its existence and facts from the
ideas and practices of heathen mythologists, and from the various
false systems that had been introduced by apostacy, unrecognized
pretensions and fraud, that those very systems themselves were
obtained from the true Priesthood, and founded on its teachings from
the earliest ages to the advent of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ;
that those holy principles were taught to Adam, and by him to his
posterity; that Enoch, Noah, Abraham, and the various Prophets had all
borne testimony of this grand and important event, wherein the
interest and happiness of the whole world were concerned, pertaining
to time and to eternity. The Gospel is a system, great, grand and
comprehensive, commencing in eternity, extending through all time, and
then reaching into the eternities to come; and the ideas with regard
to these disjointed materials, that are gathered together from the
turbid waters of heathen mythology, are so much clap trap and
nonsense, calculated only to deceive the unwary, superstitious and
ignorant, and are as far below those great and eternal principles of
heavenly truth which permeate through all time, penetrate into the
heavens, and are interwoven with all the interests, happiness and
exaltation of man, as the earth is below the heavens above. The object
of placing this statement before our brethren, is to prove and
demonstrate, what was stated in the commencement, that these truths
should "grow together unto the confounding of false doctrines, and
laying down of contentions."