WRITTEN BY SISTER LUCY MACK SMITH, THE MOTHER OF THE PROPHET JOSEPH
SMITH.
The following very interesting and earnest gospel letter written by
Lucy Mack Smith, mother of the Prophet Joseph, to her brother, Solomon
Mack and his wife, was presented to President Joseph F. Smith by Mrs.
Candace Mack Barker, of Keene, N. H., a granddaughter of Solomon Mack,
to whom the letter is addressed. Mrs. Barker stated that it was her
desire to place the letter in the hands of those who would appreciate
its contents and preserve it as she felt it properly deserved. Readers
will agree that the lady made the very wisest selection in choosing
President Smith as the holder of this important relic. It is with
untold pleasure that we are privileged to present this beautiful sermon
which was written so soon after the organization of the Church by one
of the greatest and noblest mothers that ever lived, whose life of
continued toil and tribulation was spent so constantly in the humble
endeavor to help establish the everlasting Gospel revealed from God
through her prophet son. Her brother Solomon became a faithful member
of the Church, and remained so until the end of his mortal life:
Waterloo, January 6, 1831.
Dear Brother and Sister:
Although we are at a great distance from each other and have not
had the pleasure of seeing each other for many years, yet I feel
a great anxiety in your welfare, and especially for the welfare
of your souls; and you yourselves must know that it is a thing of
greatest importance to be prepared to meet our God in peace, for
it is not long before He is to make His appearance on the earth
with all the hosts of heaven to take vengeance on the wicked and
they that know not God. By searching the prophecies contained in
the Old Testament we find it there prophesied that God will set His
hand the second time to recover His people the house of Israel.
He has now commenced this work; He hath sent forth a revelation
in these last days, and this revelation is called the Book of
Mormon. It contains the fullness of the Gospel to the Gentiles,
and is sent forth to show unto the remnant of the house of Israel
what great things God hath done for their fathers that they may
know of the covenants of the Lord and that they are not cast off
forever; and also of the convincing of both Jew and Gentile that
Jesus is the Christ, the Eternal God and manifests Himself unto
all nations. It also contains the history of a people which were
led out of Jerusalem {544} six hundred years before the coming of
Christ in the flesh. God seeing the wickedness of the inhabitants
of Jerusalem, He sent out a prophet named Lehi and commanded him
to declare unto the people that unless they repented of their sins
that the city would be destroyed, but they would not hear him,
but sought to take away his life, therefore the Lord commanded
him to take his family, together with another man named Ishmael,
and his family, and flee out of the city, and they were led by
the hand of the Lord on to this continent and they became very
numerous and were a people highly favored of the Lord; but there
arose contentions among them and the more wicked part of them being
led by one of the sons of Lehi named Laman, arose up in rebellion
against their brethren, and would not keep the commandments of
God, therefore He sent a curse upon them, and caused a dark skin
to come over them, and from Laman our Indians have descended. The
more righteous part of them were led by another of the sons of Lehi
named Nephi, he being a prophet of the Lord. I cannot give you
much of an insight into these things, but I write this that when
you have an opportunity of receiving one of the books that you may
not reject (it) for God has pronounced a curse upon all who have a
chance to receive it and will not, for by it they will be judged at
the last day.
There are many in these parts who profess to know God and to be
His humble followers, but when this thing is offered them they say
we have Bible enough and want no more; but such are in the gall
of bitterness and in the bonds of iniquity and understand not the
Bible which they love, for all the holy prophets spoke plainly of
the gathering of the house of Israel and of the coming forth of
this work, and God says He will give us line upon line, precept
upon precept, here a little and there a little; there are more
nations than one, and if God would not reveal Himself alike unto
all nations He would be partial. We need not suppose that we have
all His words in our Bible, neither need we think that because He
has spoken once He cannot speak again.
Perhaps you will inquire how this revelation came forth. It has
been hid up in the earth fourteen hundred years, and was placed
there by Moroni, one of the Nephites; it was engraven upon plates
which have the appearance of gold. He being a prophet of the Lord,
and seeing the wickedness of the people and knowing that they
must be destroyed, and also knowing that if the plates fell into
the hands of the Lamanites that they would destroy them, for they
sought to destroy all sacred writings, therefore he hid them up in
the earth, having obtained a promise of the Lord that they should
come forth in His own due time unto the world; and I feel to thank
my God that He hath spared my life to see this day.
Joseph, after repenting of his sins and humbling himself before
God, was visited by an holy angel whose countenance was as
lightning and whose garments were white above all whiteness, who
gave unto him commandments which inspired him from on high; and who
gave unto him, by the means of which was before prepared, that he
should translate this book. And by reading this our eyes are opened
that we can see the situation in which the world now stands; that
the eyes of the whole world are blinded; that the churches have all
become corrupted, yea every church upon the face of the earth; that
the Gospel of Christ is nowhere preached. This is the situation
which the world is now in, and you can judge for yourselves if we
did not need something more than the wisdom of man to show us the
right way.
{545} God, seeing our situation, had compassion upon us, and has
sent us this revelation that the stumbling block might be removed,
that whosoever would might enter. He now established His Church
upon the earth as it was in the days of the Apostles. He has now
made a new and everlasting covenant, and all that will hear His
voice and enter, He says they shall be gathered together into a
land of promise, and He Himself will come and reign on earth with
them a thousand years. He is now sending forth His servants to
prune His vineyard for the last time, and woe be unto them that
will not hear them. There are many who think hard when we tell them
that the churches have all become corrupted, but the Lord hath
spoken it, and who can deny His words? They are all lifted up in
the pride of their hearts and think more of adorning their fine
sanctuaries than they do of the poor and needy. The priests are
going about preaching for money, and teaching false doctrines and
leading men down to destruction by crying peace, peace, when the
Lord Himself hath not spoken it.
When our Savior was upon the earth He sent forth His disciples and
commanded them to preach His Gospel, and these signs He said should
follow them that believed; in My name they shall do many wonderful
works; they shall cast out devils; 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. Now where can we find
these signs following them that call themselves preachers of the
Gospel, and why do they not follow? It surely must be because they
do not believe and do not teach the true doctrine of Christ, for
God is the same yesterday, today and forever, and changeth not.
We read that at the day of Pentecost people being pricked in their
hearts began to cry, saying, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?"
and Peter being filled with the Holy Ghost, stood up and said,
"Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus
Christ for the remission of your sins and ye shall receive the Holy
Ghost." Now this promise was not to them alone for he goes on to
say, this "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;"
therefore the promise extends unto us if we will obey His commands.
Peter did not tell them to go away and mourn over their sins weeks
and months, and receive a remission of them and then come and be
baptized, but he told them first to repent and be baptized, and the
promise was that they should receive a remission of their sins and
the gift of the Holy Ghost; and this is the Gospel of Christ, and
His Church is established in this place and also in Ohio; there
have been three hundred added to the Church in Ohio within a few
weeks, and there are some added to this Church almost daily. The
work is spreading very fast.
I must now close my letter by entreating you as one that feels for
your souls to seek an interest in Christ, and when you have an
opportunity to receive this work do not reject it, but read it and
examine for yourselves. I will now bid you farewell, and I want
some of you to come here or write immediately, for we expect to go
away to the Ohio early in the spring. If you write this winter you
may direct your letters to Waterloo, Seneca county. I want you to
think seriously of these things, for they are the truths of the
living God.
Please to accept this from your sister, LUCY SMITH.
To Solomon Mack, Gilsum. N. H.
{546}