The first article of faith of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints, reads as follows:
"We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ,
and in the Holy Ghost."
We accept these three personages as the supreme governing council in
the heavens. The Father and the Son have tabernacles of flesh and
bones, and the Holy Ghost is a personage of spirit. (D. & C. 130:22).
We worship the Father in the name of the Son, who is the Mediator
between God and man, and His is the only name given whereby man can
be saved (D. & C. 18:23). We accept Jesus as the Only Begotten Son
of the Father in the flesh, although we are all His offspring in the
spirit, (Acts 17:28) and therefore His children. This is the teaching
of "Mormonism."
We are accused by the Reorganites, however, of departing from the
doctrines of the Prophet Joseph Smith in that we believe in a plurality
of Gods. That we believe in a plurality of Gods is true, and if they
do not--and they confess almost unanimously that they do not--then
they are not following the teachings and revelations of Joseph Smith.
If the Father and the Son and the Holy Ghost are separate and distinct
personages, then they are three Gods, then they are plural, this fact
Joseph Smith taught to the world. But our Reorganite friends quote from
a purported discourse of President Brigham Young to the effect that
Adam is our Father and our God, and the only God with whom we have to
do. But this discourse even if reported correctly--which we have reason
to believe is not the case--is not the doctrine of the Church and has
not been received by the Church. Joseph Smith the Prophet taught a
plurality of Gods, and moreover, that man, by obeying the commandments
of God and keeping the whole law will eventually reach the power and
exaltation by which he also will become a God. And if Reorganites do
not accept this truth, then they have departed from the teachings of
the Prophet Joseph Smith. The doctrine of plurality of Gods, did not
originate with Brigham Young, but was taught him by Joseph Smith.
In a discourse delivered by the Prophet in Nauvoo at the April
conference of the Church in 1844, he said:
"I will go back to the beginning before the world was, to show
what kind of a being God is. What sort of a being was God in the
beginning? Open your ears and hear, all ye ends of the earth, for
I am going to prove it to you by the Bible, and to tell you the
designs of God in relation to the human race, and why He interferes
with the affairs of man.
"_God himself_ was once as we are now, and is an exalted man, and
sits enthroned in yonder heavens! That is the great secret. If the
veil were rent today, and the great God who holds this world in
its orbit, and who upholds all worlds and all things by His power,
was to make Himself visible,--I say, if you were to see Him today,
you would see Him like a man in form--like yourselves in all the
person, image and very form as a man; for Adam was created in the
very fashion, image and likeness of God, and received instruction
from, and walked, talked and conversed with Him, as one man talks
and communes with another.
* * * * * * * *
"I shall comment on the very first Hebrew word in the Bible; I
will make a comment on the very first sentence of the history of
creation in the Bible--_Berosheit_. I want to analyze the word.
_Baith_--in, by, through, and everything else. _Rosh_--the head.
_Sheit_--grammatical termination. When the inspired man wrote it,
he did not put the baith there. An old Jew without any authority
added the word; he thought it too bad to begin to talk about the
head! It read first, 'The head one of the Gods brought forth the
Gods.' That is the true meaning of the word--_Baurau_ signifies
to bring forth. If you do not believe it, you do not believe the
learned man of God. Learned men can teach you no more than what I
have told you. _Thus the head God brought forth the Gods in the
grand council_.
"I will transpose and simplify it in the English language. Oh ye
lawyers, ye doctors, and ye priests, who have persecuted me, I want
to let you know that the Holy Ghost knows something as well as you
do. The head God called together the Gods and sat in grand council
to bring forth the world."--(See Era, January, 1909).
In another discourse delivered June 16, 1844 the Prophet said:
"And hath made us kings and priests unto God _and His Father_: to
Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen."--(Rev. 1:6). It
is altogether correct in the translation. Now, you know that of
late some malicious and corrupt men have sprung up and apostatized
from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and they
declare that the Prophet believes in a plurality of Gods; and,
lo and behold! we have discovered a very great secret, they cry,
'The Prophet says there are many Gods, and this proves that he has
fallen.'"
"I will preach on the plurality of Gods. I have selected this text
for the express purpose. I wish to declare I have always, and in
all congregations when I have preached on the subject of the Deity,
it has been the plurality of Gods. It has been preached by the
Elders fifteen years. I have always declared God to be a distinct
personage, Jesus Christ a separate and distinct personage from God
the Father, and that the Holy Ghost was a distinct personage and a
spirit; and these three constitute three distinct personages and
three Gods. If this is in accordance with the New Testament, lo
and behold! we have three Gods anyhow, and they are plural; and
who can contradict it? The text says--'And hath made us kings and
priests unto God _and His Father_.' The apostles have discovered
that there were Gods above, for Paul says God was the Father of
our Lord Jesus Christ. My object was to preach the Scriptures,
and preach the doctrine they contain, there being a God above the
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ I am bold to declare. * * John was
one of the men, and the Apostles declare they were made kings and
priests unto God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It reads just
so in the Revelations. Hence, the doctrine of a plurality of Gods
is as prominent in the Bible as any other doctrine. It is all over
the face of the Bible. It stands beyond the power of controversy. A
wayfaring man, though a fool, need not err therein.'
"Paul says there are Gods many, and Lords many * * * But to us
there is but one God--that is, _pertaining_ to us; and he is in all
and through all. But if Joseph Smith says there are Gods many and
Lords many, they cry: 'Away with him! Crucify him, crucify him!'
Mankind verily say that the Scriptures are with them. Search the
Scriptures, for they testify of things that these apostates would
gravely pronounce blasphemy. Paul, if Joseph Smith is a blasphemer,
you are. I say there are Gods many, and Lords many, but to us
only one; and we are to be in subjection to that one, and no man
can limit the bounds or the eternal existence of eternal time. *
* * Some say I do not interpret the Scriptures the same as they
do. they say it means the heathens' gods. Paul says there are
Gods many, and Lords many; and that makes a plurality of Gods, in
spite of the whims of all men. * * You know, and I testify, that
Paul had no allusion to the heathen gods. I have it from God, and
get over it if you can. I have a witness of the Holy Ghost, and
a testimony that Paul had no allusion to the heathen gods in the
text. I will show from the Hebrew Bible that I am correct, and the
first word shows a plurality of Gods; and I want the apostates
and learned men to come here and prove to the contrary, if they
can. An unlearned boy must give you a little Hebrew. _Berosheit
Baurau Eloheim ait aushamayeen vehau auraits_, rendered by King
James' translators, 'In the beginning God created the heavens and
the earth. I want to analyze the word _Berosheit. Rosh_, the head;
_sheit_, a grammatical termination. The _Baith_ was not originally
put there when the inspired man wrote it, but it has been since
added by an old Jew. Baurau signifies to bring forth; _Eloheim_ is
from the word _Eloi_, God in the singular number; and by adding the
word _heim_, it renders it Gods. It read first--'In the beginning
the head of the Gods brought forth the Gods,' or, as others have
translated it--'The head of the Gods called the Gods together.'
* * * * * * *
"The head God organized the heavens and the earth. I defy all the
learning in the world to refute me. 'In the beginning the head of
the Gods organized the heavens and the earth.' * * If we pursue
the Hebrew text further, it reads--'_Berosheit baurau Eloheim
ait Aushamayeen vehau auraits_,' 'The head one of the Gods said,
'Let us make man in our own image.' I once asked a learned Jew
'If the Hebrew language compells us to render all words ending in
heim in the plural, why not render the first Eloheim plural? He
replied--'That is the rule, with few exceptions; but in this case
it would ruin the Bible.' He acknowledged I was right. I came here
to investigate these things precisely as I believe them. Hear and
judge for yourselves: and if you go away satisfied, well and good.
"In the very beginning the Bible shows there is a plurality of Gods
beyond the power of refutation. * * * The word _Eloheim_ ought to
be in the plural all the way through--Gods. The head of the Gods
appointed one God for us; and when you take a (this) view of the
subject, it sets one free to see all the beauty, holiness and
perfection of all the Gods."--(See Mill. Star, Vol. 24:108, et seq).
This is the doctrine taught by Joseph Smith the Prophet at Nauvoo, and
we accept his teachings as authentic. "But this was not published until
after the Prophet's death," says our Reorganite objectors, and "Brigham
Young tampered with history and made it read to suit himself, therefore
we do not accept it." Nevertheless these two discourses were delivered
before the congregation of the Saints and thousands of them heard
the Prophet deliver these remarks, and _if he had not spoken as here
represented_, the Apostles would not have dared publish his remarks
within a month or two after they were delivered, for the people would
have discovered the deception. But thousands of them have testified
that these discourses were delivered by Joseph Smith. None can, without
successful contradiction, say he did not deliver them. Again, the
objection is raised, that these discourses were never accepted by the
Church as doctrine, and therefore are not binding even if the Prophet
did deliver them. Very well; the fact remains that the Church has
accepted the Bible _as far as it is translated correctly_. Therefore,
where it is not translated correctly we should receive the correct
translation _when it is given_. The Prophet says the Hebrew word
_Eloheim_ is plural and means Gods, and should have been so translated
in the Bible throughout. Is that true? If you think not, why not accept
the Prophet's challenge to prove to the contrary? If you cannot, then
hold your peace about it being binding!
Well, my friends of the "Reorganization" we will give you another
quotation from the Prophet Joseph Smith, _this time it was published_
before his martyrdom and that too by himself, for which he declared he
stood responsible (See Times and Seasons, Vol. 3:710). This quotation
is taken from the _Book of Abraham_ in the _Times and Seasons_ for
March 1, 1842, which the Prophet says are some ancient records "from
the Catacombs of Egypt, purporting to be the writings of Abraham,
which he made in Egypt, called the _Book of Abraham_, written by his
own hand, upon papyrus." These records were translated by the Prophet
at Nauvoo, and in the MS. History of the Church prepared under his
direction, he declares that they are absolutely the writings of
Abraham, a fact which a reading of them will show. If you accept Joseph
Smith as a Prophet, Seer and Revelator, you must, if you believe he
translated the record, accept these writings, at least as the genuine
translations of Abraham's record. There is no room for quibbling here.
This is from the Prophet's translation:
"Thus, I Abraham, talked with the Lord face to face, as one man
talketh with another. * * * * *
"Now the Lord had shewn unto me, Abraham, the intelligences that
were organized before the world was; and among all these there were
many of the noble and great ones, and God saw these souls that they
were good, and he stood in the midst of them, and He said, these,
I will make my rulers; for He stood among those that were spirits,
and He saw that they were good; and He said unto me, Abraham,
thou art one of them, thou wast chosen before thou wast born. And
there stood one among them that was like unto God, and He said
unto those, who were with Him, We will go down, for there is space
there, and we will take of these materials, and we will make an
Earth whereon these may dwell; and we will prove them herewith, to
see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall
command them; and they who keep their first estate shall be added
upon; and they who keep not their first estate, shall not have
glory in the same kingdom with those who keep their first estate;
and they who keep their second estate, shall have glory added upon
their heads forever and forever.
Verse 23. "And the Lord said, who shall I send? And one answered
like unto the Son of Man, here am I, send me. And another answered
and said, here am I, send me. And the Lord said, I will send the
first. And the second was angry and kept not his first estate, and,
at that day, many followed after him. And then the Lord said, let
us go down; and they went down at the beginning, and they organized
and formed (that is, the Gods) the heavens and the earth. And the
earth, after it was formed, was empty and desolate; because they
had not formed anything but the earth; and darkness reigned upon
the face of the deep, and the spirit of the Gods was brooding upon
the face of the water.
24. And they said, the Gods, let there be light, and there was
light. And they, the Gods, comprehended the light, for it was
bright; and they divided the light, or caused it to be divided from
the darkness, and the Gods called the light day, and the darkness
they called night. * * * * *
25. And the Gods also said let there be an expanse in the midst of
the waters, and it shall divide the waters from the waters. And the
Gods ordered the expanse, so that it divided the waters which were
under the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse: and
it was so, even as they ordered. And the Gods called the expanse
heaven. * * *
26. And the Gods ordered, saying, let the waters under the heavens
be gathered unto one place, and let the earth come up dry, and it
was so, as they ordered; and the Gods pronounced the earth dry."
Thus it continues unto the end of the 32nd verse in each verse
declaring that the formation of the earth was done under the direction
of the Gods. This agrees admirably with the discourses delivered at
Nauvoo in 1844, previously quoted. Is it true doctrine? It certainly
was taught by Joseph Smith, so in accepting it, we are not so far out
of harmony with his teachings on this subject as our enemies have
stated. Here again we hear another objection from our Reorganite
brethren. Say they: "This _Book of Abraham_ was never accepted by the
Church in the Prophet's day as doctrine and it has not been so accepted
by us; it is not a part of 'our authorized doctrines and deeds,'
therefore it is not binding on us." Perhaps so, you may not have
accepted it. That does not destroy the truth of this doctrine, which
the Prophet Joseph Smith and the Church in his day _did accept_--the
Doctrine of plurality of Gods. Do you deny this? If so then you deny
the revelations of God given through the Seer and _you_ are out of
harmony with the revelations given through that man. The Bible and
the Doctrine and Covenants both have been received as the law of the
Church, and these sacred books both teach the doctrine of plurality
of Gods. First as to the Bible: I quote in each instance from the
"Inspired Translation."
"For the Lord your God is God of gods, and Lord of lords, a great
God, a mighty, and a terrible, which regardeth not persons, nor
taketh reward."--(Deut. 10:17).
Joshua says: "The Lord God of gods, the Lord God of gods, he
knoweth, and Israel he shall know."--(Josh. 22:22).
David the Psalmist says: "Oh give thanks unto the Lord; for He is
good; for His mercy endureth forever.
"Oh give thanks unto the God of gods; for His mercy endureth
forever.
"Oh give thanks to the Lord of lords, for His mercy endureth
forever."--(Psalm 136:1-3).
Again he says in the 138th Psalm: "I will praise Thee with my whole
heart; before the gods, will sing praise unto Thee."
But you say these were the heathen gods? but that will never do, surely
the Lord is not the chief God of the heathen gods. Perhaps we may
discover more light on the subject.
Again the Psalmist sings: "God standeth in the congregation of the
mighty; he judgeth among the gods. * * * I have said ye are gods;
and all of you are children of the Most High."
Say what you will of the other passages, but of this you must admit
that the heathen gods are not mentioned, for this truth received the
divine approval of the Redeemer Himself as He taught the apostate Jew:
Hear Him:
"I and my Father are one."
"Jesus answered them, Many good works have I shown you from my
Father; for which of those works do ye stone me?
"The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not;
but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, maketh
thyself God."
"Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are
gods?
"If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came, _and the
Scriptures cannot be broken_;
"Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the
world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God?"
And the Jews were shocked, just as a Reorganite minister is, with this
doctrine of plurality of Gods, and they sought the life of the Savior,
but He was delivered out of their midst.
The Apostle John in his First Epistle and third chapter also teaches
this doctrine:
"Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that
we should be called the sons of God; therefore _the world knoweth
us not_, because it knew him not.
"Beloved, _now are we the sons of God_, and _it doth not yet appear
what we shall be_; but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall
be like him; for we shall see him as he is."
If the faithful, who keep the commandments of the Father are _His
sons_, then they are heirs of the kingdom and shall receive of the
fulnesss of the Father's glory, even until they become like Father. And
how can they be perfect as their Father in heaven is perfect if they
are not like Him?
In the revelations given to Joseph which were accepted by the Church
before 1844, the doctrine of plurality of Gods is also taught. From the
"Vision" one of the grandest revelations ever given to man, I quote the
following:
"And again, we bear record for we saw and heard, and this is the
testimony of the Gospel of Christ, concerning them who come forth
in the resurrection of the just: They are they who received the
testimony of Jesus, and believed on His name, and were baptized
after the manner of His burial, being buried in the water in His
name, and this according to the commandment which He has given,
that by keeping the commandments, they might be washed and cleansed
from all their sins, and receive the Holy Spirit by the laying on
of the hands of him who is ordained and sealed unto this power:
and who overcome by faith, and are sealed by the Holy Spirit of
promise, which the Father sheds forth upon all those who are just
and true; they are they who are the Church of the firstborn; they
are they into whose hands the Father has given all things; they are
they who are priests and kings, who have received of His fulnesss,
and of His glory, and are priests of the Most High after the order
of Melchizedek, which was after the order of Enoch, which was after
the order of the Only Begotten Son; wherefore, as it is written,
they are gods, even the sons of God; wherefore all things are
theirs, whether life or death, or things present, or things to
come, all are theirs, and they are Christ's and Christ is God's
and they shall overcome all things."--(D. & C., Sec. 76:50-60.
Reorganite edition, 76:5).
How could this doctrine be stated plainer? This is the doctrine taught
by the Savior to the Jews, by David in his psalms and by others of
the prophets. Here it is stated emphatically that they who are of the
Church of the Firstborn (i. e., those who keep the whole law) even
"_as it is written, they are gods_, even the sons of God!" Where is it
written? In this section; and in the words of the Savior wherein He
says, referring to David's Psalm, "_the Scriptures cannot be broken_"
(John 10:34-36). Doesn't this teach plainly the doctrine of plurality
of Gods? Does it not teach the fact that the children shall, through
obedience, sometime obtain the exaltation of the Gods themselves? If
not what does it mean? Even a Reorganite dare not argue that these are
the heathen gods!
Now, if they overcome _all things, then_ there _are not some things_
that they do not overcome. If these are to receive "of His fulnesss
and of His glory, and if into their 'hands the Father has _given all
things_, then the Father _has not withheld_ some of the fulnesss of
His glory, or _some things_. And if they receive His fulnesss and His
glory, and if _all things_ are theirs, whether life or death, or things
present, or things to come, _all are theirs_," how can they receive
these blessings and not become Gods? They cannot. Yet this is doctrine
received by the Church and taught by Joseph Smith the Seer.
Speaking of this same subject in the revelation on Priesthood (Sec.
84:35-40. Reorganite edition, 83:6) the Lord says:
"And also all they who receive this priesthood receiveth me, saith
the Lord, for he that receiveth my servants receiveth me, and he
that receiveth me receiveth my Father, and he that receiveth my
Father receiveth my Father's kingdom. Therefore, _all that my
Father hath_ shall be given unto him; and this is according to the
oath and covenant which belongeth to the priesthood.[1] Therefore,
all those who receiveth the priesthood receiveth this oath and
covenant of my Father, _which He cannot break, neither can it be
moved_; but whoso breaketh this covenant, after he hath received
it, and altogether turneth therefrom, shall not have forgiveness of
sins in this world nor in the world to come."
Here again we are given to understand that those who are faithful in
obtaining the priesthood and magnifying their calling that they become
of the Church of the Firstborn, receiving ALL THAT THE FATHER HATH!
and this according to an oath and covenant that cannot be broken. Now,
again, how are they to receive _all that the Father hath_, if something
is withheld? And if something is not withheld, how can they receive all
that He hath and not become as He is, that is, Gods themselves?
Here is another revelation given to the Prophet December 27, 1832. This
is section 88 and verses 106-7 (Reorganite edition, 85:33):
"And again, another angel shall sound his trump, which is the
seventh angel, saying, It is finished! It is finished! the Lamb
of God hath overcome and trodden the wine-press alone; even the
wine-press of the fierceness of the wrath of Almighty God; And
then shall the angels be crowned with the glory of His might,
and the saints shall be filled with His glory, and receive their
inheritance and be _made equal with Him_" (i. e., with Christ).
How can the Saints receive of His fulnesss and be _equal_ with the Lord
and not be as He is, that is Gods? This is not the doctrine of Brigham
Young (for then in the eyes of Reorganites it would be blasphemy),
but these are the revelations of the Lord to Joseph Smith. And these
revelations have been received by the "Reorganized" Church as binding
on them, yet they do not accept the truth these revelations contain.
Therefore, they prove themselves to be those who have departed from the
teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith.