A NEW DISPENSATION OF THE GOSPEL.
The true test of moral courage is to stand alone against the world and
maintain what one believes or knows to be the truth. It is easy enough
to join in the chorus that cries "Amen" to orthodox doctrines, or even
to lead in advocating opinions that the multitude by very force of
tradition accept with applause. Even unpopular opinions are maintained
and that stoutly by men whose moral courage falls very far short of
the sublime, if only they are supported by a following. Just as men of
indifferent physical courage will sometimes show a spirit of desperate
daring, and rush into the jaws of death, borne up against the danger
by the sheer consciousness of moving upon it with a large number of
their fellows. Examples are furnished by armies in battle. Not a few
of those who charge the enemy with apparent reckless bravery are borne
along by the strength which comes from the support of numbers. The
charge upon the enemy, therefore, even in the face of a galling fire,
is not the truest test of the courage of the soldier. A better evidence
of courage is given by the solitary sentinel upon his beat; when alone
under the quiet stars he walks the path of danger, uncertain where it
may be lurking or from what quarter it may come; when the shouts of
his comrades are hushed in slumber; when the soul-stirring drum and
ear-piercing fife are silent; when the excitement which comes from
action, and the tumult of glorious battle no longer sustains him--then
if his spirit fails him not, and he calmly and alone faces the danger
and does his duty, he gives his commander a better evidence of his
courage than he will ever give in the mad recklessness of the charge.
As dogs best hunt in packs, so men best fight in armies; and so, too,
do men best stand by their convictions when strengthened by that
moral support which comes from the approval of their fellows. But, as
I remarked, the truest test of moral courage is to stand alone and
maintain what one either knows or believes to be the truth against the
sneers and ridicule of the world.
When the one who stands alone against millions is young, and the
influences brought to bear against him are the most powerful that can
be employed; if he break not down, but steadily holds to the assertion
or principle which gives offense, his courage and integrity must
stand as presumptive evidence that he either has the truth or what he
believes to be the truth, for out and out falsehood has no such heroes.
The truth alone, or what is honestly taken for it, can support men in
such an issue as this. And more especially is this the case if the one
undergoing the trial, in addition to tender years, is also unschooled
in the vices of the world, is of quick sympathies and easily persuaded.
Such was Joseph Smith when he received that vision of the Father and
the Son described in a preceding chapter. He had but just completed his
fourteenth year. The conditions amid which he spent his childhood--not
yet ended--were such as to keep him innocent; and his deep filial
love and strong affection for brothers and sisters gave evidence
of the existence in him of those quick sympathies which in later
life developed into that deep universal love for his fellow-men so
characteristic of him; while the disposition to yield to the persuasion
of his friends was so prominent in him as well nigh to amount to
weakness. [1] Thus in him were all those qualities of character, and
about him were all those conditions, which make his stand for the
truth of his story of such great force as presumptive evidence of its
correctness; for notwithstanding his youth, his inclination to yield
to the persuasions of friends, his deep sympathetic soul, which was
pained at the abuse heaped upon his parents as well as upon himself for
asserting that he had seen a vision--notwithstanding all this, he never
could be induced either by persuasion, by threats, by scoffs, by scorn
or ridicule, or religious influence, or abuse heaped upon himself and
family, to retract his declaration that he had seen a heavenly vision
in which he beheld both God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ.
He made no secret of the vision. Only a few days after receiving it,
being in company with a prominent Methodist minister, he gave him an
account of the revelation which he had received from God, when to the
boy's astonishment the minister railed most viciously against it. "He
treated my communication not only lightly," says the Prophet, writing
of those early experiences later in life, "but with contempt, saying
it was all of the devil, that there was no such thing as visions or
revelations in these days; that all such things had ceased with the
apostles, and that there never would be any more of them. I soon found,
however, that by telling the story I had excited a great deal of
prejudice against me among professors of religion, and was the cause
of great persecution, which continued to increase, and though I was an
obscure boy, only between fourteen and fifteen years of age, and my
circumstances in life such as to make a boy of no consequence in the
world, yet men of high standing would take notice sufficient to excite
the public mind against me, and create a hot persecution, and this was
common among all the sects, all united to persecute me.
"It has often caused me serious reflection, both then and since, how
very strange it was that an obscure boy, a little over fourteen year
of age, and one, too, who was doomed to the necessity of obtaining a
scanty maintenance by his daily labor, should be thought a character
of sufficient importance to attract the attention of the great ones of
the most popular sects of the day, so as to create in them a spirit
of the hottest persecution and reviling. But strange or not, so it
was, and was often a cause of great sorrow to myself. However, it was,
nevertheless, a fact that I had had a vision. I have thought since that
I felt much like Paul when he made his defense before King Agrippa, and
related the account of the vision he had when he saw a light and heard
a voice, but still there were but a few who believed him; and some said
he was dishonest; others said he was mad, and he was ridiculed and
reviled; but all this did not destroy the reality of his vision. He had
seen a vision, he knew he had, and all the persecution under heaven
could not make it otherwise; and though they should persecute him unto
death, yet he knew and would know to his latest breath that he had both
seen a light, and heard a voice speaking to him, and all the world
could not make him think or believe otherwise.
"So it was with me; I had actually seen a light, and in the midst of
that light I saw two personages, and they did in reality speak unto
me, or one of them did; and though I was hated and persecuted for
saying that I had seen a vision, yet it was true; and while they were
persecuting me, reviling me and speaking all manner of evil against me
falsely, for so saying, I was led to say in my heart: Why persecute for
telling the truth? I had actually seen a vision, and who am I that I
can withstand God? Or why does the world think to make me deny what I
have actually seen? For I had seen a vision. I knew it, and I knew that
God knew it, and I could not deny it, neither dare I do it; at least I
knew that by so doing I would offend God and come under condemnation."
[2]
This statement the boy maintained alone (save such support as came from
the belief of his own family, none of the immediate members of which,
so far as I have learned, ever doubting his story), against the world
for three years; without even the encouragement of a further spiritual
manifestation. It would be improper, as I believe, to say that God did
this to prove him. The Almighty, who is also All Knowing, knew before
the test was made that he would endure it. God knew his spirit and
its nobility and strength as he knew Messiah's or Abraham's; He knew
it as he knew the spirit of Jeremiah and ordained him, too, to be a
prophet to the nations before he was born. [3] But if God needed no new
evidence of the strength of character possessed by his New Witness; if
he needed no proof of his integrity, his devotion to the truth--the
world did; and during that period of three years of sore trial, when
alone he maintained the truth against scoffing priests, the gibes of
his companions, and the sneers, ridicule and unbelief of the world,
he gave to the generation in which he lived and to all generations
succeeding, such evidence of his integrity to the truth, or what at
least he believed to be true, as ought and will secure the respectful
attention of sincere men to the testimony he bears for God.
The constancy of the lad, under all the circumstances, laid deep the
foundation for faith in the man, and in the work which, under God,
he founded. There were so many interests--the peace of himself and
family; his own and his family's good name and standing in society;
the applause of religionists who would have hailed with delight his
renunciation of the vision as a delusion of the devil--all these things
cried out, "Renounce it!" But the fact that to all such demands the
lad shouted back, "'Tis God's truth, I saw the vision!"--will go far
towards making men believe that he did; for had he been base enough to
invent such a story, when he found that it made against his interest
and brought nothing but reproaches, without doubt, he would have denied
it; for men seldom persist in conscious falsehood which works only to
their disadvantage. And in this instance the renunciation would have
been so easy by calling it a delusion wrought by the adversary of men's
souls, by which he had been deceived. But neither ease of denial nor
the seeming advantages to accrue from it moved him; against it all he
was supported by the consciousness of having told the truth. Unless
indeed we can believe him so insane as to have been a candidate for
disgrace and ambitious of the contempt of his fellows.
At the end of three years' silence, viz., on the 21st of September,
1823, he was blessed with another vision. During the three years he was
left to stand alone he lays no claim to perfect sanctity, but freely
confesses to have fallen frequently into "foolish errors, and displayed
the weakness of youth, and the corruption of human nature." In
consequence of these things he often felt condemned; and on the above
mentioned 21st of September, he betook himself to prayer to Almighy
God, sought a remission of his sins, and asked for a manifestation of
his standing before the Lord.
While thus calling upon God in prayer, the room in which he knelt was
filled with light, and an angel stood in his presence, who announced
himself a messenger sent from God to inform him that the Lord had a
work for him to do; and that his name should be had for good and evil
among all nations; or that it should be both good and evil spoken of
among all people. [4]
Moroni, for such was the angel's name, was one of the ancient prophets
who had lived in America; he was now raised from the dead, [5] and
had come to make known the existence of the record of the ancient
inhabitants of the western hemisphere. Besides giving an account of
the ancient peoples who inhabited America and the source from whence
they sprang, this record also contained the fullness of the gospel as
delivered by the Savior to them. Hidden with the record were two stones
in silver bows, and the bows fastened to a breast-plate, constituting
the Urim and Thummim. The ability to use the Urim and Thummim was what
constituted seers in ancient times, and they had been deposited with
this record for the purpose of translating it.
After these explanations, Moroni began quoting and explaining a number
of the prophecies of the Old Testament. Following are the passages in
the order in which he quoted them: Part of the 3rd chapter of Malachi,
4th chapter of Malachi; 11th chapter of Isaiah--saying it was about to
be fulfilled; 3rd chapter of Acts, 22nd and 23rd verses, saying that
the prophet therein named was Jesus Christ, but the time when those who
would not hear his voice should be cut off from among the people had
not yet come, but would soon come; 2nd chapter of Joel, from 28th verse
to the last: this was not fulfilled, but soon would be.
Some of the passages he quoted differently from the way they read in
our English version. Malachi 3rd chapter, 1st verse, for example, he
quoted as follows: "For behold the day cometh that shall burn as an
oven, and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly shall burn as
stubble; for they that come shall burn them, saith the Lord of Hosts,
and it shall leave them neither root nor branch."
The 5th and 6th verses he quoted thus: "Behold I will reveal unto you
the priesthood by the hand of Elijah the prophet before the coming
of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And he shall plant in the
hearts of the children the promises made to the fathers and the hearts
of the children shall turn to their fathers; if it were not so the
whole earth would be utterly wasted at his coming."
This heavenly messenger appeared to him three times during that night
and each time related the same things to him, the interviews occupying
nearly the whole night.
The next day while working beside his father in a field Joseph was
taken ill. His father observing it advised him to go to the house. This
the boy started to do, but in climbing over the fence, which separated
the field from the house, his strength utterly failed him, and he sank
to the ground unconscious. He was aroused by some one calling his name,
and when he regained consciousness the messenger of the night before
stood near him. Again the things of the night before were repeated; and
he received a commandment to go and tell his father the vision. This
he did and his father encouraged him to do as he had been commanded.
He accordingly went as directed in his vision to the place where the
record of the ancient Americans was concealed--to a hill called by them
Cumorah.
Removing the grass and soil which was about the edges of the stone box
that contained the ancient record, with a lever he raised the lid and
there saw the gold plates and the Urim and Thummim. He was about to
take them from the box, when the angel Moroni again stood before him,
and forbade his taking them out, as the time for them to be given to
him for translation had not yet come, nor would it come until four
years from that date. He was commanded to come at the end of each year
to that place, and the angel would meet him to give the necessary
instruction.
This Joseph did for four successive years, and each time met the same
heavenly messenger and received instruction. On the occasion of the
fourth meeting, viz., on the 22nd of September, 1827, the record was
given into his hands to translate. This work of translation, through
the grace of God, he accomplished, and in 1830 the Book of Mormon was
published to the world.
Before it was published, the plates of gold on which it had been
engraven by the ancient inhabitants of the land, were shown by the
angel Moroni to Oliver Cowdery, David Whitmer and Martin Harris,
together with the Urim and Thummim through which the translation was
effected; and their testimony to this fact was printed over their
signatures on the fly-leaf of the Book of Mormon. Joseph Smith himself
exhibited the plates to eight other persons, viz: Christian, Jacob,
Peter and John Whitmer; Hiram Page, Joseph Smith, Sen., Hyrum Smith
and Samuel H. Smith. The testimony of these eight witnesses to the
effect that they had seen, and handled the plates from which the Book
of Mormon had been translated, and examined the characters engraven
thereon, was also printed in the first and all subsequent authorized
editions of the book. [6]
It must be understood that during the progress of the young Prophet's
work, persecution was continuous; and slander with her thousand
tongues was inventing falsehood to destroy the work of God. But while
opposition was strong, the Lord from time to time raised up friends to
assist him in his labors and share his responsibilities. Among such
persons was one Oliver Cowdery, a young school teacher, who while
following his profession in the town of Manchester, was boarding in
the family of Joseph Smith's parents, from whom he learned of the
revelations of God to Joseph, and of his having the record of the
ancient inhabitants of America.
The youthful Prophet at this time was living at Harmony, Susquehanna
County, Pennsylvania. He had married a Miss Emma Hale and settled there
on a piece of land purchased of his father-in-law. Oliver Cowdery went
to Harmony to investigate the claims of Joseph Smith, both in respect
to his receiving revelations from God and having the Book of Mormon. He
became satisfied upon both points and remained with him to act as his
scribe in the work of translation.
In May, 1829, the work of translation drawing near to completion, they
came upon a passage in the Book of Mormon respecting baptism, upon
which they held different views. They retired to the woods on the
15th of May to present the matter before the Lord for further light,
and while engaged in calling upon God in prayer, a personage appeared
to them surrounded by a glorious light, who, as he laid his hands
upon their heads, said: "Upon you my fellow servants, in the name of
Messiah, I confer the priesthood of Aaron, which holds the keys of the
ministering of angels, and of the gospel of repentance, and of baptism
by immersion for the remission of sins; and this shall never be taken
again from the earth, until the sons of Levi do offer again an offering
unto the Lord in righteousness."
The Messenger who thus conferred the Aaronic priesthood upon them was
named John, the same that is called the Baptist in the New Testament.
He had been raised from the dead, and was now sent as a messenger from
God to confer the keys of the Aaronic priesthood upon Joseph Smith and
Oliver Cowdery. He told them that he acted under the direction of the
apostles Peter, James and John, and that some time in the near future
the Melchisedek or higher priesthood would be conferred upon them. He
then commanded them to each baptize the other, Joseph to first baptize
Oliver, and then Oliver to baptize Joseph. Thus the work of baptizing
men for the remission of sins began in the new dispensation.
Some time in the following month, June, 1829, the promise made by John
to Joseph and Oliver that the Melchisedek Priesthood would be conferred
upon them was fulfilled. In the wilderness between Harmony, Susquehanna
County, Penn., and Colesville, Broom County, New York, on the banks
of the Susquehanna River, Peter, James and John conferred upon Joseph
Smith and Oliver Cowdery the apostleship, the keys of the Melchisedek
Priesthood, which gave them the right to build up the church of Christ
in all the world, and organize it in all its departments.
It is proper here to say a few words upon the subject of priesthood.
Priesthood is power which God confers upon man, by which he becomes
an agent for God, authorized to act in his name. It may be to warn a
city or nation of approaching calamity because of corruption; it may
be to teach faith in God, or cry repentance to the wicked; it may be
to baptize in water for the remission of sins, or lay on hands, as the
ancient apostles did, for the baptism of the Holy Ghost; or it may
be to lay on hands for the healing of the sick, or all these things
combined. Men who hold the priesthood possess divine authority thus to
act for God; and by possessing part of God's power they are in reality
part of God, that is, in the sense of being part of the great governing
power that extends throughout the universe. This is the authority of
men that hold the priesthood, and when those who possess it walk in
obedience to the commandments of God, men who honor the priesthood in
them, honor God; and those who reject it reject God, even the power of
God.
It was doubtless these considerations which led Jesus to say, when
sending out his apostles to preach the gospel: "He that receiveth you,
receiveth me; and he that receiveth me, receiveth him that sent me.
* * * And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words when
ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet.
Verily I say unto you, it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom
and Gomorrah in the day of judgment, than for that city." [7]
Considered in the light of these sayings of Jesus, the priesthood is
a solemn thing. To hold power delegated to one by Almighty God--to
have authority to speak and act in his name, and have it of the same
binding force as if the Deity himself spoke or acted, is both an honor
and a responsibility which few men comprehend. It is an awe-inspiring
thing. Yet such authority God does confer upon men. It was bestowed
upon the Patriarchs before the flood, upon Melchisedek, Abraham, Moses,
and the prophets. It was given to the apostles through Jesus; he said
to Peter, "I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven;
and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven;
and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."
[8] These mighty keys of authority were conferred, as related in the
foregoing, upon Joseph Smith, and by that authority he organized the
Church and regulated its affairs up to the time of his death.
The Church of Jesus Christ, in the new dispensation under the direction
of revelation from God, was organized on the 6th day of April, 1830.
That organization was very simple; it was effected with six members.
Joseph Smith was acknowledged as the first Elder of the Church, and
Oliver Cowdery as the second Elder; but before the meeting which
organized the Church adjourned, the Church was commanded to keep
a record in which the Prophet Joseph was to be called "a seer, a
translator, a prophet, an apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ, an Elder
of the church." [9] The more complete organization of the church with
Apostles, Seventies, High Priests, Elders, Bishops, Priests, Teachers
and Deacons was a later development, and will receive attention in a
subsequent chapter.
In the month of February, 1832, Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon [10]
were wrapt in vision, in which they beheld the Son of God and conversed
with him--let them bear their own testimony: "We, Joseph Smith, Jun.,
and Sidney Rigdon, being in the spirit on the sixteenth of February, in
the year of our Lord, one thousand eight hundred and thirty-two, by the
power of the spirit, our eyes were opened, and our understandings were
enlightened so as to see and understand the things of God--even those
things which were from the beginning, before the world was, which were
ordained of the Father through his Only Begotten Son who was in the
bosom of the Father even from the beginning. Of whom we bear record,
and the record which we bear is the fullness of the gospel of Jesus
Christ, who is the Son, whom we saw and with whom we conversed in the
heavenly vision; for while we were doing the work of translation which
the Lord had appointed to us, we came to the tenth verse of the fifth
chapter of John, which was given to us as follows--speaking of the
resurrection of the dead, concerning those who shall hear the voice
of the Son of Man, and shall come forth: 'They who have done good
in the resurrection of the just and they who have done evil in the
resurrection of the unjust.' [11] Now this caused us to marvel, for
it was given unto us of the Spirit; and while we meditated upon these
things, the Lord touched the eyes of our understandings and they were
opened, and the glory of the Lord shone round about; and we beheld the
glory of the Son on the right hand of the Father, and received of his
fullness; and saw the holy angels, and they who are sanctified before
his throne, worshiping God and the Lamb, who worship him forever and
ever. And now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him,
this is the testimony last of all which we give of him, that he lives;
for we saw him, even on the right hand of God, and we heard the voice
bearing record that he is the Only Begotten of the Father--that by him
and through him and of him the worlds are and were created, and the
inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God." [12]
Four years after the vision of Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon, viz.,
April 6th, 1836, other visions of Jesus Christ and several mighty
angels were given to the Prophet and Oliver Cowdery. The visions
occurred during the dedication of the Kirtland Temple. The first was
of Jesus Christ, who declared his acceptance of the temple. The angels
came to deliver certain keys of authority to Joseph Smith. Following is
the Prophet's account of the several manifestations:
"The vail was taken from our minds, and the eyes of our understanding
were opened. We saw the Lord standing upon the breastwork of the
pulpit, before us, and under his feet was a paved work of pure gold
in color like amber. His eyes were as a flame of fire, the hair of
his head was white like pure snow, his countenance shone above the
brightness of the sun, and his voice was as the sound of the rushing
of great waters, even the voice of Jehovah, saying 'I am the first and
the last, I am he who liveth, I am he who was slain, I am your advocate
with the Father. Behold, your sins are forgiven you, you are clean
before me, therefore lift up your heads and rejoice. Let the hearts
of your brethren rejoice, and let the hearts of all my people rejoice
who have, with their might, built this house to my name; for behold,
I have accepted this house, and my name shall be here, and I will
manifest myself to my people in mercy in this house. Yea, I will appear
unto my servants and speak unto them with mine own voice, if my people
will keep my commandments, and do not pollute this holy house, yea,
the hearts of thousands and tens of thousands shall greatly rejoice
in consequence of the blessings which shall be poured out, and the
endowment with which my servants have been endowed in this house; and
the fame of this house shall spread to foreign lands, and this is the
beginning of the blessing which shall be poured out upon the heads of
my people, even so, Amen.
"After this vision closed, the heavens were again opened unto us,
and Moses appeared before us and committed unto us the keys of the
gathering of Israel from the four parts of the earth, and the leading
of the ten tribes from the land of the north.
"After this Elias appeared and committed the dispensation of the gospel
of Abraham, saying, that in us, and our seed, all generations after us
should be blessed.
"After this vision closed, another great and glorious vision burst upon
us, for Elijah, the prophet, who was taken to heaven without tasting
death, stood before us, and said: 'Behold the time is fully come, which
was spoken by the mouth of Malachi, testifying that he [Elijah] should
be sent before the great and dreadful day of the Lord come, to turn the
hearts of the fathers to the children, and the children to the fathers,
lest the whole earth be smitten with a curse. Therefore the keys of
this dispensation are committed into your hands, and by this ye may
know that the great and dreadful day of the Lord is near, even at the
doors." [13]
There were numerous other revelations given to Joseph Smith and to
others through him; for he was God's mouthpiece to men in this new
dispensation, both before and after the church was organized. Some of
these revelations were received through the Urim and Thummim which
the angel Moroni gave into his possession in connection with the gold
plates of the Book of Mormon. [14] Other revelations were received
through inspiration from God acting directly upon the Prophet. Of the
manner in which these last named revelations were received, a prominent
writer and officer in the church who was present on several such
occasions, says. "Each sentence was uttered slowly and very distinctly,
and with a pause between each sufficiently long for it to be recorded
by an ordinary writer in long hand. This was the manner in which all
his written revelations were dictated and written. There was never
any hesitation, reviewing or reading back to keep the thread of the
subject; neither did any of these communications undergo revisions,
interlinings, or corrections. As he dictated them, so they stood, so
far as I have witnessed; and I was present to witness the dictation of
several communications of several pages." [15]
With the revelations thus received, as well as those received through
the Urim and Thummim, we shall have more or less to do in this work;
but the visions and ministrations of angels related in this and the
preceding chapter constitute the basis upon which the work of God in
this new dispensation is founded. From the information and authority
received through them comes the organization of the Church of Christ
and the proclamation of the Gospel in all the world.
The manifestations are of a character which preclude all possibility of
the parties who received them being mistaken. If the great work of God
in these last days, were founded alone upon the internal inspiration or
illumination of the Prophet Joseph, the probability of his belonging
to that very large number of well-meaning but mistaken men who have
thought themselves inspired of God would be very much increased; for
nothing is more common perhaps than self-deception in such matters.
"Mormonism," however, came into existence not alone from internal
inspiration, or divine inward illumination of Joseph Smith; but from
what we may term external revelations as well; revelations which appeal
to the senses of the mind as well as to the inner consciousness. Review
them I pray you:
God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ are beheld in the full light
of day--nay, in an effulgence of light, brighter than the sunlight
at noon-day. And a direct conversation is held with them upon a
matter-of-fact subject for some length of time.
One of the resurrected prophets of ancient America appears three times
in one night, and twice the following day; he conversed upon a variety
of subjects, but the main purpose of his visitation was to reveal the
existence of the record of an ancient people. At the end of each year,
for four successive years, this same heavenly messenger repeats his
visits, and at the last gives into the possession of Joseph Smith a
volume of gold plates, the engravings on which the Prophet translated
into the English language.
An angel exhibits these same plates to other men, and permits them to
examine the engravings thereon.
Eight other men see and handle the plates and examine the characters
engraven on them.
Another angel, also a resurrected prophet, appears in broad day light
and lays his hands upon the heads of two men, viz: Joseph Smith and
Oliver Cowdery, and ordains them to the Aaronic Priesthood.
Three of the ancient apostles appear and ordain the same men to the
Melchisedek or higher Priesthood.
Jesus is seen by two men, viz., Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon, at the
right hand of God the Father, and a protracted conversation ensues.
Jesus is again seen in the Temple at Kirtland, by Joseph Smith and
Oliver Cowdery and again his voice is heard.
On the same occasion Moses, Elias, and Elijah, the prophet, appeared
and conferred certain keys of authority upon two men--Joseph Smith and
Oliver Cowdery.
Now all this appeals to the outward senses. It is matter of fact. It
is tangible. It all occurred and is a solemn verity, or it is all
wicked fabrication. A fabrication it is possible for it to be, but it
can never be resolved into a mere mistake--a self-deception. The men
who affirm all of it to have taken place may have been villains, bent
on deluding mankind; for wicked men still lie in wait to deceive; but
they can never be classed as well-meaning but _mistaken_ men. Either
what Joseph Smith and his associates affirm is true, or they are base
and conscious imposters. The manifestations of which they proclaim
themselves witnesses are so palpable to the senses--to sight, and
touch and hearing; they occur at such times and places, and under
such circumstances, and are so frequently repeated, that there can be
no possibility of mistake. In the consideration of their testimony,
therefore, there is no middle ground between the extremes of absolute
truthfulness or absolute falsehood, and I ask the readers of this book
to take up the investigation upon which we are about to enter in this
spirit.
Footnotes
1. After the plates from which the Book of Mormon was translated were
delivered to the prophet Joseph, the Lord had occasion to reprove him
several times for his disposition to yield to the persuasion of men.
When he received the record of the Nephites the Lord put him under
a covenant to show them to no one except to those to whom the Lord
should command him to show them (Doc. & Cov., Sec. v. 3). When he
had translated enough to make 116 pages of old foolscap manuscript,
Martin Harris continually importuned him to be allowed to show that
much of the work to his friends. This the Lord forbid, but Harris
continuing his importunings, and Joseph in turn petitioning the Lord
at Harris' request, permission was at last granted, and the MS. was
stolen. Joseph, for thus yielding to the persuasion of Martin Harris
after the word of the Lord was known, lost for a season his gift to
translate, and the plates were taken from him. When they were returned,
and permission given to continue the work of translation, the Lord
thus reproved him for his disposition to yield to persuasion: "Behold,
you have been intrusted with these things, but how strict were your
commandments; and remember, also, the promises which were made to
you, if you did not transgress them; and behold, how oft you have
transgressed the commandments and the laws of God, and have gone on in
the persuasions of men!" (Doc. & Cov., Sec. iii). And again the Lord
said to him: "And now, I command you, my servant Joseph, to repent and
walk more uprightly before me, and yield to the persuasions of men
no more; and that you be firm in keeping the commandments wherewith
I have commanded you, and if you do this, behold I grant unto you
eternal life, even if you should be slain." (Doc. & Cov., Sec. v).
But this characteristic was only manifested early in his career.
Or if it appeared later in life, it was only in relation to things
indifferent--that is, in things that did not involve a sacrifice of
principle.
2. Extracts from the History of Joseph Smith, "Pearl of Great Price,"
(1888 edition), pp. 89, 90, 91.
3. "Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou
camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and ordained thee a
prophet unto the nations"--The Lord to Jeremiah, Jeremiah ch. i:5.
4. Pearl of Great Price, p. 94 (ed. of 1888).
5. It certainly ought not to be difficult for Christians to believe
in the existence of resurrected men; for in Matthew's Gospel we read:
"And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept
arose, and came out of the graves after his (Christ's) resurrection,
and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many" (Matt. xxvii:
52, 53). If the ancient saints on the eastern hemisphere who were
worthy arose from the dead after the resurrection of Jesus, it is not
improbable, but rather reasonable, that the worthy saints who had lived
upon the western hemisphere also should be raised from the dead.
6. This is a very brief and imperfect account of the coming forth of
the Book of Mormon. A fuller account will be given in a volume which
will treat upon the Book of Mormon as a 'Witness for God, now in course
of preparation by the author, and I shall then write in greater detail
of its coming forth. I could not do so in this volume on account of
the space it would require, and besides, such an account more properly
belongs to the part of my work that will treat exclusively of that book.
7. Matt. x.
8. Matt. xvi.
9. Doc. & Cov., Sec. xxi.
10. Sidney Rigdon, born in Pennsylvania, 19th of February, 1793, had
been prominently connected with what is known as the "Campbellite" or
Reformed Baptist movement in the United States; but was converted to a
belief in the restoration of the gospel through Joseph Smith, by Elder
Parley P. Pratt, who first presented him with the Book of Mormon. At
the time indicated in the text he was a prominent Elder in the Church
and closely associated with Joseph Smith.
11. In the English version of the New Testament the passage reads: "And
shall come forth; they that have done good unto the resurrection of
life; and they that have done evil to the resurrection of damnation."
St. John v: 29.
12. Doc. and Cov. Sec. lxxvi.
13. Doc. and Cov., Sec. cx.
14. The revelations known to have been received through the Urim and
Thummim are the following: Doc. and Cov. Sec. iii, _Ibid,_ Sec. vi,
Sec. vii, Sec. xi, Sec, xiv, Sec. xv, Sec. xvi, Sec. xviii. There were
doubtless others received through that sacred instrument, but these are
specially mentioned as being so received.
15. Autb. of Parley P. Pratt, p. 65, 66.