IV. Wilford Woodruff FRAILTY OF LIFE ____________________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the General Conference, held October 9, 1887. My brethren and sisters and friends--By way of introduction I desire to say that I feel to thank God and all my friends for the blessing I enjoy at this time--for the privilege, once more, of entering this Tabernacle and beholding the faces of the Latter-day Saints. And I feel a good deal as Mark Antony did when he went to bury Caesar: "I come to bury Caesar," said he, "not to praise him." I come to see the Latter-day Saints, but not to preach to them. You have plenty of Apostles and Elders to preach the word of the Lord unto you. But I have long desired to again enter this Tabernacle of the Lord and see the Latter-day Saints. It has been some three years, I think, since I have met with the Saints of God in this house; and I will tell you how I felt about coming to Conference. I felt that it would not be doing our great and mighty nation any harm--a nation of sixty millions of people--for two or three old men, seventy-five or eighty years of age, to come into this Tabernacle and look at the Latter-day Saints, and at the faces of their wives and children. I do not know that I have a wife or child here. If I have, they will be able to see how old I have grown since we last met. Some of us have tried to keep the law to such an extent, that we have almost forgotten how our wives and children look. I feel, however, to say, God bless the Marshal and officers of the government as far as they can exercise mercy, charity and humanity toward the Latter-day Saints in fulfilling their duty as officers of the government. I feel thankful to-day for this privilege, and I feel at peace with all mankind. I am at peace with all my friends. As to my enemies, I do not know that I have any. If I have, I hope that we may be at peace upon the principles of the Gospel of Christ, of righteousness and of truth. Now, with regard to preaching to you, my brethren and sisters, that is a subject I have thought very little about. I have preached this Gospel for some fifty-four years, and have learned by experience a great while ago that it is no use for an Elder in Israel to decide in his mind what he is going to say to the Saints of God. This is the way I feel to-day. And I will say this, that there are times in a man's life when he cannot help reflecting upon the past. That is my condition to-day. Since I have entered this Tabernacle, and looked upon this congregation, my mind has reverted to my life from the time I became a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and this engenders in my bosom some very solemn reflections. Fifty-four years ago this last spring I traveled a thousand miles with the Prophet Joseph and his brother Hyrum, Brothers Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, George A. Smith, and a great many other men--some 205 in all--mostly Elders in Israel--for the redemption of our brethren--to assist them in the midst of persecution. Our prophets and patriarchs, many of them, have passed away. They are on the other side of the vail. Since we came into these valleys forty years ago the twenty-fourth of last July--I drove President Young into this valley in my carriage, and he was sick at the time--eleven of the apostles have passed away. They are in the spirit world mingling with the Gods, where they can plead for their brethren. These are reflections that rest upon my mind as I occupy this stand where I have met day after day and year after year with these noble men. President John Taylor, who was our last president and apostle, has also taken his departure. The last time I was in this house I met here with him. His work is finished. He has gone into the spirit world, where we shall all go very soon. Sometimes, in my reflections, I feel somewhat lonesome when I think these matters over. I feel as if I had lived two or three generations since the days of Kirtland and Nauvoo, or since the establishment of this Church and Kingdom with which I have been associated for so many years. I realize myself that I shall not dwell a great while upon the earth. I do not expect to dwell a great while longer with the Latter-day Saints. I have lived to the age of four score years, and when I contemplate the multitude that has passed away since we entered these valleys of the mountains, I can only expect to take my turn with the rest. But I will say this, I rejoice in the Gospel of Jesus Christ; I rejoice in the work of God; I rejoice in the principles of eternal life, light and truth, which have been revealed to the Latter-day Saints. We have been called as a people to pass through a great deal of affliction in our day and time. But this eternal truth remains on earth and in heaven--that the God of Israel has set His hand to establish His Church and kingdom upon the earth, and to fulfill the revelations contained within the Holy Bible, the Old and New Testament, as well as other records which have been given concerning the last dispensation and fullness of times. We are all of us, brethren and sisters, dependent upon God our heavenly Father for all our blessings, both temporal and spiritual. Indeed, while I contemplate our progress, our advancement, and the signs of the times in which we live, I feel that we, as Latter-day Saints, should try to fully realize and comprehend our responsibility before God, before each other, before the heavens and before the earth. I have for a long time had a desire to mingle with the Latter-day Saints, and to take part in their institutions--the Sabbath schools, the Mutual Improvement Associations, and with the various organizations of the Church. But for several years I have been laboring in other portions of the country, and have been deprived of the privilege of meeting with the Saints so far as this portion of the Territory is concerned. I have desired from my youth up to become acquainted with the truth as contained in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. From my youth up I have had a desire to live and find the people of God on the earth. I have lived to see that day. I have lived to see prophets, apostles, and inspired men. I have associated with them for many years of my life. This has been a great pleasure to me, and a great satisfaction to my own spirit. And I desire to say to the Latter-day Saints, that we should remember that we are sent here on a mission; that we have been born in the flesh in this last dispensation of the fullness of times. We have been called to labor in the vineyard of the Lord, called to preach the Gospel, called to warn the nations of the earth, and many of them have been warned. We have traveled by land and by sea; have visited many foreign nations, also almost every part of our own nation, and some of us are drawing our missions to a close. I have a desire that the Latter-day Saints should try to live their religion, and endeavor to do what is right; that they should have faith in God, and in the revelations of God, and in the principles which have been revealed to the Saints for the salvation of the human family. We have a great many organizations in the Church and Kingdom of God, and have had almost from the beginning. They are so organized that all men and women, whether young or old, have a place of usefulness. We should try to improve our time, our talents and our opportunities while we are here upon the earth. I realize that this world is not our abiding place. We have an evidence of this every day of our lives. We are called upon to bury our prophets, apostles, elders, fathers, mothers, wives and children, all of which shows us that we have no lease of life. We should therefore improve our time to-day. I have felt to give the Latter-day Saints my faith and prayers in all their labors and exertions to build up the Kingdom of God. I try to build it up to the best of my ability, in accordance with the light and truth and knowledge which God has given me. This is the first time that I have endeavored to speak in public for a good while. I have not been laboring in the midst of congregations like this. I have just passed through a week of sickness, which laid me prostrate. I feel the effects of it in my lungs, and in my system, yet I feel all right in my spirit. I felt as though I desired to look upon the faces of the Latter-day Saints, and hear the testimonies of my brethren. They have heard my testimony in years past. I have the same testimony to bear to-day. I bear record before God, angels and men, that the fullness of the everlasting Gospel has been revealed in these last days through the prophets of God; and that Joseph Smith was raised up by the power of God as a prophet, seer and revelator. He laid the foundation of this Church and Kingdom in its perfection, as it is at the present time. He brought forth the record as contained in the Book of Mormon, in fulfillment of the predictions of the prophets of God; also the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, which contains those grand and solemn revelations, and those principles of eternal truth, so precious to the Latter-day Saints. These things are true. We should study them; lay them up in our hearts, and practice them in our lives. This is the Kingdom of God and the Church of Jesus Christ. The Lord Almighty has set His hand to carry out the great programme of the last dispensation and fullness of times. If this had not been true, Utah today would have been in all probability a desert as we found it in 1847, when first we came here. God has been watching over this people, and will continue to watch so long as we continue to do our duty. So long as we humble ourselves before the Lord, so long as we keep His commandments, so long will the hand of God be over the Latter-day Saints; Zion will arise; Zion will be clothed upon by the power of God. The Lord is watching over her; the heavens have been watching over this people, and have been from the beginning. We have the blessings of God with us. They are manifest in our temporal and spiritual affairs. As I said in the beginning of my remarks, I realize that the voices of those we were accustomed to hear in the past are hushed in death. We shall hear them no more. The rest of us will follow in their train. We shall all pass away in our time, and we have a long eternity before us in the world to come. Those that have passed away have closed their work here, and are laboring to-day on the other side of the vail. You have laid before you, during this Conference, some things pertaining to the redemption of our dead, and some things in regard to the building of temples. These, brethren and sisters, are important works. They are works which we do for others that they cannot do for themselves. This is what Jesus Christ did when He laid down His life for our redemption, because we could not redeem ourselves. We have fathers and mothers and kindred in the spirit world, and we have a work to perform in their behalf. As an individual I have had great interest in this work of redeeming the dead, and so have my brethren and sisters. This is a labor we must continue as far as we have opportunity. This principle was taught by the Apostle Paul. He asks, "If the dead rise not at all, why are they then baptized for the dead?" This is a work that rests upon the Latter-day Saints. Do what you can in this respect, so that when you pass to the other side of the vail your fathers, mothers, relatives and friends will bless you for what you have done, and inasmuch as you have been instruments in the hands of God in procuring their redemption, you will be recognized as Saviors upon Mount Zion in fulfillment of prophecy. I hope that our institutions--those that have been referred to in our Epistle--the Relief Societies, Sunday schools, Mutual Improvement Associations, etc., will continue to do good. They have done a great deal of good, and still have the power to do more. These institutions belong to the organizations of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The brethren and sisters should continue to labor in them in behalf of the rising generation of this people. The Mutual Improvement Associations are good schools in which to prepare our young men for the vineyard of Christ. So also are the various quorums of the priesthood, and we should all labor to the best of our ability to fulfill the duties devolving upon us. I feel the effect of my sickness; I feel it upon my lungs, and do not think it necessary to continue my remarks. I am glad to see you, and say God bless you, and I pray that God may pour out His Spirit upon you, that we may magnify our calling, do our duty, keep the commandments of God, so that when we get through our work we may be satisfied with our history. I feel to bless this congregation, as far as I have the right and privilege to bless, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Latter-day Saints have been trying to do their duty, but there is room for all to improve; let us walk uprightly and labor for the truth, and for the inspiration of Almighty God to assist us in all we endeavor to accomplish. I pray our heavenly Father to uphold and sustain you, to bless you and your families, to bless you as husbands and wives and children and as Latter-day Saints, or any other capacity in which we are called to act. This is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. BECOMING VALIANT IN THE GOSPEL ____________________ AN EPISTLE FROM President Wilford Woodruff, Read by Apostle John Henry Smith in behalf of the absent members of the Council of the Apostles. Beloved Brethren and Sisters,--Once again, in the providences of the Almighty, Israel mourns the loss of one of its mightiest sons. Death seldom comes at a time we deem opportune; and if we, in our blindness, were permitted to judge, we should certainly decide that the present, with its trials, its perplexities, and its sorrows, is no time to take from our midst men of counsel, of wisdom, of faith, and of judgment, such as was our beloved brother, Elder Erastus Snow, whose obsequies we this day solemnize. But He who doeth all things well has been pleased to take to Himself His servant, and we can simply bow the head and acknowledge His hand in all things, and with one of old exclaim: "The Lord giveth, and the Lord taketh away; blessed be the name of the Lord." The peculiarities of our position prevent us from personally joining with you in this tribute of respect to our departed, and now sanctified, brother, whose departure from this mortal sphere has doubtless been hastened by the same causes that prevent us from joining you on this sad occasion. This enforced absence we sincerely regret, as we should have found a mournful satisfaction in adding our testimony to that of our brethren, touching the virtues, the integrity, the zeal, the whole-heartedness, of our friend and co-labourer who has passed before us into the joys of eternity. For him we have no cause to mourn; he has fought the good fight, he has finished his work, he has been true and faithful, and is now entering into that fairer and better world, the bliss of which the heart cannot conceive nor the natural eye see, but the glories of which, by reason of his obedience and devotion to God and His laws, had been sealed upon him through sacred ordinances and by the Holy Spirit of Promise while he yet tabernacled in mortality. May our end be like his. The name of Erastus Snow will never be forgotten in the history of the Church of Christ. From early youth to his latest day he was ever found in the unflinching performance of his duties as a servant of the Most High. Without exaggeration it can be said of him that he died with the harness on. In every position he was called to fill--and they were many--he exhibited those nobler traits which dignify the character of a Saint. If we view him as a missionary of the Gospel of peace, as a legislator for the people of God, as a pioneer, converting the wilderness into the fruitful field, as an apostle in the councils of the Church, we everywhere find him a man of no ordinary type, but one whose ability and strength of character marked him as a leader among men, even where great men were not lacking. It would be difficult for us to pick out any one special department of life and say in this he most particularly shone, or select some other and assert in that he was most eminent. He was great in all. To the sons and daughters of Scandinavia he was perhaps greater as a missionary--the first apostle who bore the glad tidings of the Gospel to their fatherland. To the weary toiler beneath the sultry sun of Southern Utah he was best known as the indefatigable leader, who planned, devised, contrived and arranged for their progress and made prosperity possible in one of the most arid, most forbidding regions of this great continent. His prudence, his wisdom, his foresight, are admitted by all--as a counselor he had few peers. His ripe experience, joined with his sound judgment, gave a weight to his words and a strength to his counsels that all who heard felt. Moreover, he possessed, unclouded by stain, those two great virtues that give a man power with the heavens--integrity and purity of character. Let a man possess these, let his heart be true and unflinching, let his life be pure, and, if we add to these humility, he is proof against a multitude of weaknesses and can resist a host of temptations. We all have our weaknesses; God has permitted them that we might be taught humility in ourselves and charity towards others. We none of us are perfect whilst we dwell in the flesh; but the man who in humble reliance upon God never falters in the fight for the right, never wavers in his allegiance to the truth, and ever maintains inviolate his covenants, is one whom we can all pause to admire, and strive, by heaven's help, to imitate. Such men are few when compared with the unnumbered hosts who have peopled this earth of ours; but we thank God that we do find them more abundantly in the midst of the Saints, holding the Holy Priesthood and ministering in things the most sacred ever bestowed upon humanity. Among these, in the front ranks, is our esteemed brother whose mortal remains are about to be consigned to the tomb. For nearly forty years Brother Snow has been one of the twelve apostles of the Lord Jesus. To this calling he has given the strength of his prime and the wisdom of his later years. It has been during this period that he has performed a very large portion of his missionary, legislative and pioneer services. We shall sadly miss him in the quorum with which he has been so long identified, and of which he was at the time of his death one of the oldest members. We shall miss his mature consideration, his deliberate thoughts, his experienced advice--all most needful at a time when the powers of evil are assailing us in so many directions. But we thank the Lord that though from time to time He takes from us those who, as men, we trust most fondly, yet He leaves us not entirely to ourselves, but continues unto us the signs of His approval. We are comforted with the assurance that this is His Kingdom, and that He rules in the heavens and upon the earth; and that from the fall of a sparrow to the death of an apostle all is known unto Him, and nothing happens without His sanction. And further, brethren and sisters, are we not the sons and daughters of God, and when he shall appear, if we are faithful, shall we not be like him? Yes; and when the glorious day arrives we shall once more have the privilege of standing upon this earth and meeting in joy and thanksgiving, not only our brother who has just left us, but Joseph and Brigham, and thousands of others who have washed their robes white in the blood of the Lamb, and who, through the merits of His atonement, are anointed kings and priests unto God, and with Him reign exalted in His Kingdom. May we all be found worthy of this reward; and now, while we travel through this world of change and sorrow, may we take pattern by the lives of the worthy, as our Brother Erastus, and, above all, follow in the steps of the great Exemplar of all righteousness, our Lord Jesus Christ, whose grace be ever with you all. Amen. Remarks made at Dedication Services: 17 May 1888 President Wilford Woodruff said. I certainly rejoice that I have lived to see this hour; that I have the privilege of again entering into a Temple of the Lord our God, which has been reared to His Holy Name in these mountains of Israel. This has brought forceably to my mind what Joseph Smith, said the first time I ever heard him speak, in the spring of 1834. There was no Quorum of the Apostles then. It was a testimony meeting, and Joseph called upon the elders to speak. All who were present bore their testimony--Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, John Bownton, Lyman Johnson, Hyrum Smith, Oliver Cowdery, Joseph Smith, and a number of others, who I do not not now recall. When Joseph got up to speak, he said, "Brethren you know no more about the extent or the nature of this work of which you have been testifying than a babe in its mother's arm." Well it rather startled the brethren. Then, you understand, a little Log Cabin 12 feet square, held all the Elders of the Church who were present and they were then going up to Zion. Now, see this work, said he, that you have commenced, this little mustard seed, it is going to fill the whole earth. It will fill North and South America. And among other things, he said, "it will fill the Rocky Mountains; the Rocky Mountains will be filled with tens of thousands of Latter-day Saints, and they will stand associated with thousands of Lamanites of the blood of Joseph." I was thinking to day, and when I arose to my feet, of the remarks of that prophet. Here I am, today, 54 years after that saying surrounded with my brethren in this Temple, built here in the Rocky Mountains by the people of God. And this position that we are in today, in dedicating this house, in our little circle, is in a programme of the purposes of God in the last days. Look at the beginning of this, and the manner in which the God of Heaven commenced His work of this great and last dispensation in the fullness of times by inspiring Joseph Smith, an illiterate youth, who, in answer to his prayers, saw God the Father and God the Son. Then, Moroni and other Angels were sent to him, to teach him how to begin to lay the foundation of this Church, and from that small beginning, the Church has attained its present dimension. We have before us, its history, some of us have shared in this history, and what have we seen? We have seen persecution. We have seen persecution. We have seen earth and hell united against this great Kingdom of God. We have have been [page 51] through this. We have lived through it until the present hour. And, to my mind, it is a striking manifestation of the determination of the God of Heaven, to carry out and fulfill all his purposes with regard to this dispensation. I have no fears, I have no doubt at all in my mind, with regard to this work. It will arrive to its perfection. There is no power beneath the heavens, that can stay this work. We are now in the midst of another scene of persecution of the millions of Jews scattered throughout the world, and felt to appeal in their behalf that the blessings enjoyed by the Latter-day Saints be extended also to them. Felt that they more than any others were the people to enjoy the blessings to be obtained in Temples. Testified to the presence of the Holy Spirit and to the truth of the Gospel. Earnestly implored the Saints to pray for Israel and to sustain him by their faith inasmuch as he stood alone; his own parents even having rejected him for his belief. DEDICATORY PRAYER, MANTI TEMPLE Thursday, May 17, 1888, 10:00 A.M. President Wilford Woodruff offered the following Dedication Prayer. Almighty and Eternal Father, Creator of heaven and earth and all that thy contain, thou who art the God and Father of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, and of the spirits of all living; to thee, thy believing children here present bring our offering, and beseech thee to grant thy listening ear while we dedicate this Temple unto they most holy name. We realize our weakness, our utter feebleness and inability to advance the interest and honor of thy name upon the earth except thou dost guide us by thy Holy Spirit; therefore, we humble ourselves in thy presence and earnestly entreat thee to forgive us our sins and all vanity and unworthiness which thy purity and perfection have discovered in any one of us, inasmuch as we are truly penitent therefor, and are ready to forgive those who trespass against us. We praise and adore thee for having restored to earth again the fulness of the Everlasting Gospel, wherein thou didst break the silence of ages by speaking to thy servant Joseph Smith, while yet in the days of his youth, and by thy presence and thine own voice didst teach, discipline and empower him to bring forth thy glorious latter-day work the dispensation of the fulness of times. With the record of the Prophet Mormon thou didst entrust him with the Urim and Thummim, by which the unlettered youth was enabled to translate the language in which it was engraven, though long since lost to the human family, and thereby revealed the origin, prosperity and downfall of the mighty nations that inhabited this hemisphere for more than twenty five centuries of time, and also informing us that the pure Gospel of a crucified and risen Redeemer had been delivered to, and his church established among, them. We praise thy name for revealing this knowledge, which the wisdom of the world was unable to discover. Also that thou didst authorize thy servant Joseph to baptize for the remission of sin, by sending John the Baptist to ordain Joseph to that power; giving him also a promise that this ministry should abide in the earth until the sons of Levi shall again offer unto thee, 0 Lord, an offering in righteousness. In the plenitude of thine everlasting love thou didst also send thine Apostles. Peter, James and John, who conferred the Melchisedec Priesthood and apostleship, which enabled the Prophet Joseph to organize thy church and set in order all its appointments, offices and ordinances, with its gifts and blessings, as in the former dispensations. Everlasting praise tho thy holy name for sending line upon line and precept upon precept and continuing to reveal the abundance of peace and truth by sending Moses to confer the spirit with power to gather the House of Israel and Elijah to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, that the whole earth might not be smitten with a curse. When these manifestations of thine unfathomable love to thy Saints stirred up the envious hate of the ungodly to bloody persecution, imprisonment of thy servants, and finally to extermination from the State of their chosen homes, thine own right hand brought deliverance to thy Saints, and gave them a happy respite while they built the beautiful Nauvoo. But there the wrath of the ungodly waxed furious again while thou didst fill thy servant Joseph with revelations of thy will for the upbuilding of Zion and the exaltation of the righteous, until nothing could subdue their insatiable fury but the lifeblood of Joseph and Hyrum and the expulsion of thy people from the nation; yet thy loving kindness failed not and the heart of the savage Indians, was moved to give us a kindly welcome. We glorify thy great and holy name, Almighty Father, for these communications of intelligence and power to man in the flesh again, and that the Spirit, foreseeing the hatred of the wicked that would be aroused by the developments thereof, moved thy servant Joseph to seal all these keys of power and intelligence which he had received upon the heads of his brethren the Apostles, with commandment that they should build up thy kingdom and establish its righteousness in the earth till thy Son, our Savior, shall come. Thy people being under a sense of these weighty obligations, and being driven out from among men, it seemed proper to thee to make thy servant Brigham mighty in wisdom and strength to lead forth thy people in safety, and after a year and a half's journey in the desert among savage tribes, thou didst give us rest in these valleys of the Rocky Mountains. In all these tribulations thine ear heard and thine own arm brought answers of deliverance to the supplications of thine afflicted children. Nor wast thou weary of their necessities and entreaties, but didst soften the rigor of unfriendly elements and didst cause the clouds to scatter refreshing showers, the hills to yield their treasures of snow and springs of living water to come forth from the dry and parched ground.The labor of the husbandman has been crowned with plenty for man and beast, and much wherewith to bless the stranger. The everlasting hills have yielded their rich treasures of iron, lead, silver and gold, while lightning and steam have contributed to gather thy sons from afar and thy daughters from the ends of the earth in swiftest ships, and without disaster. How can we declare the multitude of all thy mercies which thou has shown to thy dependent covenant children who have put their trust in thee for time would fail to mention the threatening famine by reason of the cricket, the locust and the grasshopper, when thou didst send the gulls that swallowed them up, and the lives of thy people were saved; or of the earthquakes which have engulfed islands, provinces and cities, with the multitudes of their inhabitants, while thy people have dwelt safely in this volcanic region, unharmed and undisturbed thereby; neither is the din of war heard in all our borders. We praise thy holy name for all the mighty work thou didst enable thy chief apostle, Brigham, to perform; that he was moved to build and to appoint Temples according to thy holy commandment in various cities of the land, and to designate that one should occupy this delightful spot. Since it has pleased thee to take him to thyself, thine other chief apostle, John Taylor, was inspired and with his brethren did lay the foundations of this House, and with the freewill offerings of thy Saints had reared it nearly to completion when his precious life was cut short by cruel persecution. We who are spared and are permitted to come together now dedicate this Temple unto thee. We most earnestly pray that thou wilt accept of this our offering in the allprevailing name of thy Son Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. We dedicate the ground and the hill on which it stands, that the same may be holy unto the Lord our God; that its steps, its terraces, its trees and shrubbery, with all its adornments and its approaches, may be the pathways of the just to the House of the Lord, the Temple of our God. Let the foundation of this House be made permanent and never be moved from its place. May the stones and the cement of which the building is composed become compact and strong as if it were one solid rock. We consecrate the basement on the lower story, which is in likeness of the home of the dead, with its baptismal font, for the service of the living and the dead, with its steps, the oxen on which the font rests, its seats, its rooms for changes, with all its doors and windows, their hangings and fastenings, the furniture and all that appertains to it. May the fountain which supplies it continue a living spring that shall never fail, and the stream become as the river of life to thy believing penitent children; that they who shall be buried therein may effectually die unto sin, and in coming forth may as certainly arise to lives of righteousness and faith, the spirit bearing witness of the blood of Christ which cleanseth from all sin; and when the ordinance is performed for the dead, that they may realize its efficacy as if they had received it themselves while in the flesh, and be judged in like manner. We dedicate and consecrate unto thee and the service of thy Saints, the lower and upper main courts, with all other apartments in this building which are sheltered by its roof, according to the various uses for which they have been designed, with their stands, their altars, their desks, the stairs by which they are reached, their doors and windows, their hangings and fastenings, together with their floors, partitions, ceilings, finishings, furnishings and ornamentations, also all apparatus and fixtures for ventilating, warming, lighting and seating the same, whether they are for public worship, administering in the holy sacraments and ordinances of thy holy Temple, or for private prayer and secret devotion; also all rooms that are used for study and learning words of wisdom from the best books, or by lectures and the experience of righteous and learned men able to teach the will and ways of the Lord,-all these we dedicate unto thee, that all may be most holy and acceptable unto the Lord our God. Wilt thou accept and bless these sacred altars which have been erected by the offerings of thy devoted Saints? and when thy people shall approach thee in thine own appointed way, then do thou hearken and hear their supplications; grant them deliverance from their adversaries; succor them in their temptations; give them knowledge of the ancestry of their generations, that they may go forth in the holiness and power of thine ordinances and as saviors on Mount Zion redeem the generations of their dead and bring many sons and daughters unto thee in thy kingdom. When thy sons and daughters shall desire to plight for faith with each other unto thee in a covenant of everlasting life and shall obtain admittance here in thy holy courts, then, 0 Lord, be pleased to accept their offerings; sanctify them, that they may be clean from all unrighteousness; clothe thy servants with the habiliments of the Priesthood, and here at the shrine of thy love seal them thine by thy Holy Spirit of promise until the day of their redemption, the resurrection of their bodies, as purchased by the blood of Christ thy Son. May this holy Temple be to them as one of the gates of heaven, opening into the straight and narrow path that leads to endless lives and eternal dominion. We dedicate the stands in the eastern portion of the building for the occupancy and ministration of the holy Melchizedek Priesthood, which has the keys of all spiritual blessings is of the order of thy Son Jesus Christ, and holds the power of endless lives. We also consecrate the stands in the west of the building for the occupancy and ministration of the Aaronic Priesthood, which is an appendage to the Melchisedec Priesthood and holds the keys to temporal blessings. We beseech thee, our Heavenly Father, to inspire thy ministering servants who shall instruct thy people from these stands, that they may rightly divide the words of truth and give to each member of thine household his portion of meat in due season, that from the treasures of thy storehouse the riches of eternal life may exalt thy children to a knowledge of thyself. May he who shall preside over the ministrations in this holy Temple, and all who labor with him, be greatly blessed with the understanding of thy perfect law and all the applications thereof to the condition of thy people. When any difficult matter shall require his consideration, may the voice of thy Holy Spirit give to him the revelations of they will, that all the ministration in this thy house and all the ordinances performed may be according to thy holy will and be accepted and be sanctioned in heaven, thy holy habitation. We dedicate to thee the records which are and shall be kept of all the ordinances administered here in this Temple. May the recorders who shall have the care and labor of making and keeping them be abundantly blessed with wisdom and knowledge, that the same may be truthfully and faithfully kept and be found worthy of all acceptation, that thy people may be righteously judged according to all that shall be written therein. We earnestly pray that they may be preserved most holy unto thee, from all violence and desecration, until they shall have accomplished the full object and purpose of their creation. 0 Lord God of our fathers, of the prophets, and of thy people, we beseech thee to accept the dedication of this Temple, with all that appertains to it, including the foundation and the towers thereof, unto thyself. May this delightful location be known as a holy hill of Zion, among thy people. Graciously be pleased to place thy name upon this House. Let the power of thy Spirit be felt by all who shall enter within its portals. Give thine angels charge concerning it, that it shall never be possessed by thine enemies, neither be defiled by the wicked and ungodly, nor ever be injured by any destructive elements; but grant that it may stand and endure as a monument of the obedience and love of thy people, and to the honor of thy holy name, for ages yet to come in holiness to the Lord. Have thou mercy upon Judah and Jerusalem; hasten the going forth of this sacred record to the Hebrews of all nations; raise up men and means to carry the glad tidings of thy returning favor to that afflicted people. Wilt thou hear and answer the prayers of thy servants and turn away the barrenness of their land? Make it very fertile as in days of old; turn the hearts of the exiles to thy promises made to their fathers, and let the land of Jerusalem become inhabited as towns without walls for the multitude of men and cattle therein, that they may rebuild their city and temple, that the glory of the latter house may be greater than that of the former house. We render thanks and praise to thy holy name for the measure of thy Spirit sent forth among the scattered remnants of the seed of Joseph; that they are pleased and comforted at hearing of the record of their fathers, that, where they have opportunity, they incline to the arts of peace and self-support. 0, may the power of the gospel, through obedience, enable them to be relieved from the terrible curse which is upon them, break forth into the light of Zion, and obtain a fulfillment of the promises made unto their fathers. We beseech thee, let thy peculiar blessings rest upon thy servants the Twelve Apostles, according to the arduous and important labor and presidency which have devolved upon them by the death of thy servant President John Taylor. Wilt thou strengthen thy servant who is called to preside over them and the Church with continual inspiration of the Holy Spirit; preserve him in health, accept the labors of his life and fill him with the spirit and power of his holy Apostleship. May the Apostles be united in the bond of perfectness with each other and prevail with thee for the abundance and richness of thy word, to dispense to thy people. Preserve them from the hands of their enemies until they shall accomplish their work. Give them power to send thy Gospel to all nations, kindreds, tongues and peoples, to gather thine elect from all lands, to build up thy Zion and establish thy righteousness in the earth, and to attain to the power of their calling and Apostleship in the flesh. 0 Lord, bless the Patriarchs whom thou hast appointed in the land of Zion. May they have power to seal blessings upon thy people by inspiration, as did the ancient fathers, that their blessings may be fulfilled upon the heads of their descendants and of thy people. Bless the Seventies with their Presidency, to magnify their calling in all lands where their lots may be cast, or where they may be appointed to labor, that thine Elders may praise thee and all the ends of the earth hear of the salvation of our God. Bless those who preside over the various missions in all the earth, that they may dispense the Gospel by all proper means within their reach, by writing, by publishing, by sending thine Elders to all places where the word of God may have free course and be glorified by the obedience of the honest in heart. Endow thou thy servants the High Priests with all the gifts and qualifications of their holy calling. We pray thee to bless the Stakes of Zion which thou hast established. May their Presidents, Counselors, High Councils, with the High Priests, the Seventies, the Elders and all that constitute the authorities of thy church, abide in the revelations of thy will, that Zion may lengthen her cords and strengthen her stakes in all righteousness. Enable the Bishops and High Councils to decree justice and judgment in equity and truth, that the Wards and Stakes of Zion may be built up in holiness, that we may be thy people and thou be our God. Bless with them the Priests, Teachers and Deacons, the standing ministry to thy Church, that they may be vigilant to put away iniquity from thy Church, that thou mayest bestow upon thy people the fulness of thy favor, thine everlasting love. We pray for thy blessing upon the Relief Societies, the Young Ladies; and Young Men's Associations, the Sabbath Schools, and the Primaries, with all those who are appointed to superintend and preside over them; that they may be abundantly blessed in relieving the sufferings of the destitute and sorrowful, arresting the wayward, and inspiring them with love for pure intelligence, and educating them in the ways of life and faith, that our youth may find thee early, and the aged be established in thy righteousness forever. We dedicate ourselves, with our wives, our children, our houses and lands, our flocks and herds, our gardens and vineyards, with all that we are and have, unto thee, the Lord our God, for time and for all eternity, and for the accomplishment of the work which thou hast given us to do. Heavenly Father, thou hast seen the labors of thy Saints in the building of this House. Their motives and their exertions are all known to thee. The hearts of the children of men and every thought thereof are open to thy sight. Thy people have sought to do thy will in rearing and adorning this great structure. They have contributed freely of the means which thou hast given them for its erection, and the hands of the committee and of the superintendent and assistant superintendent have been strengthened and their hearts been gladdened thereby. Even the children of thy people have shown delight in helping to purchase the curtains, the carpets and the furniture of this House. We this day present it to thee, 0 Lord our God, as the fruit of the tithing and free will offerings of thy people. Accept this we beseech thee, and let thy choice blessings rest down upon every man, woman and child who has [---] to the building and adorning of this Temple. Bless them with increased faith and with all the blessings of heaven and earth in due season; that in heavenly gifts, in their basket and in their store, in their children, in their flocks and in their herds, in the fruits of the earth, and in the conveniences and comforts of life, they may abound and ever increase. If there are any of thy people, 0 Father, who have not had the means to assist in this work, but have felt in their hearts to sustain it and to say that they gave not because they had not, but would gladly give if they had, let these same blessings rest down upon them also, and condescend to accept the desires of their hearts as free-will offerings unto thee. Show favor unto all who have helped to forward this work by good wishes, good words or good deeds. Remember thou and bless, we entreat thee, the committee, and the architect and superintendent, and his assistant architects and assistant superintendent, and all the workmen and their foremen in every department who have labored in preparing the ground upon which the House stands, or the materials of which it is composed, or in constructing and bringing it to completion. Reward them, we ask thee, for their faithfulness and diligence, and grant that the recollection of their labors may be a source of pleasure to them and their children after them. 0 Lord God, who dwellest in the heaven of heavens, look down from thy holy habitation, we beseech thee, in great mercy and tender compassion upon thy Zion which thou hast founded. We turn to thee with all our hearts for that help and succor which thou alone canst give. We are beset with peril. We are surrounded with danger. The powers of evil are aroused against us. The foes of thy Zion are numerous and mighty, while thy people are but few and feeble. Floods of falsehood, slander and unjust accusations sweep over the land, concerning thy Saints. By these means many of our fellow-citizens have been poisoned against us. They have urged the enactment of laws to ensnare us, to confiscate the property which we have consecrated unto thee, and to overthrow the plan of salvation which thou hast revealed to us. Through the delusion of lies and the blinding effect of prejudice, our fellow-citizens would deny us our rights, would consign us to prison, would wrest from us our property, would threaten us with utter destruction. Holy Father, thou knowest how false are the accusations against us. We appeal to thee for deliverance. Turn aside the wrath of man. Break the bands which encircle us. Destroy the traps which are spread for our feet. Let the light of eternal truth shine upon us and illumine our pathway. Vindicate us by thy power, and let not the wicked aspersions of our enemies prevail. Show to the world, and especially to our nation, the true character of thy people. Enlighten the minds of the officers of our government, soften their hearts, and give them power to check all spirit of persecution and disposition to justify oppression and approve of unjust judgments. Help them to comprehend the true principles of liberty and to enforce the same for the benefit of all people throughout the land. Open their eyes to see the wrongs that are being committed against thy people. Awaken them to a sense of justice. Give to the Chief Executive, to his cabinet and to the Congress and the courts of our nation, the firmness, courage and comprehension of justice necessary to maintain just and righteous government in the land, that the people may rejoice. Restrain and control the words and acts of preachers, lecturers and writers who endeavor to create anger and hostility against thy people. Take from all such the power to blind the eyes of the nation by misrepresentation and falsehood, or to inflame the people to sanction acts of anger against the innocent. As thou hast in the past overruled the violence of mobs and the cruelty of the wicked for the glory of thy name and the salvation of thy people, we ask thee, Righteous Father, to so control this present persecution that thy purposes may be accomplished in the redemption of thy Zion. Be with and sustain thy people in their afflictions. In their imprisonments, in their exile, in the unjust confiscation of their property and in the endurance of all the wrongs to which they are subjected, give them grace and patience and fortitude. May no murmuring at thy providences ever escape their lips. Reveal to thy people the salvation which awaits us. 0 God, before thee in this thy holy House, do we this day confess our sins. We acknowledge our shortcomings and imperfections. We are full of faults and errors. We accept the afflictions which we are now enduring as [---------] permitted by thee to make us more worthy of our high calling. We humbly pray thee to forgive us. Blot out our transgressions, that they shall not appear against us any more. Condescend to let thy favor and the light of thy countenance rest upon us. Make known thy will more and more plainly unto all thy Saints. Uphold us in all righteousness as the people whom thou hast chosen. Suffer us not to be put to shame; but show the inhabitants of the earth the truth of our testimony concerning thee and thy work. Now, Holy Father, we ask thee in the name of Jesus Christ, thy beloved Son, to hear and answer this our prayer. We entreat thee to accept this dedication of this House. Sanctify it and make it holy. The ordinances performed therein by thy servants and handmaids, may they be in thy sight as though performed by thyself. And to thy name be the honor and glory and praise for ever and ever, through Jesus Christ, our Redeemer, Amen. After the rendering of the prayer, the brethren all rose to their feet in response to a call from Prest. Woodruff and rendered the "Shout Hosanna." Prest. Woodruff then addressed the meeting. Brethren sang "Come All ye Sons of Zion." The meeting was then address by Elders Lorenzo Snow, George Q. Cannon, Brigham Young and F.M. Lyman. Brethren sang "Oh Give Me Back My Prophet Dear." Benediction by Prest. Wilford Woodruff. Adjourned to 10 A.M. tomorrow morning. ARRIVAL IN THE VALLEY OF THE SALT LAKE ____________________ THE FOLLOWING ADDRESS from President Wilford Woodruff was read before the assembled Sabbath Schools of Salt Lake City, at their celebration of Pioneer day, July 24, 1888. To the Pioneers and Citizens, and to the Officers and Members of the Sabbath Schools. My dear friends,--Forty-one years ago this day I passed through Immigration Canyon with President Brigham Young. He was taken sick on East Canyon Creek, and I made a bed for him in my carriage. When we came upon the bench, where we had a fair view of the valley before us, I turned the side of the vehicle to the west, so that he could obtain a fair view of the valley. President Young arose from his bed and took a survey of the country before him for several minutes. He then said to me, "Drive on down into the valley; this is our abiding place. I have seen it before in vision. In this valley will be built the City of the Saints and the Temple of our God." I drove down to the encampment already formed by a portion of our company, who had cut a road through the quaking-asp groves of timber which were in the bed of the canyon and come in ahead of us. We arrived in the encampment at 11:30 on the morning of the 24th of July, 1847. The brethren had already turned out City Creek and irrigated the dry and barren soil, being the first irrigation ever performed by any one in these mountains in this age. They had also commenced to plough some ground, and that noble pioneer, William Carter, whose circumstances prevent him meeting with the pioneers to-day, broke the first ground and laid the first furrow. The ploughshare that performed the work is on the stand to-day. On my arrival in camp, before I ate my dinner, I planted two bushels of potatoes in the ground broken up. President Young commenced to recover from his sickness the hour he entered the valley. On a day or two following our arrival a remarkable incident occurred. While President Young was walking with several of the apostles on the higher ground north-west of the encampment, he suddenly stepped out, struck his cane into the barren ground and sagebrush, and exclaimed, "Right here will stand the Temple of our God." We had a peg driven down, and it was nearly in the middle of the Temple as it stands to-day, which Temple was built without any regard to the spot designated by President Young at the time. On the 26th we went to the top of a high point on the north of the city, which President Young named "Ensign Peak." We also visited the Hot and Warm Springs. On the 27th we drove to the West Mountains, and visited the Salt Lake, President Young being the first man to dip his hand into the briny water. We walked dryshod to the Black Rock and took a bath in the lake. Afterwards preparations were made for laying out the city, and I with other brethren, assisted President Young in laying out the ground and streets with chain and compass. He laid out a block of ten acres upon which to build a Temple, and city lots of one acre and a quarter, and streets eight rods wide, all of which have been published by historians. President Young left Winter Quarters on the 7th day of April, accompanied by seven other apostles and other men all told 143 men and three women. The apostles were Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, Wilford Woodruff, Geo. A. Smith, Willard Richards, Orson Pratt, Amasa Lyman, and Ezra T. Benson. Parley P. Pratt and John Taylor arrived soon after, leading companies of families. Orson Hyde remained at Kanesville. We traveled the first 500 miles without any grass. With the exception of the little grain we fed our animals, they lived entirely on the bark of cottonwood limbs and saplings which they gnawed from the cottonwood we would lay before them for their night's meal. This company of 143 men traveled 1,000 miles, making their roads and building their bridges. In one instance we had to form a guard of a wedge shape for three days and nights to keep our company from being trampled to death by an enormous herd of buffalo that had gathered from the mountains and were migrating in a solid body to the plains below. The herd was judged to be sixty miles in length, and numbered not less than one million. They were traveling east, and we were traveling west. We were three days passing through the herd, and we all breathed freer when we were clear of them. No other class of men will ever witness the same scene again upon the face of the earth. Brother Wm. C.A. Smoot, sen., got his horses loose and mixed with the herd, and it was with great difficulty that we obtained them again. Notwithstanding our first care was to secure an abiding place, a home for the people, we did not lose sight of other important matters. President Young contemplated at that early day the building of a railroad across the continent, and we marked out the route which we thought the national road would take to unite the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Brothers Orson Pratt and Erastus Snow entered the valley two or three days before the body of the pioneers; but where are those men to-day, and where is President Brigham Young and the apostles who accompanied him? All are in the spirit world, mingling with the martyred prophets, where they can plead for their brethren. Not one of them living to-day except myself, and but few of the pioneers remain. We have buried a whole quorum of twelve apostles since we entered these valleys of the mountains. The remnant of Zion's Camp, Mormon Battalion, and the pioneers, number but very few to-day. Those of us who remain will soon pass away, but our posterity lives and are numbered in the Primaries, the Sabbath Schools, and the Mutual Improvement Associations, and are this day assembled in this great Tabernacle to celebrate the arrival of the pioneers into this great American desert, which to-day, through the blessing of God and labor of the pioneers, is blossoming as the rose. This company of pioneers spent about a month in this valley, during which period we erected what is known as the Old Fort, surrounding three sides of the ten-acre block with an adobe wall on the outside, and the east side with log cabins. We also arranged for this fort to have four entrances, one on each point of the compass. Most of the pioneers returned to Winter Quarters, where they reached in the fall, making a journey of over 2,000 miles, besides the labors performed while here in building a fort, laying out the city, and exploring the adjacent valleys. I wish to say a few words to the members of the Sabbath Schools, and to all who are assembled in this Tabernacle to-day to celebrate the arrival of the pioneers into this valley. It is not wisdom for us to occupy your time with a long address upon an occasion of this kind; but I have referred to a few incidents of our peculiar journey into this barren desert, that you can keep in mind the toil, the care, and the hardships which your fathers endured in laying the foundation of the Zion of our God which is to be established in the mountains of Israel in fulfillment of the blessings the old Patriarch, Jacob, pronounced upon his posterity that should be fulfilled in the valleys of the everlasting hills in the latter days; and upon the heads of the rising generation of the Latter-day Saints rests the responsibility of building up the kingdom of God upon the foundations which their fathers have laid. And also of building up a State in which shall dwell virtue, temperance, industry, frugality, and honesty; a State which will do honor to the American Government, where wholesome laws shall be administered in equity and justice to all of its citizens according to the letter and spirit of the Constitution given by inspiration of Almighty God to our forefathers. I feel to say to our children, honor your father and your mother and your God, that your days may be long and prosperous in these valleys of the mountains which the Lord your God hath given unto you. That God may bless you all, and enable you to fulfill the object of your creation here on earth to the satisfaction of yourselves and your Creator, is the earnest desire of your friend and brother, Wilford Woodruff. ETERNAL NATURE OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD ____________________ REMARKS By President Wilford Woodruff, in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday Afternoon, February 24, 1889. I feel that I want to say to you, my brethren and sisters, God bless you. And I feel to bless you. I am thankful that I have the privilege of spending a few moments here and bearing my testimony to the Church and Kingdom of God here on earth, backing up the testimony of Brother Cannon. The God of heaven has set His hand to carry out one of His purposes concerning the history of this world and its inhabitants. In the formation and creation of the world the Lord had before Him the whole history of the children of God, of the inhabitants of the earth. All men who have been readers and are acquainted with the revelations of God in those records that have been handed down to us, can clearly see that if God has had a people on the earth, He has given unto that people the Holy Priesthood, the revelations of heaven, and the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We read in the Revelations of St. John and other portions of the Scriptures, that in the last days the God of heaven would set His hand to establish His kingdom to be thrown down no more forever. You and I have lived to see that day. The Lord has set His hand to call forth the children of men to receive His Gospel and His Priesthood. There is this one peculiar principles connected with the Kingdom of God in every age of the world, and that is, every man and woman is dependent upon God Himself for all the blessings and all the power that they possess to carry out His purposes. There is no change of the Priesthood from eternity unto eternity. It has dwelt with the God of Israel from eternity unto eternity, and will remain unchangeable. There is no change in the ordinances of the Gospel of life and salvation. There never has been; there never will be to the endless ages of eternity. And whenever that Gospel has been offered to the sons of men, the Holy Priesthood has had to be sent down to aid in carrying out God's work. There is no man who ever breathed the breath of life since God made the world who has had power to go forth and administer in the ordinances of the Gospel of Christ without that Priesthood. Another thing I wish to say: Almost sixty years have passed since the Church was organized here on the earth, and the Lord has carried out one peculiar principle, and that is this--He has chosen the weak things of the world to confound the wise, and things which are not to bring to pass things which are. You may begin with the creation of the world. You may take all the servants of the Almighty that the God of Israel has ever made use of in any age of the world to carry out His work, and they have been the weak sons of Adam; they have been the weak instruments, from a worldly standpoint, in the hands of Almighty God. Why has the Lord chosen that class of men? Because they have been in a position that they were obliged to acknowledge the hand of God in all the power they possessed. Take our own day. Brother Cannon has referred to this people, to this Church and Kingdom. He has told you the truth. When the time came, in fulfillment of the revelations of St. John and the ancient patriarchs and prophets, for Him to establish His Kingdom on the earth, He raised up a class of men suitable for the purpose. I will here say, the Lord has never undertaken to perform any work, in any dispensation or generation, without preparing a people for it. The Lord raised up a young man--Joseph Smith. His spirit was kept in the eternal world for six thousand years, to come forth by appointment, through the loins of ancient Joseph and Ephraim, to stand in the flesh and to establish this Church and Kingdom. And he only lived long enough to perform it. He only lived long enough to bring forth the record of the Book of Mormon,--the stick of Joseph in the hands of Ephraim, and put it with the stick of Judah, in fulfillment of the revelations of God; and then go forth and organize the Church, with all the instruments, all the knowledge, that all the divines throughout the world did not have power to do, neither did they know how to perform that work. He was the first man in the last days that ever organized a church upon the foundation of Apostles and Prophets, Christ Jesus being the chief corner stone, according to the order as it was in the days of the Savior. And when He established this work, he established it with prophets, with apostles, with pastors, with teachers, with gifts, with helps, with graces, with the Holy Priesthood, with the power of God, and with the ordinances thereof. It is true, he waded in deep water. It is true that he was sacrificed. When he had got the foundation of this work laid, he himself laid down his life. He was martyred in a Christian country for the work of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. He was martyred for his religion. He sealed his testimony with his blood, as Jesus and other patriarchs and prophets sealed the dispensations in which they lived. From that day until now, this Church and Kingdom has continued to grow and increase. It mattered not what amount of persecution, what amount of affliction, what amount of opposition we had to meet with. That God who created the heavens and the earth holds this Church and Kingdom on His hands. And I here say to my brethren and sisters, the Church and Kingdom of God is here. It has come to stay; and that God who has organized it will sustain it until the scene is wound up. I have been reflecting since sitting in the stand here, where are our brethren to whom we have listened for years and years? Where is President Young? Where is Brother Kimball? Where are Orson and Parley Pratt? Where is George A. Smith? Where is President John Taylor? And where are all those other Apostles who have passed away? They are in the spirit world, mingling with the Gods, connected with all the patriarchs and prophets who have ever lived on the earth. You may ask the question: Why is it, then, that God, with the Savior, with Father Adam, with Noah, with Enoch, with the ancient patriarchs and prophets, and with all the Apostles who have lived in this day and generation, counseling together on the other side of the vail, do not have power to turn away this persecution that Brother Cannon has been speaking of? Jesus told His disciples that if he were to pray to the Father, He would give Him a legion of angels who would come to defend Him; but, He said, the will of the Father would not in that way be fulfilled. So I say to you. If many things that we might desire in our hearts should be fulfilled, the work of the Lord would fail in being consummated. We should remember that this generation, like all other generations, have their own agency. The nation in the midst of which we dwell today has its agency. The nations of the earth all have their agency. All sects and parties have; in fact, all the human family. And the God of heaven will hold them responsible. He will hold us responsible, according to the course we pursue. If we work and fight against God and the Kingdom of God, we have got to meet that in days to come. Brother Cannon has referred to the situation of men who have fought against this work. Yes, brethren and sisters, we have seen this from the organization of the Church; we shall see it until the scene is wound up. But I want to tell you one thing, and that is, the God of heaven has not gone to sleep; neither has He gone on a long journey; nor has He forgotten His people. Does He intend to withdraw His hand? "Leave judgment with me; it is mine, saith the Lord; I will repay." It is our business to leave judgment with the Lord in all these matters. Let us do our duty. Joseph Smith said fifty years ago last June, in speaking of the Priesthood--you can read it in the history of the Church--"Men profess to prophesy. I will also prophesy. I say, in the name of the Lord, that the signs of the coming of the Son of Man have already commenced in the earth, and from this time henceforth will the judgments of God be manifest among the nations of the earth. Wars, bloodshed, earthquakes, storms, thunder, lightening, pestilence, famine and the judgments of God will follow in their turn; and when these things go forth upon the earth, they will never be returned or withheld until the work of God is wound up." Let Israel read, let the inhabitants of the earth read, with regard to the signs of the times, and what do you see? There are a great many things manifested that the world do not acknowledge the hand of God in; but we do and we should. Therefore I would say to the Latter-day Saints, it is the will of God that you should not be discouraged; that you should have faith in the revelations of heaven and in those records that have been left for us and our guidance. Remember your brethren before the Lord. Be true and faithful unto this Church and Kingdom of God. It has been organized and established by the power of God, and not of man. How did Joseph Smith have power, as I have before said, to organize the Church as it has been organized--the best organization on the face of the earth? It is because it was organized by revelation. How did these hundreds and thousands of Elders of Israel, many of whom are here to-day, have power to go abroad, without purse and scrip, and preach the Gospel to the convincing of the sons and daughters of Adam? It has been done by the power of God. No Elder in this Church has had power to go forth and do the will of God only by the power of God. If we have any power, it is of God, and we should trust Him with regard to all things. Brethren and sisters, do not be discouraged. The Kingdom of God is established here in these valleys of the everlasting hills. These are the valleys and these are the mountains given by our father Jacob to his son Joseph--the utmost bounds of the everlasting hills, promised unto Joseph, who was separated from his brethren, and whose sons and daughters ye are. Let us be faithful. Let us try to do our duty. Let us endeavor to honor God. We have a long eternity before us. We have a great future before us. Zion will arise and shine, and the glory of God will rest upon her. Israel will be gathered, Jerusalem will be rebuilt, Zion be established and thrown down no more forever. These things are in the record of divine truth. Not one of them will ever fail of fulfillment. They were given by revelation. No matter what the feelings of our enemies may be. No matter what the feeling may be of those who differ in principle from us. They have the right to their own religion, and we have no right to disturb them. But if they war against God, against His Zion, against His people, they have got to pay the bill, the same as we have for the deeds done in the body. This nation will be held responsible for the course they have pursued towards the Zion of God. It has always been to me one of the strongest evidences--and it should be to all Latter-day Saints, if not to the world--the fact that all earth and hell, if I may be allowed to use such an expression, have been combined against this Church from the day that Joseph Smith brought forth the Book of Mormon and organized this Church with six members. Why is this? Would this opposition have been if it were not the Kingdom of God? It would not. For that reason the powers of darkness are stirred up. Darkness covers the earth, and gross darkness the minds of the people. The judgments of God are in the land, and the day will come when the nations will learn and understand that there is a God in Israel. I bear my record and my testimony that this is the work of God. The Lord has called us here; and we should not forget Him. We should not forget our prayers. Go before the Lord and make our wants known, and He will hear our prayers and sustain us in carrying out this work until the scene is wound up. I pray God to bless you and clothe you with the Spirit of God. What a responsibility it is to hold this heavenly, this eternal, this everlasting Priesthood? And we shall have to give an account of it. Apostles, Seventies, High Priests, Elders, and all men who bear any portion of this Priesthood that has been given unto us, will be held responsible for it until our spirits return unto God who gave them. I marvel sometimes, when I reflect, why I am alive. I was going to say that there is not a man living, scarcely, that I was acquainted with in Kirtland. A whole quorum of Apostles has been taken into the spirit world. But for some reason the Lord has preserved my life until the present day. And I sincerely desire, in the remaining days I have to spend here, that I may do what little good I can. I wish to magnify my calling. I wish to do my duty. I wish to know the mind and will of God, and try to do it. I pray not only that these blessings may be given to me, but to all the Elders of Israel and the Latter-day Saints, which may God grant, for Christ's sake. Amen. ADMINISTRATION OF ANGELS ____________________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at a Priesthood Meeting, held in Provo, Sunday Evening, March 3rd, 1889. __________ Reported by Arthur Winter. __________ Brother Cannon has touched upon some very important principles here tonight regarding the Holy Priesthood, and I feel disposed to make a few remarks upon some things connected therewith. In the first place, I will say that the Prophet Joseph taught us that Father Adam was the first man on the earth to whom God gave the keys of the Everlasting Priesthood. He held the keys of the Presidency, and was the first man who did hold them. Noah stood next to him. These keys were given to Noah, he being the father of all living in his day, as Adam was in his day. These two men were the first who received the Priesthood in the eternal worlds, before the worlds were formed. They were the first who received the Everlasting Priesthood or Presidency on the earth. Father Adam stands at the head, so far as this world is concerned. Of course, Jesus Christ is the Great High Priest of the salvation of the human family. But Adam holds those keys in the world today; he will hold them to the endless ages of eternity. And Noah, and every man who has ever held or will hold the keys of Presidency of the Kingdom of God, from that day until the scene is wound up, will have to stand before Father Adam and give an account of the keys of that Priesthood, as we all will have to give an account unto the Lord, of the principles that we have received, when our work is done in the flesh. Brother Cannon has given my mind with regard to Joseph Smith. I look upon Joseph Smith as the greatest Prophet that ever breathed the breath of life, excepting Jesus Christ. Father Adam, as I have said, stands at the head; but Joseph Smith was reserved to lay the foundation of this great Kingdom and dispensation of salvation to the whole human family in these last days, to build up Zion, to establish God's Kingdom, and to prepare it for the coming of the Son of Man. He held those keys. Brother Cannon has told you the truth. No other man held those keys while he lived. After him, as has been said, came Brother Brigham. I have traveled with Joseph Smith thousands of miles. There are some here tonight who were in Zion's Camp. He was a boy, in one sense of the word. He was but a young man when he was martyred and passed into the presence of God. His days were comparatively few. But he was a great man. He lived a long life for a few days. He performed an almighty work--as great a work as any man, save Jesus Christ, that ever lived on the earth. We knew him. We knew the Apostles. We knew Brother Brigham; he was a glazier and painter, and, in one sense of the word, an illiterate man. But God raised him up to do a great work and to follow in the channel of Joseph Smith. He magnified his calling. He led this people to these mountains, and he built up this country almost from one end of it to the other, by his counsel. The Lord took him to Himself. Brother Taylor followed, until he was taken away. Now, all of these men were what the world would call weak instruments in the hands of God. I have been asked the question many times, "Why did the Lord choose Joseph Smith to bring forth the Book of Mormon and to lay the foundation of this great Kingdom here on the earth? Why didn't He choose Dr. Haws, Dr. Porter, Mr. Beecher, or some great man?" I have never had but one answer in my life to all such men, and that is, "The Lord could not do anything with them, because of their unbelief, and their unwillingness to acknowledge His hand in all things." That is the reason the Lord has chosen weak instruments to do His work. And I will say here, if any of you want a weaker instrument than Wilford Woodruff to hold the keys of the Kingdom of God, you ought to be ashamed of yourselves. The Lord, however, is just as able to inspire me, or Brother Cannon, or any other man, when the time comes, as He has inspired other men in past ages. I know what the will of God is concerning this people, and if they will take the counsel we give them, all will be well with them. Now, I want to make a few remarks concerning myself. I never like to do this; but I want to give you a little of my experience in a few things, and I want to tell you where my strength lies, and the greatest evidence that any Elder of Israel can have, ever did have, or ever will have on the face of the earth with regard to the work of God. Speaking of the administration of angels. I never asked the Lord in my life to send me an angel or to show me any miracle. I wanted the Gospel of Christ; and the first sermon I ever heard preached in this Church I had a testimony for myself that it was the Gospel of Christ. I had a testimony to satisfy myself when I was baptized. I had been looking, praying, hungering and thirsting to find some man on the face of the earth who had the Priesthood, and who could teach me the Gospel. When I heard this sermon, I knew the voice; I knew the shepherd; I knew it was true. And from that day until this, I have never seen one moment in my life that I have ever had doubts with regard to it. I have never had any trial in this Church with regard to my faith. My trials have been of another nature. I have had the administration of angels in my day and time, though I never prayed for an angel. I have had, in several instances, the administration of holy messengers. In 1835, at Brother A. O. Smoot's mother's house in Kentucky, I received a letter one day from Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery, requesting me to stay in Kentucky and Tennessee and take charge of the Church there. He wanted David Patten and Warren Parrish to go to Kirtland to receive their endowments. Joseph said in that letter: "You shall lose no blessing by pursuing this course." That letter was a great joy, a great comfort and consolation to me. I had traveled with Joseph Smith to Missouri. I had been acquainted with him, and I knew he was a Prophet of God. In the evening of that day I went into a little back room, in which was a small settee. I was alone. I was overwhelmed with joy and consolation at the letter I had received and the encouraging words it contained. I knelt down and prayed. I arose from my knees and sat down. The room was filled with light. A messenger came to me. We had a long conversation. He laid before me as if in a panorama, the signs of the last days, and told me what was coming to pass. I saw the sun turned to darkness, the moon to blood, the stars fall from heaven. I saw the resurrection day. I saw armies of men in the first resurrection, clothed with the robes of the Holy Priesthood. I saw the second resurrection. I saw a great many signs that were presented before me, by this personage; and among the rest, there were seven lions, as of burning brass, set in the heavens. He says, "That is one of the signs that will appear in the heavens before the coming of the Son of Man. It is a sign of the various dispensations." Now, had I been an artist, on the next day I could have sat down at my table and drawn, as clearly as though I had studied them all my life, everything I saw. I went to meeting the next day, with Brother Smoot. I hardly knew where I was. I did not comprehend a being, scarcely. I was entirely overwhelmed with what I had seen the night before. Some of you have read the history of the power of the devil in England, when the fallen angels that are upon the earth made war upon Brother Kimball, Brother Hyde, Brother Fielding and Brother Russell, who had all they could do to live in the midst of that kind of warfare. These evil spirits knocked down Brother Russell and Brother Hyde. They didn't Brother Kimball; but that power fell upon him. His eyes were opened. He saw the spirits before him; he saw what kind of beings they were. They gnashed their teeth; they were mad; they wanted to destroy the lives of the brethren. These men held the Priesthood. Brother Kimball held the keys of the Priesthood, so far as England was concerned. These spirits had not, therefore, the power to destroy them. Brother Kimball, Brother George A. Smith and myself had a similar experience in London, at a house where we were stopping. It seemed as if there were legions of spirits there. They sought our destruction; and on one occasion, after Brother Kimball had left, these powers of darkness fell upon us to destroy our lives, and both Brother Smith and myself would have been killed, apparently, had not three holy messengers come into the room and filled the room with light. They were dressed in temple clothing. They laid their hands upon our heads and we were delivered, and that power was broken, so far as we were concerned. Why did the Lord send these men to us? Because we could not have lived without it; and, as a general thing, angels do not administer to anybody on the earth unless it is to preserve the lives of good men, or to bring the Gospel, or perform a work that men cannot do for themselves. That is the reason Moroni and other angels of God visited and taught Joseph Smith. They quoted to him whole chapters in the Bible--in Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel--and told him what must come to pass in the last days. It was necessary for these angels to give him the Priesthood. There was no mystery at all with regard to what was taught him. He knew it was of God. These very principles sustained Joseph Smith from the hour the Gospel was delivered to him until he sealed his testimony with his blood. Now, I have had all these testimonies, and they are true. But with all these, I have never had any testimony since I have been in the flesh, that has been greater than the testimony of the Holy Ghost. That is the strongest testimony that can be given to me or to any man in the flesh. Now, every man has a right to that, and when he obtains it, it is a living witness to him. It deceives no man, and never has. Lucifer may appear to man in the capacity of an angel of light; but there is no deception with the Holy Ghost. We do not particularly need the administration of angels unless we are in a condition similar to that in which Brother Kimball, Brother Smith and myself were placed, when we could not save our lives without them. I saw to you, as Brother Cannon has, the Kingdom of God is here. The Priesthood is here. The keys of the Kingdom of God are here. They will remain here. It makes no difference whether Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, John Taylor, Wilford Woodruff, or anybody else, remains; while these keys are here we have a right to know the mind and will of God; and when we do our duty, when we live our religion, we shall have these principles manifested to us. I know what awaits this nation. I know what awaits the Latter-day Saints. Many things have been shown to me by vision and by revelation. I know that the Latter-day Saints have need to repent of all their darkness, all their unbelief and all their disunion that they have in Zion. Our power, our salvation, our exaltation, our redemption, our glory and our preparation for the coming of the Son on Man, depend entirely upon our own acts. As was said today, if we are not united, we shall be chastised by the power of God. But the Lord said: "Fear not, little flock, the kingdom is yours until I come." No matter if earth and hell combine against us, we are in His hands, and He has said that He will guide and direct the affairs of the Kingdom. The Lord is no different today from what He was in the days of Adam, of Enoch, of Christ, of Joseph, of Brigham. The Latter-day Saints should seek for the Spirit of God. We have great power and great blessings given unto us. As has been said here, look at our condition today, and compare it with what it has been in years past. Some of you were acquainted with our former condition. Here is Brother Philo Dibble. He was in Jackson County. He was shot through the body; but his life was preserved by the power of God. We were driven away; our property was burned and destroyed. The Lord told us to importune at the feet of the Judge and the Governor, and if they did not heed us, to importune at the feet of the President. And if the President would not heed us, then the Lord would come forth out of His hiding place, "and in His fury vex the nation, and in His hot displeasure and in His fierce anger, in His time, will cut off those wicked, unfaithful and unjust stewards, and appoint them their portion among hypocrites and unbelievers, even in outer darkness, where there is weeping, and wailing, and gnashing of teeth." Do you think the Lord told the truth? Yes, He did; and not one jot or tittle will fall unfulfilled. If our nation does not give us our rights; if they continue to oppress and persecute us, these things are in the hands of God. More than 50 years ago the Prophet Joseph received a revelation which said: "Behold, verily I say unto you, the angels are crying unto the Lord day and night, who are ready and waiting to be sent forth to reap down the field." These angels wanted to go and reap down the earth. But the Lord said in effect, "No; wait till the earth is warned; wait till the nations of the earth have the Gospel of Christ preached unto them; wait till they have a chance to repent and receive the Gospel, if they will. When this is done, then you may go down." Brethren, the heavens are full of judgment. And as the Lord told the people at the commencement of this work, "If the nation will repent, if they will obey my law and keep my commandments, I, the Lord, will save these judgments; otherwise they shall be poured out, as I, the Lord, have spoken." These things are true. The judgments of God will increase from this hour, until the land is deluged in blood. War will overtake our nation. The civil war, the war between the North and the South, which laid in the dust nearly a million of men and cost the nation many hundred millions of dollars, was only the beginning of suffering. Had this nation listened to the counsels of Joseph Smith and heeded them, this war and the terrible suffering which it entailed would have been avoided. But the judgments of the Lord are not yet ended. He is going to fulfill His work. Now, my object, and your object, is--at least it should be--to try to do our duty. I have got to meet the Apostles; I have got to meet the Elders of Israel; I have got to meet Father Adam, in the Kingdom of God in the heavens; and we have all got to give an account to him, as our Great Progenitor and the first man who held the keys of the Priesthood on the earth. When I go there and meet him, I shall have to render an account of what I do here. The Lord has chosen the weak things of the world to do His work. But He is as able to teach me, or any of my brethren, as He ever has been in any age of the world. He has always selected the weak things. Take Moses in leading the children of Israel. Moses said he was slow of speech, and he thought that he could not do anything. But the Lord said he would raise up a spokesman for him. When the Lord wanted a king for Israel, he chose David, the son of Jesse, who was herding sheep. All the sons of Jesse, except David, were brought before the Prophet; but Samuel would not anoint either of them. He asked Jesse if he had any more sons. Jesse said, Yes; there is a little fellow down here taking care of the sheep. The Prophet wanted to see him. When he came, Samuel anointed him king of Israel. So in the days of the Apostles. Who were they? Illiterate fishermen. So it is today. Begin with Joseph Smith and take the whole of us. Who are we? We are poor, weak worms of the dust. But the Lord has chosen us because He thought He could do something with us. I hope He can. I suppose I have held the Apostleship longer than any man that has been on the face of the earth in these last days. Should I boast over this or be proud and exalted because I have held the Priesthood so long? If I did, I should be a very foolish man. We are obliged to honor God; we are obliged to acknowledge the hand of God. The devil has sought to destroy me from the time I was born until the present day. But the Lord has always been on my right hand and saved me. There have been two powers at work--one to destroy me, the other to save me. And I am here today, a weak instrument in the hands of God. But, as God lives, if He will tell me what my duty is, I am going to do it! I pray God to bless us, and awaken us that we may see our position on the earth. The eyes of all heaven are over us. The Father, the Savior, Father Adam, the Patriarchs, the Prophets, and all the Apostles who have lived in our day and generation, are watching over us, and waiting for us to do our duty; and when we perform that, the judgments of God will be manifest in the earth. I pray God to give us wisdom, and to help us to be humble, faithful, meek and lowly of heart. Look at the purity of the Savior, from the manger to the grave, and where is there a man on the face of the earth that can feel anything like exaltation or glory? I have seen Oliver Cowdery when it seemed as though the earth trembled under his feet. I never heard a man bear a stronger testimony than he did when under the influence of the Spirit. But the moment he left the kingdom of God, that moment his power fell like lightening from heaven. He was shorn of his strength, like Samson in the lap of Delilah. He lost the power and testimony which he had enjoyed, and he never recovered it again in its fulness while in the flesh, although he died in the Church. It does not pay a man to sin or to do wrong. Brother Cannon spoke about difficulties between ourselves. What business have we to go to law because of a little water or anything else on the earth? When we do this we have lost the Spirit of the Gospel. You have had good counsel with regard to this, and if you carry it out the blessings of the Lord will attend you. I hope the people of Provo will look to this. We should be united and stand together in the midst of the opposition that we will have to meet. I hope this power and influence will dwell in this county and throughout these mountains of Israel, which may God grant, for Christ's sake. Amen. THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST ____________________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at Springville, Tuesday Morning, March 5th, 1889. __________ Reported by Arthur Winter. __________ Brethren and sisters: I feel to say, God bless you. I am glad to meet with you and to have the privilege of once more bearing my testimony to the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the Kingdom of God. What Brother Cannon has told you with regard to the work of the Lord, is true. I have traveled in my day a great many miles with the Prophet Joseph Smith. I once heard him say that if he were the emperor of the world and had control of the whole human family, he would defend every man, woman and child in the enjoyment of their religion, no matter what their religion was, whether it was true or false. He said they had a right to that privilege, and the exercise of that agency which God had given to the whole human family. Those were his sentiments. They are my sentiments today. The Revelator, St. John, represented to us that there would be about six hundred three-score and six different religions upon the earth in these last days--the number of the name that was spoken of by him. Today that number, I presume, is very nearly filled. The whole Christian world are as diverse in their views and principles of religion and roads to heaven or hell, as the stars are diverse in their position in the heavens. And while I would grant this privilege that I have spoken of, to all mankind, I claim the same privilege for myself and for all our people. We have a right to the enjoyment of our religion and belief, and to practice the same on the earth; and all other sects and parties have the same right. Inasmuch as I claim this, I want to give some of my views and tell you my feelings with regard to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. To commence with, I will quote the words of the Apostle Paul. You are doubtless familiar with Paul's history, and know what a persecutor of the Saints he once was, and how he became converted to the truth; and his conversion was so thorough and complete that he finally laid down his life in defense of the Gospel of Christ. That same Paul said: "Though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed." That was a strong declaration; and to make it more emphatic, he repeated it. Now, brethren and sisters, and friends, that Gospel which Paul taught is what I believe in. It is what I have believed in since I was old enough to read the New Testament. My belief in that Gospel was so strong that I never joined any sect or denomination on the earth until I heard a man preach to me that Gospel. He held the Priesthood, and he taught me the same Gospel that Paul taught. As many of you may have heard me remark before, I went to Sabbath school, in my boyhood, under Dr. Porter, in Farmington, Connecticut. He and Dr. Haws, of Hartford, Conn., were Presbyterian divines, and were considered great men in that day. In that Sabbath school I read the New Testament. I learned verse after verse and chapter after chapter. What did the Testament teach me? It taught me the Gospel of life and salvation; it taught me a Gospel of power before the heavens and on the earth. It taught me that the organization of the Church consisted of Prophets, Apostles, Pastors and Teachers, with helps and governments. What for? "For the perfecting of the Saints, for the work of the ministry: for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come in the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ." These are the things which I learned, and they made an impression upon me. I believed in them; yet I had never heard them taught by any clergyman or divine upon the earth. In my early manhood I attended the meetings of almost every denomination there was. On one occasion I attended one of those great meetings which were sometimes held in Connecticut, at which forty or fifty ministers of various denominations were gathered together. They prayed for a pentecostal season and for a good many other things. At this meeting permission was given for anybody to make remarks. I was quite young then. I arose and stepped into the aisle, and I said to that body of ministers: "My friends, will you tell me why you don't contend for the faith once delivered to the Saints? Will you tell my why you don't contend for that Gospel that Jesus Christ taught, and that His Apostles taught? Why do you not contend for that religion that gives unto you power before God, power to heal the sick, to make the blind to see, the lame to walk, and that gives you the Holy Ghost and those gifts and graces that have been manifest from the creation of the world? Why do you not teach the people those principles that the ancient Patriarchs and Prophets taught while they were clothed with the revelations of God? They had the administrations of angels; they had dreams and visions, and constant revelation to guide and direct them in the path in which they should walk." The presiding elder said: "My dear young man, you would be a very smart man, and a very useful man in the earth, if you did not believe all those foolish things. These things were given to the children of men in the dark ages of the world, and they were given for the very purpose of enlightening the children of men in that age, that they might believe in Jesus Christ. Today we live in the blaze of the glorious gospel light, and we do not need those things." Said I: "Then give me the dark ages of the world; give me those ages when men received these principles." There is where I stood in my youth. I did not believe that these gifts and graces were done away, only through the unbelief of the children of men. They were done away when men rejected the law of the Gospel of Jesus Christ; turned away from the Kingdom of God, built up altars to Baal, and sought to carry out principles of their own. And the earth remained in that condition until the Lord raised up a Prophet in these last days. He raised up Joseph Smith, who laid the foundation of this Church and Kingdom. And from that day until the present, whenever any one has embraced the Gospel of Christ and lived that religion, the gifts and blessings of that Gospel have been bestowed upon them. And this will be so unto the end. I have traveled many thousands of miles, at home and abroad, preaching the Gospel of Christ to my fellow-men; and, in my experience, I have never known a man or woman who, when they received the Gospel with honest hearts and were baptized, did not receive a testimony for themselves. While in England, in 1840, I was inspired of the Lord to go to Herefordshire. There had never been any Elders in that part of the country. When I arrived there I found about six hundred people called United Brethren. They had broken off from the Wesleyan Methodists. They sought for those ancient gifts that I have been speaking about. They had been praying to God to open the way before them. What was the consequence? All of them, except one, including forty-five preachers, were baptized in thirty days. They received the Gospel, and the gifts and graces followed them. As I said before, these are the principles that I believe in. And I will say here that this same Gospel was with Father Adam, with Noah, with Enoch, and with all the ancient patriarchs and prophets. There has been no change. And I say, as a servant of God, there is no change in the eternal and everlasting Priesthood. It is without beginning of days or end of years. It is from eternity unto eternity. By the power of that Priesthood, God, our Eternal Father, has organized all worlds, and redeemed all worlds that have ever been redeemed. By that same Priesthood men have administered on the earth in the ordinances of the Gospel of Christ. There is no change to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, nor to one of the ordinances thereof. And whenever that Gospel is offered to the children of men, it is by the power of the Priesthood. No man who has ever breathed the breath of life, since God made the world, has ever had the power to go forth and minister in one of the ordinances of the Gospel of Christ, without that Priesthood; and no man ever will. This may not be believed by many of the inhabitants of the earth; but it is true. We have been gathered to these valleys of the mountains by the power and inspiration of God. We might have gone forth and preached till we had become as old as Methuselah, and if the power of the Almighty had not attended that preaching, Utah might still have been a desert. But the Spirit of God bore record to the teachings of the Elders of Israel, and the honest in heart and meek of the earth received the Gospel and gathered to these valleys. This is in fulfillment of the revelations of God. John the Revelator, in his vision on the Isle of Patmos, 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." Those words have been fulfilled. The angel of God has visited the earth and delivered the fulness of the Gospel unto the inhabitants thereof, and they are receiving it. By the power of that Gospel you left your homes and came to these mountains of Israel. Now, Paul says that if we preach any other gospel than that which he taught, we should be accursed. The first principle in that Gospel is faith in Christ as the Savior of the world. When men have faith, then they are required to repent of their sins and be baptized for the remission of sin. This is what Jesus Christ taught, and He set the example himself. Though He committed no sin, He went unto John the Baptist and demanded baptism of him. John the Baptist said he was not worthy to do it. But Jesus said, "Suffer it to be so now; for thus it becometh us to fulfill all righteousness." After being baptized it is necessary that we should have hands laid upon us by men holding the Holy Priesthood, for the reception of the Holy Ghost. Now, if you have the Holy Ghost with you--and every one ought to have--I can say unto you that there is no greater gift, there is no greater blessing, there is no greater testimony given to any man on earth. You may have the administration of angels; you may see many miracles; you may see many wonders in the earth; but I claim that the gift of the Holy Ghost is the greatest gift that can be bestowed upon man. It is by this power that we have performed that which we have. It is this that sustains us through all the persecutions, trials and tribulations that come upon us. We also have the gifts of the Spirit among us. I can bear testimony that the sick have been healed, the blind have been made to see, the deaf to hear and the lame to walk, the devils have been cast out, by the power of God. These gifts and graces have been with this people from the organization of the Church until the present hour. There sits a man [pointing to Brother Philo Dibble] who, fifty-five years ago, while in Jackson County, Missouri, was shot through the body because of his religion. If it had not been for the power of God, which was manifested in his behalf, he would have gone to the grave. Other men have been in like circumstances. The Lord has taken whom He pleased and when He pleased, and preserved in life those whom He would preserve, according to the counsel of His own will. I bear record that these gifts are enjoyed by this people, according to their faithfulness before God. If we lack these things, it is because we do not live our religion; for if we do our duty before the Lord, those blessings will be with us. Brethren and sisters, the Lord has set His hand, in fulfillment of the words of the Prophet Daniel, to establish His Kingdom once more and for the last time on the earth, and to prune His vineyard with a mighty pruning. He has called men and ordained them and sent them forth to prune the vineyard for the last time, before the judgments of God overtake the world. These principles are true, and if we will do our duty, the blessings of God will attend us. The Lord has set His hand to call forth His Church out of the wilderness. The world has been in darkness and error from the day that Jesus and His disciples died. The Lord took the Priesthood to Himself. He left the Christian and the Jewish world without the Gospel of Christ, without a solitary man who had power to administer in the ordinances of the Gospel. These are the truths of heaven, and I bear record of them to all men, and you will find that they are true when you go into the presence of God. If the Lord ever fulfills His predictions, it is quite time that He began to have a people on the earth who will acknowledge His name. The time has come when God is going to perform His work. If you want to know what is going to take place, read the Bible. Let the Christian world read the Bible; they don't believe the Book of Mormon or the Doctrine and Covenants. Let them see what the Revelator St. John says is going to take place in the last days. Read of the opening of the seals, the pouring out of the plagues the turning of the rivers and the seas into blood, and of the death and judgment that are going to overtake the world. John wrote these things as he was moved upon by the Holy Ghost, and his words will come to pass. We are living in a great day. These mountains are filled with Latter-day Saints, in fulfillment of the revelations of God. The Lord has commenced this work, and He is not going to leave it. I warn all men of that. Zion is going to be built up. Zion is going to be established. Zion is going to be clothed with the glory of God. And the Kingdom of God will be like the little stone cut out of the mountain without hands; it will fill the whole earth, and prepare the way for the coming of the Son of Man. Brethren and sisters, this is my testimony. This is the religion that I believe in. Have not I a right to believe in it? I say I have. I say to every Methodist, to every Catholic, to every Presbyterian, and to all, you have a right to your own belief. We have a little time to dwell here in the flesh. I shall soon be called to go into the presence of God, and I am willing to meet all the world there with regard to my testimony. I know my testimony is true. I know Joseph Smith's testimony is true. I know he sealed his testimony with his blood. It required his blood, apparently, to seal this dispensation, as it did the blood of Jesus and the prophets of old, to seal their dispensations. Brethren and sisters, I want to see you faithful. I want you to be saved in the Kingdom of God. I want to be saved, too. What is gold, what is silver, what is honor, what is the glory of this world? It all perishes with the using. Where are the ancient prophets and apostles? They have fallen asleep. Where are the generations that have existed before us? They have gone to sleep. Our forefathers are in the spirit world. I shall very soon follow them, I expect. So will you. Our future destiny lies on the other side of the vail. When I die I want the privilege of going where God my Heavenly Father is, and where Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world, is--He who taught the doctrines that Brother Cannon and I are teaching you today, and that the Elders of Israel have taught from the commencement of this work. I want to dwell with them, and with our people who have been true and faithful to God. I believe God will save all people, except the sons of perdition, in some glory. There is a glory of the sun; there is a glory of the moon, and a glory of the stars, as one star differeth from another star in glory, so is the resurrection of the dead. All sects, all parties, all people, except those who shed innocent blood or commit unpardonable sin, will have a glory according to their condition and the lives they have lived on the earth. As Brother Cannon has said, God offers the Gospel to a generation, and if they reject that Gospel it will cost them dearly. It is a serious thing for any dispensation to reject the Gospel of Christ and to shed the blood of the prophets. What did it cost to shed the blood of the Savior? He came to His Father's house--the Jews. He brought the Gospel to them, and warned them of the wrath to come. But they rejected the Gospel; they crucified Him and put Him to death. What did it cost them? Jesus told them himself what it would cost them. He said: "And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations; and Jerusalem shall be trodden down by the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled." That yoke has been upon the Jewish nation until the present day, and it is not broken yet, and will not be until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled, which is close at our door. Look at Jerusalem after Christ was slain. Look at the trouble and suffering the Jews endured in the great war against Jerusalem, under Titus. Twelve hundred thousand people were taken out of the gates of Jerusalem and fell by the famine and by the sword. A remnant was scattered throughout the world, and remains in that condition today. At the present time they are persecuted in Russia, in Austria, in Germany, and in other nations of the earth. They will be persecuted until Christ comes, or near that time. It is the same in this generation, and in every generation in which God has had a people upon the earth. It costs something to shed the blood of righteous men. I say to the Latter-day Saints, do your duty, honor God and remember your covenants. I want these young men and young women of Israel to honor God, to honor their parents, and remember their prayers. This Kingdom has got to rest upon your heads. The world do not believe these things; but their unbelief does not make the truths of God of none effect. Therefore, I have a right to urge these young men to qualify themselves and prepare themselves to take the places of their fathers, and to honor God and be united. United you stand, divided you fall. Union is that which God requires of us, as a people. I hope you will lay these things to heart. Read in the Bible and you will find that they are true, and they will have their fulfillment. God bless you. Amen. DEALINGS OF GOD WITH MAN ____________________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the General Conference, Salt Lake City, on Sunday afternoon, April 7, 1889. __________ Reported by Arthur Winter. __________ While the Sacrament is being passed to this congregation I will try to make a few remarks; but whether or not I shall be heard by this assembly I cannot say. If after the scene we have passed through during the last hour any man can answer his mind and satisfy himself before an assembly of this kind to occupy the position that I do, unless he is assisted by the God of Israel, he is made of different mater-ial to what I am. That which we have had before us this after-noon is a testimony to heaven and earth that what has been pre-sented here could not have been witnessed in the midst of any other people on the face of the earth, unless that people were the children of God. Here we have had ten thousand men and women lift up their hands in a vote to sustain not only the Presidency of the Church and the Twelve Apostles, but other men in their various positions, and without a dissenting vote. Where on the earth can a scene of this kind be seen except among the Latter-day Saints? I feel it my privilege, right and duty to now make a few remarks with regard to myself and the dealings of God with me. But before doing that I will say that the Lord has never set His hand, in any age of the world, to perform a work among the sons of Adam, but He has prepared an element for that work. You will see this in the whole history of His dealings with the human family. It is so in the generation in which we live. The God of heaven, having set His hand to carry out His great purposes and decrees, which have been revealed in the records of divine truth, has been under the necessity of preparing a people to take hold of and to perform the work which He has decreed should come to pass. Ten thousand of that people are before me today, with tens of thousands throughout the land. With regard to myself I will say that in my early youth, while reading the Bible--the record of Judah, and the New Testa-ment--I read of Jesus Christ, of His Apostles, their works, and the dealings of God with them, and of the doctrines which they received and taught to those around them, There was something glorious in those principles which the Savior of the world and His disciples taught in their day. I had a great desire in my boyhood and youth that I might live to behold a people who were inspired of the Almighty, and who had power and authority to go forth and teach those principles which I read of within the lids of the Bible. At that time I could not hear them taught. They were not taught by any person within my knowledge. But, as I have said, I had a longing desire that I might live to behold a people on the earth who would teach these principles to me. I spent many a midnight hour in my mill, and among the rocks, in the forests and in the fields, in pouring out my soul to God and praying that I might live to behold a people on the earth who would teach these principles. In answer to my prayers, the God of heaven promised me that I should live to find such a people. He promised me that I should have a name and a place within the House of God and among His people--a name that should not be cut off. I am strongly impressed today, in reflecting upon our history and the history of myself, and the position which I occupy, with the promises of God to me in those early days. They have been fulfilled; and this day has crowned the pinnacle of the responsibility which is placed upon my head. I marvel when I contemplate these things, which are in fulfillment of the promises of God unto me. And when I say this of myself, I speak of hundreds of the Elders of Israel who have been moved upon in the same manner that I have been. Those with whom I stood connected in the early period of the Church--the Prophet Joseph Smith, Hyrum Smith, and those men that laid the foundation of this Church and kingdom, together with other Prophets and Patriarchs--have passed away. They are on the other side of the veil. I still have the privilege of remaining, and I this day have been called to this responsibility in the midst of my brethren--a responsibility that no man can fill unless he is inspired of God. But I will say this to my brethren and sisters, in the name of Israel's God: The Almighty will never permit me, nor any other President who holds the keys of the Kingdom of God, to lead you astray. If I do not walk in the paths of righteousness and do what is right in the position that I occupy, He will remove me out of my place, or any other man who attempts to lead the people astray. The position which I occupy, and that occupied by my brethren the Apostles, should not have a tendency, if we have the Spirit of God, to make us lifted up or exalted in our spirits before the Lord. I know, as the God of Israel lives, that I have no power, nor have I had, in this Church, to perform any work pertaining to this Kingdom until it has been given unto me by the God of heaven. I know Joseph Smith had not, nor Brigham Young, nor John Taylor, nor any Apostle or Elder in this Church and Kingdom. And the moment that I attempt to become lifted up in the pride of my heart, because of any position that I hold, that moment I become a very unwise man. So with anyone else. The higher our position the more our responsibility. During the little time I may spend here in the flesh, I stand in need of the prayers of the Latter-day Saints, of those who have faith in God. So do my brethren that surround me. So do all the authorities of the Church. We all stand in need of the Holy Ghost and the power of God. Without this we are not qualified to fill the positions which we are called to occupy. I know that this is the work of God. So do all you who have ever had the testimony of the Holy Ghost with you. The God of heaven has set His hand to establish His Kingdom, in fulfillment of the revelations of heaven which He has inspired men to declare and put on record from generation to generation. His hand has been manifest from the beginning of the work until the present day. It will be until this scene is wound up. I have a great desire that, as a people, we may be united in heart; that we may have faith in the revelations of God, and look to those things which have been promised unto us. We should be humble before the Lord. Trace the history of Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world, from the manger to the cross, onward through sufferings, mingled with blood, to the throne of grace, and there is an ensample for the Elders of Israel, an ensample for all those who follow the Lord Jesus Christ. In meekness and lowliness of heart He labored faithfully while He dwelt in the flesh to carry out the will of His Father. God has laid upon our shoulders and has sealed upon our heads the holy and eternal Priesthood, which is from eternity unto eternity. Without that Priesthood we have no power to administer in the ordinances of the Gospel of Christ, either for the living or the dead. But with that Priesthood we have power to perform the work that is assigned unto us. By that Priesthood we have preached the Gospel, we have administered in the ordinances of the House of the Lord, and we have gathered together the sons and daughters of Zion into these valleys of the mountains. I feel as though I want to bear my testimony to the truth of this good old book, the Bible, for a few minutes--the book that all the Christian world profess to believe in. There is an effort made today by the infidel and unbelieving world to ridi-cule the Bible, as not being the word of the Lord. I will refer to a few things that have been manifested in fulfillment of the record. To commence with, I will touch upon the first dealings of God with man. The first son that was begotten by Father Adam, whose name was Cain, proved to be a murderer. He slew his brother Abel, who held the Priesthood, and the Lord pronounced a curse upon him. He showed Cain the position he was in, and told him what the result of his crime would be; and Cain said unto the Lord: My punishment is greater than I can bear. Behold, Thou has driven me out this day from the face of the earth; and from thy face shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; and it shall come to pass, that every one that findeth me shall slay me. But the Lord said unto him: Therefore, whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him seven fold. And the Lord set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him. What was that mark? It was a mark of blackness. That mark rested upon Cain and descended upon his posterity from that time until the present. Today there are millions of the descendants of Cain, through the linage of Ham, in the world, and that mark of darkness still rests upon them. Though nearly six thousand years have passed and gone, this mark is visible to the whole human family. Yet the fool and the infidel say there is no God, and they ridicule the Bible. The Lamanites, on this continent, suffered a similar ex-perience. They went to war against the Nephites; they thirsted for blood, and they painted themselves red; and the Lord put a curse of redness upon them. Hundreds of years have passed since then, but wherever you meet the Lamanites today, you see that mark upon them. Read the history of ancient nations and the dealings of God with them, as contained in the Bible and other historical works. When those ancient kingdoms and peoples became wicked and cor-rupt, when they turned away from all that was virtuous and holy, the Lord raised up prophets to warn them; and these prophets, though perhaps unpopular in the eyes of those with whom they dwelt, warned these nations and cities of the judgments that would overtake them. What followed the warnings of these prophets? Read of the fall of the mighty cities of Thebes, Nineveh, Memphis, Tyre and Sidon, Babylon the Great, and Jeru-salem itself. All these great and mighty cities and nations were warned by the servants of God of the judgments that would over-take them. Did the inhabitants of those cities believe the words of the prophets? They did not. But did those words come to pass? They did; and those cities were laid waste and their inhabitants destroyed. Thus the words of the prophets and in-spired men were fulfilled to the very letter, not one jot or tittle failing unfulfilled. And yet the infidel says there is no God. These same prophets and patriarchs also saw, by vision and revelation, our day; they pointed out the generation in which we live, and they all declared that, in the latter days, the God of heaven would set His hand to gather together His people and establish His kingdom. The Revelator St. John also declared what should come to pass in the latter days. In the 14th chapter of Revelation he says: And I looked, and lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Zion, and with Him an hundred forty and four thousand, having His Father's name written in their foreheads. These one hundred and forty-four thousand were sealed out of all the twelve tribes of Israel, because they were righteous in the latter days. Following this, John says: 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. Again, John says: And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. Following this, he speaks of the reaping down of the earth and of the judgments of God which were to come upon the inhabi-tants thereof. In fulfillment of the declaration of St. John, the angel of God has flown through the midst of heaven. He has delivered the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the inhabitants of the earth, and revealed unto them the word of the Lord. The Holy Priesthood has also been restored. This Gospel was to be preached "to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people." It has now been preached almost sixty years--from the organization of the Church until today; and in fulfillment of the revelations of these in-spired Prophets and Apostles, a multitude of people are today gathered together in these valleys of the mountains. In fulfillment of those revelations I stand today in this Tabernacle, which the prophet saw was to be built upon the tops of the mountains, as a covering from the heat and the storm. In this Tabernacle today, also, are ten thousand Latter-day Saints, which is a witness to Jew and Gentile of the fulfillment of the promises of God. Yet the infidel says, "Behold, there is no God." The man who says there is no God is a fool. We are here in fulfillment of prophesy and revelation. We have received the Gospel of Christ. The Kingdom of God has been organized. It is rolling on; and it will continue to roll on until this scene is wound up. Now, I want to give a little exhortation to my brethren. Brother George Q. Cannon touched upon a very important principle this forenoon--a principle which has often rested upon my mind; that is, with regard to the spirits that surround us. He said that one-third of the hosts of heaven were cast out because of their rebellion. I suppose we may say that at least one hundred thousand millions were cast down from heaven to earth. Where are they? Some are in Salt Lake, some in New York, some in Amster-dam, some in Constantinople, some in Jerusalem; in fact, they are in every city and hamlet wherein the inhabitants of the earth dwell, and especially where there are any Latter-day Saints. And whether there are one hundred or not to every man, woman and child, there are enough of them, at least, to labor for our overthrow. I say to my Counselors, to the Apostles, to the Seventies, the High Priests, the Bishops, and all men who bear the Holy Priesthood, do you suppose these devils are around us without trying to do something? Are they asleep? Have they not a work to perform? I say to my brethren who bear the Priesthood, we have got a mighty warfare to wage with these spirits. We cannot escape it. What will they do to you? They will try to make us do anything and everything that is not right. These devils would be very glad to make me and my brethren think we are great men, smarter than anyone else; to divide us one against the other, and to cause us to seek to confess our brother's sins instead of our own. We should therefore watch ourselves well. I should do this; my Councilors and the Apostles should; we all should. And unless we are united together, as has been said before, we are not the Lord's. But today we have certainly manifested a union here that the world is not acquainted with. We have, however, a mighty responsibility resting upon us. The eyes of all the heavenly hosts are upon us. The eyes of Father Adam, and the patriarchs and prophets, both ancient and modern, who have gone to the other side of the veil, are over us. And if our eyes are opened to comprehend the things of God, we can comprehend our responsibilities; we can comprehend the powers of the Holy Priesthood and the relationship which we sustain to God. We certainly should humble ourselves before the Lord. We should labor with all our might to build up the Kingdom of God in what little time we have to spend here in the flesh. Our aim is high. We aim at eternal life; we aim at immortal glory; we aim at a place in the celestial Kingdom of our God, with God and Christ and those who have kept the celestial law. In order to get there, we have got to keep the same law that has exalted those who have gone before us. This is not our home. We were kept in the spirit world until this generation, and have been brought forth, through the loins of Joseph and Ephraim, to stand in the flesh and to bear off the Kingdom, to hold the Holy Priesthood, to do the works of righteousness, to build temples, to redeem our dead, and to attend to those ordinances which the God of heaven has declared we shall perform. This is our work. We have a long eternity before us. But all of us will have to meet at the bar of God--the righteous and the wicked, those who are living and those who are dead. This is the condition of the Latter-day Saints. I hope that we may escape the power of the enemy. As was said here this forenoon, it matters but very little what may take place outside of Zion, or outside of the Kingdom of God. The God of Israel holds the destiny of this nation; He holds the destiny of this people, and of all men on the face of the earth. They are at His command and in His power. He will hold this nation, as He did Jerusalem, responsible for the course they pursue with regard to the Latter-day Saints. We also will be held responsible for the course we pursue. The Lord has led this Church from its organi-zation until the present day. He will lead it until the coming of the Son of Man. He is not going to desert His people nor His cause. But it is our duty to plead with the Lord, remember our prayers, keep our covenants, and walk perpetually before Him, that we may have His favor and blessing resting upon us. I wish to say with regard to the rising generation--the sons and daughters of the Latter-day Saints--that they should take the counsel of their fathers; they should honor their parents, and honor God, and receive such counsel as is given unto them by wise men. I think many times that our children do not comprehend the position they occupy. They do not comprehend what lies before them. Their fathers are passing away. Yet this Kingdom has got to remain on the earth until the coming of the Son of Man. This work has got to follow their fathers; it has got to rest upon the sons and daughters of Zion. I have a great desire that the institutions which have been organized in Zion for their welfare may be blessed; that our sons and daughters may attend the Pri-maries, the Sabbath Schools and Mutual Improvement Associations, and unite together in these societies, that they may receive the benefit of the same. Brethren and sisters, God bless you. Let us labor with one heart and one mind, and make our wants known unto the Lord. Let our prayers ascend unto the ears of the Lord of Sabbaoth, and they will be heard and answered. I know that if we are blessed, if we are preserved, and if we are saved, it is and will be through the mercy and blessing of God. I know also that inasmuch as we will obey His commandments we will receive His protection and blessing. Zion will arise. Zion will be clothed with the glory of God. Zion will be redeemed. Zion will be prepared for the coming of the Son of Man. The Jews will be gathered home to Jerusalem. And the promises and prophecies concerning both the Jews and the Saints of God will all have their fulfillment in the earth. My prayer to God is that we may be true and faithful to the end of our days, and that we may magnify our calling as Apostles, Elders and Saints while we dwell in the flesh. Amen. BLESSING OF THE CHURCH ___________________ REMARKS by President Wilford Woodruff, at the General Conference, in the Tabernacle, April 8th, 1889. I feel thankful that I have lived and had the privilege of attending this fifty-ninth annual conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is nearly fifty years since I was ordained into the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, and the Lord has told us while occupying these positions and holding the keys of the Kingdom of God, that whomsoever you bless shall be blessed, and whomsoever you shall curse shall be cursed. I have never seen a moment in my life since I have been a member of this Church and Kingdom when I felt like cursing anybody, and I would not wish to do so unless I was commanded of the Lord. I have had a desire to bless my friends, and at this time, when I have the right and privilege, I feel to bless my brethren, my counselors, my brethren of the Twelve Apostles; and I feel to bless in the name of the Lord also the Patriarchs, Presidents of Stakes, the High Councilors, and those who bear the Holy Priesthood, even the High Priesthood throughout the land of Zion. Likewise the Seventies, Elders of Israel who are called as messengers to the nations of the earth, the Bishopric, the lesser Priesthood, and all the Saints of God who dwell in our midst. I feel to bless the Primary Associations--our little children; I feel to bless the Sabbath schools, the teachers and pupils; the Mutual Improvement Associations, the Relief Societies, and all those organizations which have been established by the hand of God and by His power, His helps in the building up and establishing of the Church and Kingdom of God on the earth. All these I feel to bless in the name of Jesus Christ and by virtue of the holy Priesthood, even so, Amen. TREATMENT OF ANIMALS, REINCARNATION ____________________ REMARKS By President Wilford Woodruff, at the Sanpete Stake Conference, held at Manti, Sunday, May 19th, 1889. __________ Reported by A. Winter. __________ After an absence of five years, through the providence of God we are again permitted to meet with our friends in Sanpete. This is a privilege that we greatly prize. It is a great bless-ing to be able to come here as free men, and to have the oppor-tunity of opening our mouths and teaching the people as we are moved upon by the Spirit of the Lord. I have no right to say that it has been so long since we preached to the people that we have forgotten how; but I have a right to say that we are just as much dependent today upon the Lord for His Holy Spirit, to guide us in our teaching and instruction to the people, as we ever were. And in order for us to enjoy this blessing, we need the faith and prayers of the Latter-day Saints who assemble to be taught. Every man in the Church of God on the earth should be able to speak as he is moved upon by the Holy Ghost. Then his words are the word of the Lord, the mind of the Lord, the will of the Lord, and they are scripture. Of all people that have ever lived, the Latter-day Saints have the greatest reason to be thankful to the Lord. We possess the fulness of the Gospel and are members of the Church of Jesus Christ. We occupy a place in that land which was given to Joseph by his father--the land of America. We have received the organ-ization of the great Kingdom of our God--that kingdom which was spoken of by Adam, by Daniel, and by all the ancient prophets whose eyes have been upon this age of the world. We are building up Zion in the very place and on the very continent which the Lord designed. Therefore, why should we not be happy? Why should we not be contented? Why should we not be united together to carry out the purposes of the Lord? We should be. There is no man who has received this Gospel and enjoys the Holy Ghost but can rejoice and be thankful, and be willing to pass through whatever trials or afflictions he may be called upon to endure for the Gospel's sake. I feel to rejoice myself at this time that we have the privilege of meeting together in peace. When I contemplate our position as Latter-day Saints, and the respon-sibilities that we are under, I feel that our hearts and our souls should be drawn out in thanksgiving to God. We should labor for the building up of the Kingdom of God and for the establishment of His work; for we have been called of God and appointed to take this kingdom in the latter days and bear it off. We have promises given unto us that no other dispensation or generation of men ever had. It has been promised us that we shall possess the kingdom and the greatness of the kingdom, and it will never be overthrown, but will remain until Jesus Christ, the great lawgiver to Israel, comes to reign over His people. Therefore, we need not think that we have nothing to do. We have a great work before us, and it will require all our exertions and all our talents and ability to perform it. We must seek for the Spirit of God to assist us; for without this Spirit we can accom-plish but very little. There is a subject pressing upon my mind at the present time which I want to speak upon. I refer to the treatment of animals. My soul has been pained a great deal by the treatment which man extends to the beasts of the field. Before the railroad was built across this continent I crossed the plains several times, and the abuse of animals which I then witnessed gave me great pain. The Lord has given unto us horses and cattle and other animals for our benefit. Not one of these animals can talk to us, and I therefore look upon their ill-treatment as a great evil and a sin. This is a matter which the world consider of small consequence for the President of a church to talk about. I have not done it heretofore, but I am going to do it now. We all admire a fine horse. It is one of the noblest of animals. It is also one of the most useful of animals. The treatment that we extend to horses, in many instances, is unjust and unrighteous. I have seen men take a young horse that had never had a harness on. They have harnessed it, and they have taken a black-snake whip, and before it was ever put to a wagon or anything of the kind they have whipped it almost to death. I have seen young men in these valleys do that. Does that horse know why he is thus abused? The man who does this commits a sin. When you harness a young horse for the first time, he knows nothing about it and does not know what to do. That horse should be treated kindly, no matter whether he kicks, or jumps, or bites. He don't understand why that harness is put on him, and the man who has any kindness about him will treat that animal kindly. If you do this, the horse will very soon learn what you want of him, and when he learns that, he will do it. Treat your animals kindly and they will treat you kindly; they will do all you ask of them. Here is a young heifer. She has a calf. A young man goes to milk her. She has never been milked before. She kicks and won't stand still. What does that young man do? He gets a club or something of the kind and goes to thrashing her. Now, whoever does that ought to be thrashed himself. Treat that animal kind-ly. In a little while she will understand what is wanted of her and will then act all right. I want to see a change, especially with the Latter-day Saints, in their treatment of the beasts of the field. They have been given to us for our use. They are a great blessing to us, and we should treat them gently and with consideration. It is wrong to exercise tyranny over anything. When I was a boy and went to school, the schoolmaster used to come with a bundle of sticks about eight feet long, and one of the first things we expected was to get a whipping. For anything that was not pleas-ing to him we would get a terrible thrashing. What whipping I got then did not do me any good. I have always felt that ill-treatment either of children or animals is all wrong. Kindness, gentleness and mercy are better every way. I would like this principle instilled into the minds of our young men, that they may carry it out in all their acts in life. Tyranny is not good, whether it be exercised by kings, by presidents, or by the ser-vants of God. Kind words are far better than harsh words. If, when we have difficulties one with another, we would be kind and affable to each other, we would save ourselves a great deal of trouble. I wonder if there is a man here who ever gained anything by scolding or beating his wife or his children. I never saw any good result from it. You go into a family where a man treats his wife and children kindly, and you will find that they will treat him in the same way. Complaints reach me of the treatment of men to their wives. They do not provide for them. They do not treat them kindly. All this pains me. These things should not be. Here is a man who has a wife or wives. They have been given unto him of the Lord. They have placed themselves under his direc-tion. This man is held responsible by his Creator for the course which he pursues toward these women. He should be kind to them; and in their affliction he should not tyrannize over them, or scold them, or pain their hearts. We should be kind to one another, do good to one another, and labor to promote the wel-fare, the interest and the happiness of each other, especially those of our own households. The man stands at the head of the family. He is the patriarch of his household. I have attended meetings in this Church where one man has had almost a congre-gation of sons and daughters. There is no more beautiful sight on earth than to see a man stand at the head of his family and teach them righteous principles and give them good counsel. These children honor their father, and they take consolation and joy in having a father who is a righteous man. Our sisters, also, have their duties to perform to their husbands. They should consider his position and his circum-stances. Many of our brethren have gone to prison, for the Gospel's sake. This has created a degree of trial, affliction and sorrow in their families. As a general thing, as Brother George Q. Cannon has said, it has a tendency to draw their wives and their children closer to them. Every wife should be kind to her husband. She should comfort him and do what good she can for him, under all circumstances in life. When all the family are united together, they enjoy a heavenly spirit here on the earth. This is how it should be; for when a man in this Church takes unto himself a wife he expects to remain with her through all time and eternity. In the morning of the first resurrection he expects to have that wife and his children with him in a family organization, to remain in that condition forever and forever. What a glorious thought that is! I have felt if, when I get through this world, where I have passed through many tribulations and afflictions with my wives and children, I can only have them with me in the next world, in their immortal bodies, to stand with me in the presence of God and of the Savior, and of the patriarchs and prophets, it will pay me for all my labors if I should live to be as old as Methuselah. And I have no doubt that all of you feel the same. There is another thing I wish to refer to here. I have heard that in Zion1 there are some men who entertain the idea that they inherit the body and spirit of Moses, or Abraham, or David, or Noah, or somebody other than themselves. I hope none of you here indulge in anything of this kind, because it is a most foolish, nonsensical and false doctrine. You gaze upon a man who professes to have inherited the body or spirit of Moses, or any of those I have named, and I think you will conclude that his appearance does not indicate that such is the case; at any rate, it certainly has not improved him. Brother Woodruff, Brother Cannon, Brother Smith, Brother Lorenzo Snow, or any of the brethren, will never inherit anyone's body or spirit but their own, in time or in eternity, unless the devil gets into them. It is Satan who inspires men to believe in such absurd things. He delights in having any of the brethren entertain false ideas, no matter what they are. I tell you that whoever sees me in time or eternity will see Wilford Woodruff, not Noah, nor Abraham, nor Enoch. Every man has his own identity, and he never will lose that identity. Therefore, when you hear such doctrine as that advanced, do not believe it. There are a good many things Satan would like us to believe; but we must guard against these. The Latter-day Saints need instruction; they need preaching to; and we esteem it a great blessing to be able to mingle with you, to speak to you and to bear our testimony unto you. I say to the Latter-day Saints that the visions of our minds are open, the revelations of God rest upon us, and the voice of God to us is that the day has come when we, as shepherds in Israel, holding the Apostleship and keys of the kingdom of God, should stand in the midst of this people and call them to repentance, call them to open their eyes to see, and their ears to hear, and to prepare themselves for the great events the God of Israel is about to bring to pass in the earth. We live in a very important day. Father Adam, three years previous to his death, called his sons together--Seth, Enos, Jared, Canaan, Mahalaleel, Enoch and Methuselah, with the residue of his posterity--into the valley of Adam-Ondi-Ahman, and there he blessed his posterity. The power of God rested upon him and he told the people what should befall them until the latest generation. These things are all written in the Book of Enoch, which will be revealed in the due time of the Lord. Since then there have been Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and other patriarchs and prophets. All of them saw, by vision and revela-tion, this day and this people. They proclaimed our history from the beginning to the end. Where are these men today? They stand, in their immortal bodies, in the presence of God and the Lamb. They are watching over us. We are their children and we are fulfilling the mission of the last dispensation of the ful-ness of times. I feel sometimes to ask, where are the hearts and feelings of the people who have embraced this work? It is a glorious work, a grand work. The Prophet Isaiah, in speaking of Zion, says: Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. * * * And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising. One hundred and fifty thousand of those Gentiles that Isaiah saw have gathered to these valleys of the mountains, in obedience to the Gospel of Christ. Is not that Gospel as true today as it ever was? Are not the revelations of the Almighty as true today as they were in the days of Adam, and Enoch, and Moses, and Christ and His Apostles? They are. And we have been reserved in the spirit world for thousands of years, to stand in the flesh in the latter days, and to take God's kingdom and build it up. Understanding these things then, what are we, as Latter-day Saints, thinking about? We have got a great warfare to fight. Lucifer, the son of the morning, and all his hosts, are united against us. We are but a little handful, compared with the inhabitants of the earth. There never were but few men and women, in any age of the world, who were independent enough to reject evil and to serve the Lord. But we have been counted worthy to be numbered as His people. It is time, therefore, that we arose, that we awoke, and that, clothed upon with the power of God and the Holy Priesthood, we should magnify this Priesthood and obtain the blessings belonging thereto. This people have power to contend with the heavens, and to control the heavens, in a measure. With this Priesthood resting upon them, this people have power that when their prayers shall ascend into the ears of the God of Israel, they shall be heard and answered upon their heads. Shall we desert the Lord? Shall we desert His cause? God forbid. There is no mistake about this work. The Lord is not trifling with us. We have the same eternal and everlasting Priesthood that God has kept in the heavens for eighteen hundred years. Will you tell me that we have not power to fulfill the commandments of God? If you do, you tell me that which is not true. The God of heaven has given us all needful power, if we will only rise up and magnify it before the heavens and the earth. We have no time to contend or quarrel over water ditches. We should be united together and magnify our callings before the Lord; for I tell you there is no time to spare. The Almighty is going to cut short His work in righteousness, or no flesh could be saved. The heavens are full of judgments, and all those who remain in Babylon, God will not spare; they will be burned with the wicked. We are responsible for the use which we make of the power God has given us. I tell you the devil has no power, the Gentiles have no power over the Latter-day Saints when they do their duty and are united. It is not ordained for the wicked to have power to bring to pass evil upon us, if we are united. Zion shall not be moved out of her place, saith the Lord. But the day has come when the Lord calls upon Zion to arise, and upon these Apostles and these Elders of Israel to feed the flock of Christ. We should teach them the words of life and salvation, and the Latter-day Saints should hear us and lay these things to heart. They should fulfil the commandments of God. We are here only upon a short mission. We are the messengers of the God of Israel, messengers of life and salvation. And if we will do our duty and obey the commandments of God, we shall accomplish all that the Lord expects us to do. Brethren and sisters, do not quarrel one with another; do not contend about water or anything of that kind. I tell you that the man who, rather than quarrel with his neighbor, will say, "Take my water; I won't contend with you," that man will get a good deal more wheat than the one who fights and quarrels and goes to law about his water. He will be blessed of the Lord and justified before Him. Let us put all these things aside and call upon the Lord in mighty prayer, asking that His blessings may be upon us, and that His revelations may be fulfilled upon our heads; that Zion may be purified and the Saints of God be united together. This is the way we, as the Presidency of the Church and as Apostles, feel. I want you to understand that God is with us, that the keys of the Kingdom of God are here, and that Zion is here, and they have all come to stay. I rejoice in this; I rejoice in the Gospel of Christ, in which there is no change from eternity to eternity. Brethren and sisters, let us try to live our religion and sanctify ourselves before the Lord. Seek for the Holy Spirit; pray for it; and labor for visions, for dreams, for revelations and for the gifts of the Gospel of Christ, that they may streng-then us in the good work. I pray God to bless you and those who preside over you, as well as those who labor in this Temple in Manti, and in all other Temples in Zion. They are performing a glorious work in these Temples. And when we get through our work here, I trust we will be together in the Kingdom of God on the other side of the veil. This is my prayer and desire, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. 1. The subject of reincarnation is one that was apparently frequently discussed by some of the leading Elders. It would arise again 6 years later, when Abraham Cannon, then a member of the Quorum of the Twelve records: "We had some talk about re-incarnation, which doctrine it is feared is entertained by Orson F. Whitney, George Parkinson and others. It was felt that these and any other persons who believe in this false idea should be corrected" (Abraham Cannon Journal for 25 October 1895). Although there is no evidence that this theory was seriously believed, apparently the mere discussion at various times prompted Wilford Woodruff to denounce it in his talk. THE KEYS OF THE KINGDOM. ____________________ REMARKS by President Wilford Woodruff, at the Y.M.M.I.A. Conference, on Sunday, June 2, 1889. Before the close of this Conference there is a subject upon which I wish to bear my testimony. There were perhaps very few people here yesterday who are in this assembly to-day, when Brother Thatcher delivered a lecture upon the life of President Brigham Young. He referred to a saying of President Young which I, being a witness of, feel it a duty to allude to. I am the first person unto whom he made the remark, and the only one living in the flesh who was with him and Joseph Smith, the Prophet of God, when he gave to the Twelve Apostles their charge concerning the Priesthood and the keys of the kingdom of God; and as I myself shall soon pass away like other men, I want to leave my testimony to these Latter-day Saints. I was sitting with Brigham Young in the depot in the city of Boston at the time when the two prophets were martyred. Of course we had no telegraphs and no fast reports as we have to-day to give communication over the land. During that period Brother Young was waiting there for a train of cars to go to Peterborough. Whilst sitting there we were overshadowed by a cloud of darkness and gloom as great as I ever witnessed in my life under almost any circumstances in which we were placed. Neither of us knew or understood the cause until after the report of the death of the prophets was manifested to us. Brother Brigham left; I remained in Boston, and next day took passage for Fox Islands, a place I had visited some years before, and baptized numbers of people and organized branches upon both those islands. My father-in-law, Ezra Carter, carried me on a wagon from Scarborough to Portland. I there engaged passage on board of a steamer. I had put my trunk on board and was just bidding my father-in-law farewell, when a man came out from a shop--a shoemaker--holding a newspaper in his hand. He said, "Father Carter, Joseph and Hyrum Smith have been martyred--they have been murdered in Carthage jail!" As soon as I looked at the paper, the Spirit said to me that it was true. I had no time for consultation, the steamer's bell was ringing, so I stepped on board and took my trunk back to land. As I drew it off, the plank was drawn in. I told Father Carter to drive me back to Scarborough. I there took the car for Boston, and arrived at that place on the Saturday night. On my arrival there I received a letter which had been sent from Nauvoo, giving us an account of the killing of the prophets. I was the only man in Boston of the quorum of the Twelve. I had very strange feelings, as, I have no doubt, all the Saints had. I attended a meeting on the following day in Boydston's Hall, where a vast number of the inhabitants of Boston and some three hundred Latter-day Saints had assembled. Hundreds of men came to that meeting to see what the "Mormons" were going to do now that their prophets were dead. I felt braced up; every nerve, bone, and sinew within me seemed as though made of steel. I did not shed a tear. I went into that hall, though I knew not what I was going to say to that vast audience. I opened the Bible promiscuously and opened to the words of St. John where he saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and heard them cry, "How long, O Lord, holy and true, doest thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?" The Lord informed them that they must wait a little season, until their brethren were slain as they were. I spoke on those words. Next day I met Brigham Young in the streets of Boston, he having just returned, opposite to Sister Voce's house. We reached out our hands, but neither of us was able to speak a word. We walked into Sister Voce's house. We each took a seat and veiled our faces. We were overwhelmed with grief and our faces were soon bathed in a flood of tears. I felt then that I could talk, though I could not do so before--that is, to Brother Brigham. After we had done weeping we began to converse together concerning the death of the prophets. In the course of the conversation, he smote his hand upon his thigh and said, "Thank God, the keys of the kingdom are here." Brother Thatcher referred to this yesterday. All that President Young or myself or any member of the Quorum need have done in the matter was to have referred to the last instructions at the last meeting we had with the Prophet Joseph before starting on our mission. I have alluded to that meeting many times in my life. The Prophet Joseph, I am now satisfied, had a thorough presentiment that that was the last meeting we would hold together here in the flesh. We had had our endowments; we had had all the blessings sealed upon our heads that were ever given to the apostles or prophets on the face of the earth. On that occasion the Prophet Joseph rose up and said to us: "Brethren, I have desired to live to see this temple built. I shall never live to see it, but you will. I have sealed upon your heads all the keys of the kingdom of God. I have sealed upon you every key, power, principle that the God of heaven has revealed to me. Now, no matter where I may go or what I may do, the kingdom rests upon you." Now, don't you wonder why we, as apostles, could not have understood that the prophet of God was going to be taken away from us? But we did not understand it. The apostles in the days of Jesus Christ could not understand what the Savior meant when He told them "I am going away; if I do not go away the Comforter will not come!" Neither did we understand what Joseph meant. "But," he said, after having done this, "ye apostles of the Lamb of God, my brethren, upon your shoulders this kingdom rests; now you have got to round up your shoulders and bear off the kingdom." And he also made this very strange remark, "If you do not do it you will be damned." I am the last man living who heard that declaration. He told the truth, too; for would not any of the men who have held the keys of the kingdom of God or an apostleship in this Church have been under condemnation, and would not the wrath of God have rested upon them if they had deserted these principles or denied and turned from them and undertaken to serve themselves instead of the work of the Lord which was committed to their hands? When the Lord gave the keys of the kingdom of God, the keys of the Melchizedek Priesthood, of the apostleship, and sealed them upon the head of Joseph Smith, He sealed them upon his head to stay here upon the earth until the coming of the Son of Man. Well might Brigham Young say, "The keys of the kingdom of God are here." They were with him to the day of his death. They then rested upon the head of another man--President John Taylor. He held those keys to the hour of his death. They then fell by turn, or in the providence of God, upon Wilford Woodruff. I say to the Latter-day Saints the keys of the kingdom of God are here, and they are going to stay here, too, until the coming to the Son of Man. Let all Israel understand that. They may not rest upon my head but a short time, but they will then rest on the head of another apostle, and another after him, and so continue until the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ in the clouds of heaven to "reward every man according to the deeds done in the body." I want to add another thing, because I feel it my duty to say it to the Latter-day Saints. There is a feeling--it was so in the days of Joseph Smith--that he was not the man to lead the Church. Even his bosom friends, men with whom he saw angels of God, Oliver Cowdery and others, considered him a fallen prophet and thought they ought to lead the Church. This history is before you and before the world. The same feeling was manifested in the days of Brigham Young when he was called to hold the keys of the Presidency of the Church. There were other men who thought they should be appointed to that office. But the God of heaven manifested to you, and to me, and to all men, who were in Nauvoo, upon whom the mantle had fallen. Brigham Young took his place, and led the Church and kingdom of God up to the day of his death. There are men to-day, there will be men till the coming of the Son of Man, I expect, who feel as though they ought to lead the Church, as though it is not going right--that this, that, and the other is wrong. I say to all Israel at this day, I say to the whole world, that the God of Israel, who organized this Church and kingdom, never ordained any President or Presidency to lead it astray. Hear it, ye Israel, no man who has ever breathed the breath of life can hold these keys of the kingdom of God and lead the people astray. We talk of revelation. There has been a feeling of wonder many times as to why Brigham Young did not have revelation, why John Taylor did not have revelation, why Wilford Woodruff does not have revelation, why any other apostle does not have revelation. I hold in my hand a book of revelations, enough to lead this Church into the celestial kingdom of God. Anybody who will obey that law will have all the revelation that he can fulfill on earth. We are not without revelation. The heavens are full of it, so is the holy Priesthood. I know the destiny of this people; it is revealed by the God of Israel, and left on record. I know the destiny of this kingdom, and I want to say, let us try to unite together and fulfill the law of God. You need not trouble about the kingdom God has established. He will take care of it. The same God who has organized this Zion and gathered one hundred and fifty thousand people here from the nations of the earth, has his eye over you, He is watching over you, and He will take care of you when you do your duty. Zion is not going to be moved out of her place. The Lord will plead with her strong ones, and if she sins He will chastise her until she is purified before the Lord. I do not pretend to tell how much sorrow you or I are going to meet with before the coming of the Son of Man. That will depend upon our conduct. With regard to the keys of the kingdom of God, they were placed on the earth to remain, and they will remain until Jesus Christ comes in the clouds of heaven. But I and other men, the apostles, and all who are called to officiate in the name of the Lord need the faith and prayers of the Latter-day Saints. By way of closing I will say that Brigham Young, John Taylor, Wilford Woodruff, these Twelve Apostles around me, and every one of the Seventies, High Priests, High Councilors, Presidents of Stakes, the Melchizedek and all the Aaronic Priesthood, and all the Latter-day Saints--all will get what they labor for. Whatsoever we sow, whether good or evil, of that we will reap the fruit. But in the morning of the resurrection you will find Joseph Smith holding the keys of this kingdom and dispensation at the head of all Israel who belong to this dispensation; he will hold them to the endless ages of eternity, notwithstanding that we shall all get our reward for what we do. The keys of the kingdom were given to Joseph Smith. They were placed on the heads of other men to make use of on earth for a short time; and when we get through we shall all have our reward. Let us make up our minds to serve and honor God. Do not have any fears concerning the kingdom; the Lord will lead that aright; and if Brother Woodruff or any of the Presidency of this Church should take any course to lead you astray, the Lord will remove us out of the way. We are in the hands of the Lord, and those keys will be held and taken care of by the God of Israel until He comes whose right it is to reign. God bless you all. Amen. [At the evening session President Woodruff made the following additional remarks]: Before dismissing this assembly I feel it my duty to say a few words. I addressed the Saints a short time this afternoon upon a certain subject, and that was in bearing my testimony to the keys of the kingdom of God, which the Lord gave to Joseph Smith, and the retaining of those keys upon the earth through their bestowal upon the heads of the apostles. I did not pretend to dwell upon the organization of the Priesthood or of the Church in these remarks. My only object was to bear my testimony upon that subject. After the meeting I began to reflect, from remarks which I made that perhaps many of the people might get an entirely wrong idea of my views with regard to the kingdom of God. I referred to the Doctrine and Covenants--a code of revelations which the Lord gave to Joseph Smith. This book contains some of the most glorious revelation upon doctrine, upon principle, upon government, upon the kingdom of God and the different glories, and upon a great many things which reach into the eternal worlds. My leaving this subject there, perhaps, might lead my friends to suppose that I did not believe in any more revelation. This would be a great mistake. For if we had before us every revelation which God ever gave to man; if we had the Book of Enoch; if we had the untranslated plates before us in the English language; if we had the records of the Revelator St. John which are sealed up, and all other revelations, and they were piled up here a hundred feet high, the Church and kingdom of God could not grow, in this or any other age of the world, without the living oracles of God. The Presidency of the Church is composed of three men--the President and his Counselors; and not only does the President of the Church need revelation daily, in order to pass through the labor, the care and the business that rests upon him, but his Counselors need it. Every one of the Twelve Apostles need it in all their administrations throughout the world; and not only the Twelve Apostles, but the Seventies, the High Priests, the Bishops, the Elders, and all who belong to the Melchizedek or Aaronic Priesthood--all need it in their administrations in the world. No man can go forth and lift up his voice and declare the Gospel of Jesus Christ without revelation. He needs the Holy Priesthood with him every day of his life. I do not wish to be misunderstood in this matter. Every man or woman that has ever entered into the Church of God and been baptized for the remission of sins, has a right to revelation, a right to the Spirit of God, to assist them in their labors, in their administrations to their children, in counseling their children and those over whom they are called upon to preside. The Holy Ghost is not restricted to men, nor to apostles or prophets; it belongs to every faithful man and woman, and to every child who is old enough to receive the Gospel of Christ. I am very much opposed to false doctrine, either preaching it myself or having anybody else preach it. I, therefore, wish to make this correction if there is any need of it. God never had a Church or a people, in any age of the world, that were governed and controlled except by revelation. The living oracles of God were among them--those who held the keys of the kingdom, and they had to receive revelation to assist them in all their work. The Elders of Israel, when they go abroad to the nations of the earth, need the Spirit of God, to tell them to go here, or go there, that they may search out the honest in heart. Let us all understand this, so that we may not be divided in our views and sentiments. ETERNAL VARIETY OF GOD'S SPIRITS ____________________ REMARKS by President Wilford Woodruff, at the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, July 14th, 1889. I do not know that I can make this congregation hear me, but I would like to make a few remarks. I will say that if this whole assembly could have their eyes opened to behold all the creations of God--the beasts of the field, the fowls of the air, the fish of the sea, and the fourteen hundred millions of people that inhabit this world, with every spear of grass and every flower--it is said you could find no two things alike. This has been represented many times by men concerning the creations of God. This eternal variety on the earth is no greater than that among the spirits who have dwelt in the presence of God in the eternal worlds and who have taken and will take tabernacles on this earth. This variety has also been manifest in all the revelations that have been given to us concerning the children of men or the creations of God. So great has this variety been that it seems Lucifer, the son of the morning, a personage who was great in the presence of God, rebelled against God and drew away with him one-third of the whole host of heaven. They deserted the Lord and followed Lucifer. And I do not know how many were "astride the fence" and did not know which way to go; but I presume there were a good many of them. This variety has remained with the spirits in heaven and on the earth. The Lord revealed this principle to Father Abraham. He showed unto him the spirits that dwelt with Him and told Abraham that many of those spirits were more noble than others, and said unto him: "These I will make my rulers; for he stood among those that were spirits, and he saw that they were good." He also said to Abraham, "Thou art one of them, thou wast chosen before thou wast born." And the Lord blessed Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and the twelve tribes of Israel, who sprang from Jacob. They all received their patriarchal blessings, and every one of those blessings has been fulfilled to the very letter as fast as the time would permit. From that day until the present the Almighty has made use of the seed of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, in a great measure, to perform His work on the earth. Jesus Christ Himself, the Son of God and the Savior of the world, was a literal descendant of Abraham, through the loins of Judah. I will here say a few words in reference to the Prophet Isaiah. Isaiah spoke and prophesied upon a very broad ground. In speaking of the judgments of God which were to come upon great Babylon and the raising up of Cyrus to destroy Babylon, in fulfillment of the promises which had been made, and also in speaking of the destruction of the wicked and their cities, he says: "But Israel shall be saved in the Lord with an everlasting salvation; ye shall not be ashamed nor confounded world without end." That was the promise of God to Israel. And all the judgments of God that have ever followed Israel from the days of Father Abraham to this hour have come upon them through transgression. The Jews caused Christ to be put to death, against the judgment of the Gentile judges who were in their midst. Moses told the Jews what would follow them. Jesus Christ did likewise. The Apostles also warned them of the evils that would come upon them if they turned away from the commandments of God. These things have been fulfilled to the very letter. For eighteen hundred years the Jews have been trampled under the feet of the Gentiles, and the yoke is upon them today. But the Rothschilds and other rich Jews are returning to rebuild Jerusalem, in fulfillment of the words of the ancient prophets. Whenever and wherever God has raised up prophets or a people, no matter who they were, the evil spirits, who are very numerous, have always sought to kill them. You cannot point me to a prophet or an apostle who has ever lived on the face of the earth that was popular in his day. The people have always fought them. Jesus Christ certainly was a good man. He was the Savior of the world. He committed no sin; yet all Jerusalem and Judea and the surrounding country were opposed to Him and fought Him until they put Him to death. I now say to the Latter-day Saints, you are of the house of Israel. Nearly all of you are of the tribe of Ephraim. You have been a mixed cake among the Gentiles. The Gospel of Christ found you, and you have received it. You have been gathered to these valleys of the mountains. The Lord chose Joseph Smith to establish this Church and kingdom. He brought forth the blessings of the Gospel. He received the holy Priesthood from the angels of God. That Priesthood has been given to you. Why? You are the descendants of Israel, and God has called you and placed upon you this work, to warn the generation in which you live, and if you do not do it, you will be under condemnation. But are we popular? No. Shall we ever be? No, not in the generation in which we live. The Lord has chosen these Apostles and Prophets and Elders of Israel and laid upon them the holy Priesthood, and we have been called to go forth with the fulness of the everlasting gospel and warn this generation. If we had not done it, we would have been under condemnation and the curse of God would have rested upon us. Latter-day Saints, you have no time to be divided. You have no time to forsake the Lord. You have no time to depart from doing the works of righteousness. If you do, the afflictions of the Lord will rest upon you, as they rested upon Israel in former days. The revelations of God declare this. The Bible declares that in the last days the God of heaven would set His hand to gather His people and to establish His Church and Kingdom, that Mount Zion might be built up and His People stand in holy places while His judgments overtook the world. We are here today. We profess to be Latter-day Saints, and we hold the Holy Priesthood. What Brother Geo. Q. Cannon has said to you is true; you have never seen a day, you never will see a day, in time or in eternity, when you can get beyond the need of the protection and care of God. You need it all the way through your lives. When our young men, or our old men, or our maidens, feel that they have arrived at a point that they are independent of the Lord, they will find that they are greatly mistaken. We are all here upon a mission. That mission is to build up Zion and to preach the gospel and warn the inhabitants of the earth of the judgments of which the heavens are full, and which are about to be poured out upon the earth. It is the lot of this congregation and of all people who now dwell on the face of the earth to live in the last day and generation before the coming of the Son of Man, in the which will be fulfilled the promises of God concerning the winding up scene, the pouring out of the plaques, the opening of the seals and all those judgments which are to be poured out. These things will surely come to pass, in spite of all efforts of earth and hell. Therefore, I say, honor and serve God, and keep His commandments. We shall soon go to the other side of the veil, where other generations have gone before us--the rich and the poor, the saint and the sinner, the president, the emperor, the king, the judge, and all other men. We have been sent here upon a mission; and when you and I get through we will read our history; it will be before us, and it will be before the Great Judge, who will decree righteous judgment upon all flesh. This is our condition today. I know this is the work of the Lord. I know the Lord has raised up a Prophet. I know He has given unto this Prophet and unto His servants, the Holy Priesthood, which is the power of God to administer in all the ordinances of life and salvation, both for the living and the dead. We are held responsible for the use we make of this Priesthood, and for the use we make of the blessings which God has given unto us. Therefore, brethren and sisters, let us look around ourselves. We have not yet got beyond the dictation and direction of the Lord. He is God, and there is none else. He created this world. He created it to be occupied by His children. But this eternal variety is here. Some men want to commit murder; some delight in doing all manner of wickedness and abomination; while others do not take pleasure in this and look upon it as wrong. This has been so from one generation to another. These evil spirits are with us, and they make war against the Church of Christ and against the Priesthood: and our help, our sustenance, our defense, our refuge, and our salvation is in the God of Israel. As Brother Cannon has said, it is our duty to make our wants known there. If we do not do our duty, if we stray from the commandments of God, we shall be chastised. I pray God that those who have entered into covenant with the Lord and with one another will not forget their position; that they will not forget why they are here and where they came from, nor forget their duty to God and to one another. I pray God to bless us all, and to give us His spirit to guide and direct us through our mission and probation here in the flesh, that when we come into the presence of God and the Lamb and of those old patriarchs and prophets, and of our brethren and sisters who have lived in this generation and have passed away, we may be satisfied with our lives and with our work and labor here, which may God grant, for Christ's sake. Amen. EDUCATING CHILDREN ____________________ REMARKS By President Wilford Woodruff, at Grantsville, (Tooele Stake Conference), Monday Morning, July 29th, 1889. __________ Reported by A. Winter. __________ I am very much pleased at the report which we have heard from the President and Bishops of this Stake of Zion. I do not know of any Stake that we have visited that has given as good a report, considering all things, as has this Stake of Zion. I rejoice that you are united, for union is what the Lord requires of the Latter-day Saints; and if we are not one, we cannot be counted as the Lord's. Among other things, I am very much gratified at the report concerning our young people. I have, I may say, peculiar feelings with regard to the rising generation in these mountains. I reflect a great deal concerning them and what lies before them. The organizations among the young people are of vast importance, and the Lord has greatly blessed these organizations, in raising up men who have been inspired to labor in connection therewith. These Associations have proved a blessing in years that are past, and they are a blessing today. Here are the Primaries. Our sisters organize the children together in these Societies. This is the first step after they leave, as it were, the instruction and teaching of the mother. The fathers sometimes teach them, I suppose; but, as a rule, we regard the mother as the one who gives shape to the character of the child. I consider that the mother has a greater influence over her posterity than any other person can have. And the question has arisen sometimes, "When does this education begin?" Our prophets have said, "When the spirit life from God enters into the tabernacle." The condition of the mother at that time will have its effect upon the fruit of her womb; and from the birth of the child, and all through life, the teachings and the example of the mother govern and control, in a great measure, that child, and her influence is felt by it through time and eternity. Our children go to the Primaries. There they are taught the first principles of the Gospel and about the birth of Christ. This lays a foundation for them to build upon. From the Primaries they go to the Sabbath Schools. We have a very large number of children--over sixty thousand--enrolled in the Sabbath Schools. President George Q. Cannon has taken an active part in the organization and conducting of these schools. He was inspired to do this, and they have been a great blessing to this people. From the Sabbath Schools these children go to the Young Ladies' and Young Men's Improvement Associations, there to continue improving themselves. When we call for Elders to go abroad on missions we almost invariably choose those who have graduated in this manner. Well, I will tell you some of my thoughts and feelings with regard to our young men and maidens. Of course, I know and you know that this is the Kingdom of God. I know that this is the great and last dispensation, which the God of heaven ordained before this world was created; for I believe that the Almighty knew what He was going to do with this world before He made it. He knew what kind of spirits were going to occupy it, and what kind of work would have to be performed in order to save His sons and daughters who should come upon the earth. And in reading the history of the dealings of God with men, from the creation of the world to this dispensation, we see the Father has labored to bless His sons and daughters. He gave His only begotten Son to die to redeem the world--a sacrifice such as only God himself could give. And in these last days He has commenced the organization of the great and last dispensation--the greatest of all dispensations. Adam, Enoch, Moses, and the prophets saw our day. They had before them the vision and revelation of this work, and they prophesied concerning it. Now, the Lord has labored with us for nearly sixty years since the organization of this Church. It has grown like a little child from its mother's breast. It has grown like a mustard seed, until it is becoming as a tree, for the fowls of the air to lodge in the branches thereof. Its history has been very peculiar in some respects; but it has laid the foundation for a great deal of faith in the minds of the honest and meek of the earth. We have had a warfare right from the time when Moroni first visited Joseph Smith, before the latter received the plates. Lucifer and all his evil spirits have labored for the destruction of this work. They labored to defeat, if possible, the going forth of the Book of Mormon--the stick of Joseph in the hands of Ephraim. Joseph Smith himself, only fourteen years after the Church was organized, was martyred. He had his blood shed, as a testimony of the truth of his mission. I have traveled with Joseph Smith many hundred miles. I have also traveled with Brigham Young and the Apostles, and I have never had any doubts with regard to the truth and final triumph of this work. I have none today. I have no doubts about Zion becoming all that the prophets saw it, in its glory, its power, its dominion and strength, with the power of God resting upon it. In view of all these things, the question which has arisen in my mind, and which has caused me a good deal of thought, is, who is going to take this kingdom and bear it off? Unto whom is the Lord going to look to take this kingdom in its final triumph and prepare it in its perfection and glory for the coming of the Son of Man? To our sons and daughters. It is these young men and maidens who dwell in these valleys of the mountains that have got to assume this responsibility. Upon their shoulders this kingdom has got to rest, when their fathers and elders have passed to the other side of the vail. This is before me just as plain as the light of the sun in the firmament of heaven. And when I consider this, I ask myself, what condition are our young men and women in? Are we, as parents, doing our duty towards them? Are they trying to qualify themselves and preparing for the great destiny and work which lie before them? I think they are, to a certain extent. But when I see any of these young men going astray and going to these saloons, drinking and smoking, instead of going to Sabbath School and to meeting to qualify themselves, I feel sorry. I would regret to see any son or daughter of mine or of my neighbors going astray, because they would be losing great glory, and depriving themselves of the privilege of stepping forth and taking the place of their fathers and of the prophets and apostles of God, and filling the different quorums of the Church. They would be losing that which they do not comprehend. When, however, I hear a testimony like that given here today concerning our young people, it gives me joy and consolation. I feel that it is our duty to do all that we can in behalf of these institutions in our midst. It is the duty of the presidents, the superintendents and the teachers to do all they can to influence our sons and daughters to unite together and to qualify themselves by learning out of good books. They should be taught to seek for the Spirit of God and to treasure up wisdom, and to obtain those principles of power which they will need in the day when the judgments of God shall descend upon the earth. I rejoice when I see our young men and maidens trying to do their duty. The Lord is raising up young men who are being clothed upon with the Spirit and power of God. I rejoice in this. I am satisfied that they will increase; but I feel that they should be taught and encouraged to qualify themselves to take the Kingdom of God and bear it off. There is a great destiny awaiting our young men. Therefore, they ought to be temperate; not drink whiskey, not chew or smoke tobacco, and not mingle with the drunken. And it is the duty of those who are not married to take these daughters of Zion to wife, when they arrive at a proper age. There are no better women on the face of the earth than those that dwell in these mountains of Israel. If there is any virtue anywhere, it exists among the women that live in Zion. The same with the men. Our young ladies are virtuous; their mothers are virtuous; and their fathers are virtuous. There may be exceptions; but the Lord has gathered together a people who are virtuous. My feelings are that every young man in Israel should get married when he arrives at a proper age. It does not cost any man more to provide these girls with food and clothing after they are married than it does before. It does not cost any more for yourselves. But you are then prepared to begin to gather some means around you. Do not wait until you have about ten thousand dollars and have fine horses and carriages. You will get them just as quickly after you are married, and possibly quicker, than you will before. It is our duty to get married at the proper time. It is the law of God. Therefore, I would like to see you young men take these daughters of Zion to wife. Look at the posterity of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and see how they spread throughout the whole world. The tribe of Judah has remained until this day; but had they not been of the seed of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and had they not been blessed by father Jacob, they would doubtless have been destroyed long before this. The Jews put to death the Savior and His Apostles, and had they not been of the chosen seed they would never have been allowed to remain on the earth; but they have remained almost undiminished, in the midst of all the persecution and tribulation which they have had to suffer. These are some of my feelings, brethren and sisters, with regard to our young men and maidens. They occupy a position, as I have often said, that no previous generation ever occupied. Many of these young men and maidens that are here today will, in my opinion, if they are faithful, stand in the flesh when Christ comes in the clouds of heaven. These young people from the Sabbath Schools and from the Mutual Improvement Associations, will stand in the flesh while the judgments of the Almighty sweep the nations of the earth as with a besom of destruction, in fulfillment of the revelations of God, and they will be the very people whom God will bless and sustain. Therefore, I say, our young men cannot begin too quickly to qualify themselves by treasuring up wisdom and calling upon God and getting the Holy Priesthood; for they have got to stand in holy places while these judgments are poured out upon the earth. The nations of the earth are rejecting the testimony which we bear; they are rejecting the Gospel of Christ; and these judgments of God, like a few drops of rain before the shower, are beginning to descend upon the earth. We hear of floods, of fires, of earthquakes. These are only the beginning of sorrows. These judgments will increase, and they will continue to increase until all that has been predicted by the prophets of God will come to pass upon the earth. Now, brethren and sisters, we are trying to prepare ourselves for exaltation and eternal life. We have received the Holy Priesthood. There is no change to that Priesthood. It belongs to the Celestial Kingdom of our God. It does not belong to the terrestrial nor to the telestial kingdom. If you and I ever get into the celestial kingdom, we have got to keep the law of that kingdom. Show me the law that a man keeps and I will tell you where he is going. We, as Latter-day Saints, have everything to encourage us. We have received the Gospel of Christ and the blessings thereof. What did we know in regard to God and salvation until the Lord revealed Himself? Who ever knew, before the Lord revealed it to us, that a man could have his wives and children with him in the morning of the resurrection, in the family organization, with himself at the head, to dwell together for ever and ever? I have thought many a time that if I labored until I was as old as Methuselah and by that means could have my family dwell with me in glory in the eternal worlds, it would pay me for all the pain and suffering I could endure in this world. And this is only one of the blessings that are promised unto us. Our young people should labor to qualify themselves by reading the revelations of God. There is no time to waste in reading novels. Read the Bible, the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants and the records which the Lord has given unto us, and treasure up these revelations and see what the Lord has promised unto us. We then treasure up something of worth to us. At one of our meetings a short time ago President Cannon read the revelation contained in the Doctrine and Covenants with regard to what the Lord said to Orson Hyde, Wm. E. McLellin and other Elders going out to preach. The Lord said, speaking through Joseph Smith: And whatsoever they shall speak when moved upon by the Holy Ghost, shall be scripture, shall be the will of the Lord, shall be the mind of the Lord, shall be the word of the Lord, shall be the voice of the Lord, and the power of God unto salvation. Why is this? Because the Holy Ghost is one of the Godhead, and consequently when a man speaks by the Holy Ghost, it is the word of the Lord. We should seek to obtain this Spirit that it may be with us all the time and become a principle of revelation to us. It is the right of every man in the Church to enjoy the presence of the Holy Ghost. Brethren and sisters, we are living in a fast age, and we have no time to waste. This is a time when the Lord is going to cut His work short in righteousness. I have a desire that we, as a people, shall understand the position that we occupy before the Lord. In the 121st section of the Doctrine and Covenants, the Lord, in speaking to Joseph Smith while in Liberty Jail, says: Behold, there are many called, but few are chosen. And why are they not chosen? Because their hearts are set so much upon the things of this world, and aspire to the honors of men, that they do not learn this one lesson-- That the rights of the Priesthood are inseparably connected with the powers of heaven, and that the powers of heaven cannot be controlled nor handled only upon the principles of righteousness. In Kirtland, a number of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles apostatized. Why did they apostatize? Because they forsook the Lord, they stopped praying, they wanted to get rich, they sought for the honors of men and for the riches of the world; and notwithstanding they were Apostles their power fell from them. If a man wishes to keep faithful, he has got to live near unto the Lord, remember his prayers, and realize that he is at work for the Lord and for His Kingdom. I thank God that you are united here. I hope you will continue to be so. Do not quarrel over anything. It makes me sorrowful when I hear of men holding the Priesthood wanting to go to law because they have not got sufficient water. This is wrong. It is against the law of God. When we are united we have power with God and with each other. I hope and pray that we may so live in these valleys of the mountains that every operation against us may come to naught, and it will if we do our duty. I do not pretend to know how many tribulations or how much suffering we shall yet have to endure before Zion is established in her beauty and glory; but I do know that Zion is not going to be moved out of her place. The Lord, however, will chastise us until we become purified before Him. He will plead with His strong ones, and what He has said concerning Zion will come to pass. I hope that we may exercise wisdom in all things, that we may escape these afflictions. Let us try to live our religion and to do right the few days we have to spend on the earth. Some of us have not got a great deal of time to spend here. We shall soon pass away. Therefore, let us be united together and all will be well. Then when we get through here we may associate on the other side of the veil with those that we have associated with here on the earth and with the Patriarchs and Prophets that have gone before. The blessings of God will attend Zion, and His judgments will rest upon the wicked. I pray God that the union you have here may increase, and that our young men will rise up and magnify their callings before the Lord, and treasure up wisdom, knowledge and understanding, and learn those things that will assist them in their duties; for, as I said before, this Kingdom has got to rest upon the shoulders of the rising generation of the Latter-day Saints. This is the destiny to which they are approaching. I feel thankful that I have had this privilege of meeting with you and of listening to what has been said. I pray God to bless you, and those who preside over you, that you may be of one heart and one mind, and be prepared to inherit eternal life. Amen. FULFILLMENT OF ANCIENT PROPHESY ____________________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the Quarterly Conference of the Salt Lake Stake, Salt Lake City, September 1, 1889. __________ Reported by George F. Gibbs. __________ I feel thankful that I have the privilege of assembling in this Tabernacle with my friends, the Latter-day Saints, to partake of the Lord's supper, the emblems of His body and blood, His body which was broken for us and His blood which was shed for us. I regard this as a great privilege. While meeting with the Saints upon occasions of this kind I often reflect upon their spiritual condition, and hope and pray that those who of us who are thus favored to commemorate the death and sufferings of our Lord and Savior by partaking of the Sacrament, may so live that we may be worthy to eat and drink with Him at the great marriage supper of the Lamb, in company with the prophets and patriarchs and Saints of God of former and latter days whom the Father hath given unto Him--those who have obeyed the law, received the truths of the Gospel and kept His commandments. I wish to say to the Latter-day Saints that every man holding the holy Priesthood, every man called to preside over the Church or any branch of it, is dependent upon the Lord for His Holy Spirit to guide and sustain him. We have found the exhortation of the Savior to the apostles of His day applicable to our own labors and experience, wherein He said, "And when they bring you unto the synagogues, and unto magistrates, and powers, take no thought how or what ye shall answer, or what ye shall say: for the Holy Ghost shall teach you in the same hour what ye ought to say." We differ from many people in this regard. We very often call upon the Elders from among the congregation to come to the stand to speak without any preparation. We all, in a measure, occupy this same position before our fellow men. I never know when appearing before an assembly of the Saints what I may say to them; I leave entirely all these matters with the Lord. If the Lord gives me nothing, I shall certainly have but very little to say to the people. And this is the position that the Elders are placed in as teachers in Israel. My feelings and views are that the Lord never did have a people from Father Adam to the present time that were called upon to build up His Kingdom and establish His Zion in the world, or to preach the gospel of repentance to the children of men, but what they were dependent entirely upon the God heaven for their support. The Lord has told us by revelation to speak as we may be moved upon by the Holy Ghost. When a man speaks as he is moved upon by the Holy Spirit what he says is the word of the Lord; it is the mind of the Lord, it is scripture, it is the will of the Lord, it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believes. Why? Because the Holy Ghost is one of the personages of the Godhead. God the Father and God the Son possess tabernacles, and God himself has created man after His own image; but the Holy Ghost is a personage of Spirit, which bears witness of the Father and Son unto the children of men. With regard to the rights of the human family I wish to say that God has given unto all of His children of this dispensation, as He gave unto all of His children of previous dispensations, individual agency. This agency has always been the heritage of man unto the rule and government of God. He possessed it in the heaven of heavens before the world was, and the Lord maintained and defended it there against the aggression of Lucifer and those that took sides with him, to the overthrow of Lucifer and one-third part of the heavenly hosts. By virtue of this agency you and I and all mankind are made responsible beings, responsible for the course we pursue, the lives we live, the deeds we do in the body. I will repeat here what I have often remarked as the words and sentiments of the Prophet Joseph who once declared it in my hearing. Said he, "If I were ruler or emperor of the world, and I had power over the whole human family, I would make every man, woman and child free in the enjoyment of his or her religion, be that religion whatever it may." These are my sentiments. All people under heaven by virtue of their agency, whether living under a republican, a monarchical or any other form of government, are entitled to religious freedom to worship God according to the dictates of their own conscience, they being held accountable to God alone for the use they make of their agency. And while we, as a community, accord this right and privilege to man the world over, we claim the same right ourselves. For we profess to believe in the fullness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ which God has revealed through the ministrations of angels sent unto the servants of God in the dispensation in which we live. It was made know to John the Revelator and to other of the Prophets and Apostles that in the last days, among the many great events which were to take place before the coming of the Son of Man, the everlasting Gospel would be restored to the earth. Referring to this event the Apostle says: "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 judgement is come." As Latter-day Saints we believe that angels visited Joseph Smith whom God raised up, and delivered unto him the fulness of the Gospel; and that he was ordained under the hands of heavenly messengers who held the keys of the Holy Priesthood and also the Priesthood after the order of Aaron. Nearly sixty years have past and gone since this Church was organized. It has fallen to my lot to be associated with this people for the last 56 or 57 years of my life. I traveled with Joseph Smith and the Apostles and with many who are now in the spirit world, hundreds and thousands of miles laboring for the salvation of our fellow men. We are very differently situated today from what we were in the early days of this Church. We now occupy permanent homes in the valleys of these Rocky Mountains. I came here with Brigham Young when the country was a barren desert. The record of our lives for the last forty years, during which time we have been here, is before the world as history. The aim and object of our lives today are what they were in the beginning, namely the building up of the Kingdom of God upon the earth. And I wish to bear my testimony to the Latter-day Saints and to the world that this Gospel of the Kingdom which the angel of God delivered unto Joseph Smith will be preached as a witness to all the world before the end come. It is the same Gospel that was preached by Christ and the Apostles, and which the Jews rejected. There is but one Gospel plan of salvation, and it is eternal and everlasting in its character; it cannot be perverted or changed with impunity; hence the Apostle Paul has said in this connection, "Though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other Gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed." What was the Gospel taught by Paul, and by Peter, James and John? The first principle of the Gospel they taught was faith in God; the next was repentance of sins, and then baptism for the remission of sins. Jesus Himself was baptized of John, that he might fulfil all righteousness, because baptism was a righteous law, and one of the ordinances of the everlasting Gospel. At first John declined to baptize the Savior, recognizing the fact that He was without sin, and that baptism was for the remission of sin. But Jesus answering said, "Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness." And He baptized the Savior and Redeemer of the world. As soon as this ordinance was attended to the heavens acknowledged the act by the manifestation of the Holy Ghost. And the next ordinance after baptism is the laying on of hands for the reception of the Holy Ghost. This was the Gospel taught by the Apostles while they lived. The Holy Ghost gave unto men a testimony that Jesus was indeed the Christ, the Redeemer of the World; and it was a guide to their feet and a lamp to their path during their whole lives. The Church at first was organized upon the foundation of Apostles and Prophets, Christ Jesus being the chief corner stone. We are told that Christ has set in the Church, "First apostles, secondarily prophets;" that "He gave some apostles; and some prophets; and some evangelists; and some pastors and teachers;" and they were to be standing ministers to the Church "for the perfecting of the Saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, into a perfect man unto the measure of the stature of fullness of Christ." The Lord required Joseph Smith to organize the Church of Christ after this order. He did so, and this Church has remained in tact in its organization from that day till the present; and it will continue to remain until the coming of the Son of Man. And I would say here that there is no change of the Gospel of Christ in this, neither has there been in any other age of the world. There never has been any change from eternity to eternity, neither has there been any change of the ordinances, or of the Holy Priesthood; they are the same "yesterday, today and forever." I will also make a remark with regard to our views of the Priesthood. Jesus Christ is our High Priest. He held the Priesthood after the order of Melchizedek, which is without beginning of days or end of years, being from eternity to eternity. We have been informed that Adam, Seth, Enos, Cainan, Mahalaleel, Jared, Enoch, Methuselah, Lamech, and Noah, were all High Priests. In all the dispensations whenever God has had a people upon the earth, no man has ever been called to administer in any of the ordinances of the Gospel except by and through the eternal and everlasting Priesthood. We cannot learn from the Bible--"the stick of Judah," the record of the Jews--that God ever called a man to officiate in the offering of sacrifices, or to administer in any of the ordinances of the Gospel, except by and through the Priesthood. And our belief is that no man has a right to minister in this age in the ordinances of the House of God, except he be duly called and ordained. The Holy Priesthood is the channel through which God communicates and deals with man upon the earth; and the heavenly messengers that have visited the earth to communicate with man are men who held and honored the Priesthood while in the flesh; and everything that God has caused to be done for the salvation of man, from the coming of man upon the earth to the redemption of the world, has been and will be by virtue of the everlasting Priesthood. Our Elders who are called to bear this Priesthood are being sent abroad to preach the Gospel without purse or script, and they are blessed in their labors. Truly has it been said the Lord has called the weak things of the world to confound the wisdom of the wise, and to bring to pass the purposes of God. And they like the servants of the Lord of former days have promised to all those who obey the Gospel that they should receive the Holy Ghost. I have often said, and I say again, we might have preached to the whole world until we had become as old as Methuselah if the testimony of our Elders had not been backed up by the gift of the Holy Ghost, Utah would be today as barren as we found it in 1847; that is, as far as our being here is concerned. It is the Spirit of God, the testimony of Jesus, that has been imparted to the Saints in fulfillment of the promise of the Elders who preached the Gospel to them in their native lands, that has impelled this people to gather to these valleys of the mountains. And if I were to call upon all those of this congregation who have received this testimony to rise to their feet, the Latter-day Saints of this congregation would respond in a body. If the people had not received this testimony they never would have left their homes and friends to come here. You knew it was not the work of man, but the work of God, and you labored diligently to effect your deliverance from Babylon because you were moved upon by the Spirit of God, and you never rested until you emigrated. We are called of God to establish His Zion upon this land of Joseph. You have the Bible, which the Christian world profess to believe in, as well as the Book of Mormon, which you believe in. These records and revelations of God testify of your day. Isaiah pointed out your history, your travels in coming to these western valleys, your labors here; and if we had not gathered here, much of the Bible prophesies would have failed in their fulfillment. Many say these revelations are to be spiritually construed, that they are not intended to be understood in a literal sense. We view these things differently. We take it what the Lord through His servants has said concerning this matter means what He has said and said what he means. It is true we have passed through a good deal of persecution; but in this we are no exception to the rest of God's servants and people of other ages. The records that have come to us testify of these things. Opposition to God and His Christ, opposition to light and truth has existed since the beginning to the present day. This is the warfare that commenced in heaven, that has existed through all time, and that will continue until the winding up scene, until He reigns whose right it is to reign, when He shall come in clouds of glory to reward every man according to the deeds done in the body. We live in a peculiar dispensation--I will say the great and last dispensation of God to man. And what is the state of our nation and that of the Christian world? Unbelief with regard to the fulfillment of what the prophets have said should take place in the last days. I have felt that the Lord has become very unpopular in this generation, and that His revelations have become very unpopular. Common schools turn the Bible out of doors. Of course there is a general profession of faith and belief in God, but a decided unbelief exists, and a general indifference with regard to the fulfillment of the predictions contained in the Bible. A great many too believe when a man dies that is the end of him, that there is no hereafter. Can any sensible man believe that the God of heaven has created two or three hundred thousand million spirits, and given them tabernacles, merely to come and live upon the earth and then to pass away into oblivion or to be annihilated? It seems to me that no reflecting man can entertain such belief. It is contrary to common sense and to serious reflection. Generation after generation has lived and died, has passed into the spirit world, and we have to a limited extent an account of the doings of God with them. The Prophets, Apostles and Patriarchs have left their inspired writings on record for our use and benefit, and we shall be held accountable in the exercise of our agency for the manner in which we treat the Word of God that has come unto us. I testify that the God of heaven has set His hand to establish His Kingdom, and to build up His Church and establish His Zion upon the foundation of Prophets and Apostles, Jesus Christ being the chief corner stone. We live in a dispensation different from any other. The dispensation that ushered in the Christian era was one of sacrifice. The Savior came and tabernacled in the flesh, and entered upon the duties of the Priesthood at 30 years of age. After laboring three and a half years He was crucified and put to death in fulfillment of certain predictions concerning Him. He laid down His life as a sacrifice for sin, to redeem the world. When men are called upon to repent of their sins, the call has reference to their own individual sins, not to Adam's transgressions. What is called the original sin was atoned for through the death of Christ irrespective of any action on the part of man; also man's individual sin was atoned for by the same sacrifice, but on condition of his obedience to the Gospel plan of salvation when proclaimed in his hearing. This gospel we are called to preach to the children of men, calling on them to repent and be baptized for the remission of their sins, and promising them through their obedience and faithfulness the gift of the Holy Ghost, which shall lead and guide them in the ways of all truth and deliver them from darkness and doubt. And the results of the preaching of the servants of God are seen today in what is being done by this people; and it is our duty to continue this work, to warn mankind and to gather the Israel of our God. We will be held under condemnation if we do not do our duty; if we do not warn the nations. Whenever a nation or city has ripened in iniquity, the Lord has raised up Prophets to warn them of the destruction that awaited them unless they repented. The Lord raised up Noah and commanded him to preach repentance to the people of his day, and instructed him to build an ark for the salvation of those who should believe on Him. Enoch and his people were peculiar from the rest of the world of his day, and the wicked sought his life; but the power of God was upon him to such an extent that the wicked trembled at his words, and feared him. At last he and his people were translated, were taken from the earth, and the disobedient of his day were left to their own destruction. The same fate befell the Jewish nation in consequence of their rejection of the truth, and their treatment of those who were sent unto them. They put to death the servants of the Lord and crucified the Messiah. All that had been predicted concerning them came literally to pass. Israel as a nation was overthrown; their temples destroyed, and they that escaped death by the sword were taken captive, and that people have been trampled under the feet of the Gentiles for the past 1800 years. Now we understand there is a feeling and spirit working among the Jews to return to the land of their fathers to re-build their city and temple and prepare for the coming of Shiloh their King. And this will in time be accomplished. We should have faith in God and His promises, and we should read the revelations that have come unto us, and treasure them up. We are all in the hands of God; He holds our destiny and the destiny of this nation. All are held by the power of God. It is for us to understand the signs of the times, for these things are before us. This is not our work; but if we are true and faithful in this ministry we shall receive our inheritances upon the earth according to the promises. That our Father may bless us all, and that we may be true and faithful to Him and to one another, laboring with all our might to build up Zion and to establish His name in honor in the earth, that at last we may receive the reward of the faithful, is my prayer, for Christ's sake. Amen. At this point President Wilford Woodruff arose and spoke as follows: I wish to say to this assembly of Latter-day Saints, that there are three vacancies in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, in consequence of the organization of the First Presidency. We have felt that it is time to fill that Quorum now, at this Conference, and the people should be prepared for the presenting by the Twelve Apostles of such names as they may feel by the Spirit of God to be worthy and proper persons to receive this ordination or to occupy this position. These Apostles are Prophets, Seers and Revelators. I have confidence in them; I believe they have power to present such things as would be in accordance with the will of God. They (the apostles) presented to me a list of names. I wish here to say, and I want it understood, that neither myself, President George Q. Cannon nor President Joseph F. Smith, who are my Counselors, presented any of these names. We left it with the Quorum of the Apostles. I became thoroughly satisfied that they had upon that list such names as would be acceptable unto the Lord. We took those names and made it a matter of prayer, and the Spirit of the Lord manifested unto me those whom we should appoint. They have all been accepted by the Quorum of the Apostles as well as the Presidency of the Church. I have reason for making these remarks.1 After President Woodruff had taken his seat, President Cannon resumed the presentation of the authorities, submitting the names of the following three brethren for appointment to the apostleship, to fill the three vacancies in the Quorum of the Twelve before referred to: Mariner W. Merrill, Anton H. Lund, Abraham H. Cannon. Counselors to the Twelve Apostles--John W. Young and Daniel H. Wells. The Counselors in the First Presidency and the Twelve Apostles, with their Counselors, as Prophets, Seers and Revelators. Patriarch to the Church--John Smith. First Seven Presidents of the Seventies--Henry Herriman, Jacob Gates, Seymour B. Young, C.D. Fjeldsted, John Morgan and B.H. Roberts. William B. Preston as Presiding Bishop, with Robert T. Burton as his First, and John R. Winder as his Second Counselor. Franklin D. Richards as Church Historian and General Church Recorder. * * * * * The vote upon each of the persons named for the positions specified was unanimous. 1. The reason which President Woodruff had for making such remarks is unknown. However, a close study of the experiences and pressures devolving upon the newly appointed Church President prior to this Conference may shed some light upon the reasons for President Woodruff's actions. At the death of President Taylor, the leadership of the Church once more fell onto the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, with Wilford Woodruff as Senior Apostle. The two years between Taylor's death and the reorganization of the First Presidency in April, 1889 were difficult years administratively for the old Apostle, who by this time was 80 years old. The Quorum was widely divided over the course the Church should pursue, and how it should face the problems in relation to the Government concerning Polygamy. Several of the younger Apostles, particularly Heber J. Grant, felt that a younger Church President was needed to carry the Church through the trials and persecutions from the United States. On August 3, 1887, the Apostles met for the first of several meetings in which the reorganization of the First Presidency was discussed, and effectively blocked. Adding to the problems were personal grudges and complaints which several of the Apostles held against George Q. Cannon, the one man on whom President Woodruff relied for support and strength, concerning actions taken by the previous Presidency, many without the consultation of the Quorum of the Twelve. These feelings were so intense that four of the Apostles again rejected a proposal from Wilford Woodruff to reorganize the Presidency in March 1888 (see entries for 3 August 1887, 5-6 October 1887, and 20-23 March 1888 in Heber J. Grant, Franklin D. Richards, Wilford Woodruff, and L. John Nuttall Journals. See also D. Michael Quinn's New Plural Marriages, 1890-1904 in Dialogue, Spring 1985, pp. 32-33). The frustration felt by President Woodruff is adequately demonstrated in his comment to his secretary that he "would about as soon attend a funeral as one of our council Meetings" (L. John Nuttall Journal, entry for February 27, 1889). It is with these problems in mind that the sustaining of the new Apostles should be considered. It is probable that Wilford Woodruff, in an attempt to soften the transition of leadership from the Twelve to the First Presidency, felt that allowing the Twelve Apostles to chose the new members would result in less friction, particularly in regard to Abraham Cannon, than if the First Presidency had called them themselves. NEED FOR PROPHETS ____________________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the General Conference, Sunday afternoon, October 6, 1889. The following passage from the sixty-eighth section of the Doctrine and Covenants was read by President George Q. Cannon: My servant, Orson Hyde, was called by his ordination to proclaim the everlasting gospel, by the Spirit of the living God, from people to people, and from land to land, in the congregation of the wicked, in their synagogues, reasoning with, and expounding all Scriptures unto them. And behold, and lo, this is an ensample unto all those who were ordained unto this Priesthood, whose mission is appointed unto them to go forth; And this is an ensample unto them, that they shall speak as they are moved upon by the Holy Ghost, And whatsoever they shall speak when moved upon by the Holy Ghost, shall be scripture, shall be the will of the Lord, shall be the mind of the Lord, shall be the word of the Lord, shall be the voice of the Lord, and the power of God unto salvation: Behold this is the promise of the Lord unto you, O ye my servants. President Woodruff then said: I have traveled over one hundred and fifty thousand miles preaching the Gospel to large and small congregations, to saints and to sinners; and I have never yet seen the day, on arising to my feet, that I have known what I was going to say to the people. And this is the case with the Elders generally in their ministrations. You who have attended the meetings of this Conference perceived that we called upon brethren from the right and left to speak to us; and if you have any discernment you certainly can testify that they spoke by the Spirit and power of God. I have attended Conferences during my whole life, in company with the Prophet Joseph, Oliver Cowdery, the witnesses of the Book of Mormon, with the first Twelve Apostles, all of whom are in the spirit world, mingling with the Gods; and I have never attended a Conference when I have felt better and been more edified in listening to the remarks of the same number of men, than at this Conference. The Elders have spoken by inspiration, and they have declared unto us eternal truths. As I said last night at our Priesthood meeting so I would remark here, no man that God ever made, beginning with Father Adam down through the history of the world, that has ever been called to build up the Kingdom of God, and preach the Gospel, has been able to perform that work only by the Power of the Holy Ghost; neither can any man do it today. We are all dependent upon the Holy Ghost. And what is the Holy Ghost? The testimony of the Father and the Son. It is one of the God-head--God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost. Will the Holy Ghost deceive any man? It will not. When a man speaks as he is moved upon by the Holy Ghost, it is the spirit of inspiration; it is the word of God; it is the will of God. It cannot lie; it cannot deceive. It leads into all truth and reveals to man the will of his Maker. Jesus instructed His disciples to take no thought what they should eat, or what they should drink. They were traveling without purse or scrip, as many of us have done in our time. The Lord knew they would have need of something to eat; and He knew that somebody would be raised up to supply their wants. He also instructed them to take no thought what they should say when having to appear before magistrates and rulers; for the same should be given them the hour it was needed. This is the condition of the Latter-day Saints. The Apostle has said, "He hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; * * * and things which are not, to bring to nought things which are." This has been the case in the dealings of God with man of all ages; and it certainly is the case in this our day. When I look upon the ten thousand faces of Latter-day Saints before me the present time; and when I contemplate what God hath wrought in establishing this people in the midst of these mountain valleys; and when I bring myself face to face with the wonderful age we live in, and sense the mighty responsibilities that rest upon us, as watchmen upon the walls of Zion, and as watchmen to this generation--when I contemplate these things, if any man under heaven feels his weakness, it is Wilford Woodruff. And in saying this of myself, I know I am expressing the feelings of my brethren associated with me in reference to themselves, as Counselors, as well as the sentiments of the Twelve respecting themselves, and those of every Elder of Israel who appreciates his calling in Christ Jesus. We have been called from the plow, the plane and the anvil, and the various avocations of life; and without preparation the Elders of this Church are sent forth, by command of Almighty God, to preach to and warn the nations of the earth. Joseph Smith has been referred to by some of the speakers, and their testimony of him is true. A greater prophet than he, excepting Jesus Christ, I do not believe ever lived. In saying this I give it as my own personal views. I don't believe God ever raised up a greater prophet, save Jesus himself. The dispensation he was called to usher in is the greatest ever given to man; and it required just as much a man to stand at the head of it--a man who was true to God and his brethren; who was a seer and revelator, and whose faith in God was such that he never wavered or doubted, but persevered himself and encouraged others to move forward in the great work before them. The world called him illiterate and ignorant. However they might regard him, our testimony of him is that he was taught of God Himself and of the angels who visited him; and that he fulfilled certain revelations and predictions referring to this age, as contained in the Bible and other records of Divine truth. And, as has been stated during this Conference, he brought forth the Book of Mormon--the stick of Joseph in the hands of Ephraim--in fulfillment of the testimony of Isaiah, translating that record through the Urim and Thummim, thereby revealing to us the history of the early inhabitants of this Continent. That book informs us that two distinct nations inhabited this land, the founders of both of which were brought here by the power of God from the eastern continent, the first, known afterwards as the Jaredites, tracing their origin to the tower of Babel. They flourished and became a mighty people; but they turned from the right way of the Lord, and when they had ripened in iniquity they, like other nations of the earth, were finally destroyed by the judgments of God. The other nation was known as Nephites and Lamanites, being named after the sons of Lehi, the head of the family who, by command of God, left their native land, Jerusalem, some four hundred years before Christ, and traveled by land, and in ships of their own construction, crossed the great waters, and came to this land. They dwelt here for hundreds of years, and also became a great and mighty people, an outline of whose history is recorded in that book. The interesting mission of the Savior to the people of this continent is also recorded here; the establishing of the Church among the believing Nephites, and their labors in the work of perfection. And I may say the remains of some of the cities built by these peoples have been discovered and written about by such men as Stephens and Catherwood and others; and doubtless much remains yet to come to light in corroboration of the testimony of this divine record. The Prophet Joseph not only performed this work, but organized the Church with prophets and apostles, elders, priests, teachers and deacons, as it was organized in the days of Jesus and His Apostles. And there is a feature connected with the Church as it exists today that is peculiar from all other dispensations that we have any account of; that is, nearly the whole body of its male members have received some portion of the Priesthood, until we have today in these mountains some twenty thousand men bearing either the Priesthood after the order of Aaron or Melchizedek. There is a reason for this. There never has been a time in all the dispensations of God to man, when there has been so much need for the labors of the servants of God as in this our day; and the Lord, therefore, has called a great number of men to bear the Priesthood, and directed them to go unto all nations, tongues and peoples, as He showed John the Revelator He would do in the last days, as recorded in the 14th chapter of the book of Revelations. And in fulfillment thereof we have not only gone forth to the nations proclaiming this Gospel revealed to man by the angel of God, but in further obedience to the divine command, have come out from Babylon, until we number some two hundred thousand gathered here. And by what power have we come here? And why did you leave the States of this nation, England, Scotland, Ireland, Wales, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Austria, Germany and other nations? You heard the Elders. They told you they had been sent by God and that they had the fulness of the Gospel to offer to man, and they explained to you the principles thereof. They told you there was but one Gospel, and that God had never revealed but the one, the Gospel that Paul referred to when he said, "Though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other Gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed." You believed and obeyed, and gathered with the Saints. And what was it these Elders taught you? It was that you must have faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of God; that you must repent of your sins and be baptized by immersion for remission of the same, and then have hands laid upon your head for the reception of the Holy Ghost. And this Comforter, this Holy Spirit, you received, and it bore witness unto you that you had indeed been initiated into the Church of Christ. And if I were to call upon this congregation of Latter-day Saints today, and ask every man and woman who thus heard and obeyed, and who did receive this testimony for themselves, to rise to their feet, how many do you think would remain seated? Not many, if any. The fact that you are thus gathered here, and that you have these many years remained faithful to the cause you espoused, is evidence that you did receive and are still in possession of this testimony. And I would say, if there are present today any strangers who are not acquainted with the principles of our religion, let them gaze upon this congregation of over ten thousand faces; let them travel through the settlements of the Saints north and south, and contemplate the work that has been accomplished in redeeming the earth and making it habitable, and then let them ask themselves the question, are not these people in earnest? Are they not sincere? Are they deceivers, these missionary Elders who have been the means of inducing the people of all lands to thus settle and make homes in these valleys? Do you believe in their works and their mission? You say no. But let me tell you, there is not an honest man upon the face of the earth acquainted with the history of the Latter-day Saints that can say this at heart. And I testify to you, as I would to the whole world had I the power to do so, that God has set His hand to fulfil the word of the Lord as given in the Bible, the book of all books the Christian world profess to believe in; the revelations of St. John, the predictions of Isaiah, Ezekiel, Jeremiah, Joel, Micah, and others contained within its sacred lids, who spoke of the great work of the last days; and I testify that the day has come which Daniel saw, the day referred to by him in his interpretation of Nebuchudnezzar's dream, when the God of heaven should set up a kingdom which should never be destroyed. This Kingdom was represented to him as a little stone cut out of the mountain without hands, which stone smote the image, representing the different nations that then existed and should exist, on the feet, breaking it to pieces; and it became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth. Was Daniel a prophet? He was, and was highly favored of God because of his mighty faith. Isaiah saw our day and time and was glad. "Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; and break forth into singing, O mountains: for the Lord hath comforted his people, and will have mercy upon his afflicted." What is the matter? The Lord is going to comfort Zion; He is going to have mercy upon her afflicted ones. But Zion said, "The Lord hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me." "Can a woman forget her sucking child?" saith the Lord. "Yea, she may forget, but I will not forget thee. Behold, I have graved thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me." This refers to the building up of Zion in the last days; the gathering together of the people, preparatory to the coming of the Son of Man. As far as constitutional liberty is concerned, I will say, the God of heaven has raised up our nation, as foretold by His Prophets generations ago. He inspired Columbus, and moved upon him to cross the ocean in search of this continent. The world is acquainted with the history of his course; his pleadings with the courts of Europe, and his final triumph in finding sympathy in the King and Queen of Spain, who furnished the necessary means to make the exploration. It is also well known how our forefathers found a home and an asylum in this land from the hand of persecution, and how they planted here the tree of liberty and jealously guarded it from the attempt of the mother country to uproot and destroy it. The hand of God was in all this; and it is through the intervention of His providences that we enjoy today the freest and most independent government the world ever saw. And what was the object of this? It was to prepare the way for the building up of the Kingdom of God in this the last dispensation of the fullness of times; and as long as the principles of constitutional liberty shall be maintained upon this land, blessings will attend the nation. But woe unto those who fight against Zion, said the Lord. I have heard the Prophet Joseph Smith remark, that if he were Emperor of the world, and had the power to control the whole human family, he would sustain every man, woman and child in the enjoyment of their civil and religious rights, let their religion be what it may. In saying this he expressed my sentiments, and the feelings of this entire community. For God has given to every man individual agency, and He will hold him accountable for the use of this agency. And while we in our hearts and feelings accord to the whole world this blessing, we claim the same for ourselves. To obtain this and to secure it to our children, we have struggled; and we look forward with joyful anticipation when it shall be beyond the power of man to drive it any more from the earth. Our feelings with regard to religious liberty have been manifested towards the religious denominations that have come among us. Not a single one of them can accuse us of doing anything to hinder them in their labors by way of establishing themselves among us; on the other hand, we have opened our doors to them; they have occupied our public stands until they have had meeting houses of their own. We have never had a fear that our people or our children would be captivated by their doctrine or converted to their religion; if they have a single truth which we have not, we want it, for it is truth we are after. This Church has been organized now nearly sixty years. It certainly has been like the little stone cut out of the mountain without hands. It has withstood all the opposition that has been aimed against it; and it will remain firm and immovable, fulfilling the destiny marked out for it, until the winding up scene. Zion will arise, clothed with the glory of God, no matter what we may have to pass through. We are in the hands of God, and so are all men and nations; and if this is the work of God--and we say it is--He will bear it off triumphant. Brother George Q. Cannon in his discourse this morning referred to the different laws which govern man, and the different glories that attend their observance. And I would say, show me a nation or people and I will tell you their future condition by the laws which govern them. All the creations of God are governed by law; and all blessings are predicated upon the observance of law. Opposition to the laws of God commenced in the councils of heaven at the time one-third of the heavenly hosts were cast out; and they are here upon the earth still opposing the work of God. They are without tabernacles; they never had bodies, and that is the curse visited upon them. Those who did not rebel were permitted to take tabernacles. The war that commenced at that time is still being waged, and the struggle will continue until Christ shall come to assume the reigns of government. There have been very few people in any age of the world ready to receive the Gospel when presented to them. In the days of Noah only eight souls believed on him, although he and his sons preached to the ante-deluvian world a hundred and twenty years. In consequence of their having become ripened in iniquity, the Lord determined to destroy them from the face of the earth. Enoch appeared in his day as the representative of God, and succeeded in raising up a Church who so far perfected themselves in the ways of the Lord as to be worthy of translation. They, we are told, will return to the earth with Christ and the Church of the First Born, when His Saints upon the earth shall be prepared to meet Him. In the days of Jesus and the Apostles, comparatively few believed on them, and the opposition was so strong against them that they were all, excepting one, put to death. That was a day of sacrifice; the time had not then arrived for the Lord to establish His Kingdom. The consequence was that the Church fled to the wilderness, and the Priesthood was taken home to the Paradise of God, where it remained until the restoration through the Prophet Joseph Smith. We have at present about two hundred thousand people in these mountains who have received the Gospel, out of the millions that now inhabit the earth, and it seems, in consequence of the unpopularity of the Gospel, that we are under the necessity of passing through more or less persecution. We have these things to meet, as other men have met them. In ancient times the Apostles were ready to lay down their lives for the truth's sake. They knew that Jesus Christ was the Son of God, and that they had been called to and endowed with the Priesthood of heaven. Are we any better than they? Are the Apostles of this day any better than those of former days? If God were to require it at our hands that our testimony be sealed by our blood, I believe there is not a single member of the Council of the Twelve but what would be ready to make the sacrifice. Why? Because we, like the former day Apostles, know for ourselves that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, and that we are His servants. Whatever sacrifices the Lord may require at the hands of this people, will be met by the people. But ours is not a day of sacrifice. Our special calling is to build up Zion, and prepare the people to stand in holy places while the judgments of the Lord are being poured out upon the wicked. And whatever may be before us we must meet in the fear of our God, believing that He will deliver us in His own due time. The Lord, for our encouragement, has told us that Zion shall not be moved out of her place. But if we do not do our part, as the brethren have said who have preached to us this Conference, we shall be chastised. This is my testimony to the Latter-day Saints. In reflecting upon these things I have a great deal of sympathy for those who array themselves against us, as I have for the Jews who opposed the Savior and His Apostles. When upon the cross suffering the agonies of a cruel death, Christ exclaimed, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." Why did the Savior feel thus towards those who opposed him? Because He had clearly before his mind the results of their acts; that they were only heaping coals of fire upon their own heads; that all He had predicted concerning them would sooner or later overtake them; which certainly has been the case. The Lord is again calling upon the human family to repent of their sins. And while in the pursuit of their calling some of our brethren have been called upon to lay down their lives for the work of God. What will be the result of the rejection of the Gospel by this generation? The answer has been written by St. John, by Isaiah and has been reiterated by the revelations of God through the Prophet Joseph. Woe unto them, says the Lord, that fight against Zion; woe unto all nations that continue in their iniquities; they have reason to weep for themselves and their posterity. To the Latter-day Saints I would say, be ye faithful in keeping the commandments of God the little time we have to remain here. We are as much upon a mission to this generation, as the Prophets which have preceded us were to the generations in which they lived. We have our day; they had theirs. As they have gone to render an account of their stewardship, so we shall follow, and will be held to answer for the deeds done in the body, and the manner in which we shall have used the talents entrusted to us. Brethren and sisters, be true and faithful, and keep inviolate the covenants you have entered into, that we may be worthy of eternal life, the greatest of all the gifts of God to man. I rejoice in meeting with so many of the Latter-day Saints in Conference; and I have rejoiced in listening to the testimonies of the Elders. I have often said in my boyhood, I wished I could see an Apostle or some one that was able to teach me the same Gospel I had read of in the New Testament. But I could never find no man that could teach those doctrines; it was said they have been done away. They were done away, it is true, but through the unbelief of the children of men. But they are with us. The Kingdom of God is here, and the Lord will sustain it. And I can bear record as my brethren have, that this kingdom will stand; and that the Zion of God will remain upon the earth until Jesus shall come to receive us unto himself. And my prayer is that you and I, and all this people, may be true and faithful, working with an eye single to the glory of God, for the building up of Zion, and the establishing of His kingdom upon the earth; and when we go to the other side of the veil, we can there assemble with all those who have kept the celestial law, and honored the Holy Priesthood, from Father Adam down to our day, and with them receive our inheritance, and have part in the morning of the first resurrection, with our wives and children, fathers and mothers, brothers and sisters, each in the family organization in the Celestial World. Amen. DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the Opening Session of General Conference, convened Friday Morning, April 4, 1890. Sixty years ago, last Sabbath, this Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was organized in Fayette, Seneca County, New York. It was organized by the Prophet of God, Joseph Smith. It was organized by the commandments of God--by the revelations of Jesus Christ. Its history is before the world, the heavens and the earth; and I feel myself that our hearts should be filled this morning with gratitude and thanksgiving, that we have the privilege again of meeting in an Annual Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I hope and trust that the hearts of the Saints will be lifted up in prayer to God, that during the time we shall spend together in this capacity, the Spirit and power of God may rest upon the Apostles and Elders who will address us, and upon the Saints themselves who may hear. I feel very thankful myself that I still have the privilege of meeting in general Conference with the Saints of God. I realize that we are weak instruments in the hands of God who are called to perform this work. The Lord has chosen the weak things of the world from the foundation of the earth, to perform His work in every age and generation of men. I pray that the Apostles and Elders of Israel may be clothed upon with the Spirit and power of God while they address the Latter-day Saints. We want to bear in mind that our strength, our hope and our power is in the hands of God, and not in men, The Lord Himself has stretched forth His hand to establish this Church, His kingdom, His work, His Zion, the gathering together of His people in fulfillment of the revelations of God which have been given to the inhabitants of the earth since the foundation of the world--since the day the old Patriarch, Father Adam, was brought forth, and placed in the Garden of Eden. From that day until now His work has been performed by the inspiration of Almighty God, and not by the power of man. The very things in our history that we have been called to pass through; the scenes which have been enacted have shown, and they show to-day to all heaven and earth, in the warfare, in the opposition, in the labor that are manifested among the sons of men--from the creation of the world till to-day--that this is the work of God. The various persecutions, the efforts which have been manifested against the organization of this Church and kingdom for its overthrow and destruction, should show--and have shown to heaven and earth--that there is a power on earth outside the power of man. We have no power in ourselves. We never have had in the guidance and direction of this kingdom, only through the interposition of Almighty God. I have never read anywhere, that I know of, of the same power manifested in any dispensation to the children of men, which was manifested to the Prophet of God in the organization of this Church, when the Father and the Son both appeared to the Prophet Joseph in answer to his prayer, and when the Father said, "This is my beloved Son; behold Him; hear ye Him." This was an important revelation, which has never been manifested in the same manner in any dispensation of the world, that God has given concerning His work. So in its organization, the Prophet of God was administered to by the angels of heaven. They were his teachers, they were his instructors, and all that he did, and all that he performed from the commencement, from that day to the day of his martyrdom, was by the revelation of Jesus Christ. We ought to understand this, and, as a people, have faith in God, in His revelations, in His promises. We should look forth for the fulfillment of these promises unto us in the day and generation in which we live. They will be fulfilled. The Lord is at work. He has set His hand to accomplish the great dispensation of which all the patriarchs and prophets have spoken since the world began. Therefore let not your hearts be troubled; believe in God, believe in Jesus Christ, believe in the Gospel which has been preached unto us, and keep and fulfill the commandments of God; then all will be right. The Lord will not fail the Latter-day Saints; He will not fail in His work, in the gathering of His people; He will not fail the seed of Abraham; He will not fail the seed of Judah. They will be gathered home to Jerusalem, their holy place. They will receive their city and Temple, and be prepared for the coming of their King. Zion will arise and prosper. If the Latter-day Saints will but do their duty, there is nothing in the way of our accomplishing all that has been promised unto us. I have no fears myself with regard to the outcome and final triumph of the kingdom of God, of the Zion of God, of the Church of God, of the Saints of God. The Lord has already gathered many thousands to these valleys of the mountains, in fulfillment of His promises. Now, brethren and sisters, let us be thoughtful while in the flesh, and seek to magnify our calling. Let our hearts be set on the building up of the kingdom of God, and none shall fail. With regard to those who may address us during this Conference, I hope that they may all have our prayers, that they may be inspired by the Spirit of God, and preach only those things which are true and faithful. May God bless us, and pour out His Spirit upon us, that we may have a good time at this Conference. May we enjoy that Spirit, may our hearts be united together, and may we rejoice in those principles which have been revealed for the comfort, salvation, and eternal life of the children of men. DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the General Conference, Friday Afternoon, April 4, 1890. Before the close of the meeting I have a request I want to make of these Apostles, these High Priests, Seventies and Elders, and Lesser Priesthood and all the Latter-day Saints who have any communion with God or with the Holy Ghost. Brother Merrill has been talking of revelation. If there was ever a time since God made the world that the inhabitants of the earth needed revelation, it is to-day. Now, the Lord has given us the stick of Judah--the law of God to the Jews--which reaches down to our day and generation, and which shows us their history and has told us what would come to pass in the future. So has the Lord given us the stick of Ephraim--the stick of Joseph in the hands of Ephraim--giving the history of the inhabitants of this continent and what shall take place in the last days. I hold in my hands a code of revelation (the Book of Doctrine and Covenants) given to Joseph Smith, the Prophet. There are some of the most sublime revelations in that book God ever gave to any generation, or to any prophet or people under heaven. This book of revelation, like other records, will go down to the end of time and into eternity. These revelations give you the whole history of the celestial kingdom, of the terrestrial kingdom and of the telestial kingdom of our God. But we want revelations every day. Well, you say, the President of the Church should give revelation. Yes, it is true, the President holds the keys of revelation to the Latter-day Saints. But is he alone to give revelation? No, verily, no! There is not an Apostle in this Church, there is not an Elder in this Church that stands up in this congregation to teach this people, but should be full of revelation. There is where your revelation should come--from those who teach you day by day. How many revelations did Brigham Young give that were written to the people? Very few. How many has John Taylor given that were written to the people? Very few. How many has Wilford Woodruff given? Very few. We have had some, though not revealed to the people, perhaps, or published. But we want revelation every day. And I want these Apostles and these Saints to go before the Lord in your secret places and ask Him to pour out revelations upon this people, that we may give you the word of the Lord while we are with you, and that these Apostles, when they speak, may speak by the power of God, by the Holy Ghost. Then that will be the word of the Lord, it will be scripture, it will be the power of God unto salvation unto every one that believes. God bless you. Amen. PAST AND PRESENT REVELATION ____________________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the General Conference, held in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday morning, April 6, 1890. __________ [Reported by Arthur Winter.] __________ I feel that every heart in this congregation should be filled with gratitude to God for the blessings we enjoy this morning, that so many of us have the privilege of meeting in this Tabernacle in peace and quietude to worship God. I want to say to this large assembly that the President of the Church, or his Counselors, or the Twelve Apostles, or any other man who dwells in the flesh, has no power in and of himself to instruct or edify the Latter-day Saints; he can only do so by the power and blessings of Almighty God. In this respect I am as weak as the least member of this Church and Kingdom. We are all dependent upon the Lord; and I feel this morning that I stand in need, not only of the faith and prayers of the Latter-day Saints, but of the blessings of God and the Holy Spirit to assist me to declare unto the Latter-day Saints the word of the Lord. I will say another thing. The Saints of God in every age of the world--prophets, apostles and revelators--have been in such a position that they have had no chance to be lifted up in the pride of their hearts, or to boast of their power and strength to do the work of God among the children of men. Every man who was acquainted with Joseph Smith and those who followed him, knows full well that this was their condition while they dwelt among us. Joseph Smith was a humble man. He was one of the weak instruments in the hands of God. He was raised up in this last dispensation and fulness of times to lay the foundation of this great Church on the earth. He was taught by the administration of angels from heaven. He knew full well that his strength lay in God and not in himself. That is our condition at the present time. We have no chance to be lifted up in the pride of our hearts with regard to the position we occupy. If the President of the Church or either of his Counselors or of the Apostles, or any other man, feels in his heart that God cannot do without him, and that he is especially important in order to carry on the work of the Lord, he stands upon slippery ground. I heard Joseph Smith say that Oliver Cowdery, who was the second Apostle in this Church, said to him, "If I leave this Church it will fall." Said he, "Oliver, you try it." Oliver tried it. He fell; but the Kingdom of God did not. I have been acquainted with other Apostles in my day and time who felt that the Lord could not do without them; but the Lord got along with His work without them. I say to all men--Jew and Gentile, great and small, rich and poor--that the Lord Almighty has power within Himself, and is not dependent upon any man, to carry on His work; but when He does call men to do His work they have to trust in Him. I marvel today, in my own mind, why I stand before you as the President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I have been associated with some forty Apostles in my day and time. Twenty-four of them--two quorums--are today in the spirit world. There is a quorum of young men, many of them the sons of Apostles who have passed away, with us today. Well, when I look at this and see that I am still in the midst of Israel, and realize that I have been called to this position, I marvel at it. But it is the business of the Lord and not of man. It is not a position that I have sought. On the other hand, the eternal truth of this responsibility stares me in the face. I know that I am responsible, for the position that I hold today, to the God of heaven, who has chosen me, as are these apostles before me and these tens of thousands of Elders of Israel who now dwell in the flesh on the earth. I attended a Priesthood meeting here last evening with quite a number of those bearing the Priesthood. I look upon the responsibility of these people as being very great. We have been called upon in this day to receive the Priesthood and to go forth and preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ to this generation--to the Gentiles first, and then to the House of Israel. This has been my lot. It has been the lot of these Apostles, and many, yea thousands, of the leaders of the Latter-day Saints. We have been called upon to preach the Gospel of Christ to this generation and to warn them of the judgments which are to come. There has been a great deal said at this conference. We have had strong testimonies borne by the Elders of Israel who have addressed us. I remarked at the commencement of this conference (there were comparatively few people here then) concerning our position and revelation. I remarked that Moses gave revelations to Israel. We have the Bible--the stick of Judah--containing the law of God through Moses and through the ancient prophets and patriarchs. It has been handed down to us through the thousands of years that are past and gone. While libraries, like the library of Alexandria (which was destroyed by an Arab chief and took days and days to burn, it being one of the largest ever gathered together in the world) have perished, the Bible has been preserved unto us, and we have it to read. It gives unto us the law of God given to the ancients. But there has been no change in that law, so far as the gospel is concerned, from that day until this. The Bible--the Old and the New Testament--gives unto us the law whereby we may be exalted and go back again into the presence of God and dwell with Him for ever and ever. It gives unto us the course we should pursue in order to receive a part in the first resurrection, that we may come forth clothed with glory, immortality and eternal life. It also gives us the history, not only of what is passed with the Jews, but of what is to come to pass. Then we have a Book of Mormon--the stick of Joseph in the hands of Ephraim--that was written upon this continent by apostles and prophets. It contains, among other things, the teachings of Jesus Christ when he appeared, after his resurrection, in his immortal and glorious body, and taught the gospel here. Those revelations contain a great many principles. They show unto us the final winding-up scene, the situation of great Babylon and the judgments that were to come to pass in the last days before the coming of the Son of Man. We have also the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, which you have in your houses and which you can read. This code of revelation was given through the mouth of the Prophet Joseph Smith, by the Urim and Thummim and otherwise. That book contains some of the most glorious and most sublime revelations God ever gave to man. It shows unto us what lies before us, what awaits this nation and the nations of the earth, and what is at the door of the inhabitants of the earth. These things are clear, they are pointed, they are strong, and they are the revelations of God, and they will be fulfilled, whether men believe it or not. Now, with regard to present revelation. President Young led us a great many years. He led us to these valleys. He was a man of God, filled with revelation. His teachings were attended by the inspirations of Almighty God. He laid the foundation of the building of this whole Territory. He governed and controlled this Tabernacle we are in, the Temple we are building, and other Temples that we have built in this Territory; and in all his counsels the word of the Lord was with him. He had but few revelations that were written and published to the world. But we had the word of the Lord through him day by day. The same with President Taylor. We have already got, as I said before, this code of revelation, which we can read every day, and which is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction, to guide us in the way of life from day to day and from year to year while we dwell in the flesh. When the Apostles and Elders of Israel are called to teach you, when they are called to go abroad and to teach the inhabitants of the earth, they are commanded of the Lord to speak as they are moved upon by the Holy Ghost; and when a man speaks as he is moved upon by the Holy Ghost, it is the word of the Lord, it is the mind of the Lord, it is the will of the Lord, it is Scripture, it is the power of God unto salvation unto every one that believes. If we do not have the Holy Ghost we have no business to teach. But when the Elders of Israel do teach you by the Holy Ghost, you have the revelations of God to you. We have these revelations lying before us for our guidance day by day, as well as the living oracles. I would say to the President of the United States, to the Congress of the United States, to the Cabinet, and to all the inhabitants of this land, as well as to all the nations of the earth--kings, emperors, princes and people--do not worry about these Latter-day Saints. I would say to all nations under heaven, if these people are not the people of God, if this work has not been established by God Almighty, they will fall of themselves, they will be swept from the face of the earth by the judgments of God, when Great Babylon falls. But if they are of God, what can you do about it? What can the nations of the earth do about it? Have the nations forgotten that there is a God in Israel? Have they forgotten that there is a God who created the heavens and the earth, and that He governs and controls all these things? If He has set His hand to perform this work, there is no power on the face of the earth, or in hell, that can destroy it, because Jehovah holds it in His own hands. He holds our destiny and the destiny of all the world in His hands. But the great difficulty with this nation and with all nations is, as it has been in every age, they do not acknowledge the hand of God in any of these things. You see it in the history of the whole world and in the dealings of God with men and cities and nations, from the creation of the world. I have referred to these things before in my remarks. Whenever a nation is ripened in iniquity, the Lord raises up prophets and inspired men and they are sent forth to warn that nation, and when they have warned the people and given unto them the word of the Lord, that word will not fall unfulfilled. We have before us a great many instances of the dealings of God with men. We have a fair example in Babylon the Great. King Nebuchadnezzar, surrounded with the city walls a hundred feet high and wide enough for several chariots to ride abreast upon the top thereof, with brazen gates and with a power to defy all but God himself, what did he say: "Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honor of my majesty?" The prophet might have told Nebuchadnezzar that the God of heaven had proclaimed a man before he was born that would come and take that great city and destroy its ruler. Cyrus was named by the Lord before he was born, through the mouth of the prophet; and when the time came, as King Belshazzar and his princes were feasting and drinking wine out of the cups that had been brought from the temple at Jerusalem, he took possession of the city and carried off the treasures. The army of Cyrus turned the river out of its course and walked in under the walls of the city. Belshazzar was taken prisoner and slain, and the city went into the hands of people they were not looking for. What did Cyrus do when he took the city of Babylon? He took the riches--cattle, horses and property--there was in that city and offered them as a sacrifice to the great God. This is the course that a heathen king took; and we understand, from history, that Cyrus pursued this course all his life. Whenever he took a city he went and offered sacrifice to the great God, the God of heaven. You may trace this through the whole history of the world until the present hour and you will find that that God who sits enthroned on high has governed and controlled all these things. He will do the same today. That same God has set His hand to fulfill the volume of revelations contained in these records of divine truth, which portray the winding-up scene of the work and Kingdom of God in the last dispensation and fulness of times. Our Heavenly Father called His servant Joseph Smith. He laid the foundation of this Church and Kingdom, and he organized the Church with prophets, apostles, pastors, teachers, gifts and graces, for the perfecting of the Saints, for the work of the ministry, and for the edifying of the body of Christ, until we all come to the perfect stature of a man in Christ Jesus, in fulfillment of the revelations of God. Our numbers are few, it is true; but the people of God always were few in every age of the world. Noah, after preaching 120 years, while building the ark, only succeeded in saving eight souls out of all the inhabitants of the earth. The rest were destroyed by the flood, and they were shut up in prison and there visited by Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God. While his body lay in the tomb three days His spirit went to preach to those spirits that were in prison, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh. The work of the Lord always has been an uphill business, so far as laboring among the children of men is concerned. But there is no person who believes in the Bible can deny that the Lord has proclaimed that in the latter days He would set His hand to build up His Church and Kingdom, He would gather together His people, and He would send an angel flying through the midst of heaven, having the everlasting Gospel to preach unto every nation, kindred, tongue and people under the whole heavens, crying with a loud voice: "Fear God and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come." This was the proclamation of the angel of God who delivered the Gospel of Christ to Joseph Smith. "The hour of His judgment is come." So say we. We have been called upon to warn the nations. We have been called to go forth without purse or scrip. We have had to travel abroad, swim rivers, wade swamps, travel on foot, and visit the nations of the earth in various ways, to preach the Gospel unto them. We have been obliged to do this, for we have been called to do it, whether we were popular or unpopular. If we had not done this, we would have been condemned; the Lord would have cut us off and raised up a people that would perform His work. These thousands of Elders, gathered out from the nations of the earth, upon whose shoulders rests this Priesthood, are the instruments in the hands of Almighty God, and are called to go forth to warn this generation; and their testimony will rise up in judgment against this generation and condemn them, and I declare it in the name of Jesus Christ, as an Apostle of the Lamb of God in this day and age of the world. I say there is not a nation under heaven, there is not a king, a prince or a president, or any other man who has power over the sons of men, but should give unto their subjects the privilege of worshipping God according to the dictates of their own consciences. These subjects are the creatures of God, they are the children of God. They are placed here on the earth and are responsible to God Himself for their religion, for their faith and for their worship. They are not responsible to the emperors, or kings, or presidents, or governors who rule over them. Every man is responsible for the course he pursues before the Lord. And God will bless no king, no emperor and no president who will not give unto his subjects the rights and privileges in their relationship to God which the Father Himself has given unto them. Whenever these subjects are deprived of their rights, those who preside over them are held responsible. We are here upon a mission. This is not our home. This is not the place where we expect to dwell forever. We are going into the spirit world. I have been associated with the Church for 57 years. I was intimate with the Prophet Joseph Smith and those that laid the foundation of this Church, who were martyred for the word of God and testimony of Jesus. They today are in the spirit world, mingling with the Gods, where they can plead for their brethren. So too shall we go in our day and time. In view of this can I afford to reject the Gospel, or to turn away from that which the Lord has required at my hands, because it does not suit the world? I cannot. I have got to meet my acts before the throne of God, and so have this nation and all the inhabitants of the earth. They will understand then that there is a power above them, and that is the God of heaven. All men have got to appear at the judgment seat of Christ. And when men shed the blood of the righteous because they follow the words of the Lord, they have to pay for it. No man can shed the blood of the righteous without it costing him something. It was so in the days of Jesus Christ. No man was more unpopular on the face of the earth then Jesus Christ was from the day He was born until He ascended into heaven. All Jerusalem was against Him. The Jews were against Him. The Gentiles were against Him, in a great measure. They cried out against Him and accused Him of everything that was wrong, and labored very hard to find some accusation against Him whereby they might put Him to death. It is true that the Gentile judge who heard the testimony against Jesus told the Jews: "I find no fault in this man," and he washed his hands, saying, "I am innocent of the blood of this just person: see you to it." All right, said they, "his blood be on us, and on our children." How little did those Jews know what it would cost them to shed the blood of Jesus Christ. Well might the Son of God, while on the cross, cry out, "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do." Strange language for a man that was expiring on the cross! Why did He say this? He knew what would be the result to the Jewish nation for the next two thousand years. Whenever the nations of the earth have taken a stand against the Gospel of Christ or the people of God, they have had to pay the bill. It has cost something to shed the blood of Joseph Smith and Hyrum Smith, and the price is not fully paid yet. While the world look upon us as a strange people, while they have no faith in us or in our teachings, and while they have no faith in the Bible which they profess to believe in, still their unbelief will not make the truths of God without effect. The inhabitants of the earth know not what awaits them. The Lord is going to cut short His work in righteousness. If He did not no flesh would be saved. As I have said before, we have been called upon to warn this generation. How was it when we first went to New York, to Philadelphia, to Boston, and to the various states of the Union? We went there and found hundreds of people who were ready to receive the Gospel of Christ. We organized churches throughout the United States, north and south, more especially in the northern and middle states. At that time there was not the feeling that there is today. There were a great many who were willing to open their eyes to see, their ears to hear, and their hearts to understand. The Lord told Joseph Smith that He had set His hand to prune His vineyard once more for the last time, and He commanded him and others to go forth and warn this generation to gather out the honest and meek of the earth, and to prepare for the day of His judgment. And in one place in this book of Doctrine and Covenants, in explaining the parable of the wheat and the tares, the Lord says: "Behold, verily I say, that the field was the world, and the Apostles were the sowers of the seed; and after they have fallen asleep, the great persecutor of the church, the apostate, the whore, even Babylon, that maketh all nations to drink of her cup, in whose hearts the enemy, even Satan, sitteth to reign, behold he soweth the tares, wherefore the tares choke the wheat and drive the church into the wilderness. But behold, in the last days, even now while the Lord is beginning to bring forth the word, and the blade is springing up and is yet tender. Behold, verily I say unto you, the angels are crying unto the Lord day and night, who are ready and waiting to be sent forth to reap down the fields; but the Lord said unto them, pluck not up the tares while the blade is yet tender (for verily your faith is weak) lest you destroy the wheat also." Do the inhabitants of the earth realize the judgments that hang over their heads? They do not, no more than the people did in the days of Noah, in the days of Lot, and in the days of the Jews when they put to death the Messiah. You have embraced the Gospel. How came you to be gathered here in these valleys of the mountains, in this once barren desert? Where did you come from? You came from England, from Norway, from Sweden, from the various nations of the earth and from the isles of the sea. How was it that you came here? You reply: An Elder of Israel called. I heard him preach. He told me if I would repent of my sins, I should receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. I believed him. I went forth and was baptized. I had hands laid upon me for the reception of the Holy Ghost, and I did receive the Holy Ghost. There was no deception about this. I was moved upon to gather with the Saints of God to the mountains of Israel, that I might stand with them and be taught in the things of the Kingdom of God, that I might stand in holy places while the judgments of God were poured forth in the earth. That is why you are here. We might have preached to you till we had been as old as Methuselah, and if the Almighty had not backed up the testimony of these Elders of Israel, Utah today would be as barren a desert as we found it as far as the Latter-day Saints are concerned. This is the work of God, and we are called upon to labor, no matter what may appear around us, or what persecutions we may be called upon to pass through. This is the great last Kingdom of our God that Daniel saw. It is the Zion of God that Isaiah saw. It is the Church of Jesus Christ that the Revelator John saw. The angel of God has come and delivered his message, in fulfillment of the commandments of God, and the cry has been, Prepare ye for the coming of the Son of man; behold the day of God's judgment is come. This is the proclamation to the whole world today--Jew and Gentile. And this is why we are here. We have been led here by the inspiration and power of God, and we have come here to fulfill the volume of the book of the revelations of God to the inhabitants of the earth. Therefore, I say, let not your hearts be troubled. It is your Father's good pleasure to give you the Kingdom. These Latter-day Saints are where they should be--where the Lord has called them; and if we do our duty, if we unite together and keep the commandments of God, all will be well in Zion. The Lord has said: "Verily I say unto you, that I, the Lord, will contend with Zion, and plead with her strong ones, and chasten her until she overcomes and is clean before me; for she shall not be removed out of her place. I, the Lord, have spoken it." We have got to do right and keep the commandments of God. If we don't, we shall be chastened, there is no doubt about that. But while the world are looking for the destruction of this Church, they will look in vain. They do not realize that the judgments of God are being proclaimed by sword and by fire, and that the Lord is pleading with all flesh. The sword is bathed in heaven; it will fall upon Idumea and the world, and who is able to stand the judgments of the Almighty? Those who are striving for our overthrow, if they have not faith today in this and in God, they will have faith whenever they come to judgment; for the whole of them have got to go to judgment, and they will be judged according to their deeds done in the body. Brethren and sisters, let us look at these things as they are. We are under great responsibility. In every dispensation God has called men and placed them as watchmen on the walls of Zion. He told Ezekiel: "I have set thee a watchman unto the house of Israel; therefore thou shalt hear the word at my mouth, and warn them from me. When I say unto the wicked, O wicked man, thou shalt surely die; if thou dost not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand. Nevertheless, if thou warn the wicked of his way to turn away from it; if he do not turn from his way, he shall die in his iniquity, but thou hast delivered thy soul." We have been called upon to warn this generation. We have tried to do it in our weak way. I have for the last fifty-seven years of my life. So have these brethren here. We have traveled thousands of miles without purse or scrip. We have lifted up our voices and preached the Gospel of Christ to this dispensation. We are also called, brethren and sisters, to perform some work in our day and time that no other dispensation of men have been called to do. We have been called to rear temples and to go into those temples and redeem our dead. It takes as much to save a dead man as it does a living one. If the dead have not heard the Gospel, the Lord is not going to send them to hell because they have not received it. The Lord is the Father of all. He is merciful to all, and He will save all, except the sons of perdition. Every man will have a glory. Our "Liberal" friends here will have a glory. A man will have a celestial glory if he abides the law of the celestial kingdom; he will have a terrestrial glory if he abides the law of the terrestrial kingdom; he will have a telestial glory if he abides the law of the telestial kingdom. That is the law of God unto us. Brethren and sisters, I have desired to know the truth from the day I was a child. I read the Bible in my boyhood. I attended Sabbath school under old Dr. Porter and Dr. Haws. I read in this New Testament about Jesus Christ. I read of what kind of a Gospel He preached and what kind of a man He was. I read about the Apostles and of the power they had; how they laid hands upon the sick and they recovered; they could cast out devils, and, in some instances, raised the dead. In my boyhood I longed that I may live on the earth till I could find a servant of God, an inspired man, who would teach me these principles that I read of in the New Testament. The Lord promised me, in fulfillment of my prayers, that I should live to see that day. I have lived to see it. The Lord has called a people from the nations of the earth, from every sect, party and denomination, to receive the fulness of the everlasting Gospel. There is but one Gospel. There never was but one Gospel; there never will be but one. Millions of people have been born in the flesh, have lived and have gone to the grave, who never saw the face of a prophet in their lives; never saw a man that was called of God and had power to administer in one of the ordinances of the House of God. Will God condemn them because they did not receive the Gospel? Not at all. They are in the spirit world--our fathers. We are called upon, as saviors on Mount Zion, while the Kingdom is the Lord's, in the latter-days, to go forth and redeem our dead. We hold in our hands the keys and power of their redemption, by attending to the ordinances of God for them. It is a work that the Lord has blessed us with. I thank God for this privilege. It is one of the blessings that the Latter-day Saints enjoy. When I go into the spirit world I expect to meet my fathers, my mothers, my relatives. I have been in the Temple of the Lord. I have received endowments for over three thousand of them on my father's and my mother's side, all that I could get access to. I do not want to go into the spirit world to meet these people and have them say to me, "You had power to enter into these Temples to get redemption for me, but you have not done it." Lay these things to heart. Be not afraid with regard to the work; only serve God and trust in Him. You cannot serve man, nor make flesh your arm, for your salvation. If we are saved, if we are delivered, if we have redemption, it will be by the power of the God of Israel. He sent His Son into the world to lay down His life for the redemption of the children of men. I feel to thank God that I have this privilege of bearing my testimony to the work. I know it is true. I know Joseph Smith was one of the greatest prophets that God ever raised up in the earth, save Jesus Christ. Joseph Smith holds the keys of this great and last dispensation and fulness of times; he will hold those keys to the endless ages of eternity. He sealed his testimony with his blood. And if we have to do the same, what of it? Thousands and thousands of the children of men laid down their lives in going to war, for the sake of worldly honor. Is it any more for a man to lay down his life for the gospel's sake than it is for him to lay it down for some other cause? I say no. It makes no difference what we are called to pass through, if we are united and do our duty all will be well. I want salvation when I get through. I want to go where my Heavenly Father and the Savior are, if I can. I want to go where the Apostles and Prophets are who have borne the heat and burden of the day in their generations--Moses, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel and all the Prophets and Patriarchs whose testimonies we have in the Bible, as well as those who dwelt in this land. I bear my testimony that this is the Kingdom of God. As to persecution, all men who live godly in Christ Jesus suffer persecution. Why this combination by priest and people against Joseph Smith, an illiterate boy, as soon as he was administered to by the angels of God? Why did he wade in deep waters up to the day of his death? Why did he pass through forty or fifty vexatious lawsuits? Because he was a servant of God and warned the inhabitants of the earth of the judgments that were to come. So it has been with all who have followed him. If this people were not the people of God, you would not see a combination of the inhabitants of the earth for our destruction. Are these Latter-day Saints all the sinners there are in the world? If they are, I tell you the inhabitants of the earth are in a good condition. But it is not so. We sin enough, it is true; perhaps too much; we are guilty of a good many things, probably, that we ought to repent of; I have no doubt there should be a reformation among us in some things; we do not pray as much as we ought to; but we are not so bad as the world call us by any means. The Presidency, the Apostles and these Elders of Israel, our hearts should be united together. We should labor with each other, and for each other, and for the benefit of the children of God. We have tried to do that, in a measure, I believe; but we are weak. If, however, we will do our duty, all will be well. I pray God to bless these Latter-day Saints. I know He will bless us if we walk uprightly before Him. We will conquer, we will overcome, Zion will arise and flourish, it will stand as appointed of the Lord, the saints of God will be gathered, they will stand in holy places while the judgments of God are manifest in the earth. I say to the Latter-day Saints and to the world, watch the signs of the times, watch the changes that are going to take place. I tell you that thunders,that lightnings, that earthquakes, that storms, that cyclones, that pestilence and that famine are gathered together in the heaven of heavens, and the angels of God are ready to go forth when the testimony of the Elders of Israel is closed. Messengers will visit the earth that they cannot mob, that they cannot destroy, because they are the angels of God. These are eternal truths, written like pages of living fire upon these records of Almighty God, and they will have their fulfillment. Prepare yourselves for the things that await us. They are sure to come. No power can stay the hand of the Almighty. God bless us and give us inspiration, light and truth, that we may be prepared for that which is to come, for Christ's sake. Amen. DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the Afternoon Session of Conference, Sunday, April 6, 1890. Before this Conference closes there is a subject I wish to say a few words upon. Brother Cannon has to-day laid before us the truth with regard to the ordinances of the Holy Gospel, the revelation of Jesus Christ and the principles pertaining to the salvation of this people, which are revealed to us in the Bible, Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, and are give through the living oracles. Paul says there is but one Gospel, and "Though we or an angel from heaven preach any other gospel than that which I have preached unto you, let him be accursed." Whenever there has been any baptism from the days of Father Adam, or Moses, when he crossed the Red Sea, down to the days of Jesus Christ, and Joseph Smith, it has always been the same. There has never been any change in the Gospel ordinances, in baptism or repentance; no change in the principles of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. There has never been any change in the manner of receiving them; no change in the reception of the Holy Ghost. It is so in every age and generation of the world. There is no change in the holy resurrection of the children of men from the grave. These principles have all been reserved for us. I wish to say that in my acquaintance in this Church, I have seen men, from time to time rise up and try to be servants of God. They try to explain things they know nothing about, to make themselves appear clever. There is a great deal of this kind of thing in this age. There was one of the leading Elders of the Church who went before the people and undertook to preach certain principles. Joseph heard of it and desired him to present the doctrine to him in writing. He wrote it, and when he completed it read it to the Prophet. He asked Joseph what he thought of it. "Why," said Joseph, "it is a beautiful system, I have but one fault to find with it--." "What is that, Brother Joseph?" Joseph said-- "It is not true." So I say, every little while someone, thinking he is smart, tries to teach something that is not in the Doctrine and Covenants and Church works, and which is not true. I, myself, sat for over two hours once in a meeting-house, in St. Louis, listening to a prominent Elder of this Church, who called the people together to preach to them the doctrine of the, what was called, "baby resurrection." He preached to two or three thousand people, and there was not a word of truth in the doctrine. I thought he ought to know better. In the afternoon I was called upon to speak. After meeting there were a great many people gathered round me and asked what I thought of the man's sermon. I replied, it is all nonsense. Well that is just how I felt. It is no benefit in this world for men to preach such false doctrine. And now, every little while, I hear of some one of the Elders, who wishes to be considered smart, trying to teach something he knows nothing about. The Elders have a world of truth to preach about. There is enough revealed to fill the whole earth as long as you live. Preach the truth as you understand it. Do not speculate on things you know nothing about, for it will benefit no one. If you listen to false doctrine you will be led away by false spirits. Remember and observe this, and you will be all right. Keep in the paths of truth, and all will be well with you. I pray God to bless you, my brethren and sisters. We have had a good time during this Conference. We have had many testimonies, and they are true. Let us lay them to heart, and be not discouraged. Rely upon the Lord and you will be all right. Salvation is here; the kingdom of God is here, the Gospel is here; the Zion of God is here; the work of God is upon the earth. It is being built up and established. Let us do our duty, trusting in God, and we will be brought off triumphant. And when we get through we will be satisfied with our labors in the flesh, and the Lord's dealings with us. I hope we will so conduct ourselves and carry out the principles of salvation, that we may gain eternal life, which may God grant in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. THE MISSION OF THE RISING GENERATION _______________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the Y.M.M.I.A. Conference, convened in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, June 1, 1890. No man occupying the place that I do at this time, addressing a body of Latter-day Saints, could answer his own mind or the minds of those who hear except by the inspiration of Almighty God and the assistance of the Holy Ghost. If I were to tell this congregation which has assembled together as a Mutual Improvement Association of the young men and maidens of Zion that I was not deeply interested in your welfare, I should deny the faith. Indeed the circumstances in which we are placed causes me as well as my brethren to have the deepest interest in the rising generation who dwell in the mountains of Israel. I will tell you why: I realize the fact that this world with all its kingdoms, thrones, principalities, and powers, with all its wealth, seas, rivers, lakes, its shipping, telegraphs, railroads, its mines, its gold and silver, the whole of it has to go into the hands of the young men and maidens who dwell upon this earth, who stand in the midst of some fourteen hundred millions of the human family. Had I the power to tell by the visions of heaven, by the revelations of Jesus Christ, what will take place when this generation of young men and women shall have passed through another thirty years of this life, I do not think it would be wisdom for me to reveal it to the world. Nevertheless, I will say that no generation of young people before this has had greater evidence of the revolutions, changes, sorrows or afflictions that will overwhelm the world, that will overtake the inhabitants of the earth, than those which are to come to pass in their time. The sorrowful fact is before us that never in our history has such a flood of crime and the power of the evil one trying to destroy the children of men been so rampant as now. One thousand murders are committed to-day upon the face of the earth where there was a hundred, years ago, or even when the Book of Mormon was translated into the English language by the servants of God. The same in regard to suicides. Look at the black catalogue of crime in our midst to-day. Why, the world will not realize all this unless they look at the signs of the times, and read them. The signs of all heaven and earth indicate to us that the end is approaching--that the Son of Man is at our very doors. To the sons and daughters of Zion I would say: I have done my mission to the world. I have traveled far enough to make a journey around the world six times within the last fifty or sixty years of my life in preaching the Gospel to the nations of the earth. My mission is now over in that respect, and in the few days I have to spend here I want to use my voice in the cause of the sons and daughters of Zion. Those who have obeyed and served God have always been unpopular with the world, in every age, from the time of Christ Himself. The Lord raised up a Prophet in the nineteenth century. Joseph Smith, the Prophet of God, labored with us for fourteen years after he had organized the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; he established a work which will stand until the coming of the Son of Man. I myself have traveled with him thousands of miles, and spent a great deal of time in his company. But he is now on the other side of the vail; so are also those Apostles who were then with us, among them Brigham Young, John Taylor, Geo. A. Smith, the Pratts, and many among us now will soon follow them. But the Church and kingdom of God is here and will remain to the end. I would say to the young people of Zion. "The God of heaven has laid upon your shoulders the honor and responsibility of bearing off this kingdom in your day and generation. You are called to build up Zion, to manifest your faith, to keep the commandments of God, to administer in the ordinances of the House of God both for the living and the dead. This is the work your fathers have laid upon you. Rise up and magnify your calling. Prepare yourselves for the great work of God Almighty which rests upon you. If you are unpopular and persecuted--what of it? What if your names are cast out as evil among men? There is a God in Israel. He holds your destiny as well as that of all nations under heaven, and He will not fail or disappoint any of His Saints." To those who are engaged in the primaries, in Sabbath schools, in young men's and young women's mutual improvement associations, let me say, "We cannot be divided in these matters." Having spoken of the excellent work which these institutions had accomplished in the past, President Woodruff alluded to the Relief Societies, which he said had been a great blessing to this people. It has not unfrequently been said by this and other nations, "You Mormons are not fit to live." Hard things have been said against us; and there have been so many lies told about us that nobody knows what is truth. Some time ago I came down here with a whole car load of ministers on their way to attend a conference, and as we passed by the Sixteenth Ward schoolhouse one of the gentlemen sitting at my side remarked, "Mr. Woodruff, what is that building?" I replied that it was one of our schools. "Schools!" he exclaimed, "do you have schoolhouses?" I replied that we certainly had--that we had twenty Church schoolhouses in this city. "Why!" he rejoined, "I am surprised; I did not know before that you `Mormons' had a schoolhouse; I did not even know that you taught anybody!" A man of his standing should have known better but that is just the way with the world today. Do not be discouraged or fear that the Lord will fail any of you. This kingdom will increase in power and glory, the kingdom of God will increase until all those gathered together are prepared for the coming of the Son of Man. God bless you and all those who are laboring in these Societies. You are upon a good mission. Here you have an army of young men, maidens and children; to save them is your mission, and God will bless you in it. May our heavenly father pour out his spirit upon Zion, prepare Jerusalem for the return of the Jews, gather together the scattered from the nations of the earth, and prepare all for the coming of the Son of Man. UNION ____________________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at Logan (Cache Stake Conference), Sunday Morning, August 3rd, 1890. I have a few thoughts and reflections which I would like to present to the Latter-day Saints who compose this conference; but in order to do it, I need the help and assistance of the Spirit of God, as does every man who attempts to teach the people. The subject that I have upon my mind is, union among the Latter-day Saints. The Savior said to His Apostles anciently, and to the Apostles in our day: "I say unto you, be one; and if ye are not one ye are not mine." "I and my Father are one." There is a principle connected with this that I think is very important to us as a people and as a Church here on the earth. With all the divisions, and all the discontent, and the quarrelings and opposition among the powers on earth, or that have been revealed from heaven, I have never heard that it has ever been revealed to the children of men that there was any division between God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Ghost. They are one. They always have been one. They always will be one, from eternity unto eternity. Our Heavenly Father stands at the head, being the Author of the salvation of the children of men, and having created and peopled the world and given laws to the inhabitants of the earth. This principle is shown unto us by the revelation of the laws which belong to the different kingdoms. There is a celestial kingdom, a terrestrial kingdom, and a telestial kingdom. There is a glory of the sun, a glory of the moon, and a glory of the stars; and as one star differs from another star in glory, so also is the resurrection of the dead. In the celestial Kingdom of God there is oneness, there is union. In reading the history of the dealings of God with men, from the Bible, the Book of Mormon, and the Doctrine and Covenants, we can see that, from the days of Father Adam, the Lord has raised up a class of men, in every dispensation, upon whom He has bestowed His Priesthood, and unto whom He has given power and authority to do His work upon the face of the earth among the children of men. And these men have been in possession of principles of union with God, with the Son of God and with the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost was given to Father Adam; he was filled with it when, in his last days, he blessed those of his sons who were High Priests and the residue of his posterity. Father Adam, Enoch, Moses, Noah, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and all those old patriarchs and prophets were obliged to have communion with God. They were under the necessity of seeking unto the Lord, for unless they had this communion they were not qualified to do their duty. They were dependent upon the Lord for revelation, for light, and for instruction to have power to carry out the commandments of God. This union that the Lord required of the ancient patriarchs and prophets, and which Jesus required of His Apostles, was required of Joseph Smith and his brethren. It has been required of all Saints of God from the foundation of the world till today. Men who have held any portion of the Holy Priesthood, and have had its gifts, graces, and blessings bestowed upon them, have been under the necessity of having communion with God. In the whole history of the world I have never read of any man whom God called to stand as the head of His work, who has not sought the Lord while in that position; and the Lord has been with him. It is my faith that the Lord will never permit any man upon whose shoulders He places the authority and power to lead Israel, to go astray, or to lead the children of God from the path of duty. The Lord would remove such a man from his place. In every age of the world the Saints of God have been obliged to be united. Babylon may divide; the inhabitants of the earth may have all the division they wish for; but they will receive the results of that disunion, and have done all the way through. City after city, nation after nation has been destroyed by the judgments of the Almighty whenever it has become ripened in iniquity, as in the case of Sodom and Gomorrah, of Babylon, Nineveh, Tyre and Sidon, and a great many other ancient cities and countries. But the Saints of God cannot prosper unless they are united. This has been demonstrated in the history of the world. Moses, in his day, was obliged to have communion and fellowship with God. The Lord gave unto him commandments, upon tables of stone, for the guidance of the children of Israel. When Moses came down from the mountain and saw the rebellion, the dissension and the abominations of the Israelites--that, notwithstanding all the miracles they had witnessed, revelations they had been given, they had made a golden calf to worship, because he had come back to them in time--he was so angry at their wickedness that he cast the tables of stone to the ground and broke them. Of course you all know about this. But Moses had to have union with God. So in the whole history of the people of God in all ages. They have had to be united. They have had to work together. They have had to receive the law of God together. Jesus was one with the Father. Says He: "For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me." This union was never broken between the Father and the Son. The first revelation given to Joseph Smith was that of the Father and the Son. The heavens were opened, and the Father, with His Son, appeared to Joseph, in answer to his prayer, and He pointed to His Son and said, "This is my beloved Son; hear ye him." This is a peculiarity that I have no recollection of ever being manifest in any other age of the world. Another peculiar feature connected with this dispensation is that the God of heaven has bestowed upon almost all the male members of the Church the Holy Priesthood. This union was necessary between God and the prophets and apostles of old. Unless that union had existed between Him and His servants it could not have extended throughout the children of Israel or among the children of men. It is also of vast importance to us in this Church and kingdom. I will say myself that I do not believe there ever was a man, save Jesus Christ, that was more closely united and associated with God the Father, and God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost, than the Prophet Joseph Smith. The power of revelation was with him from the day that he was called to receive the Priesthood up to the time when he was martyred. The power of inspiration was with him day by day. This is plainly manifest in the revelations contained in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants. Whenever the Lord felt disposed to reprove him, Joseph Smith, through his own mouth, had to reprove himself; and he did not hesitate to give the word of the Lord, though it was against himself. He was united with the Lord; he was united with the Holy Ghost; he was united with the angels in heaven, with Peter, James and John and with John the Baptist. He received the Priesthood from under their hands. Joseph called twelve Apostles. Who were they? The Lord said to him: "The twelve are they who shall desire to take upon them my name with full purpose of heart; and if they desire to take upon them my name with full purpose of heart, they are called to go into all the world to preach my gospel unto every creature." The history of these twelve Apostles we are somewhat acquainted with. I have been associated with the Apostleship for over fifty years. I knew those men. I knew their lives. When the Prophet Joseph organized the Quorum of the twelve Apostles, he taught this principle of union to them. He gave them to understand that they must be of one heart and one mind, and they must take upon themselves fully the name of Christ; that if God commanded them to do anything they must go and do it; that if they married a wife they could not stay at home three or four years to take care of her if they were called to go to the nations of the earth. I myself started on a mission six weeks after I was married, and I was gone two or three years. So with others of my brethren. It mattered not what temporal work we had to do, when we were called to go abroad we had to go. This was one of the requirements of the Apostleship. We also had to be united. We could not contend one with another. If we did, the Spirit of God would be withdrawn from us, and we would receive chastisement at the hands of the Lord. Under the celestial law of the Kingdom of God men must unite together; men must love one another; men must stand by this Holy Priesthood and maintain the powers of it while they dwell in the flesh, in order to honor God and to be prepared to receive their inheritances in the world to come. As I have said before, I have been a member of the Quorum of the Apostles for over fifty years. I have been acquainted with its ups and downs. I have been familiar with the apostates. I have also been acquainted with the union that has existed. I can say that I never associated with a class of men that ever manifested the same love for one another as the Apostles of the Church have when they have been faithful. Of course, we have seen days of sorrow. After that first Quorum was called of God; after they had had the ministration of angels and seen the power of God manifested, some of them yielded to temptation. They said, "We have served God long enough, and now we are going to serve ourselves." They stopped praying and went to merchandising. They stopped serving God, and took a decided stand against the Prophet whom God had raised up to lay the foundation of this Church and kingdom. What were the consequences? It sent them to perdition. Their power fell like lightning from heaven. Their priesthood was taken from them, and sealed upon the heads of other men. It has remained so to this day, and will, for all I know, to the endless ages of eternity. With all the light they had, with all the power they had, and with all the manifestations they had from God out of heaven, they turned from these things and rejected them. Those were days of sorrow to me and to those who remained faithful; for one half of the Quorum fell and turned against Joseph. But the Lord was with him. So was Brigham Young and Heber C. Kimball and others of the brethren of the quorum. They stood by him; while others deserted him and were cut off the Church, and they to-day are in the Spirit world, without the Priesthood, without their crown, without their glory, and without the celestial blessings that were promised them on condition of their faithfulness. With this exception, the Quorum of the twelve Apostles have been united. We knew this was the work of God. We knew the God of heaven had laid this Apostleship upon our shoulders. We knew, as Joseph Smith told us just before his martyrdom, that if we did not round up our shoulders and bear off this kingdom we would be damned. No man can receive this Apostleship; no man can bear this Priesthood; no man can be called to this important calling, and then turn from it, without condemnation or being cursed by the hand of God. It matters not what sacrifices God requires at our hands in the building up of His kingdom, we have got to meet these things and trust in Him. The Prophet Joseph, in his day, consulted with the Apostles and sought their views on important matters and principles. He would say, "I want you to tell me your views and feelings about this, that and the other." The agency which God had given us was never taken from us, either by Him or His Prophet. We used to express our feelings to the Prophet, and we did so with all good conscience before God. As a general thing our views were alike; but if there was anything in them different from what Joseph considered was right, when we got through he would tell us thus and so. Then we did not stand against that, but we united upon it. One of the Apostles once brought before the Prophet Joseph a very peculiar kind of a system. Joseph listened to him very patiently, and when this brother got through he says, "Brother Joseph, what do you think of that?" "Why," says he, "Brother ______, it is a beautiful system, and I have only one fault in the world to find about it." "What is it?" "It is not true." Of course, when a man gets up a thing that is not true, he has to lay it aside. I want to say, for the comfort of the Latter-day Saints, that God is not going to fail anybody. He has carried out His purposes in every age and generation of men. As Brother Snow said today, He raised up old father Abraham to stand at the head of the House of Israel, because he was a noble spirit. Before he was born he occupied such a position with God, in his agency, that he was given supremacy here on the earth. He stands at the head of his posterity, and at the head of Israel, and will occupy that position forever. The Lord is not going to disappoint us. He has fulfilled His work up to the present time; and now comes the consummation, the winding up scene, and the fulfillment of all those prophecies and revelations which God has given to inspired men, who were moved upon by the Holy Ghost. Those revelations you and I are fulfilling. Joseph Smith laid the foundation of this work. He holds the key of the Kingdom today, and will to the endless ages of eternity. He has passed and gone. Over twenty Apostles have passed away. Those who laid the foundation of this work are now in the Spirit world. But we are alive here, and have yet a few days in which to work. Today we have a Quorum of Twelve Apostles. When men have died or apostatized, others have been called to fill their places. When the Prophet Joseph was taken away, President Young occupied his place. He held the keys of the Kingdom of God. It was for him to have association with God the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ, and to lead Israel. You know what he has done. It is before you. He has filled these mountains of Israel with cities and towns and villages. He performed a great work. God was with him. He was true and faithful. He was one of the first Quorum of Apostles. He never varied; he never shrank from duty. He stood by the Prophet Joseph while he lived. He stood by the Kingdom of God and by the Lord as long as he lived himself. After his death, Brother Taylor took his place; and when he passed away it fell upon me, for a little while. It is my duty to have fellowship with God, as weak an instrument as I am in the hands of God. It is my duty to have power with God. And when I have this, then my counselors should stand by me and with me. We should be of one heart and mind in all matters, temporal and spiritual, that come before us in the labor of the Church and Kingdom of God. And I am thankful to say that this has been the case since I have been called to this position, or since the organization of the Presidency of the Church. Standing connected with us here are the Twelve Apostles. It is their duty to be of one heart and one mind. They have no right to be otherwise. They cannot be otherwise and prosper before God. They should be one with us, and we one with them. They have their rights; they have their agency. But when the Presidency of the Church say unto any of them, "This is the word of the Lord," or, "This is right," they should take hold and work with us. The law of God requires this union at our hands. It is the duty of the Seventies, also, to be united with the Twelve Apostles. The Seventies are called upon by the Apostles to go forth and labor in the vineyard of the Lord, and they work together. So, brethren and sisters, with every organization in this Church. There should be union. There should be no discord, no disunion. If there is, the Lord is not pleased with it, and we are hindered in our work. I want all the Quorums to understand this. The lesser Priesthood should be united. Here is Bishop Preston. He stands at the head of the Aaronic Priesthood. He has got counselors. They should be united together. They should be united with the lesser Priesthood, and they should labor to promote their interest and welfare. I have no fault to find with the brethren in these matters. I mention these things as duties devolving upon us. Now, brethren and sisters, we should all be united. Unless we are one, we are not the Lord's. I wish to exhort the Latter-day Saints to observe this principle. Our aim is high. What is that aim? It is the Celestial Kingdom of our God. We have been called out of the world, from almost all nations under heaven, in fulfillment of the revelations of God. We have been called unto these mountains of Israel. We are fulfilling revelations that were given thousands of years ago. The eyes of Jeremiah, of Ezekiel, of Daniel, of Isaiah and of the ancient Patriarchs and Prophets beheld our day. They saw our Zion. They saw our temples and our tabernacle, built "for a shadow in the daytime from the heat, and for a place of refuge, and for a covert from storm and from rain." Brethren and sisters, let us look at these things as they are. What is this world? Our lives here are temporary; they are of short duration. We are here upon a mission. This people have been called together from almost every nation under heaven. They have gathered here--a little handful out of fourteen hundred millions of the human family. Do you suppose the eyes of the Lord have been withdrawn from this people? Have the eyes of the heavenly host been withdrawn? No; they are watching over us with feelings of the deepest interest. They know where we stand. Why do we have this warfare that we are passing through? Because it is the Church and Kingdom of God; because we are the people of God. No man can live godly in Christ Jesus without suffering persecution. This is your legacy. It is the legacy of all the Saints of God in every age of the world. Therefore, I say to the Latter-day Saints, let your hearts be comforted. All is right in Israel, as far as we make it right, and as far as we do our duty. I listened yesterday to the reports made by the Bishops and others. No doubt there is room for improvement in Logan. There is room for a great deal of improvement in Salt Lake City. There is room for improvement throughout these mountains. These Elders of Israel who bear the Holy Priesthood should prize their standing enough to never permit themselves to go to these saloons and drink with the drunken, or to pursue a course whereby they lose the Spirit of God. Brethren, if you do this, you will be sorry for it; and you will have to repent of these sins and turn from them, in order to get forgiveness before the Lord. I know that this is the kingdom of God. I know this is the people whom He has raised up. They have been kept, as I have often said, in the Spirit world the last six thousand years, to come forth and stand in the flesh in this day and build up this Church and kingdom and warn this generation of the judgments which await them. We occupy this position before the Lord. Then let us not betray our trust. As the Lord said to the Prophet Joseph, in answer to his prayer while in Liberty jail: "Behold, there are many called, but few are chosen. And why are they not chosen? "Because their hearts are set so much upon the things of this world, and aspire to the honors of men, that they do not learn this one lesson-- "That the rights of the Priesthood are inseparably connected with the powers of heaven, and that the powers of heaven cannot be controlled nor handled only upon the principles of righteousness." There is not a man that breathes the breath of life today on the earth, who holds and honors that Priesthood, but has power with the heavens, and he can go before the Lord and have his prayers heard and answered. This is what the Latter-day Saints should do. We should live in that way and manner that we can go before the Lord and ask for those blessings, in faith and in power, that we need to sustain us to carry out the purposes of God here in the mountains of Israel. This is necessary for our advancement. We live in a fast age. Events are hastening on, and the Lord is going to cut His work short in righteousness, lest no flesh should be saved. No matter about our persecutions; no matter about the advantages our enemies may have from a political or temporal point of view. God holds your destinies, He holds the destinies of this nation and of all men in His own hands. He governs and controls them. And His angels are ready and waiting to go forth and reap down the earth. But the Lord will fulfil His promises. Do not be discouraged, therefore, with regard to these things. But we have got to be humble. We have got to be prayerful. We have got to have faith in God, and to be united, and carry out those principles which the Lord requires at our hands. All the organizations of the Priesthood have power. The Deacon has power, through the Priesthood which he holds. So has the Teacher. They have power to go before the Lord and have their prayers heard and answered, as well as the Prophet, the Seer, or the Revelator has. It is by this Priesthood that the work of God has been accomplished. It is by this Priesthood that men have ordinances conferred upon them, that their sins are forgiven, and that they are redeemed. For this purpose it has been revealed and sealed upon our heads. Brethren and sisters, these are a few of the thoughts I have upon my mind. There is a union that God requires of every quorum in this Church, from the Presidency down; and when we set up our will and our views against those of our brethren, we want to be careful what we are doing. We should all do the will of God, laboring for light, for truth and for those things that we stand in need of. Speaking of the love of the Saints of God, no man knows the love that men bear one another who hold the Holy Priesthood. It is above the love of women. Why, when I traveled abroad alone, on my early missions, I would have done almost anything to have met a Mormon Elder. It was worth more than gold to me to meet anybody that was in the Church. Our brethren here--Brothers Cannon and Snow and others--were called in early days, before they received the Apostleship, to go upon missions. They went forth and proved themselves before heaven and earth. The Lord knows these men. They have been called by revelation. We should all be careful not to hurt the tender vine, nor to hurt one another. Love one another, sustain one another; and while we do live in the flesh let us do our duty. Our reward is on the other side of the veil. No matter whether a man is rich or poor here. Riches are dangerous. It is better to be poor than rich. If a man gets riches enough to damn him, it is the worst calamity that can come upon him. As one said anciently, "Give me neither poverty nor riches." Many of us have traveled a great many years in the vineyard of the Lord, trying to save the souls of men and to lay up treasures in heaven. Thousands have been redeemed in these temples. You have one here in Logan. We have been called as Saviors upon Mount Zion, while the kingdom has been the Lord's. These are glorious principles. To be saved ourselves, and to save our fellowmen, what a glorious thing! What is gold and silver; what are the riches of this world? They all perish with the using. We pass away and leave them. But if we have eternal life, if we keep the faith and overcome, we shall rejoice when we go upon the other side of the veil. I rejoice in all these things. There is hardly any principle the Lord has revealed that I have rejoiced more in than in the redemption of our dead; that we will have our fathers, our mothers, our wives and our children with us in the family organization, in the morning of the first resurrection and in the Celestial Kingdom. These are grand principles. They are worth every sacrifice. When we get home with God and with the Prophets and Apostles we will rejoice exceedingly. "Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him." Brethren and sisters, am I glad to meet with you, and to have the privilege of bearing my testimony. This is the Church of God. The Lord has a good people here--the sons and daughters of Abraham, whose lives have been hid with Christ in God, and you have known it not. The Priesthood has been handed down from Father Abraham, through the lineage of our forefathers, unto us in this last dispensation and fulness of times. Then let us be true and faithful; let us honor God; let us try to keep His commandments; let us remember our prayers and do our duty, and especially be united--united to the Lord, united to the Holy Ghost, united to one another, that we may carry out the principles in our day and time; which may God grant, for Christ's sake. Amen. REMARKS Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the General Conference held in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, October 4, 1890. I do not think anyone can tell the hour of the coming of the Son of Man. I think those things have been sufficiently revealed to us; so that we need not look for the time of that event to be made known. I will say here that in my dreams I have had a great many visits from the Prophet Joseph since his death. The last time I met him was in the spirit world. I met him at the Temple. He spoke to me. Calling me by name, he said, "I cannot stop to talk to you, for I am in a hurry." I met Father Smith. He, too, said to me, "I am in a hurry." I met a great many of the Apostles and others who are in the spirit world, and they all seemed to be in a hurry. I marveled at this, and wondered very greatly in my mind why anybody should be in a hurry in the Paradise of God. I had an interview with the Prophet Joseph afterwards and asked him the question, "Why are you all in such a hurry here?" I said, "I have always been in a hurry in the world since I was born, but I thought there would be no occasion for it when I died and entered the spirit world." He replied, "Well, I will tell you: The Prophets and Apostles in this dispensation have had no time nor opportunity to prepare themselves to go to the earth with the great bridegroom when He goes to meet the bride, the Lamb's wife. We in this dispensation have not had time. We have first as much work to perform, to prepare ourselves, as in other dispensations." He said the time was at hand for the coming of the Son of Man, for Christ to go forth in fulfillment of revelation and prophecy, to meet the bride, the Lamb's wife, the Church and Kingdom of God upon the earth. Says He, "That is not revealed to us, nor never will be until the hour comes; but we have much work to do to prepare ourselves for the event." I have always believed from the revelations that we never would know the exact time of the coming of the Son of man; and I am more convinced of this from what the Prophet said to me in my dreams. I have had a many interviews with President Young since he died, a great many teachings from him, and from others who held important positions here in the flesh, but who have gone into the spirit world, and seem, in a measure, to have an interest and watch-care over the Church and Kingdom of God though they have passed to the other side of the veil. THE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST AND IT'S TRUTHFULNESS _______________ ADDRESS Given by President Wilford Woodruff. at the General Conference, Salt Lake City, October 4, 1890. I feel this morning to offer up the gratitude of my heart to God, my Heavenly Father, that my life has been preserved to again meet in a semi-annual Conference with the Saints. I feel thankful that I have the privilege of meeting with so many of the Apostles, Elders and Saints who have assembled here on this occasion. Our Heavenly Father revealed from heaven, over sixty years ago, to the inhabitants of the earth, through the mouth of the Prophet of God, whom He raised up, that He had set His hand once more, for the last time, to prune His vineyard and to prepare the people of the earth for the coming of the Son of Man. Over sixty years have passed away since those revelations were given. The Lord called upon the children of men, to take upon themselves the name of Christ--those who were willing to enter in the vineyard of the Lord and preach the Gospel of Christ to them. He gave us to understand that we should be called to go forth and preach the message of the Son of God in this last dispensation of the fulness of times. Many of those who engaged to carry out and fulfill these promises of God to mankind are today in the spirit world. They have closed their mission, they have borne their testimony, they have fulfilled the object of their creation, they have magnified the high and holy Priesthood which the God of heaven has sealed upon their heads, to go forth and administer in the ordinances of life and salvation. A few of us are left; some of us still remain here in the flesh, and we are still called upon to labor. We are still called to officiate in the Holy Priesthood, and to administer in the ordinances of salvation to the children of men. It has been a very important dispensation, a very interesting generation in which we live as Latter-day Saints. The history of this Church is before the world, and we are still passing through many interesting portions of the experience of the work of God in the last days. I will say to the Latter-day Saints, the Lord has fulfilled, so far, all that He has promised unto us. The Lord has called many men--hundreds of them--from the nations of the earth, who have received the Holy Priesthood, the authority by which the God of Israel has always administered in heaven and on the earth the ordinances of life and salvation. They have labored faithfully until the present day; they have warned the inhabitants of the earth. All nations under heaven have been visited by the Elders of Israel as far as the doors were open to receive them. The Lord, so far, has warned the world; He has, so far, carried out the object of the calling of the sons of men. The Gospel has been preached, and the children of men have heard it in every nation, including our own. They have heard the testimony of these Elders of Israel. And what was the mission given to the Elders? To go forth and deliver the Gospel message to all the world. The people were called upon to repent of their sins, to have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and when they had faith in God, in the Gospel, faith to believe and receive those testimonies given to them, they were called upon to go forth and be baptized for the remission of their sins. Then they had the privilege of receiving the laying on of hands for the reception of the Holy Ghost. These are some of the principles that have been taught from the time of Father Adam down to that of every Patriarch, Prophet, Apostle--and even the Savior himself--in their day and generation, as the only Gospel ever revealed to the human family in any age of the world. There has never been but one Gospel; that Gospel is "the same today, yesterday and forever." That Gospel is the same that was taught by Adam to his children; which Elijah, Methuselah, and all the ancient prophets and patriarchs taught to their posterity, and the inhabitants of the earth. Jesus Christ taught the same when He came in the meridian of time; He never deviated from it in any instance. Paul the Apostle, born in due time, received the Gospel at the hands of the Lord, who said, though he or an angel from heaven preached any other Gospel, let him be accursed. That Gospel was revealed to Joseph Smith in all its fulness, power and glory, with all its graces, gifts and principles. He taught it to those around him; he organized this Church on the 6th day of April, 1830; and through all the tribulations, persecutions and troubles of the Latter-day Saints, that same Gospel has been among us. I feel thankful that I have lived so long, connected with this Church and Kingdom, and that I live now in the midst of the Latter-day Saints. As the Lord has set His hand to warn the world, to warn this generation, to prune the vineyard, He will leave every nation under heaven without excuse, in these days of judgments, calamities and tribulations, which are about to be poured out upon the earth. I feel thankful that I have been associated with this people up to the present day. How long I shall remain among the Latter-day Saints I do not know. It matters not with me; but I have the same testimony to bear today that I have had from the commencement of this Church--that it is the work of God--as promised and prophesied of through the mouths of inspired men for 6000 years. I bear my testimony to these things this morning. I hope and trust that while we are assembled in this conference our hearts may be united in faith and prayer, that we may enjoy the Holy Spirit of God. Without the inspiration of that Spirit, Utah would be as barren a desert, as far as we are concerned, today as we found it on the 24th of July, 1847. When you heard the Gospel of Christ preached by those humble men who had been called from their various occupations, to go forth in the Lord's cause, inspired by the Holy Ghost, without purse or scrip, taking no thought what they should eat or what they should drink, you knew that what they taught was true. You heard and believed their testimony, and that same testimony is here with this entire people today. When you received the testimony you were baptized for the remission of your sins, you had hands laid upon you for the reception of the Holy Ghost. Without all this you would have remained at home. I know that this is the work of God, and so do you; therefore let our hearts be thankful to God; let us unite together in our prayers to Him; let us do our duty faithfully while we dwell here in the flesh, and carry out those principles in which we have been taught. Let us continue to preach the Gospel, to warn the nations, to build up Zion, and establish righteousness; so that when we get through and go on the other side of the vail we will be satisfied with our labors here. We should try, therefore, to live our religion, to be true and faithful to our covenants, and to all those principles of the Gospel of Jesus Christ which will save all men both in time and eternity. I pray to God my Heavenly Father that His blessing may rest upon us--upon these Elders of Israel, upon these Apostles of the Lamb of God, that they may be inspired to declare the words of salvation during this conference to their brethren and sisters, which may God grant, for Christ's sake, Amen. 1. Wilford Woodruff bore testimony of one particular visit with the Prophet Joseph, saying that "Joseph Smith continued visiting myself and others up to a certain time, and then it stopped. The last time I saw him was in heaven. In the night vision I saw him at the door of the temple in heaven. He came and spoke to me. He said he could not stop to talk with me because he was in a hurry. The next man I met was Father Smith; he could not talk with me because he was in a hurry. I met a half a dozen brethern who had held high positions on earth and none of them could stop to talk with me because they were in a hurry. I was much astonished. By and by I saw the Prophet again, and I got the privilege to ask him a question. `Now,' said I, `I want to know why you are in a hurry. I have been in a hurry all through my life but I expected my hurry would be over when I got into the kingdom of heaven, if I ever did.' Joseph said, `I will tell you, Brother Woodruff, every dispensation that has had the Priesthood on the earth and has gone into the celestial kingdom, has had a certain amount of work to do to prepare to go to the earth with the Savior when He goes to reign on the earth. Each dispensation has had ample time to do this work. We have not. We are the last dispensation, and so much work has to be done and we need to be in a hurry in order to accomplish it.' Of course, that was satisfactory with me, but it was new doctrine to me" (Deseret News 53:21, November 7, 1896). DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the General Conference, Sunday Afternoon, October 5, 1890. I know not how long I may be able to talk, but while I do I want the attention of the congregation. The Saints have often heard me testify concerning the power by which this Church has been established. I have no power, nor have these apostles, to preach the Gospel and build up the kingdom of God, except by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost. Whatever testimony we bear to be productive of good, must be by the Spirit of God. We live in the greatest of all dispensations, and there are many things which the Lord has withheld from the foundation of the world, and which have never before been revealed to man, which will be revealed to the Saints of this dispensation. Every dispensation of the Gospel has had its work, and at no time has God ever set His hand to do a work among men, without having an element prepared to work with. This is true of this dispensation. God has raised up a prophet in this age, and to him sent messengers who had once lived in the flesh. The Lord raised up Joseph who was sold into Egypt, and who did the work appointed to him. So the Lord raised up Joseph Smith, at the time set for him to appear and perform His work, and to him He revealed the same Gospel which was revealed to Abraham and Moses and to the prophets. It is the only Gospel God ever revealed to man. In fulfillment of the revelations of St. John, and other Scriptures, this Gospel was revealed to Joseph Smith. It cost him his life to proclaim those teachings. It cost Jesus and the apostles their lives also. Jesus was a Jew, through the loins of Judah, yet he incurred the hatred of the Jewish nation. Is it not strange that a righteous man cannot stand up among the people and not incur their hatred? There was a war in heaven. Lucifer and one-third of the hosts of heaven rebelled and were cast out. That warfare has never ceased, but has been manifested in every dispensation of the Gospel committed to man. Did Jesus undertake to please the Jews? No. He was faithful to the mission He had received from His Father, without regard to whether the Jews were pleased with Him or not. The Lord revealed to Moses and all the prophets of every age that a Savior would be born to redeem mankind. In the meridian of time He appeared, and organized His Church. The apostles whom He chose faithfully labored to spread the work which He introduced. But it cost a great sacrifice to belong to the Church of Christ in those days. The persecution of the Saints was so great, that at length the last man bearing the priesthood disappeared from the earth, and the Church went into the wilderness. This opposition to the Church will continue until He comes to reign whose right it is to reign, and cast Satan into the place prepared for him, where he can no more deceive the nations. There are different degrees of glory to which men will attain. The number of men who will reach the highest is few, for there are not many who are willing to make in the flesh the sacrifice necessary to entitle them to it. We cannot please the wicked. In order to do so, every Latter-day Saint would have to deny every principle God has revealed to us. I have been with this Church more than fifty years. I can testify that whatever the world may say, Joseph Smith was one of the greatest prophets that God ever raised up, save Jesus only. The Savior said on the cross, of those who were the cause of His death, "Father, forgive them, they know not what they do." They did not know what they did. They did not comprehend what they would have to pass through in consequence of having shed the blood of the Son of God, any more than did the mob who slew Joseph Smith. The yoke remains on the neck of the Jewish nation to-day. Our business is to honor God and serve Him. Our aim is eternal life. It will pay any man that ever breathed to keep the commandments of God and be virtuous and upright. I say to the Saints, "Fear not, little children; it is your Father's good will and pleasure to give you the kingdom." Brother Cannon this morning delivered one of the most solemn discourses ever uttered by any man. What he said was true. I am pained to see the increase of crime in all its various and most hideous shapes in my own and other nations. These things are noticed by heaven. If you want to know what is going to come to pass, read the Revelations of St. John. They will be fulfilled. After two-thirds of the inhabitants are destroyed, the other third will continue in wickedness and unbelief. There is no power on earth can govern the Almighty. No nation committing sin can escape the judgment of God. If you are curtailed in any of your privileges, you may know that God will hold responsible those who cause the curtailment. Joseph said if he had power, he would sustain every man and woman on earth in their religious liberty. I know this is the Gospel of Christ, the Zion spoken of by the prophets, and God will sustain it to the end of time. I have never seen any reason, since I became identified with the work of God, to desert it. I bear my testimony to the Latter-day Saints concerning these things. I pray that you all may be faithful. If you are, you will be satisfied when you get behind the vail. There are many to-day who would lay down their lives for the work of God, if it were necessary. All classes of men will have to go into the spirit world, and will finally learn whether or not "Mormonism" is true. I testify that it is. HISTORY BEHIND ISSUANCE OF THE MANIFESTO ____________________ REMARKS By President George Q. Cannon and Wilford Woodruff, Sixty-first Semi-Annual Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, immediately following the adoption by the General Assembly of the Manifesto issued by President Wilford in relation to Plural Marriages. Oct. 6th, 1890. President Wilford Woodruff. I want to say to all Israel that the step which I have taken in issuing this manifesto has not been done without earnest prayer before the Lord. I am about to go into the spirit world, like other men of my age. I expect to meet the face of my Heavenly Father--the Father of my spirit; I expect to meet the face of Joseph Smith, of Brigham Young, of John Taylor, and of the Apostles, and for me to have taken a stand in anything which is not pleasing in the sight of God, or before the heavens, I would rather have gone out and been shot. My life is no better than other men's. I am not ignorant of the feelings that have been engendered through the course I have pursued. But I have done my duty, and the nation of which we form a part must be responsible for that which has been done in relation to this principle. The Lord has required at our hands many things that we have not done, many things that we were prevented from doing. The Lord required us to build a Temple in Jackson County. We were prevented by violence from doing it. He required us to build a Temple in Far West, which we have not been able to do. A great many things have been required of us, and we have not been able to do them, because of those that surrounded us in the world. This people are in the hands of God. This work is in the hands of God, and He will take care of it. Brother George Q. Cannon told us about the lies that are abroad. It is a time when there have been more lies told about Mormonism than almost any other subject ever presented to the human family. I often think of what Lorenzo Dow said with regard to the doctrine of election. Says he: "It is like this: You can, and you can't; you will, and you won't; you shall, and you shan't; you'll be damned if you do, and you'll be damned if you don't." That is about the condition we as Latter-day Saints are in. If we were to undertake to please the world, and that was our object, we might as well give up the ship; we might have given it up in the beginning. But the Lord has called us to labor in the vineyard; and when our nation passes laws, as they have done, in regard to this principle which we have presented to the Conference, it is not wisdom for us to make war upon sixty-five millions of people. It is not wisdom for us to go forth and carry out this principle against the laws of the nation and receive the consequences. That is in the hands of God, and He will govern and control it. The Church of Christ is here; the Zion of God is here, in fulfilment of these revelations of God that are contained in these holy records in which the whole Christian world profess to believe. The Bible could never have been fulfilled had it not been for the raising up of a prophet in the last days. The revelations of St. John could never have been fulfilled if the angel of God had not flown through the midst of heaven, "having the everlasting Gospel to preach to 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." Was that angel going to visit New York, Philadelphia, Boston, and the world, and call the people together and preach to them? Not at all. But the Lord raised up a Prophet. The angel of God delivered that Gospel to that Prophet. That Prophet organized a Church; and all that He has promised in this code of revelations (the Book of Doctrine and Covenants) has been fulfilled as fast as time would admit. That which is not yet fulfilled will be. Brethren and sisters, it is our duty to be true to God and to be faithful. Make your prayers known unto the Lord. The Lord has told us what He will do concerning many things. He will fulfill His word. Let us be careful and wise, and let us be satisfied with the dealings of God with us. If we do our duty to one another, to our country and to the Church of Christ, we will be justified when we go into the spirit world. It is not the first time that the world has sought to hinder the fulfillment of revelation and prophesy. The Jewish nation and other nations rose up and slew the Son of God and every Apostle but one that bore the Priesthood in that day and generation. They could not establish the kingdom; the world was against them. When the Apostles asked Jesus whether He would at that time restore again the kingdom to Israel, He replied: "It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power." He did not say it would be established then; but He taught them to pray: "Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven." It is a long time since that prayer was offered, and it has not been fulfilled until the present generation. The Lord is preparing a people to receive His kingdom and His Church, and to build up His work. That, brethren and sisters, is our labor. I want the prayers of the Latter-day Saints. I thank God that I have seen with my eyes this day that this people have been ready to vote to sustain me in an action that I know, in one sense, has pained their hearts. Brother George Q. Cannon has laid before you our position. The Lord has given us commandments concerning many things, and we have carried them out as far as we could; but when we cannot do it, we are justified. The Lord does not require at our hands things that we cannot do. This is all I want to say to the Latter-day Saints upon this subject. But go before the Lord and ask Him for light and truth, and to give us such blessings as we stand in need of. Let your prayers ascend into the ears of the God of Sabaoth, and they will be heard and answered upon your heads, and upon the heads of the world. Our nation is in the hands of God. He holds their destiny. He holds the destinies of all men. I will say to the Latter-day Saints, as an Elder in Israel and as an Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ, we are approaching some of the most tremendous judgments God ever poured out upon the world. You watch the signs of the times, the signs of the coming of the Son of Man. They are beginning to be made manifest both in heaven and on earth. As has been told you by the Apostles, Christ will not come until these things come to pass. Jerusalem has got to be rebuilt. The Temple has got to be built. Judah has got to be gathered, and the House of Israel. And the gentiles will go forth to battle against Judah and Jerusalem before the coming of the Son of Man. These things have been revealed by the prophets; they will have their fulfilment. We are approaching these things. All that the Latter-day Saints have to do is to be quiet, careful and wise before the Lord, watch the signs of the times, and be true and faithful; and when you get through you will understand many things that you do not today. This work has been raised up by the power of Almighty God. These Elders of Israel were called from the various occupations of life to preach as they were moved upon by the Holy Ghost. They were not learned men; they were the weak things of this world, whom God chose to confound the wise, "and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are." We are here on that principle. Others will be gathered on that principle. Zion will be redeemed, Zion will arise, and the glory of God will rest upon her, and all that Isaiah and the other prophets have spoken concerning her will come to pass. We are in the last dispensation and fulness of time. It is a great day, and the eyes of all the heavens are over us, and the eyes of God Himself and all the patriarchs and prophets. They are watching over you with feelings of deep interest, for your welfare; and our prophets who were slain and sealed their testimony with their blood, are mingling with the Gods, pleading for their brethren. Therefore, let us be faithful, and leave events in the hands of God, and He will take care of us if we do our duty. I pray God that He will bless these Apostles, Prophets and Patriarchs, these Seventies, High Priests and Elders of Israel, and these Latter-day Saints, who have entered into covenant with our God. You have a great future before you. You have kept the commandments of God, so far as you have had the opportunity, and by receiving the Gospel of Christ and being faithful your reward is before you. Your history is written and is before you. I will say that this nation, and all nations, together with presidents, kings, emporers, judges, and all men, righteous and wicked, have got to go into the spirit world and stand before the bar of God. They have got to give an account of the deeds done in the body. Therefore, we are safe as long as we do our duty. No matter what trials or tribulations we may be called to pass through, the hand of God will be with us and will sustain us. I ask my Heavenly Father to pour out His Spirit upon me, as His servant, that in my advanced age, and during the few days I have to spend here in the flesh, I may be led by the inspiration of the Almighty. I say to Israel, the Lord will never permit me nor any other man who stands as the President of this Church, to lead you astray. It is not in the programme. It is not in the mind of God. If I were to attempt that, the Lord would remove me out of my place, and so He will any other man who attempts to lead the children of men astray from the oracles of God and from their duty. God bless you. Amen. CLOSING REMARKS Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the Conclusion of General Conference, Monday Afternoon, October 6, 1890. Before dismissing this Conference I want to say a few words to the Latter-day Saints. The Lord has said, by revelation, to those who hold the keys of the kingdom of God: "Whomsoever thou shalt bless I will bless and whomsoever thou shalt curse I will curse." I have traveled something like a hundred and seventy five thousand miles in my day and time, and I have preached the Gospel to the nations, to the islands of the sea and to my own country. I have met, in some instances, men who profess to have faith in God and to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, who have stood up before me and cursed the Prophet of God, Joseph Smith, and blasphemed the name of God. But in the midst of all these things, I have never seen a moment of my life when I felt to curse anybody. I hope I never shall. But I have told these men, under these circumstances, that the curse of God would overtaking them; and in no instance, when I have been moved upon to say that, has it ever fallen unfulfilled; for they have been marked cases of the judgments of God overtaking them. But with regard to blessings, I will say, if there was ever an hour in my life that I felt to bless the Latter-day Saints, it is at the present time. My heart is drawn out with love and gratitude to God and my brethren with whom I am surrounded. I have been sustained as a weak instrument in the hands of God as the President of this Church. Since I have been called to this office I have been sustained by the Latter-day Saints, and for over fifty years of my life as an Apostle. Why should not my heart be drawn out in love to such a people? The world know not the love of the Latter-day Saints. They do not comprehend it. It never entered into their souls. I am surrounded here with Prophets, Apostles, Elders and Saints of the living God; and in the morning of the resurrection, when they come out of their graves, they will pass by the Gods and the angels who are set there to watch the interests of the celestial world; they will go to those thrones, kingdoms, principalities and powers which have been ordained of God for them to occupy--those who dwell in this dispensation as well as in other ages of the world. If I am faithful I shall meet you there; I shall meet these Saints of the living God there. Therefore, I feel it is my privilege to bless the Latter-day Saints. I cannot go abroad, as a man, and spread this Gospel to the world and administer to them the ordinances thereof, to have any effect, without the Holy Priesthood; and I, as a man, cannot bless the inhabitants of earth, so that the Lord is bound to acknowledge it, only by the power of the Holy Priesthood; and that power I feel to exercise at the present time in blessing my brethren and sisters. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, I feel to bless my Counselors--President Geo. Q. Cannon and Jos. F. Smith. They have stood by me in all the labors of life, as far as we have been associated, since we have entered into the new and everlasting covenant. On the same principle, I feel to bless these Apostles who surround me. We have been united. We are united in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and they have the gratitude of my heart for the labors of love and life which they have carried out in their day and time. I feel to bless the Presidents of the Seventies, with all their quorums in this Church, with every blessing that I have power to bestow upon them, as a servant of the living God. I feel to bless the High Priests, who bear the high and Holy Priesthood after the order of Melchisedec--their Presidents and all who belong to the quorums. I also feel to bless the thousands of the Elders of Israel who have entered into covenant with the Lord, who have received a portion of the Melchisedec Priesthood, and who have gone forth and been faithful in the ordinances of the House of God. I feel to bless the Bishopric and the Lesser Priesthood, which is after the order of Aaron--the first Priesthood sealed upon the heads of Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery by John the Baptist, who held it, and who laid down his life for the word of God and testimony of Jesus Christ. I feel to bless these Latter-day Saints, as fathers and mothers, as brothers and sisters, in all the ordinances of the House of God. I feel to bless them in their families, in their flocks, and in their herds, and in all they put their hands unto. As far as I have the power to bless, they have the blessings of my heart and my spirit, in every sense of the word. And I say to all Israel, God bless you. Let us live, brethren and sisters, that when we have finished our work and our testimony, as other generations have done, we will receive the same exaltation and glory. The world do not know you. The world do not know this work. They do not understand it. They have not entered into the spirit of it; they never will, except they obey the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the law of the celestial kingdom. FATE OF THE RIGHTEOUS ____________________ REMARKS of President Wilford Woodruff, at the funeral of Elder Daniel H. Wells, in the Tabernacle, Sunday morning, March 29th, 1891 In the providence of God we are again called to pay our last respects and to attend to the burial of another one of the Apostles of the Lamb of God, raised up in the last dispensation and fulness of times. In the few remarks which I shall make this morning I shall not attempt to enter into the history or life, particularly, of Counselor Wells. This has already been presented through the press, and will be fully perhaps by those who may follow me. It is sufficient for me to say that Brother Wells has been in this Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints over forty-five years. He has been closely allied and connected with all the Prophets and Apostles that have been identified with this Church during that period of his life. He has been true and faithful to the Church, to the Kingdom of God, to the inhabitants of the earth, to the Presidencies of the Church and to the Apostles during this period of his life. It is known to the Latter-day Saints--many of them, at least--of the diligent labor which he has been called to pass through during his sojourn in the Church and Kingdom of God. This Church has been organized sixty-one years the sixth of the coming month. During that period the Lord has raised up Prophets and Apostles, Elders and Saints, many of whom have laid the foundation of the Church and Kingdom of God on the earth and have labored therein. But time has called them to the other side of the veil. After finishing their work here in the flesh, the Lord has called them home; and when they pass to the other side of the veil their missions are not closed; they have a work to perform there, as well as they have while tabernacling in the flesh on earth. For some cause or reason unbeknown to me, I have lived to attend the funerals and follow to the grave a great share of the Prophets and Apostles and many of the Saints who have labored in this Church in their day and generation. I will express myself here to my friends, as I have done on many occasions, with regard to funerals, with regard to death, and with regard to going into the spirit world. I have never felt to mourn in my spirit to follow any Prophet, any Apostle, any Saint of the living God to the grave who has been true and faithful to God, who has been true and faithful to His covenants, who has received the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the ordinances thereof, and the holy Priesthood. Such men and women have filled their mission here upon earth with honor, with labor, with love, until they have been called home. They have died in the faith, and they will receive a crown of glory. Those have been my feelings in the death of President Young, Brother Kimball, Brother Taylor, the Twelve Apostles, and all men who have received the Gospel of Christ and been true and faithful in that mission. There is an eternal reality--which the whole world will find out--in life. There is an eternal reality in death. There is an eternal reality in the resurrection, and in the future judgments, and in God's dealings with all men in the future according to the deeds done in the body; and when a man or a women who has entered into covenant with the Lord, who has received the Gospel and the ordinances thereof, and been true and faithful in his or her day and generation, has been called home into the spirit world, where is the man who comprehends these principles that can mourn for that brother or sister? Here lies before us the tabernacle of Counselor Daniel H. Wells. His death has been sudden to us. I did not know that he was sick, or that he was in the city, till about two days before his death. Well, we mourn his loss. We feel his loss. All those associated with him do. We feel the loss of men occupying such positions as he has done. His position has been very responsible. He has magnified it unto the end. Now, when Brother Wells' spirit left his body, what was his condition? Well, I have my faith and my views with regard to it. When his spirit left his body he met with a corps of friends ready to receive him--those friends with whom he has dwelt, with whom he has toiled in building up the Church and Kingdom of God on the earth. There is rejoicing when the spirit of a Saint of the Living God enters into the spirit world and meets with the Saints who have gone before him. Brethren and sisters, we are not here in the flesh upon uncertainty. We are here upon a mission. We have been kept in the spirit world until the day and generation in which we live, and we have been called forth to tabernacle here in the flesh. We have heard the Gospel. We have believed it. We have received it. We have received the ordinances thereof. We have a testimony before high heaven of the truths of these eternal principles. All the unbelief of wicked men or devils on the face of the earth cannot take these things from our hearts. We know they are true by the revelations of God and by the inspiration of the Almighty, through the Holy Ghost, the Comforter. Therefore, we have a great deal to encourage us and to comfort us. Of course, the family of Brother Wells--his wives, his sons and his daughters, his relatives--all feel his loss. But when we contemplate and look forward to the future, and realize the day is not far distant when Jesus Christ himself will come in the clouds of heaven to reward every man according to the deeds done in the body, then will come forth the resurrection of the just, and this man whose tabernacle is here today will come forth out of his grave, his body will become immortal, and he will stand in the midst of the Gods--in the midst of God the Father, God the Son, and all the righteous and holy beings who have kept the same law, no matter what age of the world they may have lived in. Then will come forth the reward that the veil hides from your faces and mine today--the reward of those men and women who have entered into covenant with the Lord, and who have received the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Brother Wells is happy. He would not come back here if he had the privilege. He has lived to a good old age, and has gone down into the grave like a shock of corn fully ripe, and with the harness upon him. He and President Young were about the same age at death. Well, we feel many times as we did in the days of Joseph. The Church felt then as though they could not live without him. But these things are in the hand of God. I would say to the family and to the friends of Brother Wells, let you hearts be comforted. All is right. Brother Wells has as much power to work and labor for your interest the other side of the veil as he has been able to do here. He has performed a work here for the living and for the dead. He has gone to the other side of the veil to receive his reward. So I say to the Latter-day Saints, let us be true and faithful to God and our covenants. We are here upon a mission. Some are taken; some are left. I have never seen a year that I know of in this Church when there have been as many aged men called away, many of them suddenly, as in the year that has passed and gone. Of course it only remains for those of us who are left to try to do our duty the remaining days that we have to spend here. But I want to say to all the Latter-day Saints, have no fears with regard to the Kingdom of God, nor the Church of Christ, nor the work of God. It is true. Zion is true. The dispensation is true. The Holy Priesthood is true. Therefore, let us be true in our labors, and labor while the day lasts; keep the commandments of God, and prepare ourselves for that which is to come. Our brethren are busy on the other side of the veil, and they have a work to do to prepare themselves for the coming of the Son of Man. All men who go into the spirit world, and who bear the Holy Priesthood, will continue their labors. Their works will follow them. Their work will not cease when they lay their tabernacles down here in the tomb. Their spirits in the spirit world mingle with those whom it is their right and privilege to mingle with, and the work will continue. Therefore, I say to the family and to the Latter-day Saints, God bless you all. Let us be true. Let us be faithful. Let us keep the commandments of God. Let us labor while the day lasts, for soon night may come when no man can work. My brethren that follow me will occupy the time to enter into these things more fully with regard to Brother Wells, as they shall be led by the Holy Spirit. I felt I could not do justice to my feelings without making a few remarks upon this occasion; but I do not feel to spend a great deal of time in talking to the Latter-day Saints. I ask God my Heavenly Father to bless you--to bless the family, bless the Elders of Israel, bless the Apostles, and all the quorums and Saints. As I said before, let us be true to our covenants, true to God and true to the work we are engaged in; for we ourselves will soon be called home, to follow in the same path; our bodies will be laid in the tomb, as Brother Wells is going to be today, and we will get through with our mission unto which we have been sent here. I thank God for the Gospel. I thank God for the light of heaven, and for the truths of eternal life which have been revealed from heaven for the exaltation, glory and salvation of the children of men. I pray God, my Heavenly Father, that His blessings may attend us, that we may be sustained until we get through with our labor in the flesh, that we may inherit eternal life; for Jesus' sake. Amen. REASONS FOR THANKSGIVING ____________________ REMARKS Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the Sixty-first Annual Conference of the Church, in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, April 4, 1891. We are highly blessed of God in being permitted to meet together on this the sixty-first anniversary of the organization of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I feel that we ought to be thankful before the Lord, that our hearts should be filled with gratitude and thanksgiving for this privilege which we now enjoy. It is true many of our friends have been called from our midst during the past year, to the other side of the veil. The Lord has been merciful to us, as a people, in preserving us through our history, in all the vicissitudes of life through which we have been called to pass since the establishment of this Church and kingdom. I feel that we should lift our hearts in prayer to God our Heavenly Father for His mercies, and that He will guide and direct us by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, that our minds may be enlightened, and our understanding opened to comprehend His mind and will concerning His people. I rejoice in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, in the revelations that come from heaven to both Jew and Gentile, with the various dispensations of God to man. Generation after generation has passed away since the early Patriarchs stood in the flesh on the earth. The Lord has expressed, through the mouths of inspired men, from generation to generation, His mind, His will, His work. Those revelations which were delivered thousands of years ago have been fulfilled to-day in our midst and among the nations of the earth. God has set His hand to establish His work, to warn the world once more, for the last time, before the coming of the Son of man, and He has called Elders into the vineyard of the Lord, to labor while the day lasts; for "the night cometh, when no man can work." We have the fruits of this labor before us to-day, in this Tabernacle, in the valleys of these mountains. I trust, while we are together, that our prayers may be lifted up to the Lord, that our hearts may be united; that while our brethren, the Apostles and Elders, stand before us and give unto us their testimony of the word of God, we may have a full share of His blessing. I do not think I ought to occupy much more of your time this morning; but I feel thankful that I am still with you, and able to meet on this occasion with so many of the Latter-day Saints who have entered into covenant with the Lord, and upon whose shoulders He has laid the holy Priesthood, to administer, to warn the world, to devote their time and attention to the ordinances of the House of God, both for the living and the dead. I feel myself that of all people under heaven that have ever lived, the Latter-day Saints have the greatest cause to rejoice that they live in the day and generation when the Lord has set His hand to gather together His people, to establish both Jerusalem and Zion, and to fulfil His promises made to Father Abraham and the ancient Patriarchs and Prophets. The Jews have been a hiss and a bye-word among the Gentiles since the death of the Savior, eighteen hundred years ago. Their redemption is at the door to-day; it has been proclaimed by inspired men to their own tribe. It is left on record that the Jews will return home, that Jerusalem will be rebuilt; their temple will be established, and all those great and mighty promises given by inspiration and revelation will come to pass. I pray God our heavenly Father to bestow His blessing upon us, that it may continue to rest upon His Saints who have entered into covenant whith Him; that we may recognize our responsibility and magnify our calling day by day, so that when we pass to the other side of the veil we may be justified in His sight. This is my prayer and desire for Jesus Christ's sake, amen. CONTINUED REVELATION ____________________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the General Conference, in the Tabernacle Salt Lake City, Monday Morning, April 6, 1891. I have a few thoughts and reflections I would like to present to my friends, the Latter-day Saints. Fifty-two years ago the twenty-sixth day of this month I stood upon the Temple Block in Far West. Joseph Smith, Hyrum Smith, Parley P. Pratt and others were in prison. The Lord had given a revelation and commanded us, as the Apostles, to go there upon that occasion to lay the foundation of that Temple. He appointed a day and a date on which we were commanded to perform this work. Then all was peace in Caldwell County, where we dwelt. The Lord perfectly understood what would take place before that time came. When the time came to fulfil this revelation the Latter-day Saints were in Illinois, they having been driven out of Missouri. The spirit of opposition was so great that our lives were in jeopardy in returning there to perform the revelation. When the day came for us to go there our Prophet was in prison for the Word of God and testimony of Jesus. When we conversed with our patriarch and leading men, they said the Lord would take the will for the deed. They did not think it was wisdom for us to go; for Missourians had sworn by all the gods in existence that if all the other revelations and prophesies of "Joe Smith" had been fulfilled, that this one should not be, because there was a day and date to it. After hearing the views of Father Smith and others of the brethren, Brother Brigham Young asked the Twelve what their feelings were with regard to this. We told Brother Brigham that the Lord God had spoken and we were ready to obey, and leave the event in His hands. We did. We went there. We arrived at that place, according to that revelation and commandment, on the 26th day of April, 1839. We laid the corner stone of that Temple, with Father Cutler, who had been appointed to oversee that building. After that stone was laid we knelt upon it, and Brother Geo. A. Smith and myself, who had been called by revelation to fill the places of some who had fallen, were ordained Apostles under the hands of Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, Orson Pratt, John Taylor and John E. Page. There was a number present. But they are all today in the spirit world, excepting myself, so far as I know. I name this, because I wish to say here to this congregation that during these fifty-two years that are past and gone I have had the opportunity of bearing my testimony to many of the nations of the earth and islands of the seas and to the Latter-day Saints. And as I know not how long I may still have this privilege in the flesh, I feel it my duty to bear my testimony today to this people upon a few principles, and one is the subject upon which I treated a little yesterday. There are a few people who profess to believe that the Church has not had the living principle of revelation from heaven and the blessings of God with it since the death of the Prophet Joseph as it had while he lived. I want to say to these Latter-day Saints that I traveled with Joseph Smith a thousand miles in 1834 for the redemption of our brethren in Missouri. There are perhaps half a dozen men in this congregation today who were in that camp [Zion's camp]. We were with that Prophet of God. We heard his testimonies. We saw his revelations fulfilled. I was with him when he received that revelation given on Fishing River. Of course, we know that he was a Prophet of God, and that he held the keys of the kingdom of God. We knew the inspiration of Almighty God was with him, and that when he prophesied it came to pass. Those who are here today, Brother Gates, Brother Noble, and perhaps others, who were present on that occasion, will remember the day that Joseph Smith called the camp together. We were all well. There was no disease nor sickness in our camp. But he told us what awaited us. He gave us to understand that there was to be a chastisement visit our camp. He told us the reason. He had given counsel to the brethren with regard to many things, and a number of them had disobeyed that counsel. They did not understand and appreciate fully his position and standing as a Prophet of God. "Yes," says he, "you think of me as a boy, like the rest of you, but you will understand soon that I occupy a position where God governs and controls me." Those who were present know the feelings that we had. There was not a dry eye in camp. He stood upon a wagon and told us the judgments of God would visit our camp and we would be chastised. These things came to pass. The day that we landed the destroying angel visited our camp, and, of course, there was sorrow. I do not know the number that went to the grave, but somewhere about fourteen, I think. Then we understood that we had a Prophet in our midst. We knew very well that what he said would come to pass. Well, everything that was done in that camp, going and returning, a record of it, in a measure, has been kept. During that thousand miles journey the word of the Lord was given unto us, and we fully understood we were being led by a Prophet of God. We realized that all the way through that mission. Now, I want to say that I have traveled with Joseph Smith a good deal in my day. I was associated with him more or less from the spring of 1834 to the day of his death. I know, as do my brethren who were associated with him, that he was a Prophet of God--one of the greatest prophets God ever raised upon the earth. As I said yesterday, he received revelations upon every subject necessary for the organization of the Church--the organization of the Twelve Apostles; of the Seventies, of the High Councils, of the Bishops, etc. The Lord gave revelations upon all these things, until we had the pattern set before us. He laid the foundation of a great work in this the greatest dispensation God ever gave to man. So much in testimony of Brother Joseph Smith. In 1847 I likewise traveled one thousand miles with Brother Brigham Young, the man who was called to lead Israel after the Prophet Joseph's death. There is a number in this house who came in the pioneer company. We had in Zion's Camp two hundred and five souls. We had in the Pioneer Camp one hundred and forty-five, I believe. And I can testify before God, angels and men that the same power, and the same spirit of revelation were manifest in his work up to the day of his death as were manifest in the work of the Prophet Joseph. It is true, Joseph Smith's life was short. The Savior labored only three and a half years, after He entered into the ministry, before He was crucified. The Prophet Joseph labored fourteen years before he was martyred. President Brigham Young lived longer. He led this Church quite a number of years. I was with him when he came into this valley. I was in the same carriage with him. He was taken sick on the Weber. A number of the camp were taken sick, caused, no doubt, by the change in coming to these mountains from the region we had left. He began to recover from the hour that he entered into this valley. He came here, and what did he do? I will name a few circumstances. He pitched camp some distance southeast of here. The next morning he and the Twelve who came with him took a walk. He had been quite feeble, but he was then able to walk with the assistance of his staff. We walked along until we came to this Temple Block. It was covered with sagebrush. There was no mark to indicate that God ever intended to place anything there. But while walking along Brother Brigham stopped very suddenly. He stuck his cane in the ground and said, "Right here will stand the great Temple of our God." We drove a stake in the place indicated by him, and that particular spot is situated in the middle of the Temple site. One of the first things President Young did after he got here was to order the preparing of a block down here, called the Old Fort, where the camp could gather to. This country then was very desolate, covered with wild sage, and that pretty near dead, too. There was hardly anything here with life, owing to the excessive dryness. We went to work and surrounded this ten acre block to preserve ourselves; put adobie walls on three sides and log cabins on the east side. This was the wisdom displayed by President Brigham Young all his life--care and caution, and safety for the people. He then went to work and laid out this city. There was not a living soul in this valley excepting a few Indians who would eat roasted crickets for their dinner. He laid out these streets, these sidewalks, these blocks. He laid out this Temple block here. A number of councils were had with regard to it. Brother George A. Smith was very anxious that we should have forty acres instead of ten; so much so that there was a vote taken to lay forty acres out. Afterwards President Young thought ten acres in a city of this kind was all that should be devoted to an interest of this character. So Brother George A. Smith surrendered his views, and we all voted for ten acres. When the city was laid out and these other arrangements made we returned to Winter Quarters, where President Young got his family and returned with them and some of the Saints; and two or three companies followed the same season. I name these things for the benefit of those who consider that there has been no growth in the Church and Kingdom of God since the death of the Prophet Joseph. President Young laid the foundation of four Temples in this Territory. Three of these Temples are now in operation, and the other is being built right here. The Latter-day Saints have gone to work and labored in these Temples by the commandment of God, for the blessing of the living and redemption of their dead, and a million of men and women, whose bodies are returned to dust, and whose spirits are in the spirit world, have received the benefits of the Gospel by the power of God and the work of the Elders, under the direction of President Young. Is this a loss of prestige? Is there no hand of God in this? Is there no progress in this? These things certainly were not accomplished in the life of Joseph Smith, although Joseph Smith received revelations with regard to Temples, and the ordinances and endowments afterwards administered in the Temple at Nauvoo. He also built the first Temple, in Kirtland, and many blessings were revealed in that Temple, and this work was continued while he lived, as far as he had the power. I remember well the first time I read the revelation given through the Prophet Joseph concerning the redemption of the dead--one of the most glorious principles I had ever become acquainted with on earth. To think that I and these Latter-day Saints could go forth into the waters of baptism and redeem our fathers, our mothers, and those that have gone before us, in the lineage of our father's house, and they come forth and receive a part in the first resurrection! Well might the Prophet say God has fulfilled His promise that in the last days He would raise up saviors upon Mount Zion, and the kingdom should be the Lord's. Never did I read a revelation with greater joy than I did that revelation. I have often referred to the course we pursued in connection with that. Joseph Smith himself (many of you may recollect the time) went into the Mississippi river one Sunday night after meeting, and baptized a hundred. I baptized another hundred. The next man, a few rods from me, baptized another hundred. We were strung up and down the Mississippi, baptizing for our dead. But there was no recorder; we attended to this ordinance without waiting to have a proper record made. But the Lord told Joseph that he must have recorders present at these baptisms--men who could see with their eyes and hear with their ears, and record these things. Of course, we had to do the work over again. Nevertheless, that does not say the work was not of God. Well, the Lord manifested a great work in the labor of Brigham Young. He filled these mountains here for a thousand miles, under His direction, with cities, towns and villages. He gave counsel in all these things. Brigham Young was the architect of this building (the Tabernacle). He was the architect of the Temple that we are building here. I say to the Latter-day Saints that God was with him. He was with John Taylor. He has been with Wilford Woodruff. He will be with those that follow me; for the Lord will never permit this people to be led only by the revelations of Jesus Christ. He will be with these Apostles of the Lord, and will continue with them until the coming of the Son of Man. These things are true. Zion will arise, and grow, and flourish; the glory of God will rest upon her, and the Lord Almighty will fulfil all the promises that He has made concerning His work in the last dispensation and fulness of times. The spirit of inspiration was with Brigham Young from the day that he entered into this work till he laid down his life here upon his bed. I bear my testimony to these things. There never has been a time, either in these Temples or anywhere else, but the Lord has made manifest His will on any point on which light was desired. To my certain knowledge the Lord gave revelations in St. George Temple to His servants there, upon points of doctrine we did not understand. President Young was there. I was there. Brother McAllister and others labored there; and we knew these things. So I say there is no man that goes into these Temples to labor, or goes into the vineyard of the Lord to labor, who, if he will live his religion and do his duty, will fail in receiving the mind and will of God. Yes, the Lord has raised up saviors upon Mount Zion, and the kingdom is the Lord's. It is His work. And we have the great power as Latter-day Saints to go into these temples and redeem our dead, and attend to ordinances for them that they never heard of in their day and generation. What will be the condition of these saviors upon Mount Zion? These Saints of the Lord will hold the keys of salvation to their Father's house to the endless ages of eternity. There never will be a time when that power will be taken from them. We ought to realize these things, and we ought to prize the blessings which God has put in our hands. I had a great desire, when that revelation was given, for the redemption of my Father's house. Father Smith was the first patriarch to the Church. He was a literal descendant of Joseph who was sold into Egypt. When he laid his hands upon men's heads the spirit of blessing and of prophesy rested upon him. He told me that I should bring all of my father's house into the Church. I dwelt upon that with a great deal of interest; and the first time I visited my father's house, although it was several years after this, I baptized him into this Church, and my stepmother, and my sisters, and everybody that was in my father's house, even a Methodist class-leader who was boarding there. I organized a branch of the Church in Farmington, Connecticut, and almost all of the members were my relatives. I afterwards brought my father up here, where he died, and his body lies in the cemetery. There are a great many things connected with these matters that I feel to rejoice in. The more light we have, the more revelations of God we have, the more we shall prize these privileges. It is a great blessing that we stand in the flesh in this last dispensation and fulness of times; and where we can open our hearts to understand these blessings, all of us will labor, as far as we have opportunity, to attend to this duty for our dead. I do not want to go into the spirit world and meet with my progenitors and have them say to me, "You held the keys of my redemption and my salvation and you neglected to do this work, and I am not redeemed." I have labored, with the assistance of my friends, in the St. George Temple, for three thousand of my dead friends of my father's house and my mother's house, and have done all that I could for them. This is the greatest joy of my life, when I look upon these things and realize that I have had this privilege here on the earth. And when I lay my body in the tomb and my spirit goes into the spirit world, I shall rejoice and have glory with them in the morning of the resurrection, inasmuch as they receive these principles. "Well," perhaps you may say, "what if these people whom you have been baptized for do not receive the Gospel?" That will be their fault, not mine. This is a duty that rests upon all Israel, that they shall attend to this work, as far as they have the opportunity here on the earth. Brethren and sisters, I felt as though I wanted to bear this testimony to the Latter-day Saints. The Lord has manifested this work from the day that Joseph Smith received the records of the stick of Joseph in the hands of Ephraim--the Book of Mormon. From that day until this there has been no time that the Lord has forsaken His Church. We have been persecuted, we have been afflicted, and we have passed through serious trials in our day; but the Lord has carried us through all these things. And we are here in the midst of the everlasting hills, given by revelation to old father Jacob, who laid his hands upon the head of his son Joseph and said that he was "a fruitful bough by a well,whose branches run over the wall," and that his blessings prevailed above those of his progenitors "unto the utmost bound of the everlasting hills;" and these blessings were to rest upon him and his posterity. These things have come to pass. The majority of the Latter-day Saints are through the loins of Ephraim, the son of Joseph. Ephraim is "a mixed cake." He is mixed among the nations of the earth, and it is those who have the blood of Ephraim in them who, when they hear the word of the Lord, receive it; and all that God has promised through these Patriarchs and their posterity will come to pass. So with regard to Judah. Moses told the Jews what would befall them. He told them what would take place in their Temples and in their cities. They built altars to Baal and broke their covenants, and he told them they would be scattered and peeled, and destroyed by pestilence, by famine, and by the sword; women would eat their own children, and a remnant of them would be taken from Jerusalem and scattered among the whole Gentile world, and be trampled under the feet of the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles were fulfilled. Those words have been fulfilled to the very letter as fast as time would admit. We are in the hands of God. Our responsibilities are great, and we should try to magnify our calling, and not set our hearts so much on the things of this world that we neglect any of the oracles of God or the work of God for the living and the dead. God bless you all. Amen. MISSION OF THE MEMBERS _______________ REMARKS by President Wilford Woodruff, Delivered at the Logan Quarterly Conference, Sunday Morning, May 3, 1891. I feel thankful to have the privilege again of meeting with the Latter-day Saints in this comfortable building here in Logan. When I look upon our situation, and the position we occupy, and the scenes that we are called to pass through, I can only acknowledge myself the hand of God in the preservation of my own life and the lives of my brethren and sisters until the present time. We have passed through rather a peculiar season. We have had a good deal of sickness. We have had more deaths from it the past year than in any two years since we have been in these valleys, especially among the aged; and there is hardly any of us who has been able to escape the pestilence or sickness, or whatever you may call it, that has passed over the country. We have had very many sudden deaths in Salt Lake and other portions of the Territory. Men have passed away with a very few moment's sickness. I have not been able to attend any public meetings during last winter for some three months. I attended two or three funerals when called. But I thought on my birthday, the first of March, I rose in the morning sick, I went to meeting sick; and while there I had to leave and go home. Eight days I was confined to my house and bed a good deal of the time. My counselor, Brother Smith, has been very sick with the same illness. Brother Cannon has also been afflicted and it was not deemed wise for him to attend this conference. Several of the twelve have also passed through more or less of this sickness. Well, while some of our brethren and friends have died in a few hours warning, our lives have been preserved. I attribute this in a measure to the faith and prayers of the Latter-day Saints. I would say that I feel this myself. If there is anything that will humble a man before the Lord it is to live in the hearts of the Latter-day Saints and need their prayers. I will say that I have been a marvel and a wonder. The saints that I have been associated with in former days in Kirtland and Nauvoo and from the organization of the church have been called away while my life has been preserved for what purpose the Lord knows; I do not. But I acknowledge the hand of God in these things. We are here upon a mission. We have a responsibility resting upon us as leaders of the people and as elders of Israel and as Latter-day Saints in every capacity in which we are called to act, both male and female. We are passing through a rather peculiar portion of our history and I am the same to-day as I ever have been since I have been a member of the church in my faith, feelings and belief. I know that we have been called and we have been preserved as a people and as the house of Israel through the loins of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; and many have been called in the latter days to stand in the midst of the earth to prune the vineyard once more for the last time, to labor as servants of God, as instruments in the hands of God, for laying the foundation of the great work of the last dispensation of the fullness of time. This is our mission. It has been our fortune to stand in the midst of the generation. We have been raised up in the midst of a generation to labor in this great cause to warn the world once more for the last time, to prune the vineyard for the last time before the coming of the Son of Man and our numbers are very few as has been the case in every age and generation of man when God has raised up a people to perform his work in the midst of the inhabitants of the earth. Their numbers have been few, and I was going to say, a hiss and a byword, in a measure, among all generations of men when there has been a people of God. The Lord Himself has been a very unpopular being upon the face of the earth. Since Lucifer has had power among the children of men, Jesus Christ has been one of the most unpopular men that dwelt in the flesh in His day and generation; and He had the hatred and the persecution, and the oppression, and the opposition of His own father's house, that is, of the Jewish nation. He came unto His own and His own received Him not. The Savior Himself labored but a short time among the Jews, but He labored long enough to organize a church. He labored long enough to choose apostles and seventies and to raise up a number of disciples who received His teachings and followed Him. All of them were called, especially the apostles--those who were leaders in the church. They were called to sacrifice their lives. Every one of the apostles was persecuted and sacrificed or put to death in some way except John the Revelator, the only one preserved by the power of God. You see this the case throughout the world in all dispensations, and we ourselves are no exception to these truths. Joseph Smith himself from the time that he received the plates containing the history of the Book of Mormon, the stick of Joseph in the hands of Ephraim which was to be put in the Bible, the stick of Judah, in the last days as instruments to gather together the children of God and the house of Israel. This church has now been organized over sixty years and its history is before us, its history is before the world; but certainly all the saints of God, all men and women who have received a testimony for themselves are to clearly understand that the work that has been performed here on the earth should strengthen their faith. For if there is any generation of the children of men in the world that has had cause to rejoice it is the Latter-day Saints. But we have not been without our warfare and persecution, not without occupying a position where our enemies have been engaged against us. The Elders should have their quorums organized, and the quorums of the teachers, deacons and priests should magnify their callings. The priesthood is the gift of God to man. I am anxious that our brethren should not rush forward for some higher office until they magnify the office they already hold. When a class of men and women have the blessings of the priesthood, their prayers will have power before the Lord. Now we have all these organizations of the sisters in Relief Societies and other capacities, and all these institutions have been organized of God. I am going to say good-bye and God bless you. There has been excellent counsel given here. Here is the element that the Lord has prepared for the building up of His kingdom. God bless you. Amen. PRIESTHOOD EXPERIENCES ____________________ REMARKS Made by President Wilford Woodruff, At Paris, Idaho, (Bear Lake Stake Conference) on Monday Afternoon, August 10, 1891. __________ [Reported by Arthur Winter.] __________ I am very pleased indeed to meet with so many Latter-day Saints in this tabernacle on a working day, and I hope you will get paid for coming to meeting today. I have felt amply paid myself for my journey from Salt Lake City in listening to the instructions which our brethren have given unto us. I told Brother Cannon this morning that if, when a young man, I could have attended a meeting of this kind and heard instructions as we have had given to us, I should have felt that I was in heaven; I should have been satisfied that I had received what I had prayed for and desired from my childhood. When I was a boy I read in the New Testament concerning Jesus Christ and His Gospel, and the gifts and graces that were then manifested, and I felt that the principles there taught were the ones that I desired to live to hear taught. I prayed for this earnestly in my early manhood. I have read the Bible through a good many times in my life. I have read the Book of Mormon through a number of times. I have also read the Book of Doctrine and Covenants through a number of times; and I have felt that God had never given unto us stronger principles and more glorious instructions in any of the revelations of God than are recorded in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants. They are all by the same author, but to different men, and at different times. I will read a few verses from the 121st section of the Doctrine and Covenants. This section contains the prayer and prophecy of the Prophet Joseph while he was in Liberty jail; and the truths embodied therein are among the sublimest that God has ever revealed to man: For there is a time appointed for every man, according as his works shall be. God shall give unto you (the Saints) knowledge by His Holy Spirit, yea by the unspeakable gift of the Holy Ghost, that has not been revealed since the world was until now; Which our forefathers have waited with anxious expectation to be revealed in the last times, which their minds were pointed to, by the angels, as held in reserve for the fullness of their glory: A time to come in the which nothing shall be withheld, whether there be one God or many Gods they shall be manifest; All thrones and dominions, principalities and powers, shall be revealed and set forth upon all who have endured valiantly for the Gospel of Jesus Christ; And also if there be bounds set to the heavens, or to the seas; or to the dry land, or to the sun, moon, or stars; All the times of their revolutions; all the appointed days, months, and years, and all the days of their days, months, and years, and all their glories, laws, and set times, shall be revealed, in the days of the dispensation of the fulness of times, According to that which was ordained in the midst of the Council of the Eternal God of all other Gods, before this world was, that should be reserved unto the finishing and the end thereof, when every man shall enter into his eternal presence, and into his mortal rest. How long can rolling waters remain impure? What power shall stay the heavens? As well might man stretch forth his puny arm to stop the Missouri river in its decreed course, or to turn it up stream, as to hinder the Almighty from pouring down knowledge from heaven, upon the heads of the Latter-day Saints. Behold, there are may called, but few are chosen. And why are they not chosen? Because their hearts are set so much upon the things of this world, and aspire to the honors of men, that they do not learn this one lesson-- That the rights of the Priesthood are inseparably connected with the powers of heaven, and that the powers of heaven cannot be controlled nor handled only upon the principles of righteousness. That they may be conferred upon us, it is true; but when we undertake to cover our sins, or to gratify our pride, our vain ambition, or to exercise control, or dominion, or compulsion, upon the souls of the children of men, in any degree of unrighteousness, behold, the heavens withdraw themselves; the Spirit of the Lord is grieved; and when it is withdrawn, Amen to the Priesthood, or the authority of that man. Behold! ere he is aware, he is left to himself, to kick against the pricks; to persecute the Saints, and to fight against God. We have learned, by sad experience, that it is the nature and disposition of almost all men, as soon as they get a little authority, as they suppose, they will immediately begin to exercise righteous dominion. Hence many are called, but few are chosen. Who can comprehend this grand language? Scarcely any person. The Lord says in this revelation that whether there be one God or many Gods, they shall be revealed; and all kingdoms, thrones, principalities and powers shall be revealed unto those who keep His commandments. Can we comprehend this? Why, there is not an astronomer that can tell us scarcely one thing that is done in Mars, or Venus, or Jupiter, or in any of the planets, aside from the earth. Here are worlds upon worlds--millions of them--and what do we know about them? Our own little planet, upon which we live, is about as much as we can comprehend. Look at the extent of the blessings that are promised us! These blessings and these revelations are worthy the attention of the Latter-day Saints. In this revelation it is shown that the Priesthood of which we have been speaking, has power. It has power with the heavens; it has power on earth. And as was said this morning, it does not make any difference what portion of that Priesthood a man holds--whether it is a President, an Apostle, an High Priest, a Seventy, an Elder, a Priest, a Teacher or a Deacon--when he goes before God in prayer, with a pure heart, that Priesthood has power with the heavens. If a man magnifies that Priesthood, the blessings of God are with him. The first sermon that I ever heard in this church was in 1833, by old father Zera Pulsipher, who died in the south, after having lived to be considerably over eighty years old. That sermon was what I had prayed for from my childhood. When I heard it I had a testimony for myself that it was true. I received it with every sentiment of my heart. He preached in a school house upon a farm that we owned in Oswego County, New York. He opened the door for any remarks to be made. The house was crowded. The first thing I knew I stood on top of a bench before the people, not knowing what I got up for. But I said to my neighbors and friends, "I want you to be careful what you say as touching these men (there were two of them) and their testimony, for they are servants of God and they have testified unto us the truth--principles that I have been looking for from my childhood." I went forth and was baptized. I was ordained a Teacher. I was always sorry that I was not a Deacon first; for I had a desire to bear the Priesthood in its various degrees, as far as I was worthy. I had had a desire for years, not only to hear the Gospel, but to have the privilege and power of preaching it to my fellow men. I was a miller by trade, and I spent many a midnight hour in the mill calling upon the Lord for light and truth, and praying that I might hear the Gospel of Christ and be able to teach it to my fellow men. I rejoiced in it when I did receive it. I afterwards went with Zion's Camp to Missouri in the spring of 1834, with the Prophet Joseph, his brother Hyrum, and over two hundred of the Saints of God. That was a great mission to me. I was with the Prophet. I had read his revelations. I had read the vision recorded in this Book of Doctrine and Covenants, and it had given me more light and more knowledge with regard to the dealings of God with men than all the revelations I had ever read, in the Bible or anywhere else. I had been taught that there was one heaven and one hell; and everybody that was not sprinkled or baptized, infants and all, would have to go to hell. It made no difference whether the individual had committed no wrong, if he had not been received into the church by sprinkling or baptism, he would have to go to hell with the murderer, with the whoremonger, with the wickedest of men. On the other hand, everybody that was sprinkled would go to heaven. No matter if they had never made a single sacrifice for the Gospel of Christ, they would have the same glory as Peter, James and John, who had sacrificed their lives for the Gospel's sake. That was the kind of teaching I heard in my boyhood. I did not believe one word of it then; and I don't now. But this vision of which I speak opened my eyes. It showed me the power of God and the righteousness of God in dealing with the human family. Before I saw Joseph I said I did not care how old he was, or how young he was; I did not care how he looked--whether his hair was long or short; the man that advanced that revelation was a prophet of God. I knew it for myself. I first met Joseph Smith in the streets of Kirtland. He had on an old hat, and a pistol in his hand. Said he, "Brother Woodruff, I've been out shooting at a mark, and I wanted to see if I could hit anything;" and says he, "Have you any objection ito it??" "Not at all," says I; "there is no law against a man shooting at a mark, that I know of." He invited me to his house. He had a wolf skin, which he wanted me to help him to tan; he wanted it to sit on while driving his wagon team. Now, many might have said, "You are a pretty prophet; shooting a pistol and tanning a wolf skin." Well we tanned it, and used it while making a journey of a thousand miles. This was my first acquaintance with the Prophet Joseph. And from that day until the present, with all the apostasies that we have had, and with all the difficulties and afflictions we have been called to pass through, I never saw a moment when I had any doubt with regard to this work. I have had no trial about this. While the people were apostatizing on the right hand and the left, and while Apostles were urging me to turn against the Prophet Joseph, it was no temptation to me to doubt this work or to doubt that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God. As I have said, while holding the office of teacher, I went to Missouri in Zion's Camp. After arriving in Missouri, having gone through many trials and tribulations, and suffering from cholera, which caused us to lay in the grave fifteen of our brethren, we stayed at brother Lyman Wight's. While at Lyman Wight's, I attended council meetings with the Prophet, with David Whitmer, with Oliver Cowdery and other leading brethren of the Church. David Whitmer was the President of the Stake of Zion. Brother Joseph reproved him very sharply, as well as some of the other brethren, because of their lack in fulfilling the commandments of God and doing their duty. While at that place I had a great desire in my heart to go and preach the gospel. I went off one Sunday night by myself into a hickory grove, several hundred yards from the settlement, and I asked the Lord to open the door for me that I might go and preach the gospel. I did not want to preach the Gospel for any honor I might get on this earth; for I thoroughly understood as far as a man could in my condition, what a preacher would have to pass through. It was not honor, nor wealth, nor gold, nor silver that I desired; but I knew this was the gospel of Christ, revealed to me by the power of God; I knew this was the Church of Christ; I knew Joseph Smith was a prophet of God; and I had a desire that I might preach that gospel to the nations of the earth. I asked the Lord to give me that privilege. The Lord answered that prayer and said I should have my desire granted. I got up rejoicing. I walked about two hundred yards out in the open road, and when I got into the road, there stood Judge Higbee. Says he, "Brother Woodruff, the Lord has revealed to me that it is your duty to be ordained to go and preach the gospel." Says I, "Has He?" "Yes." "Well," says I, "if the Lord wants me to preach the gospel, I am perfectly willing to go and do that." I did not tell him I had been praying for this. The consequence was, I attended a council at Lyman Wight's, and was called and ordained to the office of a Priest in the Aaronic Priesthood, while other brethren were ordained Elders. I was called by Bishop Partridge to go to the Southern country on a mission. Bishop Partridge asked me a great many questions, and I asked him questions. It was then dangerous for any of our brethren to go through Jackson County. He wanted me to go to Arkansas, and the road led square through Jackson County. I asked him if we should go through there (I had a companion with me--an Elder). Says he, "If you have got faith to do it, you may; I haven't." I thought that was a curious remark from a Bishop. "Well," says I, "the Lord says we must travel without purse or scrip; shall we do it?" Says he, "That is the law of God; if you have got faith to do it, you can do it." He said he had hardly got faith to go into Jackson County. However, we started and went through Jackson County. We came near losing our lives, and were saved almost by a miracle. We traveled through Arkansas and other parts. But I do not want to dwell on these things. I merely wish to say that I went out as a Priest, and my companion as an Elder, and we traveled thousands of miles and had many things manifested to us. I desire to impress upon you the fact that it does not make any difference whether a man is a Priest or an Apostle, if he magnifies his calling. A Priest holds the keys of the ministering of angels. Never in my life, as an Apostle, as a Seventy, or as an Elder, have I ever had more of the protection of the Lord than while holding the office of a Priest. The Lord revealed to me, by visions, by revelations, and by the Holy Spirit, many things that lay before me. I was once moved upon to go and warn old Father Hakeman, living on Petty-John Creek, Arkansas. He had been in Jackson County during the persecution period. His wife died there. His family consisted of five sons, all over six feet tall. Most of them had been whipped with hickory gads by mobs, and he went south into Arkansas, taking his sons with him. We went a good deal out of our way for the purpose of visiting Father Hakeman. I had a vision the night previous, in which was manifested to me the trouble that lay before us, but that the Lord would deliver us. We arrived at his house on Sunday morning. He was taking breakfast. We had had breakfast at the place where we stayed over night. I saw a Book of Mormon on his shelf. He did not seem to pay any attention to us or to take any interest in us. I took up the Book of Mormon, and said, "You have a very good book here." "Yes," said he, "but it is a book that came from the devil." That opened my eyes. He had been an Elder; he had been in Zion; he had been persecuted there and driven out; but I found that he had apostatized, and he was our enemy. I saw he would do anything he could against us. We left him and went to Brother Hubbard's and stayed with him three weeks, during which we took our axes and cleared some land for him. I was strongly impressed three times to go up and warn Father Hakeman. At last I did so, according to the commandment of God to me. The third time I met with him, his house seemed to be full of evil spirits, and I was troubled in spirit at the manifestation. When I finished my warning, I left him. He followed me from his house with the intention of killing me. I have no doubt about his intention, for it was shown to me in vision. When he came to where I was, he fell dead at my feet, as if he had been struck with a thunderbolt from heaven. I was then a Priest, but God defended me and preserved my life. I speak of this because it is a principle that has been manifest in the Church of God in this generation as well as in others. I had the administration of angels while holding the office of a Priest. I had visions and revelations. I traveled thousands of miles. I baptized men, though I could not confirm them because I had not the authority to do it. I speak of these things to show that a man should not be ashamed of any portion of the Priesthood. Our young men, if they are Deacons, should labor to fulfil that office. If they do that, they may then be called to the office of a Teacher, whose duty it is to teach the people, visit the Saints, and see that there is no evil or iniquity carried on. God has no respect to persons in this Priesthood any further than as they magnify their callings and do their duty. It may be called egotism for a man to talk about himself; but I have a right to give my experience as you have a right to give yours; and I will give a little of mine to my friends, because I want our young men as well as our old men to understand that the Lord is not trifling with us at all. Brother Cannon has told you that it is the right of all the Latter-day Saints to have revelation. That is true. There is not a man, woman or child who has received the gospel, but has the right to receive revelation for himself or herself, as well as the Presidency of the Church. After traveling quite a time in Tennessee, Kentucky, Mississippi and other places, I was ordained an Elder, by Warren Parrish, who was then presiding in the southern country. We labored together there for about a year. After that, I was ordained to the second quorum of Seventies, under the hands of David Patten. I had many blessings pronounced upon my head by these Elders of Israel--similar to those that were given to me by Father Joseph Smith, the Patriarch, and by those who administered to me in the Kirtland Temple when I received my endowments. Now with regard to revelation. What is revelation? It is the inspiration of the Holy Ghost to man. Joseph Smith said to Brother John Taylor in his day: "Brother Taylor, you watch the impression of the Spirit of God; you watch the whisperings of that spirit to you; you carry them out in your life, and it will become a principle of revelation in you, and you will know and understand this spirit and power." This is the key, the foundation stone of all revelation. Joseph Smith was full of revelation. He could translate anything given to him of God. He could receive revelation without the Urim and Thummin. Many of the principal revelations contained in the Doctrine and Covenants were received without the use of the Urim and Thummin. They were given to him by the inspiration of Almighty God. In my own experience I have endeavored to get acquainted with that spirit and to learn its operations. I have many times had that spirit manifested to me, and if I had not followed its whisperings to me, I should have been in my grave long ago, with many of my companions. A few incidents I will name. After I came to these valleys and returned to Winter Quarters, I was sent to Boston by President Young. He wanted me to take my family there and gather all the Saints of God in New England, in Canada, and in the surrounding regions, and stay there until I gathered them all. I was there about two years. While on the road there, I drove my carriage one evening into the yard of Brother Williams. Brother Orson Hyde drove a wagon by the side of mine. I had my wife and children in the carriage. After I turned out my team and had my supper, I went to bed in the carriage. I had not been there but a few minutes when the Spirit said to me, "Get up and move that carriage." I told my wife I had to get up and move the carriage. She said, "What for?" I said, "I don't know." That is all she asked me on such occasions; when I told her I did not know, that was enough. I got up and moved my carriage four or five rods and put the off fore wheel against the corner of the house. I then looked around me and went to bed. The same Spirit said, "Go and move your animals from that oak tree." They were two hundred yards from where my carriage was. I went and moved my horses and put them in a little hickory grove. I again went to bed. In thirty minutes a whirlwind came up and broke that oak tree off within two feet from the ground. It swept over three or four fences and fell square in that dooryard, near Brother Orson Hyde's wagon, and right where mine had stood. What would have been the consequences if I had not listened to that Spirit? Why, myself and wife and children doubtless would have been killed. That was the still, small voice to me--no earthquake, no thunder, no lightning; but the still, small voice of the Spirit of God. It saved my life. It was the spirit of revelation to me. When I moved the last company of Saints from the East (there were about one hundred of them) we arrived at Pittsburg one day at sundown. We did not want to stay there, so I went to the first steamboat that was going to leave. I saw the captain and engaged passage for us on that steamer. I had only just done so when the Spirit said to me, and that too very strongly, "Don't go aboard that steamer, nor your company." Of course, I went and spoke to the captain and told him I had made up my mind to wait. Well, it started and had only got five miles down the river when it took fire and three hundred persons were burned to death or drowned. If I had not obeyed that Spirit and had gone on that steamer with the rest of the company, you can see what the result would have been. Well, I have had a good deal of experience in these things in my day. I have learned them so thoroughly that I dare not disobey that Spirit. After one Conference, when we had set apart a good many missionaries, I went home quite weary, and I said to myself, I will go and have a rest. Before I got in my house, the Spirit told me to take my team and go to my farm. My wife says, "Where are you going?" "I am going down to the farm." "What for?" "I don't know," says I. I went down to the farm. I found that the river had broken over and had surrounded my house. The water was two feet deep around my house. My hogs were drowning, and my stables were full. By going there I saved my house and surroundings and stopped up the break. These may be considered small things; still they show the working of the spirit. I will now tell you one incident where I did not obey the Spirit of the Lord, and it came pretty near costing me my life. I was over at Randolph one December, visiting. On Monday morning the Spirit said to me, "take your team and go home." I made up my mind to do it; but some of my friends felt anxious that I should stop, as my visit had been rather short, and I was persuaded to stop. I stayed until Saturday morning; but I felt uneasy. That warning of the Spirit rested upon me to that degree that I felt condemned, and I told my friends that I was going home. I ate an early breakfast that morning, put my horses in my wagon, took some hay and grain, and started for home by way of Wasatch, which was some thirty miles from there. When I got to Woodruff, the Bishop wanted me to stay and hold meeting there on Sunday. "No," says I, "I have already stayed too long by one week." Well, after I got about three miles from Woodruff, which is fifteen miles from Wasatch, I met with one of the most terrific snowstorms I ever saw in my life. It was not five minutes after it commenced before I could not see the road. I could not guide my horses at all, so I let them go where they pleased. They had been twice over the ground before. I shut down the wagon cover and went to praying. I asked the Lord to forgive me for not obeying His commandments. At eight o'clock my horses carried me into Wasatch, the hubs of the wheels being under the snow. I think they must have got there by inspiration. I stayed there until the Monday night. I made up my mind then that whenever the Lord told me to do anything I would do it. I speak of this because every man should get the Spirit of God and then follow its dictates. This is revelation. It don't make any difference what the Spirit tells you to do, it will never tell you to do anything that is wrong. I want our young friends, especially, to be interested in the Gospel. I want them to be interested in the Church and Kingdom of God. I want them to listen to their fathers, and to the Elders of Israel and those that teach them, that they may be qualified to carry out these great and glorious principles laid down here in the Doctrine and Covenants. It will pay any man to do what is right and to keep the commandments of God. This Priesthood has power on the earth; and when those holding this Priesthood go before the Lord and pray to Him, He will hear them and answer their prayers. This, brethren and sisters, is where our power lies. It is with God, not with man. He has heard us in the past, and we have been preserved and protected until the present time. We still live, notwithstanding all the exertions that have been made for our destruction. We live in these valleys of the mountains, and if we will do our duty we shall live here. I want our young people and their parents to listen to the counsels that have been given concerning the Sabbath schools, the Mutual Improvement Associations and the Primaries. We are held responsible for the sons and daughters that have been given us. I meet with sons of President Kimball, with sons of President Young, with sons of President Taylor, and with sons of Apostles who have passed away. I rejoice when I meet them. Their fathers helped lay the foundation of this work. They labored to promote the interests and welfare of Zion. I rejoice to see their posterity on the earth. I hope all these young men bear a portion of the Priesthood, and that they will magnify their callings. The eyes of their fathers who dwell in the spirit world, are over them. Their bodies are in the tomb; but their spirits are awake. They are mingling with the righteous. And they have an anxiety about the welfare of their children here. I am anxious myself to have the rising generation take hold of this work; and I hope we will not disappoint our Heavenly Father. We should read and study these revelations of God and lay them to heart, and inasmuch as we do this, they will prove of profit unto us. Brethren and sisters, I am glad to meet with you, and to bear my testimony to you of the Gospel of Christ. As I have often said, I have lived to more than the allotted age of man. I have lived while most everybody with whom I was acquainted in Kirtland and Nauvoo has passed to the other side of the veil. I expect to go there myself, the same as the rest of my brethren. But while I live I want to be true and faithful to my God and to the Saints. One of the greatest blessings of God to me has been the fact that myself and counselors live in the hearts of the Latter-day Saints, and I have felt to be humbled in the dust before the Lord for this. We know that you pray for us. We know that you have respect for us. And we live upon this principle. God has led this Church from the beginning, by prophets and inspired men. He will lead this Church until the scene is wound up. He will neither permit me nor any other man to lead this Church astray. If I turn from the commandments of God and attempt to lead the people astray, the Lord will remove me out of my place, for the Lord has set His hand to lead this people by revelation and by inspired men. The Lord has "chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; * * and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are." We feel our weaknesses. I wish myself that I were a better man than I am. Of course, I have endeavored to do about the best I could in my weak way. I still wish to do so. But I am dependent upon the Lord and upon the prayers of the Saints, the same as my brethren. I pray God to bless you and me. I pray that He will seal upon the hearts of the Saints of God the teachings that we have heard during this conference. This is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. OPENING REMARKS Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, on the first day of General Conference, Sunday, October 4, 1891. I want to say to my friends this morning that I am a very happy man. My heart is filled with gratitude to God my Heavenly Father for the blessings that I enjoy. It is over seven years since the Presidency of this Church and as many of the Twelve Apostles have occupied this stand until to-day, and I feel that we have all reason to thank God and rejoice in His name for the blessings and privileges that we enjoy this glorious morning. Turning to Apostle Snow the speaker asked: Is there any law against a man telling what is in his heart if he has no evil in it? Apostle Snow replied that he knew of none. President Woodruff--Brother Snow says that he does not know of any such law, and therefore I say God bless President Harrison for exercising his official clemency in liberating President Joseph F. Smith, and I am thankful that Brother Smith is with us to-day. I say also, God bless every other man, whether he be Jew or Gentile, Catholic or Protestant, judge or juryman, who has lent his name to this and not only liberated President Smith but many of our brethren who have the privilege of sitting here with us on this occasion. I hope there is no harm in that thought or feeling; for that is the way I do feel at this time. My heart is full of gratitude and blessing to my fellowmen for all the good they have done. Everything that leads to good and to do good is of God; and everything that leads to evil and to do evil is said to be of the wicked one. I feel that all of us have reason to rejoice before the Lord for the deliverance and blessings which He has wrought among us. I rejoice in the union which exists among us as a Presidency of this Church and the Twelve Apostles. These are bodies of men who of all men under heaven should be united in the work of the Lord in which we are engaged. I do not believe there ever has been a body of men in any age of the world who, as a general thing, are more united and happy than are these to-day; and while we are here assembled together I hope and trust that we may have the inspiration of Almighty God with us in our teachings, in our instructions, in our counsels. We shall call upon our brothers to address us, and I say in the name of the Lord, let us all have peace. PROPHET'S BLESSINGS _______________ CLOSING REMARKS Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, in the closing session of General Conference, Tuesday, October 6, 1891. Before dismissing this conference, I want to say that to me it has been the most interesting I have ever attended. I have never before seen the Latter-day Saints as ready as on this occasion to spend the same number of days together in listening to the teachings and counsels of the servants of God. The Lord has said: "Whomsoever ye bless shall be blessed, and whomsoever ye curse shall be cursed." I never cursed anybody in my life, and I do not feel like doing so now, for my heart is full of blessings to the Latter-day Saints, to my counselors, to the Twelve Apostles, to the Seventies, to the High Priests, Elders, Priests, Teachers, and Deacons--all our brethren and sisters throughout the Church. I entertain the same sentiments as have been expressed here by President Cannon toward those who are not of us religiously. There is a feeling of friendliness toward us, I think, in these valleys, on the part of those outside of this Church; they seem to feel in their hearts to give us those rights and privileges which belong to us, under the laws of God and man. Some of the judges have been ready to receive our testimony, our manifestoes, and have seen fit to give and administer righteous judgement. All such men have my blessing and prayers, and confidence. I feel that God will bless them and all who perform their duties with clemency in righteousness toward their fellow men. A DIVINE QUESTION TO THE LATTER-DAY SAINTS _______________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the Brigham City Quarterly Conference, Sunday Afternoon, October 25, 1891. I wish to make some remarks upon the principle of revelation. Some have thought that revelation had ceased. But this is not the case. The Lord is with us, and gives us revelation. But I will say for myself that I wish to avoid saying, "Thus saith the Lord," as far as I can, when I give the will of the Lord to the people. In the days of Joseph Smith it was "Thus saith the Lord" almost daily, until the revelations now embodied in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants had been given. Since that day Presidents Brigham Young and John Taylor and myself have seldom used the words "Thus saith the Lord" when giving the word of the Lord to the people. In the 68th section of the Book of Doctrine and Covenants we are informed that when men speak as they are moved upon by the Holy Ghost it is the word of the Lord and revelation. I have received a revelation and a commandment from the Lord, which I have not revealed to any man, which I shall reveal to this assembly, and the command of the Lord I shall give to this people, which is this: The Lord has revealed to me that there are many in the Church who feel badly tried about the manifesto, and also about the testimony of the Presidency and Apostles before the Master in Chancery.1 The Lord has commanded me to put the following question to the Saints, and those who will give strict attention to it, shall have the Holy Ghost to be with them to inspire them to answer that question for themselves, and the Lord has promised that the answer will be to all alike. The question is this: Which is the wisest course for the Latter-day Saints to pursue--to continue to attempt to practice plural marriage, with the laws of the nation against it and the opposition of 60,000,000 of people and at the cost of the confiscation and loss of all the temples, and the stopping of all the ordinances therein, both for the living and the dead, and the imprisonment of the First Presidency and Twelve and the leaders or heads of families in the Church, and the confiscation of the personal property of the people (all of which of themselves would stop the practice), or after doing and suffering what we have through our adherence to this principle, to cease the practice and submit to the law, and through doing so leave the prophets, apostles and fathers at home, so that they can instruct the people and attend to the duties of the Church, and also leave the temples in the hands of the Saints, so that they can attend to the ordinances of the gospel, both for the living and the dead? Now, the inspiration of the Lord will reveal to any person which course wisdom would dictate us to pursue. And the Latter-day Saints throughout Israel should understand that the First Presidency of the Church and the Twelve Apostles are led and guided by the inspiration of the Lord, and the Lord will not permit me, nor any other man, to lead the people astray. 1. The Master of Chancery proceedings were instigated in order to decide the disposition of the escheated Church property under the Edmunds-Tucker Act of 1887. Although little doubt existed in the minds of the courts as to the scope and intent of the Manifesto regarding the continued practice of plural marriage, the issue of cohabitation with existing plural wives remained unclear. Many of the Quorum of the Twelve, in their private discussions following the announcement of the Manifesto, were open in their intent to continue living with their wives. Francis M. Lyman, in addressing the Quorum, stated that "I design to live with and have children by my wives, using the wisdom which God gives me to avoid being captured by the officers of the law." At the meeting of the Quorum held the next day, John Henry Smith also echoed the sentiments of Apostle Lyman, stating that "I cannot consent to cease living with my wives unless I am imprisoned" (Abraham H. Cannon Journal, 30 and 31 September 1890). Even Joseph F. Smith, although he testified at the Chancery proceedings to the contrary, spoke to the Stake and Ward leaders that had gathered for General Conference that "God will not justify you in kicking out your families and satisfying yourselves in the eyes of all good men. We do not want you to leave your wives because of the Manifesto" (Address delivered to the Presidents of Stakes, their Counselors, the Bishops and their Counselors, the Presidency, Twelve and First Council of Seventies, held in the 18th Ward Chapel, 7 October 1891, Abraham H. Cannon Journal under date). That this counsel was heeded is evidenced by the fact that in the next 15 years (1890-1905), more than 61% of the Apostles would either bear children by plural wives or be convicted of unlawful cohabitation after 1890, including, but not limited to, Abraham H. Cannon, Matthias F. Cowley, Marriner W. Merrill, John Henry Smith, Joseph F. Smith, John W. Taylor, Abraham O. Woodruff, and Brigham Young, Jr. (Kenneth Cannon II, pp.30-31). Shortly before the leaders of the Church were scheduled to appear before the Master of Chancery, President Woodruff met with the Quorum of the Twelve to discuss "the replies we shall give concerning polygamy and cohabitation" in the upcoming investigation. After much discussion, it was decided to deny the existence of continued plural marriages, but that "as far as our present families are concerned we must support and honor them, though if we live with them it is at our own peril" (Abraham H. Cannon Journal, 7 Oct. 1891). During the Master of Chancery proceedings held 19 and 20 October 1891, President Woodruff was questioned concerning the intended scope of the Manifesto regarding cohabitation with pre-Manifesto plural wives: Q. Your attention was called to the fact that nothing was said in the manifesto about the dissolution of existing polygamous relations. I want to ask you, President Woodruff, whether, in your advice to the church officials and the people of the church, you have advised them that your intention was and that the requirement of the church was that polygamous relations already formed before that should not be continued--that is, there should be no association with plural wives--in other words, that unlawful cohabitation, as it is named and spoken of, should also stop, as well as future polygamous marriages?--A. Yes, sir; that has been my view. This same testimony was echoed by Apostles Lorenzo Snow, Anthon H. Lund, and Joseph F. Smith, the latter stating that he saw no way the Manifesto could be interpreted otherwise (Testimony as reprinted in Senate Proceedings against Reed Smoot, 1:21, italics mine). The testimonies delivered by these leaders of the Church surprised many of the Church's membership, especially the other members of the Quorum of the Twelve. Apostle Heber J. Grant, who had been present in the earlier Quorum meetings when the replies to be given in the Chancery court appearances were discussed, exclaimed that another manifesto should be issued commanding polygamists to refrain from cohabitating with former wives, otherwise "some of us will be watched and captured with the result that we will nullify the testimony of the Presidency and brand ourselves as a set of base deceivers. The testimony which they gave is opposed to what was decided should be given. . ."(Abraham H. Cannon Journal, 11 November 1891.) The following day, Wilford Woodruff responded to the anxieties of his associates by admitting "that he was placed in such a position on the witness stand that he could not answer other than he did." However, he warned the brethren that they would be tried for their membership should they neglect any of their families because of the Manifesto. The conclusion reached was "that men must be careful to avoid exposing themselves, . . . but yet they must not break their covenants with their wives" (Abraham H. Cannon Journal, 12 November 1891). These discussions set the stage for the continued confusion by both members and non-members alike regarding the true intent of the Woodruff Manifesto. The testimonies required by the courts in the following years placed the brethren in the cruel position of having to repeatedly decide between God and country. Many of the Church leaders solved these personal conflicts by acting in two distinct and seperate roles--that of Church spokesmen, which required them to act and speak in the interests of the temporal salvation of the Church--and that of individual members, which forced them by personal conscience to obey what they considered to be divine covenants made with their wives, thus placing themselves in opposition to the laws of the land (Kenneth L. Cannon II, p.35). DIVINITY OF THE MANIFESTO ____________________ REMARKS Made by President Wilford Woodruff, at Cache Stake Conference, held at Logan, Sunday Afternoon, November 1st, 1891. __________ [Reported by Arthur Winter.] __________ I would like to talk a little to the Latter-day Saints who have assembled here this afternoon, if I can get the faith of the Saints and the Spirit of the Lord to assist me. This morning, before coming to meeting, I studied with a good deal of interest some paintings at Brother Moses Thatcher's --"Christ before Pilate," and "Christ on Calvary." I thought to myself, in looking at them, that the Savior, as Brother Joseph F. Smith had said, certainly descended below all things. He came down here to earth, was born of woman, in a dispensation appointed of the Father, and tabernacled in the flesh. See him travel from the manger to the cross, onward through blood to the throne of grace appointed unto Him, in poverty and in affliction, never handling any money that we have any account of. Think for a few moments the short time that He labored in the flesh after His appointment by the Father--three years and a half. Look at the suffering that He went through, the labor He performed--the organization of the Church of God, the appointing of Twelve Apostles, of seventy Apostles, and a few disciples, who followed Him during that period. Then reflect that not only He himself was condemned and crucified, shedding His blood for the redemption of the world, but every one of His Apostles was put to death for the word of God and testimony of Jesus Christ, excepting John the Revelator. They could not kill him, the Lord having appointed him to live; otherwise, he would have been slain with the rest. While looking at the Savior nailed to the cross--a Jew, through the loins of Abraham and David, condemned by the Jews as well as the Gentiles, I thought of our own condition in these mountains. We have passed through sixty years as a people, and why have you got the Presidency with you today? Why have you Apostles living in your midst, walking your streets in freedom, after sixty years? Why do you have upwards of two hundred thousand Latter-day Saints gathered together in these valleys of the mountains, in the midst of a generation of sixty millions of people? These are questions which should be answered in the minds of the Latter-day Saints. There is a meaning, brethren and sisters, to all these things. We live in a different dispensation, and under a different order of things, in one sense, to what the Savior and the Apostles did. That was a day of sacrifice. Those holy men who bore the Apostleship in that day were ready to lay down their lives with the Savior, and their lives were short compared with the history of the Church of God in our day. They were all slain, with one exception, and God took them to Himself. He also took the Priesthood from the earth, and it remained in the hands of God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ until 1829. Long centuries passed away. Millions of human beings were born, dwelt on the earth, died, and went into the spirit world, and not one soul of them, so far as we have any knowledge, had power to go forth among mankind and administer in the ordinances of the Gospel of life and salvation. There were, doubtless, millions of good men, who acted up to the best light that they had. There were such men as John Wesley, Martin Luther, Wickliff, Zwingli, Melancthon, and thousand of others, who came forth in their day and preached the Gospel according to the light which they possessed. But they did not have the power to administer in one ordinance which had any force after death. They did not hold the holy Priesthood. Now, in our day and generation, we have arrived at a point in the history of the world when this Priesthood is restored. The Lord raised up Joseph Smith. He came forth in the proper time. He organized a Church. Who was Joseph Smith? Was he a lawyer? Was he a doctor of divinity? Was he what is called a great man, a learned man? No, he was but a youth; the world would say an illiterate, ignorant youth. He was an unlearned youth in the things of the world. But he was a pure man. He came forth through the lineage of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. He was prophesied of by the ancient patriarchs and prophets. The Book of Mormon gives his name. Joseph Smith was moved upon by the Holy Ghost, and he was administered unto, in answer to his prayers, by the Father and the Son; and the Father said to him, "This is my beloved Son, hear ye Him." He listened strictly to the words of Jesus Christ, and continued to do so until he, like the Savior, was put to death, though he was not crucified, because it was not the custom of the day. I may say that it seemed strange to me at that time why the Prophet and his brother Hyrum were permitted to be taken out of our midst. But Joseph Smith, by commandment of God and by the power and revelations of heaven, was ordained and laid the foundation of this great dispensation and fulness of times. He was brought into the world and ordained to organize this Church of Christ for the last time upon this earth, to prepare it for the coming of the Son of Man. After his death, on reflection, I became convinced that he had been ordained to die--to shed his blood as a testimony to this dispensation. But that does not take away the judgment from those who put him to death. "It must needs be that offenses come; but woe to that man by whom the offense cometh." As I have said, Joseph Smith was an illiterate man; but afterwards his teachers and instructors were angels--Apostles who had dwelt in the flesh in the days of Jesus. He was in a condition where he received testimonies and teachings from men that the world did not receive; and he had power to organize the Church in a manner that all the Christian world combined could not do. Why? Because a man, no matter how wealthy or how learned, cannot give a thing that he does not possess. They had not power to organize this Church, because they did not possess the Priesthood. But Joseph Smith held that Priesthood and had power to organize the Church? From that day until the present this Church has continued to grow, in the midst of persecution, in the midst of drivings and afflictions, in the midst of death and destruction. Millions of fallen spirits, with millions of the human family, have been arrayed against this Church, but they have not had power to destroy it. Why? Because God Almighty has ordained it to stand. The Lord has ordained Zion to be built up. He has proclaimed this through the mouths of inspired men, who spake as they were moved upon by the Holy Ghost; and today you who are here in this Tabernacle in Logan are testimonies of this before heaven and earth. This is the reason why the Presidency can visit you today. It is the reason why Brother Thatcher and Brother Merrill can dwell in your midst, and why the other Apostles can visit you, without being destroyed. Were it not in the dispensation of the Almighty to carry out this principle, you would not have an Apostle to visit you; they would be put to death, the same as those in other dispensations have been. But the Lord has granted this privilege to you Latter-day Saints. I feel to thank God that we live in such a day, when we have power to build up Zion and fulfil the words of the Prophets. The inhabitants of the earth have to be warned. This is the reason why we are here; why Brigham Young, John Taylor, and the Twelve Apostles that have filled their missions have been able to lie down in their beds, surrounded by their wives and children, and give up the ghost, leaving their bodies in the hands of their friends to carry to the tomb. These Apostles and Elders, thousands and thousands of them who are in the flesh in this day, would just as readily lay down their lives as did Peter and the Apostles in the days of Christ, if called upon to do so, for the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. But God has ordained otherwise. The Lord has chosen the weak things of the world to lead this people. Joseph Smith was but a young man when he died--not forty years of age. He lived nearly fourteen years after the organization of this Church. President Brigham Young followed him. Who was Brigham Young? He was a painter and glazier. He was a humble man. But the Lord called him to lead this people. You know Brigham Young. You know what he has done, and the spirit that was with him. The Lord was with him, and he continued to lead this people by the power of God and by the revelations of Jesus Christ. He laid the foundation a great work in these mountains of Israel. Many strangers who have recently visited us have marveled and wondered at Salt Lake City being laid out in the manner it was. I have told them that I helped Brigham Young lay out this city in the midst of sagebrush, in 1847. There was not a white man's house then within a thousand miles of us. What was John Taylor? He was a wood turner, and he led the Church for quite a time. Wilford Woodruff was a miller and a farmer; that was about the highest ambition he ever arrived at, as far as this world was concerned. That is about the way the Lord has chosen these men. Why did he not choose these learned and great men? As I have often said, He could not handle them. God has always chosen the weak things of the earth. He showed Abraham, in his day, the spirits that dwelt in His presence, "and among all these were many of the noble and great ones;" and God said unto Abraham, "These I will make my rulers; * * * and he said unto me, Abraham, thou art one of them, thou wast chosen before thou wast born." Abraham stood at the head of Israel in the beginning. He is our great progenitor. God raised up the Savior through the loins of Abraham. The Latter-day Saints should not get the idea that the Lord has forsaken His people, or that He does not reveal His mind and will; because such an idea is not true. The Lord is with us, and has been with us from the beginning. This Church has never been led a day except by revelation. And He will never leave it. It matters not who lives or who dies, or who is called to lead this Church, they have got to lead it by the inspiration of Almighty God. If they do not do it that way, they cannot do it at all. The Lord will not fail in these last days, and He will fulfill all that He has promised through His Prophets and Apostles, until Zion arises in its glory, and the Bride, the Lamb's wife, is prepared for the coming of the great Bridegroom. I made some remarks last Sunday at Brigham City upon this same principle--revelation. Read the life of Brigham Young and you can hardly find a revelation that he had wherein he said, "Thus saith the Lord;" but the Holy Ghost was with him; He taught by inspiration and by revelation; but with one exception he did not give those revelations in the form that Joseph did; for they were not written and given as revelations and commandments to the Church in the words and name of the Savior. Joseph said "Thus saith the Lord" almost every day of his life in laying the foundation of this work. But those who followed him have not deemed it always necessary to say "Thus saith the Lord;" yet they have led the people by the power of the Holy Ghost; and if you want to know what that is read the first six verses of the 88th section of the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, where the Lord told Orson Hyde, Luke Johnson, Lyman Johnson and William E. McLellin to go out and preach the Gospel to the people as they were moved upon by the Holy Ghost: And whatsoever they shall speak when moved upon by the Holy Ghost shall be Scripture, shall be the will of the Lord, shall be the mind of the Lord, shall be the word of the Lord, shall be the voice of the Lord, and the power of God unto salvation. It is by that power that we have led Israel. By that power President Young presided over and led the Church. By the same power President John Taylor presided over and led the Church. And that is the way I have acted, according to the best of my ability, in that capacity. I do not want the Latter-day Saints to understand that the Lord is not with us, and that He is not giving revelation to us; for He is giving us revelation, and will give us revelation until the scene is wound up. I have had some revelations of late, and very important ones to me, and I will tell you what the Lord has said to me. Let me bring your minds to what is termed the manifesto. The Lord has told me by revelation that there are many members of the Church throughout Zion who are sorely tried in their hearts because of that manifesto, and also because of the testimony of the Presidency of this Church and the Apostles before the Master in Chancery. Since I have received that revelation I have heard of many who are tried in these thing, though I had not heard of any before that, particularly. Now, the Lord has commanded me to do one thing, and I fulfilled that command at the conference at Brigham City last Sunday, and I will do the same here today. The Lord has told me to ask the Latter-day Saints a question, and He also told me that if they would listen to what I said to them and answer the question put to them, by the spirit and power of God, they would all answer alike, and they would all believe alike with regard to this matter. The question is this: Which is the wisest course for the Latter-day Saints to pursue--to continue to attempt to practice plural marriage, with the laws of the nation against it and the opposition of sixty millions of people, and at the cost of the confiscation and loss of all the Temples, and the stopping of all the ordinances therein, both for the living and the dead, and the imprisonment of the First Presidency and Twelve and the heads of families in the Church, and the confiscation of personal property of the people (all of which of themselves would stop the practice), or after doing and suffering what we have through our adherence to this principle to cease the practice and submit to the law, and through doing so leave the Prophets, Apostles and fathers at home, so that they can instruct the people and attend to the duties of the Church, and also leave the Temples in the hands of the Saints, so that they can attend to the ordinances of the Gospel, both for the living and the dead? The Lord showed me by vision and revelation exactly what would take place if we did not stop this practice. If we had not stopped it, you would have had no use for Brother Merrill, for Brother Edlefsen, for Brother Roskelley, for Brother Leishman, or for any of the men in this temple at Logan; for all ordinances would be stopped throughout the land of Zion. Confusion would reign throughout Israel, and many men would be made prisoners. This trouble would have come upon the whole Church, and we should have been compelled to stop the practice. Now, the question is, whether it should be stopped in this manner, or in the way the Lord has manifested to us, and leave our Prophets and Apostles and fathers free men, and the temples in the hands of the people, so that the dead may be redeemed. A large number has already been delivered from the prison house in the spirit world by this people, and shall the work go on or stop? This is the question I lay before the Latter-day Saints. You have to judge for yourselves. I want you to answer it for yourselves. I shall not answer it; but I say to you that that is exactly the condition we as a people would have been in had we not taken the course we have. I know there are a good many men, and probably some leading men, in this Church who have been tried and felt as though President Woodruff had lost the Spirit of God and was about to apostatize. Now, I want you to understand that he has not lost the Spirit, nor is he about to apostatize. The Lord is with him, and with this people. He has told me exactly what to do, and what the result would be if did not do it. I have been called upon by friends outside of the Church and urged to take some steps with regard to this matter. They knew the course which the Government were determined to take. This feeling has also been manifested more or less by members of the Church. I saw exactly what would come to pass if there was not something done. I have had this spirit upon me for a long time. But I want to say this: I should have let all the temples go out of our hands; I should have gone to prison myself, and let every other man go there, had not the God of heaven commanded me to do what I did do; and when the hour came that I was commanded to do that, it was all clear to me. I went before the Lord, and I wrote what the Lord told me to write. I laid it before my brethren--such strong men as Brother Geo. Q. Cannon, Brother Jos. F. Smith, and the Twelve Apostles. I might as well undertake to turn an army with banners out of its course as to turn them out of a course that they considered to be right. These men agreed with me, and ten thousand Latter-day Saints also agreed with me. Why? Because they were moved upon by the Spirit of God and by the revelations of Jesus Christ to do it. I leave this with you, for you to contemplate and consider. The Lord is at work with us. He is doing things here that you do not comprehend. Make these matters a subject of prayer. Do not worry; do not feel bad about them. I rejoice that God has revealed to us the gospel. I rejoice I live in a day and generation when we have the Church of God on the earth. We have had prophets and apostles among us. They have worked here in the flesh and saved many souls. They have died and gone to the spirit world. Joseph Smith holds the keys of this dispensation. He will hold them to the endless ages of eternity, no matter who may lead the Church after him. The Lord has given us power to come here and build temples. We have three temples erected in these mountains, and many of the dead have been redeemed in them, and they will have a part in the first resurrection. Therefore, we ought to be thankful to the Lord. We want to continue in these temples. We want them to be occupied by the Latter-day Saints. We want our brothren and sisters to continue to go there and redeem the dead and bless the living. The Lord will take care of you and your families. He will take care of Zion, and of this generation, and He will fulfil all that He has said. I say, God bless you. And He will bless you if you will harken to His counsels. I want the Latter-day Saints to stop murmuring and complaining at the providence of God. Trust in God. Do your duty. Remember your prayers. Get faith in the Lord, and take hold and build up Zion. All will be right. The Lord is going to visit His people, and He is going to cut His work short in righteousness, lest no flesh should be saved. I say to you, watch the signs of the times, and prepare yourselves for that which is to come. God bless you. Amen. REMARKS Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the conclusion of Elder Roberts' discourse. at the Young Men's Improvement Association of the Salt Lake Stake, in the Assembly Hall, February 23, 1892. I realize it is somewhat late, but I want to beg the indulgence of this assembly a few moments. I felt that as I was a member of these Mutual Improvement Associations I wanted to attend this meeting and hear this lecture. I did not wish to interfere with the time of Brother Roberts. He has given us an excellent discourse, and has told us the truth. There are a few things pertaining to this subject on which I wish to bear my testimony to the young men of Israel. First, I wish to say a few words regarding Priesthood. There is no mistake about the Priesthood of God Almighty. The God of heaven Himself has created and redeemed this world by the power of that Priesthood; and no being that ever dwelt on this earth ever has or ever will be able to do or perform any work pertaining to salvation unless it is by that eternal and everlasting Priesthood. And where that Priesthood of Almighty God is manifest, the power of that Priesthood is with the people, no matter what age or generation they have lived in. And I wish to say that there has been no generation, no dispensation, any greater than the one in which Joseph Smith was raised up. He laid the foundation of this great work under God, and He established the Church upon the face of the whole earth, in fulfilment of revelation and prophecy from Father Adam down to our day; and the Lord has made, and will make no mistake in regard to calling a people or giving them the Priesthood. As I have said, Joseph Smith organized the Church. He lived but a short time with us--a little longer than the Savior did after He entered the ministry. The Savior lived about three and a half years from the time He commenced His ministrations among the people until He was crucified. Joseph Smith lived some fourteen years, if I mistake not, after he organized this Church. He also was slain. But before he died he organized the Church with Apostles, Patriarchs, Pastors, Teachers, and the whole government of the Church of God; and that Priesthood he organized or laid the foundations of remained with the people after his death, as Brother Roberts has said to-night. The Twelve Apostles stood next to the First Presidency of the Church; and I am a living witness myself to this work. I am a living witness to the testimony that Joseph gave to the Twelve Apostles when all of us received our endowments under his hands. I remember the last speech that he ever gave us before his death. It was before we started upon our mission to the East. He stood upon his feet some three hours. The room was filled as with consuming fire, his face was as clear as amber, and he was clothed upon by the power of God. He laid before us our duty. He laid before us the fullness of this great work of God; and in his remarks to us he said: "I have had sealed upon my head every key, every power, every principle of life and salvation that God has ever given to any man who ever lived upon the face of the earth. And these principles and this Priesthood and power belong to this great and last dispensation which the God of heaven has set His hand to establish in the earth. Now," said he, addressing the Twelve, "I have sealed upon your heads every key, every power, and every principle which the Lord has sealed upon my head." And continuing, he said, "I have lived so long--up to the present time--I have been in the midst of this people and in the great work and labor of redemption. I have desired to live to see this Temple built. But I shall never live to see it completed; but you will--you will." Now, we didn't suppose but what he would live. We didn't understand what he meant. Neither did the Twelve in the days of the Savior understand what He meant when He said "I am going away from you; if I go not the Comforter will not come unto you." And so we did not understand Joseph when he said he would not live to see that Temple completed, but we would. Probably it was not given for us to understand at that time. After addressing us in this manner he said: "I tell you, the burden of this kingdom now rests upon your shoulders; you have got to bear it off in all the world, and if you don't do it you will be damned." That was pretty strong language, but it was full of meaning, it was full of significance. Joseph was trained in the Priesthood perfectly well before he came to this planet. He understood the Priesthood perfectly well before he came here. He understood its work and its lineage. He also understood perfectly well that he was going away from this earth; but we did not know it until after he was put to death. I was in Boston with President Young the very hour he and his brother Hyrum were killed--the very moment they were slain. And in that moment there was a power of darkness surrounded us, a feeling of heaviness that I never felt before. I have never seen President Young feel so badly in my life before as he did that hour. After that hour we departed for our mission, not knowing anything of this terrible tragedy until we received an account of their death some time afterwards. We were then informed that the Prophets of God were slain. We returned to Nauvoo. It has been repeated to you here to-night what was done at that conference in Nauvoo. I do not know whether there is any one present here to-night but myself who was there at the conference--there are but few living who were present on that occasion. Brigham stepped forth as a leader of Israel, as has been said here to-night by Brother Roberts, and Sidney Rigdon also tried to get the Presidency; but when his name was put to a vote before the conference of the latter-day Saints, and they were asked if they wanted him as their leader, as their president, as their guardian to lead them, to guide them and direct them to the celestial kingdom, Brigham said: "All who do, raise your right hand," and I did not see a hand raised in his favor in that congregation. He (Brigham) then asked if they wanted the Twelve Apostles to step forth and magnify their calling and build up the Church and establish the kingdom of God in all the earth--"All who do, raise your right hand," and almost every soul in that congregation voted; and when Brigham Young arose and commenced speaking, as has been said, if my eyes had not been so I could see, if I had not seen him with my own eyes, there is no one that could have convinced me that it was not Joseph Smith speaking. It was as the voice and face of Joseph Smith; and any one can testify to this who was acquainted with these two men. Several men have claimed authority to lead the Church, but the Prophet Joseph never conferred any such authority upon any man. The keys of the Presidency after his death were held by the Twelve Apostles, and by them only, until the Council of the First Presidency was reorganized. I name these things to show that the Lord has put His mark of approval upon the acts of the Apostles who followed the Prophet Joseph Smith in the establishment of this great work upon the earth; and the Priesthood shall continue here and the work increase until Jesus Christ shall come in the clouds of heaven. I wish here to ask a question. How has every man who has gone on his own authority and left the Church and undertaken to build up the Church, succeeded? How has he prospered, how has he done? Why, just as they did who tried to establish "Strangism," and "Rigdonism," and every other "ism" that has ever arisen. They have gone overboard. The power and influence of God have not been with them; the Priesthood has not been with them; the Lord has not called them to do that work; they tried, and the result has been a failure--a complete failure every time. On the other hand, how has He prospered and blessed those who have gone forth to the nations of the earth and declared the Gospel of Christ to the millions upon millions of their fellow men? Why, He has prospered and blessed them richly, and opened their way to success. Who are they who have gone forth to the nations of the earth and who have visited the islands of the sea, and have accomplished this great work of gathering, built cities and reclaimed the desert? Not those who tried to lead different factions from the Church, not those who were ambitious to lead the people of God; but it has been the Elders of Israel, those who have received the Priesthood from the hands of Joseph Smith and his followers, or through the authority which God gave them. Who are they who came here to these valleys of the mountains which had been pointed out by the finger of God? Who are they who have built these temples and erected edifices to the great Jehovah? Why, it is the same class of men that was true to Joseph, those who have been true to God and the covenants they have made. Has God made any mistake? Read the revelations of the Almighty; they speak for themselves. The Lord has appointed this people to come to this land; this is a great work; we are living in a great dispensation--the dispensation of the last days. The Lord has not deceived any one in this matter; He will deceive no man in regard to this work. This people have traveled from place to place ever since the organization of this Church, until to-day they are settled here in the valleys of these mountains and have prospered and increased marvelously; and they will continue to grow and increase in strength and power until Christ comes upon the earth. A man cannot leave this Church without the power of God leaves him. It has been the power of the Priesthood that made men great; and no man can handle it only according to the order of God. If they do they will fall, as has been stated in the revelations of God read by Brother Roberts this evening. I want to say to the young men of Israel, go and do what is right; you need have no fears regarding the authority of this work. The Lord has called the weak things of this earth. He has called them from the plow, from the plane and workshop and the hammer--He has taken the illiterate men of the world and sent them forth to preach the Gospel to the inhabitants of the earth. Even the Lord Jesus Christ was born in a stable and cradled in a manger. He came forth and fulfilled the prophecies. His whole life was one of poverty and affliction. He was scorned and hated by the world of mankind. His Apostles were selected from among the poor and the humble of the earth. So it is with the men who have led the Church in these days. They have been called from various vocations. They have been men who were humble, and God has been with them. God has established His work, and He has sent ministers to the different nations of the earth. I wish to say to the Latter-day Saints, all that we have to do is to be faithful, to keep His commandments, to be humble, to seek Him in mighty prayer, and all will be well with us. There has been a great deal of work done in this dispensation. The Lord called this people here to the valleys of the mountains in fulfilment of prophecy. Old father Jacob, in blessing Joseph and Ephraim, told them what would take place to them and their posterity to the latest generation; that their blessings should extend to the utmost bounds of the everlasting hills. We are here as descendants of Joseph and Ephraim, and Abraham, who were patriarchs and holy men of God. They had the Priesthood, and it has been continued and handed down from generation to generation as long as God has had a people upon the earth. He has revealed it in this dispensation through the Prophet Joseph, and it is here to stay, and will remain until Christ comes. I want to say to the young men and maidens of the Latter-day Saints, have no fears from what you hear through the outside world or from those who are professing to build up the kingdom of God, but who have not got the Priesthood as established by the Almighty through Joseph Smith. If you will do your duty all will be right. I am thankful for the privilege of living so long. I have seen the progress of this work almost from the commencement. I thank God for what I see to-day. I see great improvement, but there is still great room for improvement among us now. I wish to say to our young men, here is an evil power, a growing power of darkness around and amongst us. The power of darkness desires to lead the young men of Israel astray. They think if they can do this, if they can get them to do evil and wickedly, they can weaken this Church. But our young men are raised up to follow in the footsteps of their fathers, and not to be easily led astray. I pray God my Heavenly Father to bless the latter-day Saints, that we may all have faith in God and in the revelations and promises He has given, and in all the truths we have received, and if we do so, all will be well with us. We have come here upon a mission. Our mission is a great and responsible one; it is mighty. In fact, we have been called to leave our homes, our fathers, our mothers, our wives, our children, all that is dear to us, and to go abroad to preach the Gospel to the inhabitants of the earth. We have been called to do this, and as Brother Joseph Smith said, if we do not round up our shoulders and help to bear off this kingdom, we shall be damned. No man can receive the Priesthood from the hands of the Almighty and abuse it but what it will be answered upon his head. Therefore, let us all, old and young, improve the time, live our religion, have faith in God and His works. The Lord brought us here, His power has been upon us; by His power and His blessings we have built temples and beautified homes; and there has never been a people that I know of that have ever had the power to rear as many temples in so short a time as we have done in the mountains of Israel. Let us remember this and be faithful, remembering our fasting and prayers, call upon the Lord in secret prayer, and ask Him to bless and direct us. The Lord is with us, His hand is over us, and He is guiding this work and will continue to do so until Zion shall arise and be built up and shall stand in beauty and power, and become the glory of the whole earth, while the judgments of God shall extend throughout the nations. May God bless you as Mutual Improvement Associations, may He bless every organization and association that has been established as helps and governments to this great latter day work; and may we be blessed in all our endeavors to do right, which may God grant, for Christ's sake. Amen. LAYING THE CAPSTONE OF THE SALT LAKE TEMPLE Held on Temple Square, Salt Lake City, Wednesday, April 6, 1892. President Wilford Woodruff said, in substance: If there is any scene on the face of this earth that will attract the attention of the God of heaven and the heavenly hosts, it is the one before us to-day--the assembling of this people, the shout of "Hosanna!" the laying of the top stone of this Temple in honor to our God. My brethren, sisters and friends, we want to finish this Temple; we want to dedicate it unto God as soon as we can, so that the vast host who dwell in this region of country may go into it and attend to the ordinances for their living and for their dead. I hope we shall all lay this to heart and try to furnish means as far as we can, in order that the building may be speedily completed. We are able as a people to do this. I realize that there are many calls upon the Latter-day Saints for the work and purposes of the Church and kingdom of God upon the earth; but this work now before us is a most important event--the most important that we have upon our hands. I well remember the day and the hour when this first revelation for the redemption of our dead was received by the mouth of the Prophet of God. Who can comprehend this? Where is the man or woman who can comprehend this principle, that we have the power to go into these temples of our God and redeem our progenitors--our fathers and our mothers, from whom we have descended? They never heard the Gospel; they never enjoyed the blessings which you and I have in our day and time through the mercy of God. We are their posterity. They are on the other side of the veil, shut up in prison, and will remain there until their sons and daughters go into these holy places and redeem them, as Jesus went to preach to the spirits in prison three days and three nights, while His body lay in the tomb. Some of them had laid there a long time--thousands of years--up to the time when Christ was crucified and His Spirit went to them in prison. President Woodruff then proceeded to enlarge upon the blessings enjoyed by the Latter-day Saints in regard to their work in the temples, and said he rejoiced in the knowledge that the Prophet Joseph Smith, President Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball and others formerly associated with them in this great latter-day work on the earth were rejoicing to-day at what they saw and heard. The shout of Hosanna would enter into the presence of God and they would rejoice thereat. So far as we carried out the purposes which God had placed upon us, and the responsibilities devolving upon us, when we got through here we should have the privilege on the morning of the resurrection of sitting down with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and those of our relatives who had already passed away, in the family organization of the celestial world for ever and ever. DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, May 15th, 1892. I feel disposed to occupy a few moments in bearing testimony to the principles presented unto us by Elder Penrose. He has referred to the freedom of the soul, to the freedom of the mind of the Latter-day Saints toward other people. I traveled with Joseph Smith thousands of miles; have been associated with him and with the Apostles of our Church almost since its organization. I have heard Joseph Smith say in public and in private that if he were the emperor of the world, and had control of every human being on the face of the earth, he would give every man, woman and child the fullest liberty to enjoy their religion, and sustain them in it, let that religion be what it might. Those are my sentiments. We have no contention with any man on earth because of his religion. Joseph Smith's argument upon this subject was this: There is no emperor, no monarch, no king, no president breathing the breath of life on earth who has created his subjects. They are the creatures of God; He created them; they are His children. Therefore, neither emperor, president, king nor ruler has the right to deprive any of his subjects of the right of worshiping God according to their consciences, for they are held responsible and accountable to their Creator for their religion, and not to man. If I had the control of fifty tabernacles, and any preachers of the Gospel, from any sect under heaven, who had not tabernacles or temples of their own to go into to give their views, I would be perfectly willing they should occupy them. If there is a sect or a man on the face of the earth who has got a truth I do not possess, I want it. Why? Because I am going into the spirit world, the same as you are. The men whom I was acquainted with in early days in this Church have almost all passed away, and I shall follow them very soon myself. This whole congregation, with all the Christian world, have to pass, in a few years, to the other side of the veil. Then deception will not answer nor be of any benefit to me. Any false testimony I may give, or anything I may do subversive of the will of God towards His creature, man, I shall be held accountable for before the bar of Almighty God, and so will every other man. Therefore, while we accord to every man the right to enjoy his own religion, to believe what he pleases and worship as he sees fit, we claim, as Latter-day Saints, the same privilege. This is a fundamental doctrine of our faith. What Brother Penrose has said here to-day is true. The Latter-day Saints are somewhat peculiar from other religious denominations; one of their peculiarities is this, that no man knows when he comes into this Tabernacle who is going to speak here. This is true, as a general thing. This is my personal experience. I have traveled one hundred and sixty thousand miles in the last sixty years of my life. I have been in the church about that length of time. I have traveled among the nations of the earth, the islands of the sea and in my own country. I have preached the Gospel, and I have never known, whenever I arose to speak to the people, what I was going to say. I have been dependent upon the inspiration of Almighty God, as have all the Elders in this Church. Brother Penrose has remarked concerning our manner of preaching. Whom has the Lord called, from the creation of the world, to do this work? He has called, in a great measure, the weak things of this world. You may trace this in the whole history of the dealings of God with men. When He wanted a king in Israel, He chose a boy--David, one of the sons of Jesse. Who were the Apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ, whom He chose to stand by Him and to preach the Gospel? They were illiterate fishermen. Men in this day have been called from the plow, the plane and the hammer, and the various occupations of life, and thrust into the vineyard of the Lord. Why have they gone? Because they knew for themselves--every man has known who has embraced this Gospel and done his duty--that he has had to depend upon the Lord. That is the only dependence that we have. I never in my life, except in one or two instances in my early preaching, attempted to prepare anything to say to the congregation, and when I did I never touched the subject at all. I will say to our friends who are present, you see a city here, you see a tabernacle here. How did this come about? I came here with President Young, in 1847. We found a barren desert--as barren as the desert of Sahara. It was in keeping with the name it bore--the Great American Desert. How is it to-day? There is a city here, and we are building a Temple. We go into temples to attend to ordinances for the living and the dead, as has been told us to-day These Elders of Israel have been called by the power of God to go forth into the world and preach to their fellowmen, and they have promised them in the name of Jesus Christ that all who received this Gospel should receive the Holy Ghost. If this were not true, and the men and women they baptized received not the Holy Ghost, could they not have found it out before this time? Had not the Lord Almighty backed up this testimony of His humble servants, Utah to-day would be as barren as we found it in 1847, so far as the Latter-day Saints are concerned. But by the power of God men have received this, and by His power they have been gathered here. I will say another thing. The prophecies of Isaiah would have fallen unfulfilled, as well as the prophecies of many other Prophets, had not these things taken place. Since the creation of man the Lord has never brought judgment upon any generation, upon any city, town or country, that I have ever read of, whenever they have been ripened in iniquity, until He has fully warned them by men raised up for that purpose, and they have rejected those men. Take those ancient cities, when they became ripened in iniquity, the Lord raised up humble, honest men to warn kings, rulers, and those that inhabited those cities, that the judgments of God would overtake them if they did not repent. Read the history of Thebes, of Tyre, of Sidon, of Nineveh, of Memphis, and of Babylon the great, built to defy all power but God Himself. All that the Prophets prophesied unto them came to pass to the very letter. There is not a Christian, a Jew, a "Mormon," or an infidel, or any body else, can point to a prophecy or a revelation contained in the Bible by any man of God sent to any of these cities but what has had its fulfillment. Babylon itself was overthrown, and, in fact, it has been so covered by the drifting sands of the desert that man can hardly find its foundations to-day. I wish to say to the Church and to the gentlemen and ladies who visit us, that we believe we are living in one of the most important generations God ever gave to man. Read the revelations of St. John. Read the revelations of Isaiah and the other Prophets. Are they going to fall unfulfilled? I tell you nay! they will come to pass. I will say as one man who has lived a considerable length of time, as men count time, that the great change I see taking place in the world has an effect upon my mind, because in it I see the fulfillment of these revelations of God. I lived in Farmington, Connecticut. I received my first teachings under Dr. Porter, and under Dr. Haws, of Hartford. They were two reverend gentlemen, learned men, and they taught according to the light and knowledge of their day and generation. I used to have peculiar feelings, and I would ask these gentlemen questions. Said I, "Why is it that you don't contend for the faith once delivered to the Saints? How is it that you don't have those gifts and graces that were manifest in the days of Christ and His Apostles?" They told me that these things were given in the dark ages of the world, to convince the children of men that Jesus was the Christ. But said they, we are now living in the blaze of the great Gospel light, and we don't need them. Now, I did not believe that then; I don't believe it now. That kind of argument I could not comprehend. I agree with Brother Penrose that whenever the Lord has a Church upon the earth, and that Church receives the Gospel of Christ, and they enjoy the Holy Ghost, every gift and grace that ever did belong to the Church of God belongs to that Church, no matter who they are nor in what age of the world they live. These things are true to-day, and have been manifest since the organization of this Church. We have been called and commanded of God to preach the Gospel of Christ, or be under condemnation. The Gospel of Christ does not injure anybody. But there is one strange thing with regard to the inhabitants of the earth and the Church of Christ. The Apostles, Prophets and leading men in every age of the world, if they tried to live godly in Christ Jesus, became unpopular. Even Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who came to redeem the world, follow him from the manger to the cross, through suffering mingled with blood, to the throne of grace, and was he popular? No, He was not. Were the Apostles popular? They were not. The Jews and Gentiles not only crucified the Savior, but put to death every Apostle and every man that bore the Priesthood in that day and time, excepting John the Revelator. So in all ages they have been unpopular. So was Joseph Smith. He laid down his life for the word of God and testimony of Jesus Christ. He has gone into the spirit world, and he will receive his reward there. He was a Prophet of God. He laid the foundation of a great work. It is by that same power that we are here to-day, and the hand of God is in all these matters. We wish to do all the good we can what little time we spend in the flesh, and I feel in my heart to say, God bless you, God bless my friends and those who visit us, and bless all men that try to do what is right. As long as we do what is right we will receive the blessings of God. As has been said here to-day, every man, except the sons of perdition, will receive some kind of salvation. There is one glory of the sun, there is another glory of the moon, there is another glory of the stars, and as one star differs from another star in glory, so also will it be in the resurrection. All of us will be judged according to the deeds done in the body. We have but a little time to live upon the earth. If we live to be a hundred years old, it is a very short span when compared with eternity. We are here upon a mission, and a few of us have been called to labor in preaching the Gospel. We have done what we could in this matter, that our garments might be clean from the blood of all men. I pray that the spirit of the Lord may guide and direct us, and give us wisdom in all that we do, that when we go into the presence of God we may be counted worthy to receive salvation and eternal life, for Jesus' sake. Amen. THE SALT LAKE TEMPLE _______________ REMARKS Made by President Wilford Woodruff, at the St. George Stake Conference, held at St. George, June 12th and 13th, 1892. __________ [Reported by Arthur Winter.] _________ I arise with a heart full of gratitude and thanksgiving to my Heavenly Father for preserving my life until I again have the privilege of visiting St. George and beholding the faces of my brethren and sisters with whom I stand connected in the new and everlasting covenant--a covenant which will last not only in this world, but in the world to come. I think you are all acquainted with my motto with regard to public speaking. No man, in this generation or in any other, can preach the Gospel or edify the Saints of God unless he is led by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost; and what little I may speak to you this afternoon, I need and desire that Spirit. I hope I may have the faith and prayers of the Saints of God unto this end. I have some things upon my mind that I would like to speak of this afternoon, if I can get the spirit of them. I will say that some of the most interesting history of my life has been the time that I have spent here in St. George, and in the Temple of God which is built here. There is no eye that has seen, nor ear that has heard, nor has it entered into the heart of man to conceive, the future reward that will be given these people who dwell here and who have labored in the Temple of God. For myself, I can say that I feel under deep obligation to the people who dwell here--an obligation that I feel will last with me throughout all eternity. In my early days there were two things for which I desired to live. One was the redemption of the dead--my father's house, my mother's house, and the progenitors who are in the spirit world, and who never heard the Gospel. I have been preserved in the flesh, as one of their descendants, to hold the keys of their salvation and redemption, the same as you have for your progenitors, whom you are called to redeem and labor for here in the flesh. This has been a work that I have greatly desired to do for years that are past and gone, and through the blessing of the Lord and the assistance of my brethren and sisters who dwell in St. George, I have lived to see it accomplished to a great extent, which I look upon as one of the greatest blessings God ever bestowed upon me. So I look upon it with regard to all of us. The Lord has had certain purposes in gathering us together, and the redemption of our dead is one of them. And when I reflect upon the work which the Latter-day Saints have been called to perform in these latter days, I rejoice before the Lord that I have lived in this day and generation, and that I have been numbered among the Latter-day Saints who have been called to perform these great and mighty works which are necessary to be performed before the coming of the Son of Man.1 The building of these Temples in these mountains of Israel is among the marvelous events of the day in which we live. Of course, we built Temples before we came to these valleys; one in Kirtland, and one in Nauvoo. I was not at the dedication of the Temple in Kirtland; but I was present at the dedication of the Temple in Nauvoo. The history of these Temples you have before you. You know the Prophets were slain, and the Lord required the building of that Temple at the hands of the Saints before they were driven into the wilderness. There was a certain revelation given that inspired in a great measure the Elders of the Church of God to perform that work. They labored with all the power they possessed, and they accomplished that work. They went into that Temple and received ordinances and endowments before they left to go into the wilderness. These Temples that we have built here stand as a monument before God, angels and men, to the faith and works of the Latter-day Saints. Brother George Q. Cannon has referred to your labors in settling here. You were called to come here by the servants of God. You left your homes to come here and you have done what was required of you in this matter. You have had power to finish the Temple, and you have had power to go in and redeem your dead. A great many of you have done this, and I hope all of you will continue as long as you have any dead to redeem. Never cease that work while you have the power to enter into the Temple. I have greatly rejoiced in my work in this Temple, and in the blessings that I have received at the hands of the Latter-day Saints here. Gold and silver are no comparison to these things. I have had some thousands redeemed here. I have had baptisms, ordinations, washings and anointings, endowments and sealings for them, the same as if they were standing in the flesh themselves. I shall go and meet them on the other side of the veil. You will go and meet your relatives. You will hold the keys of their salvation to the endless ages of eternity, if you attend to this labor for them. There is no principle on earth that I rejoice more in than in the power that we hold as Latter-day Saints to build these Temples, to go into them, and to redeem our dead. It will require immortal bodies, immortal spirits, immortal revelations to enable men to comprehend the full extent of this work; they cannot comprehend it in mortality. Now, I desire to live to see the Salt Lake Temple finished. I want to be with my brethren the Apostles, the High Priests, the Seventies, the Elders and all the authorities of the Church when that Temple is dedicated to God. We have been as long building that Temple as Moses was leading the children of Israel through the wilderness to the land of promise, and I would like to see it finished. I view our position as Latter-day Saints, and all that is transpiring here, as well as our history before we came here, as in fulfillment of the revelations of God. A great many of our friends felt bad when we had to leave our lovely Nauvoo to go into the wilderness. It was a great trial to them. But had that not taken place, the Bible and the Book of Mormon and many of the revelations in the Doctrine and Covenants would have fallen to the ground unfulfilled. This is the place pointed out by the finger of God for the people to stand in holy places while the judgments of God go forth in the earth. It is marvelous in my eyes that I have lived to see the Temples that have been built in these mountains of Israel and the mighty work that has been performed in them, considering the condition in which we came here. A little handful of men, in poverty and affliction, came into this barren desert. I brought President Young in my carriage into the valley of Salt Lake. He was sick, and he asked me to turn my carriage so that he could get sight of the valley. I did so. He cast his eyes over the valley and looked for some little time. When he got through he said, "Brother Woodruff, drive on. Here is our home. This is the place God has pointed out for us to plant our feet. I have seen this place before." He began to recover right from that time. Well, we camped there, and we visited around some. President Young said, "Now, brethren, go where you please; go north, go south; go to any part of the country, and when you come back you will say this is the place." Men came from California, among them Brannan, who urged us strongly to go to California, saying that it was such a fine country, and we were there in a barren desert. But President Young said, "This is our home. Here we shall build the Temple of God and the city of our God." I think this has been plainly fulfilled. The inspiration of the Lord was with President Young all through his life, and the result of it is manifest. I traveled with him in the first settling of this country. Where is there a man that has the spirit of inspiration but can see the hand of God in these things. We have had our day of afflication, of persecution and poverty. All earth and hell, if I may be allowed to use such an expression, were combined against the Prophet Joseph Smith, from the time this Church was organized until he was slain in the flesh, and the same spirit continued through the life of Brother Brigham Young. But we came to these valleys of the mountains, and from the day that we planted our tents in Salt Lake City there has been a degree of prosperity resting upon this people, and it has increased year by year until today. The Lord has been with us. Blessings have been poured out upon the Latter-day Saints, and we have had plenty of food and raiment. But I hope that none of us will get proud and lifted up in our hearts so that we shall forget the hand that has given unto us these things. This is a dispensation in which the Lord has set His hand to establish His Church, to build up His Zion, to warn the world, to prepare the nations for the judgments of God, and to prepare His people to be united together as the bride, the Lamb's wife. My faith centres in the promises of God. There is no power on the face of this earth that can break this Church. Why? Because God holds it in His hands. He is the Author of it, and He has promised, through the mouths of scores and scores of prophets, that it shall stand. It is in fulfilment of these promises that you are blessed here with a Temple and have power to enter therin to attend to the ordinances of the House of the Lord. And when you reflect upon these matters, and see how far these things have been fulfilled, can you not have faith to believe that the Lord will carry it out to the end? I certainly have. I know it is the work of God. And the Lord has chosen this people, out of the whold human family, to stand in the flesh, keep the commandments of God, and go forth to warn the world by the proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ that they may know and understand the judgments of God which await them. The Latter-day Saints have been working at this for sixty years, and we have not got through with it yet. Behold what is taking place in the earth today! It really seems as if the day had almost dawned upon us when there is no other place of safety for the human family than the land of Zion. Three elements--fire, water and wind--seem to have been chosen to go forth on a mission to visit the nations. Cities are burned up, and floods and whirlwinds sweep away towns and villages and the inhabitants are destroyed. Are not these things all proclaimed by the revelations of God? They are, and they will come to pass. Brethren and sisters, this is the mission given to us in the last days. And that man is a very foolish man who will divide upon any principle against the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I have had more sorrow over one apostate in this Church than I have in attending the funerals of all the patriarchs and prophets and Latter-day Saints that I ever followed to the grave; because when I see men and women die who have been faithful I know they have gained a victory. That is the way I feel today. We must work together for the welfare of Zion. I am glad to see you and to spend a few days again in St. George.2 I want to do what good I can. I expect we shall all meet the other side of the veil with those who have gone before, and have joy and rejoicing in the Gospel of Christ. We should be faithful to the Lord, and we should not forget our prayers. Our sons and daughters should be instructed in these things, and we should labor for their welfare. What joy and consolation it gives a father or a mother to have good boys and girls, who keep the word of wisdom, attend to Sabbath schools, remember their prayers, and follow in the footsteps of their fathers; while it gives us sorrow when we have sons and daughters that turn away from this. But I have hope and faith that the sons of Zion will rise up and magnify their callings. I do not believe that they will disappoint our Heavenly Father. ------------------ Seeing a portion of our gallery occupied by a quite a number of our Lamanite brethren and sisters, I feel disposed to make a few remarks. The first time I ever saw Joseph Smith was in April, 1834. I met him in the streets of Kirtland. He invited me to his house. I stopped with him while preparing to go up to Zion in Zion's camp. On Sunday he called a Priesthood meeting. They all gathered in a little cabin. There I first heard Joseph Smith speak publicly, also Hyrum Smith, Oliver Cowdery, Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, Parley and Orson Pratt, and William E. McLellin. The Prophet called upon the Elders to bear testimony of the Gospel of Christ, and they arose one after another and bore a short testimony. Then Brother Joseph arose and said: "Brethren, I am very much edified and interested in listening to your testimony. But I want to tell you that you know no more concerning the result of this work and what lies before you as the Elders of Israel and before this people, than a parcel of little children." I expect they were all a little startled by it. He told them this work would fill the whole earth, and that all nations would have to hear the proclamation of the Gospel. He further said: "This work will fill the Rocky Mountains with tens of thousands of Latter-day Saints, and there will be joined with them the Lamanites who dwell in those mountains, who will receive the Gospel of Christ at the mouth of Elders of Israel, and they will be united with the Church and Kingdom of God, and bring forth much good." I little thought, when I listened to those words, that I should ever live to see the fulfilment of these words of the Prophet. I little thought that I should ever visit the Rocky Mountains, or ever see the Lamanites of whom he then was speaking. These men before me today bring to my mind sayings of the Prophet. His mind expanded on that occasion and he had a good deal to say with regard to the progress of this work, what the Elders of Israel would have to pass through, and the work that God would require at their hands in the redemption of the Lamanites and the honest and meek throughout the world, and in the building up of the Zion of God on the earth. But I have lived to see these days. I have lived to see the Lamanites in these mountains. I have visited a great many of them--the Zunis, Lagunas, Moquis, Navajoes, Apaches, and a great many of these Indian tribes. I have preached the Gospel to them, in connection with my brethren, through interpreters. I have spent many interesting days with these Lamanites in the mountains of Israel. I spent three days in the wilderness in Arizona with Petone, the great war chief of the nation. I preached the Gospel to him. He called his tribe together, stood upon his feet some two hours or more, and told his tribe all that we had said to him. This tribe was looked upon as a very dangerous one in the midst of the nation, and this Petone had engaged in a great deal of warfare. I rejoice that I have lived to see this day; that I have lived to see the Rocky Mountains; that I have been gathered with the Latter-day Saints here. A great deal has been done by this people, but much more will have to be done. We tell sometimes about dreams. I had a dream one night about our Temple in Salt Lake. I thought the Temple was dedicated and organized, and we as the Elders of Israel were laboring there for the redemption of our dead, and suddenly there was a door opened in the west, and an Indian chief came into the Temple, leading a vast host of his tribe, and took possession of the Temple, and I thought they performed more work in one hour than we could do in a day. This made a strong impression on my mind. I am satisfied that although we have done a little for the Lamanites, we have got to do a great deal more. I believe I sealed the first Lamanitish man and woman together that ever were sealed in this dispensation. It was in the Endowment House, and quite a number of brethren and sisters were present. The man's name was Laman. I believe the day will come when these Lamanites, with the dark skin that rests upon them, will enter into these Temples of the Lord in these mountains and do a great deal of work. They will come to an understanding of the redemption of the dead. They will have wisdom given unto them. They will have light and truth given unto them, and the spirit of their forefathers will be manifest unto them. I am thankful that I am able to see these Lamanites here. The Prophet of God saw what would come to pass, and he told the truth. As Elders of Israel we have fulfilled, in a measure, many of the Prophet's sayings in relation to these things. We have traveled to the nations of the earth, as he said we should do, and this Gospel has gone to a great many nations. More doors will be opened in the due time of the Lord. When these judgments of God are manifest in the earth, the honest in heart and meek of the earth will have their eyes opened and they will be very glad to flee to Zion. I look back to the days when we first went to New England to preach the Gospel, and when there were Saints in almost every city there. And when we went to England in 1840 we baptized over seven thousand in one year. So it has been more or less through the world. There have been people prepared to receive this Gospel and to work for the Lord. And we are only in the beginning of this work, as it were. The day will come when many will seek a place of safety, that they may stand in holy places while the judgments of the Lord pass. Our young men will rise up in those days. They will remember their prayers before the Lord. Their minds will be opened to see the work that lies before them. A great deal has yet to be done, although the Lord will make short His work in the earth, lest no flesh be saved. I am thankful that there is as much done as there is; thankful that we have had the privilege of opening our mouths among the nations of the earth and the islands of the sea, and preaching the Gospel. What greater work can any man be engaged in than the saving of the souls of men? No matter how poor we may be, it is a glorious work and a blessing to any man. When I look upon the Apostles and the Elders and bring to my mind the labors they have performed, the miles they have traveled, the souls of men they have brought into the Gospel, I feel that it is a work worthy of all acceptation of angels or men. I pray the Lord that we may have power to convert these Lamanites to the Gospel of Christ. It is true it has been a hard work up to the present to get their minds open to comprehend these things, though many of them have been baptized; yet a great work is to be done among them. Our brethren should remember this, and treat them kindly. Let us do what we can to make them happy and comfortable while we are with them. It is our duty to do what we can for their benefit, and to give them the Gospel. God bless you and guide you in the ways of life. Amen. 1. During his tenure as the St. George Temple President, Wilford Woodruff recorded the reception of many visions and revelations, the most well known being the appearance of the Signers of the Declaration of Independence in August, 1877. Although he left no account of the actual vision in his journal, in a discourse delivered 16 September 1877, he recounted his experience to the Saints: The dead will be after you, they will seek after you as they have after us in St. George. They called upon us, knowing that we held the keys and power to redeem them. I will here say, before closing, that two weeks before I left St. George [Wilford Woodruff left St. George 30 August 1877], the spirits of the dead gathered around me, wanting to know why we did not redeem them. Said they, "You have had the use of the Endowment House for a number of years, and yet nothing has ever been done for us. We laid the foundation of the government you now enjoy, and we never apostatized from it, but we remained true to it and were faithful to God." These were the signers of the Declaration of Independence, and they waited on me for two days and two nights. I thought it very singular, that notwithstanding so much work had been done, and yet nothing had been done for them. * * * I straightway went into the baptismal font and called upon brother McCallister to baptize me for the signers of the Declaration of Independence, and fifty other eminent men, making one hundred in all, including John Wesley, Columbus, and others; I then baptized him for every President of the United States, except three; and when their cause is just, somebody will do the work for them (JD 19:229). On the night of 19 August 1877, President Woodruff records that he spent the evening preparing a list of "the Noted Men of the 17 Centaury [sic] and 18th," a list that included the signers of the Declaration of Independence and the past Presidents of the United States (Journal entry for above date). Included in this list were famous writers (Goethe, Schiller), explorers (Columbus, Amerigo Vespucci), and prominent military figures (Benito Juarez, Napoleon). On 21 August 1877, he was baptized by John Daniel Thompson McAllister for 100 of these men. Following his baptisms, Wilford Woodruff then baptized J.D.T. McAllister for an additional 21 names. In addition, Lucy Bigelow Young was baptized for 70 prominent women, including such women as Marie Antoinette, Jane Austen, and the wives of the United States Presidents. A complete list of those individuals for whom the work was performed, including the proxies who performed the endowment work, is to be found in the appendix of this volume. 2. Prior to attending the St. George Stake Conference, President Woodruff presided over a St. George Stake High Council meeting held on 11 June, 1892, the purpose of which was to settle contention between various members of the Bunkerville, Nevada Ward, including the Bishop, Edward Bunker, Jr., his father, Edward Bunker, Sr., and others. As early as 1890, Bishop Edward Bunker, Jr. had been advocating and teaching doctrines held by some to be contrary to those found in the Temple, including doctrines concerning the pre-Fall condition and status of Adam. The source of confusion centered on doctrines taught during a lecture delivered at the conclusion of the endowment, before the patrons approached the veil. This "Lecture before the Veil" was first introduced by President Brigham Young at the dedication of the Temple in 1877. Among the Lecture teachings which Bishop Bunker found problematic was the doctrine that "Eve was an immortal being and was brought here by Adam." Also, Bishop Bunker "thought that Adam was not a resurrected being" (St. George Historical Record, 13 December 1890 as quoted in Collier, p. 169; see also Brigham Young's veil lecture in L. John Nuttall Journal, 7 February 1877; Collier, pp. 116-118). In a letter to the St. George High Council, Edward Bunker, Sr., who was unable to attend the High Council meeting due to illness, stated that he did "not believe that Adam is the father of Jesus Christ, and the God we worship"; he also did not believe the doctrine that Adam had "had a second probation on another planet, and that his body was of the dust of another planet." Rather than accept these teachings as found in the Veil Lecture, Edward Bunker, Sr. held "that Adam came to this earth as a personage of Spirit," and will rule under Jesus Christ in the Millennium (Autobiography of Edward Bunker, pp. 31-47, as quoted in Collier, pp. 169-170). This letter of beliefs was forwarded by the St. George High Council to the First Presidency on 22 May 1891. A year later, the High Council meeting was held with Presidents Wilford Woodruff and George Q. Cannon presiding. In addressing Bishop Bunker, President Woodruff related the experience of Orson Pratt in opposing the doctrines of Brigham Young--the same doctrines now given in the Temple lecture. President Woodruff explained that Adam was an immortal being when he came to this earth, and was made the same as all other men and Gods are made. He also "showed the folly of some men because they cannot look up and prove by the Bible the glorious Revelations that God has given they receive them doubtfully" (Diary of Charles Lowell Walker, 2:741). President Cannon arose and "said that it was not necessary that we should [teach] or endorse the doctrine that some men taught that Adam was the Father of Jesus Christ," and counseled the Elders to teach only those things which they properly understood (Ibid.). Contention concerning Brigham Young's doctrines on the Godhead continued to arise among Church members during the 1890s, and eventually resulted in the First Presidency Doctrinal Exposition on the Father and the Son, which was issued and published in 1916 (For an in-depth treatise on this subject, see David John Buerger, "The Adam-God Doctrine," in Dialogue, A Journal of Mormon Thought 15:1 [Spring 1982], pp. 14-58; also see "The Orson Pratt-Brigham Young Controversies: Conflict within the Quorum, 1853-1868," Dialogue 13:2 [Summer 1980], pp. 7-49). BLESSINGS OF THE RISING GENERATION _______________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the Semi-Annual Conference, held in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday Morning, October 9th, 1892. I feel disposed to try to address this assembly of Latter-day Saints for awhile this morning; but I wish to say that I need not only the strict attention but the faith and prayers of the Saints of God, for no man can fill the place which I or these Apostles occupy, to fulfil the command of God and the requirements of the Latter-day Saints, except by the inspiration of Almighty God. This is a truth that has remained on the earth from the day of Father Adam to this hour. I have some things upon my mind I would like to lay before this assembly if I can get sufficient of the spirit of inspiration to do it. To commence with, I want to bear my testimony to these Latter-day Saints and to the world that I am held responsible before God, the angels and the heavenly hosts for the testimony which I bear before you; and so is every man who bears record of the Son of God and of the work of God in this or any other generation. These Latter-day Saints bear record to the world, and have borne record for almost a generation past, that Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God; that they know this work is of God, and that this is the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They are held responsible for this, and if they bear a true testimony, the nations of the earth who hear that testimony will be held responsible for the use they make of it. Do you ask me how I know this is the work of God, and that Joseph Smith is a Prophet of God? I will tell you how I know. I know it by the revelations of Jesus Christ and by the inspiration of the Lord. If I may be allowed to refer to myself without being considered egotistical, I will tell you why I bear this testimony. Eighty-five years have passed over my head since I first tabernacled in the flesh. Almost sixty years of that period I have been a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. During that time I have borne some portion of the Holy Priesthood, and for fifty-three years I have occupied the position of the Apostleship, in connection with my brethren. I have also traveled abroad and at home. I have been taught from my childhood up by the revelations of God in the records of divine truth that have been given to us, that there is one God, and that there is one Jesus Christ, who is the Savior of the world, and the only Savior pertaining to this world and to the redemption thereof. I have been taught that there is one Priesthood, in its two divisions. I have been taught that there is one Holy Ghost, and that there is one Gospel and one set of ordinances for the salvation of the whole posterity of Adam, and only one. I have been taught that these ordinances are the same in every age of the world. Whoever reads the New Testament can see the testimony of the Apostles that there was but one Gospel in that day and generation; and that Gospel was taught by Adam himself to his posterity. The same Gospel was taught by Moses, and by all the patriarchs and prophets down to the days of Jesus Christ. There was but the one Gospel. But the promise was that whoever received that Gospel should receive the Holy Ghost and the gifts thereof, and these gifts were made manifest from generation to generation when the God of heaven had a people on the face of the earth. In traveling during these sixty years that I have been in the Church, abroad and at home, I have been associated with the Elders of Israel in the administration of these ordinances to the human family. What has been the result? Remember now what I told you, that I am held responsible for my testimony. I have traveled, I may say, in the midst of visions, in the midst of the administration of angels, in the midst of the power of God. In connection with my brethren, I have laid hands upon the sick, and they have recovered. We have laid hands upon the blind, and they have seen; upon the deaf, and they have heard; upon the lame, and they have walked; upon those possessed with devils, and they were cast out; and even unto the resurrection of the dead. Those gifts and graces that have followed the servants of God in every age of the world have been associated with this Church from the day of its organization until this hour. These are truths in the sight of high heaven, and I will meet them there when I go to the other side of the veil. Therefore, if there are any strangers here, I bear testimony to these things, for I know they are true. The inspiration of the Holy Ghost deceives no man, and when any people receive this Gospel and this Priesthood, they know for themselves whether the work is of God or not. Yes, we lay hands upon the sick, and while we do so, the Spirit and power of God comes upon us, from the crown of our head to the soles of our feet. We lay hands upon men to ordain them to the Priesthood, and the power of God rests upon the men who administer. These thirty thousand Elders who dwell here in the mountains of Israel, when they go to the nations of the earth and get up and declare the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the world, the Holy Ghost is with them. They bear a testimony that rejoices the hearts of men, and men receive that testimony, and everything they promise them is fulfilled to the very letter. This is the reason why I know that Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God, and that this is the Church of God on the earth. And I wish many times that I had power to express to the Latter-day Saints what is in my heart, and what the vision of my mind opens unto me in those seasons when I am inspired with the Spirit and power of God to see what lies before this people and before this generation. Oh! ye Latter-day Saints, you talk about revelation, and wonder if there is any revelation. Why, bless your souls, say nothing about the Apostles and Elders around me, these mountains contain thousands upon thousands of devoted women, holy women, righteous women, virtuous women, who are filled with the inspiration of Almighty God. Yes, these women have brought forth an army of sons and daughters in these mountains by the power of God, and these sons and daughters partake of the inspiration of their mothers, as well as of their fathers. I will ask you, what are these Apostles doing when they rise up and preach to you? What are these Elders of Israel doing when they bear record here to the Latter-day Saints and to the world, if they have not inspiration and revelation? There is not a man on the footstool of God Almighty today who has power to preach the Gospel and testify to its truth, only by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost. Yes, we have revelation. The Church of God could not live twenty-four hours without revelation. We do not have as much as we ought to have; and when I look at the work that has been piled up for these Latter-day Saints to bear off in the world, I feel as though we need a good deal of more inspiration and revelation than we have. We want our souls to be wide open to the things of God, and to understand our position and destiny. I realize, Latter-day Saints require at my hands, as President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, many things. They also require many things at the hands of my counselors and these Apostles. We can accomplish what is required of us if we have the faith and the assistance of the Latter-day Saints and the power of God; but without that we can do nothing. I will say a few words with regard to another dispensation. The whole Christian world profess to believe in the Bible. You look through that book, and you will not find a single instance of a Prophet, or an Apostle, or an inspired man going forth to preach the Gospel except by the power of the holy and everlasting Priesthood. No man has had power to go forth and administer in the ordinances of salvation without that Priesthood, from Adam down. Father Adam was a great High Priest. So were his sons that were with him--Seth, Enos, Jared, Canaan, Mahalaleel, Enoch and Methuselah; and a great many others bore the holy Priesthood. All that Moses did was by the power of the holy Priesthood. All that Jesus Christ and the Apostles did was by the power of the Priesthood. Jesus Christ was our great High Priest, and He came into the world and laid down His life as a great sacrifice for the redemption of the world. It is that dispensation that I wish to say a few words about. It was rather a peculiar dispensation. The Savior came to the Jewish nation--to His own--through the loins of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and David. The Jewish nation rejected Him. He labored until they put Him to death. He lived only three years and a half after He entered the ministry. He lived long enough, however, to choose twelve Apostles, to organize a church, to warn that nation, and to declare unto them what would come upon their heads. Moses had also told the Jewish nation of these things in his day, by the inspiration of the Lord. Has one jot or tittle fallen unfulfilled? Not one. When the Savior suffered that ignominious death on the cross, and was about to give up the ghost, He said, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." Is not that a strange saying for a man who was being crucified and about to go into the spirit world? But Jesus saw everything that would befall the Jewish nation, and well might He make such a remark. He saw that one thousand eight hundred years after His death this yoke of bondage and trial and tribulation would rest upon the posterity of Judah, and he was ready to forgive them. No, they did not know what they did. They did not comprehend it. They did not understand that they were putting to death their Shiloh--the king of the Jews, their great Redeemer. They were too overwhelmed with darkness and iniquity to comprehend this. But, as I was saying, Jesus chose twelve Apostles. They were fishermen, weak and illiterate. But the Lord has always chosen the weak things of this world, instead of the great, and the learned, and the rich, and the powerful of the earth. Why has He done it? That He might have instruments that He could handle--men who would obey Him, who would take His counsel and carry out His commandments. In preparing this dispensation in which we live the Lord has known perfectly well what lay before us. He has known the mighty events that were to be heaped upon the heads of both Jew and Gentile, Saint and sinner, Zion and the world; and He has prepared an element to do this work of His, which He has gathered here in the mountains of Israel. But in the days of the Savior it was a dispensation of sacrifice; and Jesus Christ and the Apostles only lived a little while after they were chosen, to warn the nation in which they dwelt and that generation. Jesus Christ was crucified, the Apostles were put to death, and most every man who bore the Priesthood was slain, excepting John the Revelator. The Lord had ordained him to live, and he did not die, but remains today upon the face of the earth, in fulfilment of the promises of God to him. But in that day they had not the privilege of building the Zion of God or the Kingdom of God. It was not a dispensation prepared for that. These men laid down their lives, and the judgments of God overtook the Jewish nation, in fulfillment of the predictions of the Savior and the Prophets. Moses told them in his day, "And thou shalt eat the fruit of thine own body, the flesh of thy sons and of thy daughters, which the Lord thy God hath given thee, in the siege, and in the straitness, wherewith thine enemies shall distress thee." All this came to pass, and the kingdom was taken from the earth, the holy Priesthood was taken up to God, who gave it, and the Church went into the wilderness, and there remained until the day set for its restoration to the world. But I want to speak more particularly about this great and last dispensation, in which the Lord has said, through the mouths of all the patriarchs and prophets, a mighty work should be performed. It is different, my brethren and sisters, from the days of the Savior. I do not believe there ever was a greater dispensation than the one in which you and I live, because in it is centered the fulfillment of all prophecy and all revelation that has been manifest looking to the final restoration of all things before the coming of the Son of Man. I want to speak of our condition today before the Lord. When the Savior died He went to preach to the spirits in prison. Most all the people from the days of Noah to that day had died without the Gospel, and Jesus went and preached to them. They had this work resting upon them in that day. In this day and generation we have in the Bible, the Book of Mormon and the Doctrine and Covenants the history of the Latter-day Saints and of the world. You are my witnesses today that this people are here in fulfillment of these revelations and prophecies. We have had a Prophet raised up in these last days, as great a Prophet as ever breathed the breath of life, save Jesus Christ, and He was raised up for the purpose of laying the foundation of this work. And how is this dispensation and this work to commence? I would like to have the Christian world read the revelations of St. John. There you have before you a picture of what awaits this generation. You have there proclaimed that in the commencement of this great and last work in the last days an angel of God would fly through the midst of heaven, having the everlasting Gospel to preach to 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." Yes, ye Latter-day Saints, the hour of God's judgment is come. The Lord raised a great Prophet unto us. He was a mighty man, although illiterate, in one sense of the word. The Lord called upon him to perform this work, and he not only received the visitation of angels, but even the voice of God. This is the only dispensation that I have ever read of in which the Father and Son both appeared to the man whom He had chosen to establish His Church. Joseph Smith received this great honor. He was a Prophet of God. I have traveled with him a good many miles. Speaking of the gifts and graces manifested by the Elders of Israel, I have seen Joseph Smith in one day go forth among the sick and command those that were dying to arise and be made whole, and they have leaped from their beds, been clothed, and walked out in the street and followed the Prophet of God in his travels through the midst of the Saints of God. Can I doubt this work? Can you doubt it? I think not. No man that has had any experience in this work can doubt it. You remember Brother Fordham. He was breathing his last breath of life when the Prophet took him by the hand and commanded him in the name of Jesus of Nazareth to arise and be made whole. He leaped from his bed, was clothed, and walked out and into the house of Brother Joseph Bates Noble, who is still living in these mountains. He was also lying at the point of death and was instantly healed by the power of God, through the voice of the Prophet of God. I name these things because I have had experience in them and have a right to mention them. The power of God was with the Prophet, from the time he was ordained to the Priesthood until he was murdered. He lived some fourteen years after he laid the foundation of this work. And when he organized this Church he organized it in its full power and glory, and every gift and grace, and every ordinance that belongs to the Church of God. Nothing was ever manifest in any age of the world but what was included in the organization of this Church. It was organized with Prophets, with Apostles, with Pastors, with Teachers, with helps and governments, with gifts and graces, and with the Melchisedek and Aaronic Priesthoods. Joseph Smith was true and faithful to death, and he was a mighty man of God, as may be seen by anyone who will read that code of revelations which he left to us--as sublime revelations as God ever gave to man. Now, brethren and sisters, the foundation has been laid, and you are here in these mountains of Israel. Myself and others have preached to you in England, in Scotland, in Wales, in the islands of the sea and among the nations of the earth. We have declared unto you the Gospel of Jesus Christ. You have believed our testimony and have received it. You went forth and were baptized in water for the remission of your sins, and you received the Holy Ghost by the power of God, and by that power you are here today. We might have preached to you till we had been as old as Methuselah, but if our testimony had not been backed up by the power of God, you would have remained at home; you would not have been here in these mountains to fulfil the revelations of God. These things are true, and you know they are true. You know you received the testimony yourselves, and by this you have been gathered together. Upwards of sixty years have passed over our heads since the organization of this Church on the earth, and its history is before the world. It has been a little stone cut out of the mountains without hands. We have had a terrible warfare from the organization of this Church until today; but one thing is comforting and encouraging: the God of heaven inspired men thousands of years ago to tell exactly what these Latter-day Saints would do. They were of the house of Israel, scattered among the nations of the earth, and the Lord would stretch out His hand and gather them together, and they would go to the place that the old Patriarch said should belong to Joseph: Joseph is a fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough by a well; whose branches run over the wall: The archers have sorely grieved him, and shot at him, and hated him: But his bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob; (from thence is the shepherd, the stone of Israel.) * * * The blessings of thy fathers have prevailed above the blessings of my progenitors unto the utmost bounds of the everlasting hills: they shall be on the head of Joseph, and on the crown of the head of him that was separated from his brethren.(Gen. xlix:22-26). You are the descendants of this holy man of God. You have come here in fulfillment of these things. I do not expect that I will be able to answer my mind in telling you how I feel with regard to these things, but I will do the best I can. You have been gathered to these mountains of Israel, led by a prophet, a seer, a revelator, and a mighty man. When we came here we found a barren desert. Men said, "Go to California; you cannot do anything here." "No," President Young said, "we shall stay here; we shall build a temple here; we shall build a city here. This is what is ordained of God, and we shall accomplish it." Judge, brethren and sisters, whether he was inspired or not. We have made a beginning. We have made the desert to blossom as the rose, and laid the foundation for the great work of our God that is going to be fulfilled in these mountains of Israel, and you will stand in holy places while the judgments of God work in the earth. Yes, let the world read these judgments of God and that which lies before all nations under heaven. These things will come to pass to the very letter. Then what is our duty and our position here? The Lord told us through the Prophet Joseph in the beginning of this work that He was going to call Elders into the vineyard for the last time, to prune the vineyard. We have got to prepare it for the coming of the Son of Man. The wheat has got to be gathered into the garner before the chaff is burned. And the Elders of Israel have got to go forth and warn the inhabitants of the earth, as Joseph Smith told the Twelve Apostles the last time I saw him before his martyrdom, when he laid before us the work he was required to do. The Prophet said: "God has given to me every key, every power and principle of salvation belonging to this great last dispensation; and I have sealed upon your heads every key, principle and power which God has sealed upon me. Now, you Apostles, round up your shoulders and bear off this kingdom, or you will be damned, saith the Lord." I do not forget these things, and they are true. I believe I am the only man living in the flesh who was present on that occasion. This is our position, brethren and sisters, before the Lord. There is a tremendous responsibility upon these Latter-day Saints. We have the world to warn. We have to preach the Gospel, and attend to those things that God has committed to us. The Prophet Joseph and his brother Hyrum were martyred, and they will have a martyr's crown. They have gone to the other side of the veil, to mingle with the Gods and to plead for their brethren, and they are faithful and diligent in their duties. But some of us are left behind. Since that time this work has gone on, and it has got to continue, and we cannot avoid this. What the Lord requires at the hands of these Apostles, and Elders and Latter-day Saints is to warn the world, to preach the Gospel, to build up Zion, to carry out the purposes of the Lord, and to prepare ourselves to stand in holy places while the judgments of God work in the earth. Joseph Smith revealed unto us the principle of the redemption of the dead. There was no revelation I ever read that gave me more joy and consolation than that. Jesus Christ and the Apostles had to go to the spirits in prison and redeem those who had lived from the days of Noah down to their generation. Here we have one thousand eight hundred years, during which millions and millions of the human family have died without the Gospel of Christ. They have gone into the spirit world, and the Lord expects these Latter-day Saints to go forth and redeem these dead, as they hold the keys of the salvation of their dead; so that when they go into the spirit world and meet their fathers and their mothers and their relatives, they shall not say to them, "You held the keys of my salvation, and you have not attended to this work, and I am left here in prison." We should not neglect this. It is not only our duty to preach the Gospel and to warn the world, that they may be left without excuse in the day of God's judgment, but it is our duty to redeem our dead. Joseph Smith, when he was martyred, went and opened the prison doors in the spirit world. So did those brethren that died in Zion's camp. Every Elder that has gone to the other side of the veil has a work to perform there, and those in the spirit world will receive their testimony. But they cannot be baptized there. Their sons and daughters who dwell in the flesh have to carry out this great and mighty work. Brethren and sisters, these are some of the duties that are required of us. We should open our eyes, and our ears, and our hearts, to see, hear and understand the great and mighty responsibility that rest upon us. Thank God, we have had power in this barren desert to build three temples. Hundreds of thousands of the dead have been redeemed in these temples, and there are millions yet to be redeemed. Here is this Salt Lake Temple that President Young laid the foundation of. We want to finish that temple and dedicate it unto the Lord. This is some of the work that is required of us. The eyes of all the heavenly hosts are over these Latter-day Saints, and they are over these sons and daughters that dwell in the mountains of Israel. God Himself and His Son Jesus Christ, who is our advocate with the Father, look to us to do this work. The eyes of Joseph Smith and every Prophet and Saint of God who dwells in the spirit world are watching over us. They cannot come here and build that Temple. They are not ordained to that. But we are here in the flesh, and I ask, in the name of the Lord, and as a great favor of these Latter-day Saints, that we will unite together with our means and finish that Temple, that we may go into it and redeem our dead. Many of you have got thousands of relatives in the spirit world who are looking to you. They never heard the Gospel in life, but they will hear it, at the mouth of David Patten, Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, John Taylor, and these Apostles and Elders that have gone into the spirit world. But, as I said before, they cannot be baptized there. We can, and we must do it for them. This is how I feel about our position. We are here by the power of God. It is a marvel to me that we are as well off as we are. It is a marvel to me that we have the power that we have. For there is a vast number of fallen spirits that are at war against God and His Christ, against this people and this Church, and against the redemption of the dead. Lucifer knows that if this Church prospers, his kingdom will fall. But God has sustained us, and will sustain us until we get through, if we do our duty. The hand of God is over us here, and Zion is a city set upon a hill, which cannot be hid. We are only small, and have only just begun the organization; but the Lord will hasten His work, and it will continue until all these promises of God will be fulfilled. There is where my faith rests and my consolation dwells. I know that God is true, and that the testimonies of all the Patriarchs and Prophets, have thus far been fulfilled to the very letter. There is not a city nor a generation but has felt the chastening hand of God when they have undertaken to overthrow the work of God. I want to say something in relation to home industry. True, it is Sunday, but that matters not; for we are called to build up Zion temporally as well as spiritually. All that has been said in our Conference with regard to home industry is good. We want to continue this, and as far as we possibly can we should, as President Young told us, open doors of work and labor among ourselves. These temporal matters are a part of the labors that we have to perform while we are here. Brethren, when we get on the other side of the veil and our eyes are opened, we will marvel over a great many things that we do not understand here; and a great many things will there be understood that cannot be here. One subject more I want to name, and that is with regard to our future. I will tell you what the Lord has revealed to me. You talk of revelation. I have a good many revelations. We are not particularly required to write all the revelations given to us. Joseph Smith wrote revelations in his day, and we have them to read, and they will all be fulfilled to the very letter. There has been a good deal said about the rising generation of the Latter-day Saints. I will tell you what will come to pass. My sons, the sons of my Counselors, the sons of these Apostles, and the sons of this people, will rise up by the power of God, and they will take this Kingdom and bear it off. You need make no mistake about this matter. They are the element that God has ordained, the same as He ordained us, to do His work. Our posterity will not forsake the Lord, nor their fathers, nor their mothers, nor the work in which they are engaged. Too many of them, it is true, have been led astray; too many of them have been found where they should not be; but the bulk of the sons of this people will remain true and faithful to this work. There is no other element that the heavens look to but the rising generation of the Latter-day Saints, in connection with the Lamanites, and they will be true and faithful. The Spirit of God will be with them, and they will follow the footsteps of their fathers, as their fathers follow Christ; and they will in their day and time stand--yes, brethren and sisters, our sons will stand in the flesh in the midst of these judgments of Almighty God when it will require faith and power, even to commanding the elements to obey them, to live. These judgments are at the door. Brethren and sisters, many of us forget at times that we are here on a mission. When I was but a boy I read the New Testament, under old Dr. Porter and others, and I read about Jesus Christ and His Apostles; that they had power to command the elements to obey them, power to command the sick and they were healed, and power to command the dead and they were raised to life. "Oh," said I, "may I live to see a Prophet; may I live to see an Apostle; may I live to see a man of God who will teach me these principles." The first sermon I hear preached by a servant of God I embraced the Gospel and was baptized. From that day to this I have not seen one moment when I have had any doubt with regard to the truth of this work. Whatever trials I have had, they have been of a different nature to that. I say to our young men in Zion, arise and obey the commands of God. Go before the Lord and get the Holy Ghost, and open your eyes to the work that lies before you. Your fathers are passing away and going to the other side of the veil, where we shall all go in our time. But the kingdom will rise, and God will sustain it, and it will never fall from this time till it is prepared as the Bride, the Lamb's wife, for the coming of the Son of Man. I feel to bless the Latter-day Saints. We have got a noble class of men and women in the mountains of Israel. No better men and women ever lived on the earth. Read the history of these Relief Societies, these Improvement Associations, these Primaries, and the labors of our sisters in Israel. They have been true and faithful all the way through, and they have been raised up, the same as the Elders of Israel have, to stand in the flesh and to magnify their callings in their day and time. They are doing a great work, and God will bless them, and I bless them with every sentiment of my heart. I feel also to bless my brethren who bear the Apostleship. Now, you talk about union. Can Apostles dwell with this work upon their shoulders without being united? They cannot do it. The same Spirit bears record to each of them. Here are my Counselors and the Apostles, we are of one heart and mind, and when we have the Spirit of God there is nothing but that we see alike in. Here is Brother Snow, an aged man as well as myself, and the President of the Twelve Apostles; he has got the spirit of his calling and office with him, and God is blessing him. He is full of revelation, full of the Spirit of the Lord. We have a mighty work upon us, and we want power in the midst of Israel to carry it out, and to do what the Lord requires of us; and we shall have power to do it. I tell you I rejoice when I let my mind rest upon these temples of our God in these mountains of Israel. Who ever heard of such a thing in any generation?--a class of men driven from the society of the Christian world into the wilderness have power to gather together and rear these temples unto the name of the Most High God, and go into these temples and to attend to the ordinances therein. We hold and will hold the keys of the salvation of our dead to the endless ages of eternity. As the Prophet said, the Lord has raised up saviors upon Mount Zion, while the kingdom is the Lord's in the latter days. The heavens are full of revelation. The earth is full of revelation. The Bible is full of revelation, as well as these other books that we have; and we have revelation, and should have day by day. I thank God that I am alive, and that He has preserved me up to this hour. I have a good many times, and some of them lately, come pretty near going to the other side of the veil; but I know that I have tens of thousands of prayers of righteous men and women, which ascend into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth day by day; and when I say that of myself I say it of my Counselors, of these Apostles, and of the Elders of Israel. They have the prayers of the people. These prayers are heard and answered. The Lord has taken whom he would take, and has preserved in life whom he would preserve, according to the counsels of His own will. We are appointed a certain work, and when we get through our sons will take it and bear it off. Zion will arise, and the glory of God will rest upon her; she will have power in the earth, and the day is at hand when, as Joseph Smith said, thousands of the great men of the earth will come to Zion to behold the glory thereof. God bless you, and pour out His Spirit upon you, and guide and direct you all. Remember your prayers. Be kind to one another. Do not find fault with one another. We ought to be careful in speaking evil of one another. Bear one another up. Brethren and sisters, the glory of the whole matter is, that when we get through we are going to have our families with us--our fathers and our mothers, our brothers and our sisters, our wives and our children--in the morning of the resurrection, in the family organization of the celestial world, to dwell forever and forever. This is worth all you or I can sacrifice the few years we have to spend here in the flesh. God bless you. Amen. THE POWER OF FAITH _______________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the Sixty-fourth Semi-Annual Conference of the Church, in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday Afternoon, October 8th, 1893. __________ [Reported by Arthur Winter.] __________ I have never attended a conference since I have been a member of this Church--now nearly sixty years--at which I have refused, when called upon by the proper authority and the Spirit of God, to speak and to bear my testimony according to the light that I had in me, and I disliked to pass over this conference without saying something. I have been in poor condition for public speaking, having had a severe cold upon my lungs during the past week, which has prevented me from doing almost any kind of business. I have been deeply interested in the testimonies of the servants of God who have addressed us during this conference. They have laid before us many great truths. My mind rests upon the subject of faith. Faith is the first principle of the Gospel. What is faith? Paul, in writing to the Hebrews, undertakes to explain it. He says that "faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen," and to prove this he goes on to tell what different men accomplished through faith (See xi chap. of Hebrews). I look upon faith as one of the most important principles that God ever revealed to man. Here we have four temples in these mountains, and hundreds of people are laboring in them. Who for? Both for the living and the dead. Why do they labor for the dead? Have they ever seen the resurrection of the dead? No, except by vision or revelation. But they have faith in it, and as an evidence of that faith they perform this work. They look forward to the resurrection and eternal judgment, to the celestial kingdom and the great blessings which God has revealed for the salvation and exaltation of the children of men. They do this by faith, and it is by this power that they have accomplished what they have during the last sixty years. By faith this tabernacle has been built, these temples have been reared, and these people have been gathered from the nations of the earth. Thousands of Elders have been called, not from colleges, but from the various occupations of life, and sent forth into the world to preach the Gospel without money and without price. Now for many years they have gone forth and preached this Gospel. Men have listened to them, and some spirit or power has convinced them that the testimony which these Elders have borne was true. These humble men of God have gone forth and said: "The fullness of the everlasting Gospel has been revealed by the administration of angels; the Lord has raised up prophets and inspired men; He has organized the Church on the earth as it was in the days of Jesus Christ and the Apostles; we have brought you this Gospel; hearken to it, and we promise you, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, if you will receive our testimony, repent of your sins, go down into the water and be baptized for the remission of your sins, you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, that shall bear record and witness unto you that what we say is true." What has been the result of this? Thousands have believed that testimony and proved that it was true. These Elders labored by faith; they traveled by faith; they worked by faith. It was faith that sustained them all the way through. They traveled without purse and scrip, and through their faith the God of heaven fed and clothed them, and opened the way before them. This has been the case now for sixty years. And many people believed the testimony of these simple men. They repented of their sins, were baptized for the remission of them, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost; they received that Holy Ghost, and it bore testimony to them of the truths of the Gospel. Brethren and sisters, it is by faith that you are here today, gathered from the nations of the earth. By that power you have been sustained, until you have accomplished these things that are now before you in your history. We ought to look at these things as they are. We ought to have faith, not only in what is past but in what is to come. It is by faith that we look forward to the resurrection of the dead. Our forefathers are in the spirit world. They died without the Gospel. They never saw the face of a prophet or an apostle. They laid down their bodies, and their spirits went into the spirit world. There they have listened to the Gospel of Christ. Jesus taught the Gospel in the spirit world while His body lay in the tomb. Joseph Smith, Hyrum Smith and those Elders of Israel who have been martyred and who have died for the word of God and testimony of Jesus have gone to preach this Gospel there. Spirits in prison have received their testimony. The prison doors have been opened. These spirits will come forth in the morning of the resurrection, and they will receive these blessings and glories, the same as if they had heard and received the Gospel in the flesh. And these Latter-day Saints have built these temples and gone to work in them with just as much assurance of the truth of these things as though it had been sounded in their ears by the trump of the archangel of God. They have had this faith, and they will not be disappointed. That is the condition the Latter-day Saints are in today. As to opposition, we may expect that, because the arch-enemy has labored against the work of God in all ages of the world. But we have reason to rejoice and to be thankful to our Heavenly Father that we are as well as we are today before Him. I want the Latter-day Saints to bear in mind that the ancient patriarchs and prophets spoke as they were moved upon by the Holy Ghost, and they spoke the truth. The Lord has said just what He meant, and meant what He said. The word of the Lord will never fall unfulfilled. If you want to know what is coming to pass, read the revelations of God in the Bible, in the Book of Mormon and in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants. The revelations of the Lord through the Prophet Joseph Smith are glorious revelations. What the Lord promised in the commencement of this work has been fulfilled to the very letter up to the present. So it will continue. We should lay these things to heart. There has been a good deal said with regard to our temporal affairs. That is all right. What the brethren have said concerning our temporal condition is of importance to us. I still am of the opinion that inasmuch as Zion is going to be built up on the earth, it is the mind and will of God that we should do something for ourselves. We ought to cultivate the earth. We ought not to wait for the world to come and plant and dig our potatoes, or plant and harvest our wheat, or to build railroads and carry them on. The Presidency of the Church have shouldered a very heavy load connected with this sugar factory. Why should we not make sugar? Utah sends a very great amount every year out of the Territory for sugar. This should not be. The soil is here and the talent is here to raise beets and to make sugar. Why should not the Latter-day Saints do this and keep their money at home? Is there any sin in this? Not at all; the more of these things we would do, the better, I think, the Lord would be pleased with us. I know there has been quite a feeling one way or another, because we have burdened ourselves with these labors. But it is our duty to try to get the Latter-day Saints to cultivate the earth and to produce what they eat and drink and what they wear. We have tried to do this. It is true, it cost a great deal to establish the sugar plant, and the Church had to shoulder a great measure of responsibility in connection with it, in order to carry it out. I do not think we have done wrong in that. When I go before my Father in heaven I am willing to bear my part of the responsibility, because if there is anything on earth that I was ever moved upon by the Spirit to do it was to unite in that enterprise with my brethren. I believe it is our duty to manufacture what we use, as far as we can, at home. We refer to these temporal things because they are and always will be connected with us. I feel to rejoice myself that we are as well off as we are. There has never been a period when we have been any better off than we are today. I look back to the days when we came here. We found a barren desert. The man that led us here was Brigham Young. He was a prophet, seer and revelator. He was never destitute of revelation from the day that I first knew him until his body was laid in the tomb. He was a great man--a man of God. We see the result of his work here. He was our architect, so to speak. He fulfilled his mission in a great and wonderful manner, and when he laid his body down he went to mingle with his brethren and the Gods. The Gospel of Christ is true. The Zion of God is true. We are here in fulfilment of the revelations and visions of the ancient patriarchs and prophets. Read Isaiah, Jeremiah and the other prophets, and see what they said. We came here by the revelations of God. Many of the brethren felt it hard to leave our beautiful Nauvoo and to go to the mountains. Had we not done this, some of the revelations of God would have fallen unfulfilled. I say to the Latter-day Saints, have faith. Let us have faith in the promises and revelations of God. Do you comprehend what is manifest in the earth today? The seeds of destruction are everywhere. The judgments of God are beginning to go forth. But who acknowledges the hand of God in these things? I rejoice that the cloud of darkness is being lifted from the eyes of our countrymen in regard to the Latter-day Saints, and that they are manifesting kindness towards us. Speaking of our visit East, I confess it was marvelous in my eyes to see how different these things are today to what they have been in the past. They begin to see that the people in the mountains of Israel are white men, and that they have some talent. I thank God for these things. I thank Him for the kindness we have received at the hands of the friends of our nation. My prayer to God is that His blessings may rest upon our nation and upon the leaders thereof, and that the spirit of liberty, of law, of righteousness and of truth may rest upon all American citizens and everybody that dwells under this great government. It is one of the greatest governments God ever raised upon the earth. What has it been raised up for? That in the midst of it the Lord might establish His Zion and His work. Brethren and sisters, let us be true and faithful to our duties and to our God. Let us look forward to the exaltation and the blessings that God has in store for those who keep His commandments. Every man will be judged according to the deeds done in the body. There are laws celestial, laws terrestrial, and laws telestial. We speak of the celestial glory and of the heavenly hosts. Who are the heavenly hosts? They are those who have tabernacled on this earth, been faithful to God, and passed behind the veil. And they are interested in the welfare of the inhabitants of the earth. They are interested in the salvation of the human family. They have labored for it in the flesh; they do so today in the spirit world. These are the people we look to by faith. We are here upon a mission. We are trying to fulfill that mission. I hope we may be true and faithful to it. I am thankful before the Lord for the blessings that I have enjoyed in this conference and for the testimonies I have heard from these Apostles. They speak as men having authority, inspired by the Spirit of God, and they speak the truth. Many of our friends that have labored with us have passed away. We ourselves shall pass away in our time. I may say that if it had not been for the prayers of these thousands of Latter-day Saints, I today should have been mingling with my brethren in the spirit world. I know that I have been preserved by the prayers of my brethren and sisters, and I am still with you. I feel very weak, and hardly qualified to magnify my calling as an Apostle, as the leader of the people of Israel; in fact, no man is, only as moved upon by the power of God. What little time I may stay here I hope my heart will not be set on the riches of this world, but on doing the will of God and uniting with my brethren in bearing off the great work and responsibility resting upon us. If we will do this, all will be right. When we get to the other side of the veil, we shall know something. We now work by faith. We have the evidence of things not seen. The resurrection, the eternal judgment, the celestial kingdom, and the great blessings that God has given in the holy anointings and endowment in the temples, are all for the future, and they will be fulfilled, for they are eternal truths. We will never while in the flesh, with this veil over us, fully comprehend that which lies before us in the world to come. It will pay any man to serve God and to keep His commandments the few days he lives upon the earth. With regard to our position before we came here, I will say that we dwelt with the Father and with the Son, as expressed in the hymn, "O my Father," that has been sung here. That hymn is a revelation, though it was given unto us by a woman--Sister Snow. There are a great many sisters have the spirit of revelation. There is no reason why they should not be inspired as well as men. We dwelt in the presence of God before we came here, and we have been sent here upon a mission, and I do not want to live any longer myself than I can magnify that calling. What benefit is it to any man to dwell here and to miss the object for which he was sent, even eternal life? Therefore, it does not pay any man to sin. When a man sins it is because he yields to the enemy, not because the devil has power over him irrespective of his agency. The devil is laboring for the destruction of the human family. But the Gospel is sent into the world to save them. Brethren and sisters, God bless you. I am glad to meet with you and to have a little time to speak to you. I hope and trust we may be true and faithful to the end of our days, that we may be satisfied when we get through with our work; that our hearts may not be set upon anything that perisheth, but that we may do what we can to build up Zion and bring forth salvation to mankind as far as we have the opportunity while we dwell in the flesh. God bless us and guide us all in our work, for Jesus' sake. Amen. TALKS TO THE SISTERS _______________ DISCOURSES Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at a Conjoint Meeting of Relief Society and Young Ladies' Association of Weber Stake, at Ogden, December 13, 1893. __________ FORENOON SESSION. Brethren and sisters, good morning. God bless you. I am happy to meet so many of the Latter-day Saints upon an occasion of this kind. What I may say to you this morning will, of course, be very limited, compared to what I feel in my reflections concerning ourselves and the Church and Zion of God with which we all stand connected. Sixty years ago this month I listened to the first sermon in this Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that I ever heard in my life. At the close of the meeting I invited the Elders home to my house, and I read the Book of Mormon all that night, and the next morning went down with the Elders to a stream of water and was baptized. In embracing the Gospel I had the consolation that the Lord had preserved me from my boyhood up and given me a realization of my hopes and prayers to see an Apostle of Christ, an Elder, a man of God, who could teach me the Gospel that I had read of in the Scriptures in my boyhood. In the Sabbath schools I had read of the Gospel of Christ, and reflected on the kind of religion the Savior and His Apostles taught, and what the fruits of that religion were as manifested by every Apostle and by the Savior Himself. And though a very young boy, I had a strong desire to hear some man teach the same Gospel that I read of in the New Testament. I could hear of no man who did this. Said they, "we live in the blaze of the light of Christ's Gospel," and with the next breath declared, that "we do not need those gifts and graces which characterized the ancient Gospel in those dark ages." Then, said I, give me the dark ages of the world if this religion will give me power to unlock the gates of Heaven and converse with angels, and enjoy the gifts of healing and the powers and blessings that I saw by the Scriptures were manifested in the Apostolic Church. And I prayed the Lord to allow me to live on the earth to see an Apostle and Prophet who would teach me the same Gospel. With the feelings I then had I would have gone a thousand miles to see an Apostle. After much prayer and anxiety the Lord promised me that I should live to see a Prophet, and live to hear the Gospel, and live to embrace it and preach it to the children of men. The fulfilment of these promises is what makes me thankful when I meet, as I do this morning, with so many Latter-day Saints under such favorable circumstances. I commenced my missionary labors soon after I was baptized; went up with the Prophet Joseph to Zion's Camp to visit our brethren in tribulation; and from that hour until this it has been my lot and privilege to stand with the Saints of God and bear my testimony to the Gospel of Christ. I traveled something over 175,000 miles, and without purse and scrip a good deal of the time, and preached the Gospel; waded swamps, swam rivers, enduring many privations and hardships. I went to Missouri holding the office of a Teacher, and held meetings with the Teachers' quorum, and was afterwards ordained a Priest, and started out on my mission. On my late visit to Jackson County I was struck with the comparison between the past and the present. Now the Mayor of Independence, with a fine carriage comes out to meet us and give us a cordial welcome; while on my mission in 1834, to escape the violence of mobs, we took refuge in the cornfields, and appeased our hunger with the growing corn. I was struck with the marvelous change we now found in our favor. The Lord hath in His own time and way for the accomplishment of His purposes wrought this great change concerning Zion, the Prophets and the Saints in the day in which we live. I have been through all these things in my day, and through the history of Mormonism; traveled hundreds of miles with the Prophet Joseph; been forty years with the Prophet Brigham Young, and nearly the same time with the Prophet John Taylor, and remain until today. I have seen the progress of the work of God. I have never lost any faith with regard to the final consummation of the Zion of God, the work of God. For the Lord has set his hand to the fulfilment of His divine word written in these sacred books--the Bible, the Book of Mormon, and Doctrine and Covenants. All will be fulfilled in the earth, and that too in our generation or in the generation of our children who are rising up. The great work that is being performed today is marvelous in the eyes of the inhabitants of the earth and of the Heavenly hosts. The word of God is true, and He means what He says, and there is nothing that has been written by inspired men but what will come to pass. Now I am meeting with the sisters of the Relief Societies. Many of these sisters are aged. I want to say a few words to you in regard to your position, in regard to these various organizations. They are all of God. Your Primary Associations are in the right direction. Our sisters go forth and take our little children, and gather them together in these Primary Associations. There they are taught of the Lord. They are taught to pray. They are taught righteous principles and purity and virtue. The minds of these little children are imbued with the principles of the Gospel, and they are taught to carry out in their day the principles that the Lord has revealed for the salvation of man. And then come our Sunday schools. We have some seventy thousand children in the Sabbath schools. It is a joy to see the progress of the work of God upon the earth; and these institutions are glorious to me, and we feel pleasure in these labors to prepare the rising generation for the work of God upon the earth. The Young Men's and Young Ladies' Mutual Improvement Associations are filling important missions in preparing the youth of Zion for usefulness in their future respective spheres as Elders of Israel and mothers of Israel, and to carry out the work of God. The last mission that President Joseph Smith, the Prophet, gave to me and to my brethren the Twelve Apostles was, that we should round up our shoulders and bear off this work "or you will be damned," and he spoke the truth in the power of God. I bear my testimony of these things because they are true. The Lord has shown where His power is and where His spirit dwells. Read the signs of the times. Our Prophets who laid the foundation of this Church have sealed their testimony with their blood; and some of the Apostles have laid down their lives for the testimony of God to this generation. President Young led us here by the power of revelation, and he remained in the flesh until he had finished his mission. He laid the foundations of the Temples here, and filled the valleys of these mountains for many miles with cities, towns and villages and dedicated the foundation of our Temple. President John Taylor followed him, until he filled his mission. Finally the Presidency rested upon your humble servant. I marvel that I am here. I know that the Lord has preserved my life. Two powers have been at work with me, one to kill me and the other to save my life; and the Lord has preserved me in the midst of all the difficulties that I have passed through until the present time. I realized this until the dedication of the Salt Lake Temple; and when that work was passed through, I felt that my mission was ended. I anticipated the dedication of that Temple for fifty years; for I attended the dedication of the Temple fifty years ago in a vision, and when I got through that work, I felt that I had arrived at the end of my work in the flesh. The Lord gave me power and strength of lungs to fulfil my mission there, until we nearly got through. But one day I staid there some six hours and I heard all the speeches of the presidents of Stakes. I staid too long and that prostrated me, and I went down apparently to the gates of death. The Twelve and my family were there; and no one expected me to live. But what was the fact? There were many thousands of Latter-day Saints calling upon God to save my life; and that is the reason that I am here today. And I thank God that I am here, and that I enjoy good health, and feel much better than I did before I was sick. Now why has it been thus? I have had a mission to perform; and I feel as though I had got through that mission. But while I do live, I want to do what good I can. Now I want to say to these societies and to these aged sisters, you, with myself, will pass from our missions, and go in our day and time behind the vail; and the children will follow us in the labors of mortality. Who is going to build up Zion when we pass away? Our young sons and daughters who are growing up here; in the midst of these societies is where instructions should be given them to prepare them and qualify them for this great work. Here are your Relief Societies. The Prophet Joseph Smith organized them; and they have been a great help to the Church. They have had a great deal to do, and will continue to be helps to the Zion of God until Christ comes. Now, brethren and sisters, that is about all I want to say to you this morning. May God bless you. I am glad to see you, and so many of you, on an occasion of this kind. Do not be discouraged in relation to anything pertaining to this work. The labors of the sisters have been very heavy and onerous in many respects. They have been laying up wheat; and some men feel and say to themselves, "We have no famine." But then, I tell you, we will have famine; and the people of the earth will be visited with every affliction that the Lord has said should be poured out upon this generation. Not only famine, but sickness and storms and the flames of devouring fire, and cyclones and whirlwinds and the sea heaving itself beyond its bounds. And the world do not understand the cause of these things. The blood of the martyrs of all dispensations will be avenged upon the earth, and the messengers of God have been standing in the Temple in Heaven before the Lord crying to God saying, Let us go down and reap down the earth. These personages are messengers, and have a mission to perform on the earth. They are commanded to withhold their hands until the Saints of God are gathered in Zion, and stand in holy places; then may they go forth and perform their work. Now, as an individual, I believe that some of these messengers have come to the earth and are fulfilling their missions, and the rest will come, until every calamity that we read of in the Revelations of St. John will be carried out, and all will be fulfilled in the earth. And I am thankful that we have a place here in these valleys of the mountains, that God gave to the Prophet Jacob; and we are here in fulfilment of this promise. Let your hearts be comforted. This people never were so well off as they are now. Go to your houses, and you have plenty to eat; and you are certainly well dressed; and you are not called to pass through the sufferings and drivings that your fathers were. You ought to be thankful for all of these things. I pray the Lord to bless us in our labors on the earth; and when we come to the resurrection, you and I and every other man and woman who behave themselves, will have the privilege to be organized with our fathers and mothers, our wives and our children in the family organization, to remain forever and forever. Which may God grant for Christ's sake. Amen. AFTERNOON SESSION. Now I have asked Sister Jane S. Richards a question--"what does she think I can do in addressing a congregation of this kind." If I were to talk hour after hour it would be a hard matter for me to answer my mind, and express my feelings concerning those before me. When I contemplate what has brought you to the position which you occupy today, and also what lies before you hereafter, both in this world and in the world to come, about all I can do is to look at you, shake hands with you and say a little about many things; but then these things do not answer my mind. In mortality I never expect to be able to answer my mind concerning eternal things. Perhaps I may in immortality, and begin to comprehend in eternity, things that we cannot fully understand here. Certainly, I am pleased to have the privilege of meeting with so many of my brethren and sisters, and I realize in a small measure, the position we occupy, the responsibilities we are under, and the blessings that the Lord has been pleased to bestow upon us. When I look upon the Latter-day Saints in these mountains, I look upon men and women who are chosen out of the fourteen hundred millions of all who dwell in the flesh, to build up Zion, to preach the Gospel, to warn the world of judgments to come, to establish the Church of God, to carry out His work on the earth, while many hundreds of years have passed and gone since the days of Christ and His Apostles, without a prophet, without inspired men tabernacling in the flesh, who had power to preach the Gospel and minister in the ordinances of life and salvation to the inhabitants of the earth. These are truths that the world did not comprehend, until Joseph Smith, called of God and ordained of Him, to stand in the flesh and organize this Church and Kingdom on the earth. Since the days of the Apostles, who were put to death for the testimony of Jesus Christ, and ascended into heaven, until the days of Joseph Smith, the earth has been without the organization of the Church of Christ in its full organization. Can you and I comprehend the whole truth of these things--that we have been chosen and raised up in these latter days to build up the Church and Kingdom of God upon the earth? That the spirits of Presidents Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, John Taylor, and others, have been kept in the spirit world for thousands of years to be born in the flesh in the last days, and stand in the flesh to establish His Church and build up the Zion of God on the earth? Nevertheless these things are true. And while we look upon a large congregation of this people, yet our numbers are small compared with the numbers of the inhabitants of earth. But the Lord has set His hand to work a marvelous work and a wonder, in the eyes of all people, as declared in these sacred books, and prepare the way for the coming of the Son of Man in power and great glory. We have been organized over sixty-three years. The Lord raised up a Prophet and organized His Church exactly as it was in the days of Christ and the Apostles, with Prophets, Apostles, Pastors, Teachers, Deacons, helps and governments, to prepare the way for the establishment of His Kingdom and the coming of Christ. These things are all proclaimed in these sacred books by the Patriarchs and Prophets who were moved upon by the Holy Ghost, and their words are true, and we are fulfilling them today. Therefore, I say it is an impossibility for me or any man in the flesh to lay before the Latter-day Saints, the fullness of these great and glorious truths and blessings. Over sixty-three years have passed away since God commenced to carry out the plan of salvation for the children of men upon the earth, in this dispensation. I think we do not realize the magnitude of this work. It is a hard matter for us to comprehend the responsibility that we are under to God, to the heavens, to the dead, as well as the living of our fellow men. Now, when I look at these things, I also look at what there is before us. The organizations, which have been established in this Church from the beginning, are all helps and governments, and are associated together to carry out this great work. The eyes of the heavens are over us. The Son of God and all the Prophets and Patriarchs that have lived upon the earth are watching over this great work--this great organization preparing for the coming of the Son of Man. Then what manner of men and women and children ought we to be in our time and generation? These things are of great importance, and of heavy weight for us to consider. I have said to our young men that if their eyes were opened to see and comprehend their work, their responsibilities and the numbers that are connected with them and looking to them, you could not get a boy to smoke a cigar, or a young man to enter a liquor saloon. But the enemy is in our midst, and seeks to lead astray the Latter-day Saints. There are no persons upon the earth that the evil spirits labor so hard with as with men bearing the Holy Priesthood--men, women and children under the covenant. These are the people whom they labor to destroy. Even the Savior Himself was not free from contact with the powers of evil. He was tempted forty days of the devil. And when He went into the mountains to pray, Satan met Him there and urged Him to cast Himself down upon the rocks, and to make bread out of stones. The devil is working all the time to lead men from the work of God in which they are engaged. Now, when I look at these things I rejoice in everything that tends to life and salvation. I rejoice in all the organizations that are in this Church to promote the principles of life and salvation. I believe some of the children now born among this people will stand in the flesh when Christ comes in the clouds of heaven. The days are at hand when Christ will come; and the Lord will cut His work short in righteousness upon the earth. We are here in these valleys of the mountains. I came here with the pioneers. I came with President Young. I brought him sick in my carriage, into the valleys of the Great Salt Lake. When we entered the valley he turned around in my carriage and sat up and looked upon the valleys westward, and he was wrapped in vision there when he saw in reality what he had before seen in vision. And he said--"Now drive down, this is the place for us to stop, I have seen this place before." When we came here we found the Great American Desert. All the maps and charts in our schools have counted this region the greatest American Desert. We were driven here by our enemies, and a good many felt bad that they had to leave our beautiful Nauvoo. But the hand of the Almighty was in it. He ordained this. The whole record of the Bible would not have been fulfilled, and the blessings of Jacob would not have been fulfilled without it. It was the will of God. But thank God, there has a change come over the world and over this nation. The office of the President of this Church has been visited within the last few years by more people from all nations than ever before visited us since the organization of this Church. They have come out here, and found that there are no horns upon our heads, and see that we have been misrepresented. And there is a meaning in all this. There has a change taken place. And I rejoice in these things. Men come and talk to us, and they are interested in our position here, and they do not understand why these things are so. But certain things have been suffered to be. Zion must arise and shine, for the glory of God must rest upon her, and this prophecy must come to pass; and here is Zion in the Rocky mountains. And the blessings given to the seed of Jacob, shall be upon the head of Joseph, and upon the heads of his posterity. We are the descendants of Joseph. Ninety-nine out of every hundred of this people are the descendants of Ephraim, that have been scattered among the nations. Now this is our position today. We are here raised up of the Lord, and the Lord is with us, and the power of God is manifested according to our faith and patience before Him, and has been the case since the organization of this Church. Here are aged sisters whom I used to shake hands with when they were young women in the old country, in the county of Herefordshire. How came you here? How came any of you from the nations of the earth where the Elders visited you; and many of them went out as boys to preach the Gospel, and they came there because they were sent. Many of our boys go now and they call on the people to gather; and they tell them, "we have the Gospel to preach to you. If you will receive our testimony and obey the Gospel you shall be saved. We offer you the only Gospel that was preached and practiced by the Apostles and Prophets." They offer the people these principles, and what is the result? All of you who come from abroad heard these Elders' testimony, and the Spirit of God bore record to you that it was true, and you went and were baptized, and had hands laid upon you, and you received the Holy Ghost. Now had not the Spirit of God been given to you you would have stayed at home. Utah would have been as barren today as when we first found it, unless the Lord had given His spirit to the people. Here you have this testimony and you have come from the nations to fulfill those things pertaining to the Gospel of Christ and the building up of the Church and Kingdom of God. This is the condition today. Our numbers are but few compared to the nations of the earth. But we are not going to fail. Zion will remain here, and it will be a safe place for any person who gathers to it from the nations of the earth. What is the matter in the earth? Do any of you read the signs of the times? Why, I was twenty years old before I heard of a murder anywhere in the vicinity where I lived. One murder was committed in the New England States. One man named Long cut his wife's throat, and the people felt as though a great calamity had come upon New England. How is it today? It takes several columns of a newspaper to tell you of the murders and suicides that are committed in the United States in one day. Who ever, in past days, heard of such cyclones, killing thousands of people! The angry waters washing whole towns into the sea! Where is there a man in the earth, who confesses or acknowledges the hand of God in these things? We as Latter-day Saints ought to observe these things. There is a meaning to them. The Lord is visiting the earth with His judgments, and it will continue until all that you read in the Bible, the Book of Mormon and the book of Doctrine and Covenants, has its fulfillment in the earth. These organizations here were given by the Prophets of God. We have our Relief Societies, our Young Ladies' Societies and others. These were organized for a purpose. The Sabbath Schools, Mutual Improvement Associations; all organizations of the young in the community, open the way whereby you can all exercise your rights and privileges, your gifts and graces together; and which will save our sons and daughters, our families and friends, and unite them to us in the Kingdom of God. Now I want to say a few words concerning our Relief Societies. They were organized by the Prophet Joseph Smith, in Nauvoo, at an early day; and he took great interest in the organization of that society. And he knew by the spirit of inspiration, what result that organization would have in the Church, and he saw by the spirit of inspiration the necessity of that society. And now they are all through these mountains, in every ward. Now I want to talk a little upon this subject. These societies are assistants to the Presidents of Stakes, and to the Bishops of wards; and I want to give a little counsel to the Presidents of our stakes, and to the Bishops. You call upon these relief societies that are in you midst, to build temples, tithing offices, and to give of their substance for one thing and another. Now I want to give a little counsel, and tell you how I feel. We as authorities of the Church should look upon them in the position they occupy as having some rights. Now about wheat. They have been called upon a long time ago to save wheat. And if we should have a famine, we would have to call upon our wives to feed us. Now I am opposed to throwing anything in the way of our sisters in laying up wheat. As President of the Church, I have no right to go and take that wheat from them. Why? Because they have rights as well as ourselves, and we should sustain them in those rights. Now I do not know about your stake here, but there has been a feeling by the Bishops in some places, that they have a right to go and take that wheat without giving any receipts for it, and that it was not necessary for these societies to lay up wheat. But it is necessary and we should sustain them in it. And while the sisters are helping us to build our temples and tithing offices, we should assist them. The sisters ought to have the right to lay up something for themselves, to build granaries and save this wheat. It is true the wheat may get weevils in it; but these things we have to prepare for and guard against; and I feel as though the sisters ought to have these rights, and have some assistance in the various wards. And go to work and help them, and have a suitable place fixed to preserve their wheat in. Now in some places, in Salt Lake City, they have done that, and the sisters have laid up considerable wheat. And there have been times there when the sisters have felt that they were willing to loan that wheat to the Bishops if they could have the assurance that they could get it back when they wanted it. Well, they loaned it to Bishop Preston, with the assurance that they would get it when called for. Now, that is all right. Now, brethren and sisters, that is how Brother Woodruff feels about relief societies. I think they have rights and we should sustain them in those rights. They have done a great deal in assisting to build up this Church; done a great deal on the Temple, and in the tithing, and in the work of feeding the poor. Now in regard to our tithing, we have been called upon to feed the poor out of the tithing, and now fifty per cent of the tithing has been returned to the poor to feed them. We have so many calls to support the Church, that we think we should have the tithing to assist in these matters; I do not want any person to neglect the poor. Presidents of stakes and Bishops, I do not want them to neglect the poor. The poor we always have with us, more or less, but not so much as in other parts of the earth. Now, I want you to remember this. There should be some place prepared in all stakes and wards where our sisters can have a place to put their grain, as far as it can be accomplished. Not having an available elevator, this should be done. I thank the Lord for these organizations, and for all the organizations of this Church. Now there is the Young Men's M.I.A., which is good, and much good is growing out of it. Our young men are called upon to go abroad in the ministry, and preach the Gospel to the world, and the knowledge they have acquired in these societies is invaluable to them in their labors. As was said this morning, the Primary associations are of great importance. Our sisters have taken hold of the young children and taught them the Gospel of Christ. When grown up your children could not be converted to other religion than that of their fathers, because these principles of Christ's Gospel have been instilled into their minds when young. Therefore, the Lord is pleased for us to carry out these organizations in the Church and Kingdom of God. And I hope we will pursue a proper course in these things, that we may be justified before the Lord. I meditate a great deal upon these matters; and I think that every man in Israel should understand we are here on a mission, and that we have been preserved for the work of the last days, to be born in the flesh, men and women to raise up a posterity, and prepare for the great work that has to be performed in the earth. Now there is a great responsibility resting upon us in the flesh. And when I look forward, I find that our mission does not end with this mortal life. When I go into the spirit world, I shall find my record there. A record of each of us is written, and in the great future you will find the history of your lives. I have kept a record of my life, and have made a minute of what is passing around me. I never heard the Prophet Joseph Smith deliver a sermon but what I wrote it down and all his prophesies as far as I could obtain them and had an opportunity. I have many of the discourses of President Young, delivered in this country and abroad. I felt it my duty to write, and I continued to write a little every day. But we have now our ready writers to take minutes of proceedings and work, and to keep a record of the same. I feel to rejoice before the Lord that we are here. We ought to try and improve our time as best we can. I want our young men to realize these things, and pursue a course wherein you may be justified before the Lord. The enemy seeks to draw away our young men, and others; and some of our young men have been drawn away. They leave the Church and stop praying, and go into bad habits. These things ought to be stopped as much as possible. I rejoice in my posterity, in my sons and daughters. We are calling quite a number of the young men to go to Germany and other nations of the earth, where the Gospel has to be preached. And there will be no stopping. We shall call upon the world so long as there is any door open before us. There seems to be a change of affairs in our Territory. When I read of the passage of our State bill through the House of Congress with only five opposing votes, I acknowledge the hand of God in it. I do not know that there is on record an instance of any bill of admission of a new State into the Union, passing with less opposition than did the bill to admit Utah. I can but thank God for these things; because He intends that Zion shall arise and shine and have equal rights with other people. I believe the American government is the best and freest government upon the earth. And the men were inspired to establish it. Look at the Constitution of the United States, one of the best documents ever given to any people or any government! I rejoice in these things. I feel to say to my brethren and sisters, may God bless you; and I want you to labor and to be faithful. And I want every sister in Zion to maintain virtue and righteousness and truth, and prepare herself to become an honorable mother in Israel. And I want our young men to practice the principles of right and righteousness. Now we have four Temples built here in the mountains of Israel; and the Saints of God go into these Temples and redeem their dead--their fathers and mothers, and others who are in the spirit world. The world do not comprehend these principles. When I heard of this revelation concerning the redemption of the dead, from the lips of Joseph Smith, whereby we could go into the waters of baptism and be baptized for the dead, I thought it was the most glorious revelation that ever saluted my ears in the flesh. The first thing I thought of was my mother. My father was living and could be baptized for himself. I went and visited my father's family, and baptized all who were living in Connecticut, my father, step-mother, my sister and other relatives; my oldest brother was baptized when I was. My father was brought to Salt Lake City and died. I had my mother sealed to him; and she will have a part in the first resurrection; and this alone would pay me for all the labors of my life. I have had the blessing and privilege of redeeming in the Temple of our God some four thousand of my father's and my mother's kindred. I speak of this because it is one of our blessings, the fullness and glory of which we will never know until the vail is opened. The Prophet saw the time when the Lord would raise up saviors on Mount Zion. Every man and woman upon the face of the earth who attends to these ordinances will do a great work for their father's house. We ought to realize all these things, and use an influence, so far as we can, to carry out these principles. Now I rejoice in these principles, and I am looking forward to the result. This is not our home. We are upon a mission to this world; but, of course, we cleave to the earth, and we should do the best we can while we are here. But do not forget that we are here to labor for the salvation of the living and the dead. And when the resurrection comes, we shall come forth clothed with immortal bodies; and the persecutions, suffering, sorrow, pain and death, incident to mortality, will be done away forever. I say to our aged sisters, labor while the day lasts, and trust in God; and then you will rejoice throughout the ages of eternity, reaping the reward that God has promised to the righteous. You all have my prayers and faith and blessings and good will, and will have after I have gone to the other side of the vail. May God bless you. Amen. THE RIGHTS OF THE PRIESTHOOD _______________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the Utah Stake Conference, Provo, Sunday Afternoon, January 14, 1894. __________ [Reported by Arthur Winter.] __________ I am pleased to meet with so many of the Saints of God. I have listened to the remarks that have been made at this conference upon the Priesthood, and have been very much interested and edified. I do not know of any subject in the Church of more importance to the inhabitants of the earth and to ourselves than the Holy Priesthood. In listening to Brother F. M. Lyman's remarks concerning the Lesser Priesthood I had many thoughts and reflections. Some of them I feel to express to the Latter-day Saints. There is one principle connected with the Priesthood that I want all Israel to understand, and that is this: it makes no difference what portion of the Priesthood a man holds, if he holds any at all, he has rights. Whether he be a Deacon or whether he be an Apostle, the Priesthood held by him has rights, on earth and in the heavens. In this connection let me read a paragraph or two from the Book of Doctrine and Covenants: Behold, there are many called, but few are chosen. And why are they not chosen? Because their hearts are set so much upon the things of this world, and aspire to the honors of men, that they do not learn this one lesson-- That the rights of the Priesthood are inseparably connected with the powers of heaven, and that the powers of heaven cannot be controlled nor handled only upon the principles of righteousness. That is the principle that we should understand. Sixty years ago, the 30th of last December, I heard the first sermon I ever heard in this Church. The next day I was baptized. There were very few branches of the Church in the country at that time. I was ordained a Teacher. My mission immediately commenced. I traveled the next spring a thousand miles with the Prophet Joseph in Zion's Camp. I went through that whole mission as a Teacher. Arrived in Missouri, several of us stopped at Lyman Wight's, where we held a Teachers' meeting. I remained in that office until at the conference I was ordained a Priest. I never was ordained a Deacon. I was sorry I was not; for I had a great desire to fill that office. However, I was not blessed with it. After I was ordained a Priest I was sent by the father of Brother Partridge here on a mission to the southern country. That was in the fall of 1834. I had a companion with me, and we started out without purse and scrip. I traveled alone a good many miles and preached the Gospel, and I baptized a number that I could not confirm in the Church, because I was only a Priest. The first time I ever met with Brother A. O. Smoot, was upon that mission. I traveled some time preaching the Gospel before I was ordained an Elder. I was ordained an Elder under the hands of Warren Parrish. Afterwards, by order of the Prophet Joseph, I was ordained a Seventy by David Patten, who was martyred in Missouri for the word of God and testimony of Jesus Christ. In 1837--the same year that Brother Kimball went to England and opened the mission there--I got permission from the Presidency in Kirtland to go to Fox Islands, being impressed by the Spirit to go there. While I was there I was called by revelation, with several others, to fill the places of those who were fallen of the Twelve Apostles. I have been some fifty-four years a member of the Twelve Apostles. I have traveled with that and other quorums now for sixty years; and I want to say to this assembly that I was just as much sustained by the power of God while holding the office of a Teacher, and especially while officiating in the vineyard as a Priest, as I ever was as an Apostle. There is no difference in this so long as we do our duty. When a man holding any portion of that Priesthood goes before God, the heavens are bound to hear him, if he magnifies his Priesthood; and certainly it is our duty to go before the Lord and ask Him for what we want, and when we do that in faith, God hears and answers us. God has heard the prayers of the men who have borne the Priesthood from the day that Joseph Smith received the plates from the hands of Moroni, and He has fulfilled the prophecies contained in the Bible and the Book of Mormon. The Church has never fallen, notwithstanding her afflictions, her persecutions, her drivings, and her martyrdoms; but God has sustained it. When the Lord bestows gifts upon the children of men in connection with the Priesthood, those who receive those gifts are responsible for the use they make of them. We are responsible for the use we make of the Holy Priesthood which has been placed upon us. Whatever is necessary for us to receive and enjoy, it is our duty to ask the Lord for. We should go before Him in secret places and make our wants known, that our prayers may be heard and answered upon our heads. Herein lies our strength. Our trust is in God, and not in man. He has committed this work into the hands of His Son, Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world, and this mission has been upon Him from the days of father Adam. He was appointed as the great sacrifice from before the foundation of the world. He came in the meridian of time and died for the redemption of man. We are engaged in the last dispensation. We are called upon to build up this Church and this Zion. And we can only do it by the power of the Holy Priesthood. No man has authority from God to administer to the children of men the ordinances of life and salvation only by the power of the Holy Priesthood. The power of that Priesthood is with the Latter-day Saints. When our brethren go out to the world--I do not care whether they are Priests, or Elders, or Seventies, or Apostles--and they offer to the Gentiles the Gospel of Christ, the power of God is with them, as long as they magnify their calling. That power bears record to every honest man and woman concerning the truth of the message which these men bear. By that power men and women have been pricked in their hearts and the Spirit of God has borne testimony to them. You have found this to be true; so have I. Without this power of the Priesthood, these effects cannot be manifested to men in the flesh. I hope that all Israel will understand this principle. You have not got to wait till you are an Elder, or a High Priest, or an Apostle, before God can hear your prayers. I know the Lord preserved my life when I held the office of a Priest. In one instance a man who sought my life, without any action on my part fell dead at my feet, as though he was struck with a thunderbolt from heaven, and I attended his funeral the next day. I had many blessings as a Priest, and had the spirit and power of God in that office. Every man in every office ought to magnify his Priesthood. The Deacon ought to do so. I was very much pleased once in seeing a number of Deacons magnify their calling, down here at Nephi. They went through the city and chopped every piece of wood which every widow in that town had. Brother Geo. Teasdale, the President of the Stake, had three or four cords of cedar wood in his lot, and he went home one night and found that it had disappeared. He wondered what was the matter; but when he came to look around he found it all chopped up in his wood-house. They magnified their calling splendidly there. Today we are, in some respects, in peculiar circumstances. We should trust in the Lord and do what is right. I know the Priesthood is given for the salvation of men and for the administration of ordinances both for the living and the dead. Tens of thousands have been redeemed in the spirit world by their posterity who stand in the flesh and hold the keys of the salvation of their dead. Saviors upon Mount Zion have been raised up, while the kingdom is the Lord's, as the Prophet Obadiah said they would be. This people are doing this work now. The Lord is with you, and your progenitors in the spirit world rejoice. Let us be faithful, therefore, while we are here. God has appointed us to bear this Priesthood. Out of the fourteen hundred millions of people on the earth the Lord has chosen this handful of men to bear this; to ordain, to organized, to warn the world, to preach the Gospel to them. I hope my brethren that bear this Priesthood will remember the value of it. I want to read a few more paragraphs from this same revelation, and then I will close: For there is a time appointed for every man, according as his works shall be. God shall give unto you (the Saints) knowledge by his Holy Spirit, yea by the unspeakable gift of the Holy Ghost, that has not been revealed since the world was until now; Which our forefathers have waited with anxious expectation to be revealed in the last times, which their minds were pointed to, by the angels, as held in reserve for the fulness of their glory: A time to come in the which nothing shall be withheld, whether there be one God or many Gods, they shall be manifest; All thrones and dominions, principalities and powers, shall be revealed and set forth upon all who have endured valiantly for the gospel of Jesus Christ. And also if there be bounds set to the heavens, or to the seas; or to the dry land, or to the sun, moon, or stars; All the times of their revolutions; all the appointed days, months, and years, and all the days of their days, months, and years, and all their glories, laws, and set times, shall be revealed, in the days of the dispensation of the fulness of times, According to that which was ordained in the midst of the Council of the Eternal God of all other Gods, before this world was, that should be reserved unto the finishing and the end thereof, when every man shall enter into his eternal presence, and into his immortal rest. There are things in that revelation that are marvelous and wonderful. All thrones and dominions, principalities and powers, shall be revealed to the Saints of God in the own set time of the Lord. Today we are in this little world, surrounded with a great many planets that are at present unknown to us. We scarcely know what is on this world. We know less about Mars, or Venus, or Jupiter, or these worlds that are neighbors to us. But here we are given to understand that all these worlds will be revealed. A man's mind must become immortal, and must stretch as wide as eternity and be filled with the glory of God, to ever comprehend these great blessings which are promised unto His people. Therefore, let us be true and faithful. Do not let us lose our hold on the Priesthood, nor upon the kingdom of God. Let us go in secret prayer before the Lord and call upon His holy name. There is where our strength lies. I pray that God's blessings may rest upon all of us. We shall all find our record in the great library of heaven; and I hope we may so live that when we come to meet that record we will be satisfied with it. I pray God to bless President Smoot, his counselors, and those who bear the Priesthood here, as well as our brethren and sisters, unto the end that we may inherit eternal life, for Jesus' sake. Amen. THE LAW OF ADOPTION ________________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the Sixty-fourth Annual General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, held in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday Morning, April 8, 1894. I feel thankful for the privilege of meeting with so many of the Latter-day Saints this morning. In order to present my position before the Saints I wish to say that I have been a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints over sixty years, a member of the Quorum of the Apostles fifty-five years, and the President of the Church for a short time. During all these years, and in all my travels, I have never seen a moment when I have had the power to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ or to administer in any of the ordinances of the House of the Lord, acceptably to God or to myself, only by the assistance of the Holy Ghost; and I do not know of any other man that could ever do this. Even the Son of God, in referring to His work, said: "I do nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things." So it has been with all the prophets and patriarchs in every age of the world; they have had to be assisted by the power of God. I occupy that position to-day before this assembly. Therefore, as the Lord commanded us not to speak only as we are moved upon by the Holy Ghost, I desire that, and in order to obtain it I want the prayers and faith of the Latter-day Saints. I have some things resting upon me that I wish to present before the Latter-day Saints, and in order to do this I will call upon President George Q. Cannon to read from the Book of Doctrine and Covenants concerning the subject which I wish to speak upon. President Cannon read from Sec. 128, as follows:-- It may seem to some to be a very bold doctrine that we talk of--a power which records or binds on earth, and binds in heaven. Nevertheless in all ages of the world, whenever the Lord has given a dispensation of the Priesthood to any man by actual revelation, or any set of men, this power has always been given. Hence, whatsoever those men did in authority, in the name of the Lord, and did it truly and faithfully, and kept a proper and faithful record of the same, it became a law on earth and in heaven, and could not be annulled, according to the decrees of the great Jehovah. This is a faithful saying! Who can hear it? And again, for the precedent, Matthew xvi: 18,19, "And I say unto thee, that thou art Peter: and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it; and 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." Now the great and grand secret of the whole matter, and the summum bonum of the whole subject that is lying before us, consists in obtaining the powers of the Holy Priesthood. For him to whom these keys are given, there is no difficulty in obtaining a knowledge of facts in relation to the salvation of the children of men, both as well for the dead as for the living. Herein is glory and honor, and immortality and eternal life. The ordinance of baptism by water, to be immersed therein in order to answer to the likeness of the dead, that one principle might accord with the other. To be immersed in the water and come forth out of the water is in the likeness of the resurrection of the dead in coming forth out of their graves; hence this ordinance was instituted to form a relationship with the ordinance of baptism for the dead, being in likeness of the dead. Consequently the baptismal font was instituted as a simile of the grave, and was commanded to be in a place underneath where the living are wont to assemble, to show forth the living and the dead; and that all things may have their likeness, and that they may accord one with another; that which is earthly conforming to that which is heavenly, as Paul hath declared, 1 Corinthians xv: 46, 47 and 48: "Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural, and afterwards that which is spiritual. The first man is of the earth, earthy; the second man is the Lord, from heaven. As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy; and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly." And as are the records on the earth in relation to your dead, which are truly made out, so also are the records in heaven. This, therefore, is the sealing and binding power, and, in one sense of the word, the keys of the kingdom which consist in the key of knowledge. And now, my dearly beloved brethren and sisters, let me assure you that these are principles in relation to the dead, and the living, that cannot be lightly passed over, as pertaining to our salvation. For their salvation is necessary, and essential to our salvation, as Paul says concerning the fathers "that they without us cannot be made perfect;" neither can we without our dead be made perfect. And now, in relation to the baptism for the dead, I will give you another quotation of Paul, 1 Corinthians xv:29, "Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not at all; why are they then baptized for the dead?" And again, in connection with this quotation, I will give you a quotation from one of the prophets, who had his eye fixed on the restoration of the Priesthood, the glories to be revealed in the last days, and in an especial manner this most glorious of all subjects belonging to the everlasting gospel, viz., the baptism for the dead; for Malachi says, last chapter, verses 5th and 6th, "Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet, before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord; and he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse." I might have rendered a plainer translation to this, but it is sufficiently plain to suit my purpose as it stands. It is sufficient to know, in this case, that the earth will be smitten with a curse, unless there is a welding link of some kind or other, between the fathers and the children, upon some subject or other, and behold what is that subject? It is the baptism for the dead. For we without them cannot be made perfect; neither can they without us be made perfect. Neither can they nor we be made perfect, without those who have died in the gospel also; for it is necessary in the ushering in of the dispensation of the fullness of times; which dispensation is now beginning to usher in, that a whole and complete and perfect union, and welding together of dispensations, and keys, and powers, and glories should take place, and be revealed from the days of Adam even to the present time; and not only this, but those things which never have been revealed from the foundation of the world, but have been kept hid from the wise and prudent, shall be revealed unto babes and sucklings in this the dispensation of the fullness of times. Now, what do we hear in the gospel which we have received? "A voice of gladness! A voice of mercy from heaven; and a voice of truth out of the earth; glad tidings for the dead; a voice of gladness for the living and the dead; glad tidings of great joy; how beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of those that bring glad tidings of good things; and they say unto Zion, behold! thy God reigneth. As the dews of Carmel, so shall the knowledge of God descend upon them." And again, what do we hear? Glad tidings from Cumorah! Moroni, an angel from heaven, declaring the fulfillment of the prophets--the book to be revealed. A voice of the Lord in the wilderness of Fayette, Seneca County, declaring the three witnesses to bear record of the book. The voice of Michael on the banks of the Susquehanna, detecting the devil when he appeared as an angel of light. The voice of Peter, James, and John in the wilderness between Harmony, Susquehanna County, and Colesville, Broome County, on the Susquehanna River, declaring themselves as possessing the keys of the kingdom, and the dispensation of the fulness of times. And again, the voice of God in the chamber of old father Whitmer, in Fayette, Seneca County, and at sundry times, and in divers places through all the travels and tribulations of this Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. And the voice of Michael, the arch-angel; the voice of Gabriel, and of Raphael, and of divers angels, from Michael or Adam, down to the present time, all declaring their dispensation, their rights, their keys, their honors, their majesty and glory, and the power of their Priesthood; giving line upon line, precept upon precept; here a little, and there a little--giving us consolation by holding forth that which is to come, confirming our hope. Resuming, President Woodruff said:-- Thus you have before you the subject which is resting upon us, and which we wish to present to the Latter-day Saints. Let me say that age has very little to do with revelation. In the early age of the world, old father Adam, three years previous to his death--he being nearly one thousand years of age--called together his posterity in the valley of Adam-ondi-Ahman, and he stood upon his feet for hours, clothed with the power of God and the revelations of Heaven, and blessed his posterity, some seven of whom, each representing a generation, were High Priests. Among them were Enoch and Methuselah, both great men of their day and generation. He prophesied upon them what should transpire with their posterity unto the end of time. His old age did not have any effect whatever upon the revelations of God to him. Joseph Smith, when fourteen years of age, while calling upon God in the wilderness, had the heavens opened unto him. Both the Father and the Son presented themselves unto him in the clouds of heaven, and the Father said, "This is my beloved Son; hear him." The age of man is very short indeed in this day to what it was in ancient days. Men anciently lived to a very great age. When four or five hundred years old they took wives, begat children, and raised up posterity. To-day our age is limited to something like three score years and ten. I wish to say to the Latter-day Saints that we live in a very important generation. We are blessed with power and authority, holding the Holy Priesthood by the commandment of God, to stand upon the earth and redeem both the living and the dead. If we did not do it, we should be damned and cut off from the earth, and the God of Israel would raise up a people who would do it. The Lord would not permit me to occupy this position one day of my life, unless I was susceptible to the Holy Spirit and to the revelations of God. It is too late in the day for this Church to stand without revelation. Not only the President of the Church should possess this gift and give it unto the people, but his counselors and the Apostles and all men that bear the Holy Priesthood, if they magnify their calling, should possess that gift for themselves and to assist them in their duties, although they may not be called to give revelations to lead and direct the Church. The spirit of revelation belongs to the Priesthood. But to come to the subject before us. Perhaps it may be said by the inquiring or the objecting mind, What have you to say about redeeming the dead, or the work of the Temples of our God, that is not already revealed? I will say this: When the Prophet Joseph had this revelation from heaven, what did he do? There are witnesses here of what he did. He never stopped till he got the fullness of the word of God to him concerning the baptism for the dead. But before doing so he went into the Mississippi River, and so did I, as well as others, and we each baptized a hundred for the dead, without a man to record a single act that we performed. Why did we do it? Because of the feeling of joy that we had, to think that we in the flesh could stand and redeem our dead. We did not wait to know what the result of this would be, or what the whole of it should be. Finally the Lord told the Prophet: "When any of you are baptized for your dead, let there be a recorder, and let him be eye witness of your baptisms; let him hear with his ears, that he may testify of a truth, saith the Lord; that in all your recordings it may be recorded in heaven; whatsoever you bind on earth, may be bound in heaven; whatsoever you loose on earth, may be loosed in heaven." That was the beginning of this work. Joseph Smith, instead of living to be nearly a thousand years of age as Adam did, lived to be about thirty-eight years of age. He brought forth the record of the stick of Joseph in the hands of Ephraim--the history of the ancient inhabitants of this continent. By the power of God he translated that, and it has been published in many languages. Besides this, he organized the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints upon the foundation of apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus being the chief cornerstone. Men were ordained to the Priesthood and sent forth, from the various occupations of life, to carry this Gospel to the world. God informed Joseph Smith that he was called to prune the vineyard once more for the last time before the coming of the Son of Man. Since that, thousands of Elders of Israel have been sent into the world to preach the Gospel. Joseph Smith did all this during the fifteen years he held the Priesthood. Let any man read the revelations in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, which were given through him during the little time he spent here in the flesh. It is one of the greatest records that any man ever gave to the human family. Not only this, but he organized the endowments and did a great deal of other work. Who could expect him, during the short time he lived in the flesh, to do more than he did? I received my endowments from under his hands. He brought forth all these ordinances that have been given unto the Latter-day Saints. In fact, it is a marvel and a wonder that he performed as much as he did. I want to say, as the President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, that we should now go on and progress. We have not got through revelation. We have not got through the work of God. But at this period we want to go on and fulfill this commandment of God given through Malachi--that the Lord should send Elijah the prophet, "and he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse." Ye sons of men, I say unto you, in the name of Israel's God, those very principles that God has revealed are what have stayed the judgments of the Almighty on the earth. Were it not for these principles, you and I would not be here to-day. We have had prophets and apostles. President Young, who followed President Joseph Smith, led us here. He organized these Temples and carried out the purposes of his calling and office. He laid the foundation of this great Temple on this block, as well as others in the mountains of Israel. What for? That we might carry out these principles of redemption for the dead. He accomplished all that God required at his hands. But he did not receive all the revelations that belong to this work; neither did President Taylor, nor has Wilford Woodruff. There will be no end to this work until it is perfected. I want to lay before you what there is for us to do at this present time; and in doing this I desire particularly the attention of President Lorenzo Snow, of the Salt Lake Temple; President M. W. Merrill, of the Logan Temple; President J. D. T. McAllister, of the Manti Temple; and President D. H. Cannon, of the St. George Temple, and those associated with them. You have acted up to all the light and knowledge that you have had; but you have now something more to do than what you have done. We have not fully carried out those principles in fulfillment of the revelations of God to us, in sealing the hearts of the fathers to the children and the children to the fathers. I have not felt satisfied, neither did President Taylor, neither has any man since the Prophet Joseph who has attended to the ordinance of adoption in the temples of our God. We have felt that there was more to be revealed upon this subject than we had received. Revelations were given to us in the St. George Temple, which President Young presented to the Church of God. Changes were made there, and we still have more changes to make, in order to satisfy our Heavenly Father, satisfy our dead and ourselves. I will tell you what some of them are. I have prayed over this matter, and my brethren have. We have felt, as President Taylor said, that we have got to have more revelation concerning sealing under the law of adoption. Well, what are these changes? One of them is the principle of adoption. In the commencement of adopting men and women in the Temple at Nauvoo, a great many persons were adopted to different men who were not of the lineage of their fathers, and there was a spirit manifested by some in that work that was not of God. Men would go out and electioneer and labor with all their power to get men adopted to them. One instance I will name here: A man went around Nauvoo asking every man he could, saying, "You come and be adopted to me, and I shall stand at the head of the kingdom, and you will be there with me." Now, what is the truth about this? Those who were adopted to that man, if they go with him, will have to go where he is. He was a participator in that horrible scene--the Mountain Meadow massacre. Men have tried to lay that to President Young. I was with President Young when the massacre was first reported to him. President Young was perfectly horrified at the recital of it, and wept over it. He asked: "Was there any white man had anything to do with that?" The reply was No; and by the representations then made to him he was misinformed concerning the whole transaction. I will say here, and call heaven and earth to witness, that President Young, during his whole life, never was the author of the shedding of the blood of any of the human family; and when the books are opened in the day of judgment these things will be proven to heaven and earth. Perhaps I had not ought to enter into these things, but it came to me. Men are in danger sometimes in being adopted to others, until they know who they are and what they will be. Now, what are the feelings of Israel? They have felt that they wanted to be adopted to somebody. President Young was not satisfied in his mind with regard to the extent of this matter; President Taylor was not. When I went before the Lord to know who I should be adopted to (we were then being adopted to prophets and apostles), the Spirit of God said to me, "Have you not a father, who begot you?" "Yes, I have." "Then why not honor him? Why not be adopted to him?" "Yes," says I, "that is right." I was adopted to my father, and should have had my father sealed to his father, and so on back; and the duty that I want every man who presides over a temple to see performed from this day henceforth and forever, unless the Lord Almighty commands otherwise, is, let every man be adopted to his father. When a man receives the endowments, adopt him to his father; not to Wilford Woodruff, nor to any other man outside the lineage of his fathers. That is the will of God to this people. I want all men who preside over these temples in these mountains of Israel to bear this in mind. What business have I to take away the rights of the lineage of any man? What right has any man to do this? No; I say let every man be adopted to his father; and then you will do exactly what God said when he declared He would send Elijah the prophet in the last days. Elijah the prophet appeared unto Joseph Smith and told him that the day had come when this principle must be carried out. Joseph Smith did not live long enough to enter any further upon these things. His soul was wound up with this work before he was martyred for the word of God and testimony of Jesus Christ. He told us that there must be a welding link of all dispensations and of the work of God from one generation to another. This was upon his mind more than most any other subject that was given to him. In my prayers the Lord revealed to me, that it was my duty to say to all Israel to carry this principle out, and in fulfillment of that revelation I lay it before this people. I say to all men who are laboring in these temples, carry out this principle, and then we will make one step in advance of what we have had before. Myself and counselors conversed upon this and were agreed upon it, and afterwards we laid it before all the Apostles who were here (two were absent--Brothers Thatcher and Lund, the latter being in England), and the Lord revealed to every one of these men--and they would bear testimony to it if they were to speak--that that was the word of the Lord to them. I never met with anything in my life in this Church that there was more unity upon than there was upon that principle. They all feel right about it, and that it is our duty. That is one principle that should be carried out from this time henceforth. "But," says one, "suppose we come along to a man who perhaps is a murderer." Well, if he is a murderer, drop him out and connect with the next man beyond him. But the Spirit of God will be with us in this matter. We want the Latter-say Saints from this time to trace their genealogies as far as they can, and to be sealed to their fathers and mothers. Have children sealed to their parents, and run this chain through as far as you can get it. When you get to the end, let the last man be adopted to Joseph Smith, who stands at the head of the dispensation. This is the will of the Lord to this people, and I think when you come to reflect upon it you will find it to be true. Another principle connected with this subject I want to talk about. A man has married a woman, and they have a family of children. The man lays down in death without ever hearing the Gospel. His wife afterwards hears the Gospel and embraces it. She comes to the temple and she wants to be sealed to her husband, who was a good man. The feeling has been to deny this and to say, "No, he was not in the Church, and you cannot be sealed to your husband." Many a woman's heart has ached because of this, and as a servant of God I have broken that chain a good while ago. I have laid before every woman this principle and let her have her choice. Why deprive a woman of being sealed to her husband because he never heard the Gospel? What do any of us know with regard to him? Will he not hear the Gospel and embrace it in the spirit world? Look at Joseph Smith. Not one of Joseph Smith's fathers or brothers or sisters were in the covenant when he received the keys of the kingdom of God and translated the Book of Mormon. They afterwards received it. Every brother and sister that he had, and his father and his father's brothers, except Uncle Jesse Smith, embraced the Gospel. Now, suppose that any of these had died before they had the opportunity of entering into the covenant with the Lord through the Gospel, as his brother Alvin did; they would have been in the same position as Alvin, concerning whom the Lord, when Joseph saw him in the celestial kingdom, said: All who have died without a knowledge of this Gospel, who would have received it if they had been permitted to tarry, shall be heirs of the celestial kingdom of God; also all that shall die henceforth without a knowledge of it, who would have received it with all their hearts, shall be heirs of that kingdom, for I, the Lord, will judge all men according to their works, according to the desire of their hearts. So it will be with your fathers. There will be very few, if any, who will not accept the Gospel. Jesus, while His body lay in the tomb, went and preached to the spirits in prison, who were destroyed in the days of Noah. After so long an imprisonment, in torment, they doubtless gladly embraced the Gospel, and if so they will be saved in the kingdom of God. The fathers of this people will embrace the Gospel. It is my duty to honor my father who begot me in the flesh. It is your duty to do the same. When you do this, the Spirit of God will be with you. And we shall continue this work, the Lord adding light to that which we have already received. I have had friends adopted to me. We all have, more or less. But I have had peculiar feelings about it, especially lately. There are men in this congregation who wish to be adopted to me. I say to them to-day, if they can hear me, Go and be adopted to your fathers, and save your fathers, and stand at the head of your father's house, as Saviors upon Mount Zion, and God will bless you in this. This is what I want to say, and what I want carried out in our temples. The Almighty is with this people. We shall have all the revelations that we will need, if we will do our duty and obey the commandments of God. When any of us get so that we cannot receive these revelations the Lord will take us out of the way and put someone in our places who can. I am here to-day, on borrowed time, I may say. I would have been in the spirit world to-day, mingling with the spirits in the presence of God, had it not been for the cry of this people for my life when I lay at the gates of death a year ago. I have been preserved by the power of God. How long I shall live I do not know. It does not make any difference to me. But while I do live I want to do my duty. I want the Latter-day Saints to do their duty. Here is the Holy Priesthood in these mountains. Their responsibility is great and mighty. The eyes of God and all the holy prophets are watching over us. This is the great dispensation that has been spoken of ever since the world began. We are gathered together in these mountains of Israel by the power and commandment of God. We are doing the work of God. This is not our home, as far as mortality is concerned. We shall soon pass away. But while here let us fill our mission. I want to say to Brother L. Snow, Brother M. W. Merrill, Brother J. D. T. McAllister and Brother D. H. Cannon, and all associated with you, carry these things before the Lord and see for yourselves. If you are not satisfied with this order of things, go and ask the Lord about it, and the Holy Ghost will reveal to you the truth of these principles. This is all I ought to say at this time perhaps upon this subject. I am glad to meet with you. I have had a great anxiety over this matter. I have had a great desire that I might live to deliver these principles to the Latter-day Saints, for they are true. They are one step forward in the work of the ministry and in the work of the endowments in these temples of our God. When you get to the last man in the lineage, as I said before, we will adopt that man to the Prophet Joseph, and then the Prophet Joseph will take care of himself with regard to where he goes. A man may say, "I am an Apostle, or I am a High Priest, or I am an Elder in Israel, and if I am adopted to my father, will it take any honor from me?" I would say not. If Joseph Smith was sealed to his father, with whom many of you were acquainted, what effect will that have upon his exaltation and glory? None at all. Joseph Smith will hold the keys of this dispensation to the endless ages of eternity. It is the greatest dispensation God ever gave to man, and he was ordained before the world was to stand in the flesh and organize this work. He was martyred for the word of God and testimony of Jesus, and when he comes in the clouds of heaven he will wear a martyr's crown. Those of you who stand here--I do not care whether you are Apostles or what you are--by honoring your fathers you will not take any honor from your heads; you will hold the keys of the salvation of your father's house, as Joseph Smith does. You will lose nothing by honoring your fathers and redeeming your dead. It is a glorious work. When I returned from England in 1841 and heard Joseph Smith give this revelation, that we had power to redeem our dead, one of the first things I thought was, "I have a mother in the spirit world." My father was in the flesh. I baptized and ordained him and brought him up to Zion where he is buried. But I never saw my mother to know her. She died when I was an infant. I had power to seal my mother to my father. Was not that a satisfaction? It was to me. I have gone to work with the assistance of my friends and redeemed my father's and my mother's house. When I inquired of the Lord how I could redeem my dead, while I was in St. George, not having any of my family there, the Lord told me to call upon the Saints in St. George and let them officiate for me in that temple, and it should be acceptable unto Him. Brother McAllister and the brethren and sisters there have assisted me in this work, and I felt to bless them with every feeling in my heart. This is a revelation to us. We can help one another in these matters, if we have not relatives sufficient to carry this on, and it will be acceptable unto the Lord. Brethren and sisters, lay these things to heart. Let us go on with our records, fill them up righteously before the Lord, and carry out this principle, and the blessings of God will attend us, and those who are redeemed will bless us in days to come. I pray God that as a people our eyes may be opened to see, our ears to hear, and our hearts to understand the great and mighty work that rests upon our shoulders, and that the God of heaven requires at our hands. Great and glorious are these principles which God has revealed to us concerning the redemption of our dead. I tell you when the prophets and apostles go to preach to those who are shut up in prison, and who have not received the Gospel, thousands of them will there embrace the Gospel. They know more in that world than they do here. I pray God that as a people we may have power to magnify our callings in this great and mighty dispensation while we dwell in the flesh, that when our work is done we may be satisfied with this life and this work. This is my prayer and the desire of my heart, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. 1. On 5 April 1894, previous to the opening of the April General Conference, the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve met and discussed the proposed changes to be made to the sealing ordinances of the Temple. Abraham H. Cannon, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve, recorded in his journal that President Woodruff said that I have felt we are too strict in regard to some of our temple ordinances. This is especially the case in regard to husbands and parents who are dead. Heretofore we have not permitted wives to be sealed to their dead husbands unless such husbands were in the Church, nor have we permitted children to be sealed to dead unbaptized parents. This is wrong I feel. I was sealed to my father, and then had him sealed to the Prophet Joseph. Erastus Snow was sealed to his father though the latter was not baptized after having heard the Gospel. He was, however, kind to the Prophet, and was a Saint in everything except baptism. The Lord has told me that it is right for children to be sealed to their parents, and they to their parents just as far back as we can possibly obtain the records, and then have the last obtainable member sealed to the Prophet Joseph, who stands at the head of this dispensation. It is also right for wives whose husbands never heard the Gospel to be sealed to those husbands, providing they are willing to run the risk of their receiving the Gospel in the Spirit world. There is yet very much for us to learn concerning the temple ordinances, and God will make it known as we prove ourselves ready to receive it. In searching out my genealogy I found about four hundred of my female kindred who were never married. I asked Pres. Young what I should do with them. He said for me to have them sealed to me unless there were more than 999 of them. The doctrine startled me, but I had it done. When in St. George I found I had more dead for whom I desired to do a work than I could possibly attend to. I had none of my family with me, and one day the Lord told me to get the young people of that city to give me a birthday present by coming into the temple and being endowed for my dead. Pres. Young approved of the plan, and in this way I got my work done, some of Pres. Young's family helping me to do it. THE COMING JUDGMENTS OF THE LORD _______________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at a Temple Workers Excursion, held in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday, June 24, 1894. I should not try to speak to this congregation tonight, as I have spoken twice before today; but there are duties resting upon me that I must attend to. And I want to ask this congregation a question: When I have the vision of the night opened continually before my eyes, and can see the mighty judgments that are about to be poured out upon this world, when I know these things are true, and are at the door of Jew and Gentile; while I know they are true and while I am holding this position before God and this world, can I withhold my voice from lifting up a warning to this people, and to the nations of the earth? I may never meet with this people again; I cannot tell how that may be. But while I live and see these things continually before my eyes I shall raise my warning voice. Now, the question I wanted to ask you is this: We have fourteen million people on this earth, and over them all there hangs a cloud of darkness almost entirely upon their shoulders. Can you tell me where the people are who will be shielded and protected from these great calamities and judgments which are even now at our doors? I'll tell you. The priesthood of God who honor their priesthood, and who are worthy of their blessings are the only ones who shall have this safety and protection. They are the only mortal beings. No other people have a right to be shielded from these judgments. They are at our very doors; not even this people will escape them entirely. They will come down like the judgments of Sodom and Gomorrah. And none but the priesthood will be safe from their fury. God has held the angels of destruction for many years, lest they should reap down the wheat with the tares. But I want to tell you now, that those angels have left the portals of heaven, and they stand over this people and this nation now, and are hovering over the earth waiting to pour out the judgments. And from this very day they shall be poured out. Calamities and troubles are increasing in the earth, and there is a meaning to these things. Remember this, and reflect upon these matters. If you do your duty, and I do my duty, we'll have protection, and shall pass through the afflictions in peace and in safety. Read the scriptures and the revelations. They will tell you about all these things. Great changes are at our doors. The next twenty years will see mighty changes among the nations of the earth. You will live to see these things, whether I do or not. I have felt oppressed with the weight of these matters, and I felt I must speak of them here. It's by the power of the Gospel that we shall escape. We are having many men come to us with pretended revelations--Josephites and Strangites and other men; one man came to me and said he had revelations to lead this Church; I am willing to leave all these things in the hands of God. Where has the power of God been since the death of Joseph? With this people. They say, these apostates, that Brigham Young organized the endowments and originated the principle of plural marriage. They're liars, every one of them, and the truth is not in them; in so far as this matter is concerned. There's Sister Bathsheba Smith, she and I both had our endowments under the hands of the Prophet Joseph Smith. I had my second anointings and sealings under his hands. There is not a single principle in this Church that he did not lay the foundation for; he called the Twelve together the last time he spoke to us, and his face shone like amber. And upon our shoulders he rolled the burden of the Kingdom, and he gave us all the keys and powers and gifts to carry on this great and mighty work. He told us that he had received every key, every power and every gift for the salvation of the living and the dead, and he said: "Upon the Twelve I seal these gifts and powers and keys from henceforth and forever. No matter what may come to me. And I lay this work upon your shoulders. Take it and bear it off, and if you don't, you'll be damned." I don't feel justified in contending with these apostates and such men. There is too much work to be done. And these things are true, and if such men don't find it out here, they will hereafter. There is an anxiety in the spirit world concerning this people. The angels of God are with us, and they will assist us in this work. God bless you and all this people. I felt that I had finished my work when that Temple was finished; and the doctors said I could not live. But my life was spared because this people were putting up petitions in my behalf continually before God. I feel to bless you my brethren and sisters. May He help us all to do our duty, and be prepared for the great events coming upon this earth. Amen. REVELATION AND JUDGMENT _______________ REMARKS Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the Weber Stake Conference, Ogden, July 15, 1894. __________ [Reported by Arthur Winter.] __________ I feel very refreshed to get away from home once in a while and mingle with the people, and listen to the teachings, revelations and prophecies of the prophets, apostles, seers and revelators among the Latter-day Saints. I am glad to meet with the Saints today in Ogden. I have a good many things upon my mind that I do not expect I shall express here this afternoon; but a few things I want to say. The subject of revelation is frequently referred to. We occupy a position before God, angels and men, and at least one world, that is very interesting and important. God never gave to man a dispensation of more importance than the one you and I live in; and to suppose that this Zion of God, this great work of preparing the way for the final triumph of the Son of God and the establishment of His throne and kingdom on earth could pass through a generation without revelation is one of the most mysterious things on the face of the earth. God never had a people or a Church in any age of the world that was not governed by men who held the Holy Priesthood and the keys of the kingdom of God, and those men were obliged to have revelation. We have the records containing some of their revelations before us. With regard to this dispensation I want to give you some of my views. In the first place, the dispensation was pointed out and proclaimed through the mouth of almost every prophet that has ever dwelt in the flesh. These prophets pointed to this Zion, to this work, to this gathering together, and to the warning of the world by prophets, apostles and elders, called of God to go out and proclaim the Gospel and warn the nations, that they might be left without excuse in the days of God's visitation of judgment upon the world. There is no Elder who has gone out to preach and who has baptized anybody but knows that he has had to have revelation to enable him to magnify his calling. He could not live without this and do his duty. In the commencement of this work the Lord raised up a man to be a prophet, seer and revelator. Joseph Smith was kept in the spirit world for thousands of years to be born in the flesh at the right time, and to be inspired of God, to be visited by Him, and to be qualified and prepared for the mission given into his hands. How long did Joseph Smith live in the flesh after he organized this Church? A little over fourteen years. What did he do during that time? He organized the Church of God, upon the foundation of apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus being the chief corner stone. He also gave unto us a code of revelations. No more sublime revelations were ever given by God to man. Read the Bible, the Book of Mormon, and all the books on earth, and then read these revelations, and you will see the Spirit of God, not only in him, but in the dispensation in which these revelations were given. He gave us a foundation to work upon, and revelations to guide us and carry us into the celestial kingdom. The question may be asked, How is it with regard to those that followed him? Where are the revelations of President Young? Do you find them on record? Only a few; but the Holy Ghost and the revelations of God were with Brigham Young from the day that he received this Gospel until the day that he laid down his life and his tabernacle was carried to the grave. There was no necessity particularly for Brigham Young to give written revelation, only in a few instances. So with John Taylor. So with Wilford Woodruff. And so in a great measure probably with all who may follow us, until the coming of the Son of man. But are we without revelation? We are not. We know our duty, and in a measure we know what lies before us. Some of the people have had the idea that the Presidency of this Church and the Twelve Apostles should have nothing to do with temporal matters. Well, we would be in a bad fix if we did not deal in temporal matters. Joseph Smith stood at the head of this dispensation all the days he dwelt in the flesh. So did Brigham Young. I traveled with Brigham Young at home and abroad, and I never saw a day in my life but what he had the spirit and power of revelation of God with him. This power was with him when he came to this land. It was with him when he laid the foundations of our temples, and when he laid out the city of Salt Lake. He did all these things by the inspiration and Spirit of Almighty God. The Lord requires a great deal of this people. The Elders of Israel were called from the various occupations of life to go and preach the Gospel. They preached to you in your native lands. They told you, in the name of the Lord, if you would receive the Gospel, repent of your sins, and be baptized for the remission of them, you should receive the Holy Ghost. Did you not receive it? Yes, you did, or else you have no business here. You would not be here if you had not been inspired by the Spirit of God. These are truths, and you know them for yourselves. The fruits of the Gospel have been manifest from the beginning of this Church, and will be until the scene is wound up. I saw a curious thing here today as I came to meeting. I saw a military camp at the depot. It brought a flood of reflection to my mind. I traveled with Joseph Smith, sixty years ago this summer, one thousand miles, to Jackson County, Missouri, our brethren having been driven by a military body from their homes. We went up there and accomplished all we were sent to do. We have had military gatherings in this land for the last sixty years. We had quite a military display in Jackson County. We had a military gathering in Clay County. We had a military gathering in Ray County, and in Caldwell County. What were all these military gatherings for? Was their object to protect the railroads of the nation? Not at all. What was their purpose? It was to drive the Latter-day Saints, to destroy them, to take their property, and root them out of the earth if they had the power; and except for the power of God they would have accomplished it. I was singularly struck in looking at this military body. What are they here for? Are they here to drive the "Mormons" out of Ogden? It does not look like it. I think it is to protect the property of these railroads. What does all this mean? Does it not mean that there is a change of affairs in the earth? What are the signs of the times? Do the Latter-day Saints comprehend them? This is a fast age. The Lord is going to cut His work short in righteousness. Read these revelations, for they contain the history of what is going to pass in the earth. The Lord said to Joseph in the beginning of this Church: Behold, verily I say unto you, the angels are crying unto the Lord day and night, who are ready and waiting to be sent forth to reap down the fields; But the Lord saith unto them, pluck not up the tares while the blade is yet tender, (for verily your faith is weak), lest you destroy the wheat also. Therefore let the wheat and the tares grow together until the harvest is fully ripe, then ye shall first gather out the wheat from among the tares, and after the gathering of the wheat, behold and lo! the tares are bound in bundles, and the field remaineth to be burned. What is the matter with the world today? What has created this change that we see coming over the world? Why these terrible earthquakes, tornadoes, and judgments? What is the meaning of all these mighty events that are taking place? The meaning is, these angels that have been held for many years in the temple of our God have got their liberty to go out and commence their mission and their work in the earth, and they are here today in the earth. I feel bold in saying this to the Latter-day Saints. There is a meaning in these judgments. The word of the Lord cannot fall unfulfilled. If you want to know what is coming to pass, read the revelations of St. John, read the Book of Mormon and the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, and these things are at our door. What is the matter with this nation? Thousands of men striking, mobs rising up and destroying property, and tribulation prevailing! I want to say that you will all find before you are many years older that Utah is a pretty good place to live in. So far as our temporal matters are concerned, we have got to go to work and provide for ourselves. The day will come when, as we have been told, we shall all see the necessity of making our own shoes and clothing and raising our own food, and uniting together to carry out the purposes of the Lord. We will be preserved in the mountains of Israel in the day of God's judgment. I therefore say to you, my brethren and sisters, prepare for that which is to come. You have a great future before you. There is a change coming over the world with regard to Zion. The day is coming when the world will say, "Let us not go up to battle against Zion, for the inhabitants of Zion are terrible; wherefore we cannot stand." They will find that the power of God is with this people. We want to prepare ourselves for this, and sanctify ourselves before the Lord that we may be prepared to carry out our mission. Revelation is with us, and it is with you. Let us be united and do our duty. Search the scriptures, for they testify of these things. I pray God that His blessings may be over us, that our eyes may be opened to see, our ears to hear, and our hearts to understand the things of the kingdom of God, that we may be prepared to work with those upon the other side of the veil; for these great events that are rolling upon the earth will come to pass, and no power on earth can stay them. They are declared by the revelations of God and must be fulfilled. God bless us all and lead us into all truth, for Jesus' sake. Amen. THAT WHICH LEADETH TO DO GOOD _______________ REMARKS Made by President Wilford Woodruff, at the Salt Lake Stake Conference, held in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday Afternoon, September 2nd, 1894. __________ [Reported by Arthur Winter.] __________ The angel Moroni said to the Prophet Joseph Smith, "Whatsoever enticeth and leadeth to good and to do good is of God, and whatsoever doth not is of that wicked one." That is a true principle. I wish to make some remarks upon this, but before doing so I desire to refer to our meeting this forenoon. There was probably not one half present this morning of those who are here this afternoon, and therefore many may not fully understand what I allude to. This is a Stake Conference, and there was a report made this morning of the fast offerings received from the various wards in the Stake and the amounts disbursed for the support of the poor. I think that the report showed that during the last six months this Stake alone received from the general tithing office $14,000 for the support of the poor. I believe I am safe in saying that fifty per cent of all the tithing collected throughout the mountains of Israel is returned to the various Stakes for local expenses, among which is the support of the poor. I think myself that this is wrong. As Latter-day Saints, we should observe our fast meetings and our fast offerings. We should at least make a donation of that which we save by fasting, and give it to the Bishop for the support of the poor. It was remarked this morning that some people said they could not fast because it made their head ache. Well, I can fast, and so can any other man; and if it makes my head ache by keeping the commandments of God, let it ache. If we did our duty with regard to the poor among us the tithing would not be withheld from the Presiding Bishopric for the support of the poor. In this, brethren and sisters, I certainly think we should improve. There is nothing gained by our attempting to shirk any duty that God requires of us. We should be more diligent in attending our fast meetings. We should fast as the Lord requires. The Lord does not ask anything of any man that he cannot perform. Whenever the Lord gives a commandment to the children of men, He provides a way for the fulfilment of that commandment. Tithing is a commandment of God to the people, and should be observed. The report of what the Relief Society has done is certainly a great credit to them. The amount of means which they have donated for the support of the poor in this Stake is a large amount, considering the labors that there are upon that Society. I hope we will all reflect upon these things and not forget our duty with regard to the fast offerings and the fast meetings, as well as all other meetings that we are required to attend. President Angus M. Cannon referred to the officers of the Stake not being present at this Conference. I think if we all felt as we should, if we understood the signs of the times, we would take pleasure in attending meetings as far as possible. The Presidency of the Church and the Twelve Apostles have the conferences of the whole Church to attend, and when they are not here they are performing other duties. Now, with regard to the statement I made in the beginning, "Whatsoever enticeth and leadeth to good and to do good is of God, and whatsoever doth not is of that wicked one." While we as a people accord to every denomination the right to enjoy their religion, we claim the same privilege ourselves. I have often referred to this, because perhaps it has appeared sometimes as though we were encroaching upon others. This, however, is not the case. Let us compare the good with the evil today. Where is there a man, no matter what sect he belongs to, who cannot see a great change in the world today? I remember very well over eighty years of my life, and I certainly have never seen such a time in my life in the United States as I have during the last year. The spirit of murder, of whoredom, of blasphemy that is going like a flood over the land, and the increase of crime on every hand, is certainly alarming. Is it from God? Does it lead to good? It does not. There is no God in it. When we look at these things we can see that there is a power manifest in our land and among the nations of the earth that is leading men to do evil. There is one thing very prominently before my mind, and that is the unpopularity of God himself, and of Jesus Christ, and of the Gospel of the Son of God. In the days of the Savior there were a good many religious sects, and they were all at war with the Savior and His Apostles. They fought against everything they did, and labored for their destruction until the Savior and His Apostles were put to death. Were they led by the Spirit of God? They were not. They were not inspired to do right; they were seeking to do wrong. In this dispensation the Prophet Joseph was an unpopular man. He was opposed by the world, and by a great many men who professed to be ministers of the Gospel. They labored against him and to overthrow his doctrines. Now, if Joseph Smith was right, his persecutors were not right. Of course, every man must be his own judge with regard to that. If Jesus Christ and the Apostles were right, then those men who fought against them were not right. We are informed by the revelation of St. John that in the last days there would be something like six hundred three score and six different religious sects and parties in the earth. Of course, there could be but one of them right; for there is but one right way. There is but one Gospel; there never was but one and never will be. That Gospel never deviates from one generation to another. So with the Holy Priesthood. The Priesthood is the same in every generation. Whenever God has had a people on the face of the earth, He has had the Priesthood among them. In fact, no man has the right to administer in one of the ordinances of the Gospel of the Son of God only by and through the power of the Holy Priesthood. The ancient apostles and prophets who administered in the ordinances of the Gospel held that Priesthood. Without that authority they would have had no right to administer in these ordinances. So in this day, this principle is the same. Now, my friends, it does not pay any man to preach false doctrine or to practice false principles, because there is no salvation in it. It is for salvation that we labor. For that the Lord called Joseph Smith to organize the Church of Jesus Christ once more for the last time on the earth, so that a body of people would be prepared for the coming of the Son of Man. The Gospel of Christ was with Joseph Smith. The Priesthood was given to Joseph Smith by those who held that Priesthood in the days of Jesus. He never pretended to administer in one ordinance until he received the commandment of God to do it. Those of you who have embraced the Gospel and have lived your religion know for yourselves that the power of God has followed this work from the commencement until today. I know it has, and I know it will if we do our duty. All the ancient patriarchs and prophets labored for salvation, for the glory where God and Christ dwell, that after death, in their immortal bodies, they might occupy that position forever. It paid them to do it, and it will pay all men to do the same. We cannot spend our time foolishly in safety. We have a mission to fulfil. Some portion of the Holy Priesthood has been given to almost every man in the land of Zion, and to many of them at a very early age. It has been given to us that we may administer in the ordinances of the Gospel and in the things of the kingdom of God. Then let us try to magnify our callings and to do our duty. We know the principles we are practicing are true. The Lord has given us power to rear these temples unto His holy name, that we may enter in as saviors on mount Zion and redeem our dead, that they who have never heard the Gospel may partake of eternal life. Jesus himself went to preach to the spirits in prison, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh. So do the apostles and elders of Israel as they pass away. We labor this side of the veil, and they labor the other side of the veil. These things are true. God has established this Church. He has raised up prophets and apostles, and has planted a work in these mountains of Israel, where this congregation have been gathered by the power of God. We have a labor to perform, and if we do not do it we will be under condemnation. I know this is the work of God. I know the Priesthood is here, and I know the power of God has followed this Priesthood since the Church was organized. Our Elders have traveled at home and abroad. They have been taken from the various occupations of life and thrust into the vineyard. They have traveled thousands of miles, and that, too, without purse and scrip, preaching without price. I never thought of taking any money with me on my missions. I have traveled in a good many countries, and I always traveled without purse and scrip, and I preached without money and without price. The Lord always raised up friends for me in time of need. I was fed and clothed and had all the necessaries of life. That is the way the ancient Apostles preached. It was the way the Elders of Israel have had to preach in the day and generation in which we live. Brethren and Sisters, I hope we will look at the position we occupy here and the work that lies before us, and as far as we can go into these temples. I thank God we have a temple upon this block, where the Latter-day Saints in this region can enter and redeem their dead--their fathers and mothers and their progenitors who have gone into the spirit world without the Gospel. They never heard the Gospel, and no man, in time or in eternity, will ever be saved in the celestial kingdom of God without the Gospel of Christ. Therefore, let us look upon these things as they are. Let us try to live our religion, that when we get through we may be satisfied with life. I prayed many an hour when a boy that the Lord would let me live to see a prophet or an apostle, or some man who could teach me that Gospel which I read of in the New Testament. I have lived to see that day, and I thank God for it. I have tried to do what good I could in my weak way. I have tried to go into these temples and redeem my father's house. With the assistance of my friends I have been able to do this. When I go to the other side of the veil and meet with them, I think I shall be satisfied, and I think they will. They will find that these principles are true, and so will all denominations when they come in the presence of God. They will learn then, if not before, that this is the work of God. I pray God to bless all who are connected with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. May we magnify our calling and do our duty, that when we get through and go into the presence of God and read our history in that great library in heaven, where the acts of all men are recorded, we may be satisfied. God give us wisdom, and lead and guide us in our duty, that we may overcome the world, the flesh and the devil, and inherit eternal life, for Jesus' sake. Amen. GIVING HEED TO COUNSEL _______________ REMARKS Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the General Conference of the Church, in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday Morning, October 7th, 1894. __________ [Reported by Arthur Winter.] __________ I feel as though I want to say a few words to the Latter-day Saints, although I am in very poor condition physically to talk to the public. This has been one of the most interesting conferences I have ever attended; and if I am allowed to be proud of anything, I certainly have felt proud and have rejoiced at the spirit that has been manifested by the Apostles in their teachings. One of the subjects that they have dwelt upon I desire to speak of, and that is with regard to the Word of Wisdom. The brethren have dwelt very strongly upon this subject, and it is right that they should. The Word of Wisdom applies to Wilford Woodruff, the President of the Church, and it applies to all the leaders of Israel, as well as to the members of the Church; and if there are any of these leading men who cannot refrain from using tobacco or liquor in violation of the Word of Wisdom, let them resign, and let others take their places. As leaders of Israel, we have no business to indulge in these things. There may be things contrary to the Word of Wisdom that we indulge in, and that we think we cannot live without; if we cannot, let us die. President George Q. Cannon has been laying before us the truth with regard to the position which we occupy here. This is the work of God, and we stand as an example to the world. Therefore, all of us, from head to foot, should make up our minds to keep the commandments of God. If I do not value my standing, my salvation, my crown of glory and eternal life more than I value those things which are represented as being unwise for us to use, then I am not fit to occupy my position. And this applies to every man in Israel. We all ought to take a course whereby we might be justified before the Lord. We live in the last dispensation and fulness of times, and we are placed here to guide and direct the affairs of the Church of God on the earth. Hence we ought to be wise men; we ought to be righteous men, holy men, temperate men; we ought to be men that will stand in a position to receive the Spirit of God to guide and direct us. If we do not stand in this position, we are not fit to perform this work. Brethren and sisters, give heed to the teachings that we have received during this conference. As a people, we are advancing, and not standing still. We send Elders abroad, and they report to us every little while what they are doing; but there is a class of Elders at work every week that do not report to us. You see their works, though you may not comprehend them. As the Savior said, "Ye may discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?" The Latter-day Saints should observe the signs of the times. The Lord is fulfiling everything that He has said. There is nothing given in these records of divine truth but will have its fulfillment. Messengers have gone forth in the world to make the commencement and to carry out these great events that are spoken of in the revelations of God. I think it is time we should improve and advance. The Lord is going to cut His work short in righteousness, or no flesh will be saved. The Lord is at work for Zion, and He has made no mistake in calling the Latter-day Saints to these Rocky Mountains--the everlasting hills which old father Jacob gave to Joseph in blessing him. We are here and laboring to promote the interest and welfare of the Church of God. I feel to rejoice at the manifestation of the Spirit of God during this conference. Many of us have been in this Church a good while and are advanced in years. I hope that what time we remain here we may spend to good advantage. Let us try to do our duty in all matters appertaining to the work of God. I am thankful for the blessings we enjoy today. Zion is growing. The earth is advancing. The judgments of God are approaching. The Lord says: After your testimony cometh the testimony of earthquakes, that shall cause groanings in the midst of her, and men shall fall upon the ground, and shall not be able to stand. And also cometh the testimony of the voice of thunderings, and the voice of lightnings, and the voice of tempests, and the voice of the waves of the sea, heaving themselves beyond their bounds. And all things shall be in commotion; and surely, men's hearts shall fail them; for fear shall come upon all people. The revelations of God have got to be fulfilled. When? Some time before the coming of the Son of Man--and that is not far off. Therefore, let us try to live our religion, and set an example before one another and the world. I accept the reproof of any Apostle or Elder if there is any requirement of the Lord that I am not fulfilling. That is the way I feel, and I think we all should feel so. We are greatly blessed in having received the Gospel of Christ, in having received the Priesthood and the power to go forth and warn the nations, that they may be left without excuse in the day of God's judgment. And the honest and meek of the earth have been gathered to the mountains of Israel, that they may stand here in holy places while the judgments of God overtake the world. Joseph Smith was raised up by the power of God, and the Priesthood and Apostleship has been with us from that day to this, and will continue until Christ comes to reign. Christ has passed through His trials and afflictions; He has redeemed the world; He has gone home, and He sits in glory with the righteous, and will come with them. All the prophets and apostles, those of our day as well as of other generations, will come with Him. Joseph Smith stood at the head of the greatest dispensation God ever gave to man. These things are true. Let us try to do our duty, walk uprightly before the Lord, and appreciate the blessings we enjoy. Let our prayers ascend before the Lord to assist and guide us in everything, that when we get through with our work we may be satisfied. If the eyes of this people were open to comprehend the truths of eternity, they would see the importance of laboring while the day lasts. Our sons and daughters, if their eyes were open to comprehend what lies before them, would also labor with all their might to qualify themselves for it, and our sons would be prepared to go to the nations to warn them, that their garments shall be clean from the blood of all men. Elders are being sent to almost every part of the earth, and the cloud is beginning to lift from off Zion. The world is beginning to see us as we are. They open their eyes and marvel at what they see here. We are beginning to be understood better than we have been, and this will go on until a great many in the world will feel that Utah is a good place to live in. Our lakes and rivers will not overflow and drown us; but we will be protected from the earthquakes, from the cyclones, and from the judgments that are now overtaking the world. Very strange things have taken place during this year, and the judgments of God will continue. I pray God that His blessings may rest upon us; that our eyes may be opened to see, our ears to hear and our hearts to understand our duty and what He requires at our hands, that we may be justified when we get through. We are all passing along. Many of our missions will close in a short time, and we will go as others have done. Then, if not before, we will comprehend the blessings we enjoy. When we get the other side of the veil we will appreciate this dispensation in which we live. I do not know whether we do here or not. I think many times we do not. I have a desire myself that as President of the Church, as Counselors, as Apostles, we may be united as the heart of one man; that our spirits may run together, and we may see alike, feel alike, and understand alike, and that we may be a bulwark at the head of Israel, that we may be justified before the Lord, so that when these judgments come upon the earth we may be prepared to meet them; which may God grant, for Christ's sake. Amen. DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the General Conference, held April 5, 1895. I feel that all our hearts this morning should be filled with gratitude and thanksgiving to God, our Heavenly Father, for the blessings which we as a people enjoy. A long generation, as men count time, has passed away with all its events connected with the last dispensation of the fullness of times, in our day and generation. The Church of Christ has been organized in fulfilment of the revelations of God, which were given by men who were moved upon by the gift of the Holy Ghost in their day and generation. Many nations and the islands of the sea have heard the proclamation of the Gospel. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has been organized, not only here, but among many nations, and tens of thousands of the sons of God have been gathered together, here in the land of zion. The Gospel has been preached according to the promises of god unto the nations, by men who have been called and sent forth to warn the inhabitants of the earth of those great events which are to come to pass before the coming of the Son of Man. We ourselves have passed through many of those scenes which have been prophesied of by the ancient Patriarchs and Prophets called of God, and today we dwell here in the mountains of Israel. The Lord has enabled His people to rear temples to the name of the Most High God, here and in other parts of the earth; here the dead have been redeemed and the living blessed, and the promises of God have been carried out according to His words to holy men from Abraham to Joseph Smith. I feel myself that we should be filled with gratitude for the blessings we enjoy from time to time. I hope and pray from time to time. I hope and pray that while we assemble together we may enjoy the Spirit of God and our hearts be united together as the heart of one man; that our prayers may be drawn out before the Lord, that His blessings may be with us and that those who speak to us may do so by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost and the power of God. I feel to thank God for myself that I have lived to see this day and have mingled with the brethren for so many years, and my life has still been preserved so that I may endeavor to do something with the Saints for the redemption of the children of men. I hope and pray that the blessings and power of God may rest upon the Apostles and Elders and the Saints of God while we are together upon this occasion. This is my desire and prayer unto the Lord my God in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. THE POWER OF EVIL _______________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the General Conference of the Church, held in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, April 7, 1895. I ask and desire this morning the faith and prayers of the Latter-day Saints in my behalf while I stand before you. This is not merely an idle ceremony, for if I possessed all the oratory and learning of the ancient Greeks and Romans it would not give me power to edify one immortal spirit in the children of men or to point any immortal soul to the way of salvation. I am entirely dependent upon the Lord. I always have been during my life, and in my travels and pilgrimage, preaching the Gospel of Christ to my fellow men. It does not make any difference what age a man is in the preaching of the Gospel, whether he be twenty-five, ninety or five hundred years of age, if he is only inspired by the Spirit and power of God. Many of the ancients lived to a very great age. Father Adam up to the last speech he ever made to his children, according to the revelations of God, was filled with the Holy Ghost, and he was nearly a thousand years of age. I have some things upon my mind I would like to present to the Latter-day Saints if I can get the spirit of them. I think it would be profitable to us to spend a little time in reflecting and meditating upon the powers that be--the powers that exist to-day on the earth and have existed from eternity unto eternity--good and evil, light and darkness, Christ and Belial, or Lucifer, the son of the morning. When we look over the history of the world we can see from the creation of Father Adam down to our day the operation of these two powers. And these powers will exist until the end of time, and from that time henceforth, until there is a change in the destiny of the spirits of men. It seems that from the time of the great rebellion in heaven, when one-third of the hosts of heaven were cast down for their rebellion against the great Eloheim and Jehovah, the Creator of heaven and earth, there has been a warfare against God, against Christ, against His Church, against His Priesthood, and against everything that would tend to salvation and eternal life. And in looking over the history of the world, from the revelations of God to us, we can see in the peopling of the earth and in the building up of cities by the inhabitants of the earth, the powers of evil, of darkness, and of sin have had great control over the children of men. Men were led to sin and to do evil until those ancient cities, like modern ones, were filled with iniquity. The Lord raised up prophets and inspired men in all those dispensations, when cities and nations became ripened into iniquity, to give them commandments, to warn them of the judgments of God, and to tell them what to do to escape those judgments. And when these cities and nations were fully ripened in iniquity and would not repent, all that those prophets proclaimed unto them came to pass. You may take all the ancient cities--Thebes, Nineveh, Tyre, Sidon, Babylon, Jerusalem, and others--and they had prophets raised up among them. They were warned of God, and were told what awaited them unless they repented of their sins, and all came to pass as the prophets spake unto them. My mind rests upon Jeremiah. The Lord called him in his day to go and warn King Zedekiah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and the prophet told them what would come to pass. The king and the inhabitants were wroth against him and they persecuted him, and he had so many trials to go through that a man in reading of them would not be surprised if Jeremiah felt like saying, "You may all go to destruction for what I care; I'm not going to stay with you." But the Lord had said unto Jeremiah, "Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations." All that Jeremiah said to the inhabitants of Jerusalem came to pass, and the history of Jerusalem is terrible. The whole house of Israel had warning; prophets were raised up among them, and they prophesied unto them. All the judgments that visited them were foretold. I speak of these things because they are on my mind, and we are in a somewhat similar condition ourselves. Take the days of Christ. As soon as Christ was born how quickly Herod sought His life! Joseph had to take Mary and the young child into Egypt in order to save the child. The power of evil was after Him for His destruction. And did the Savior, when He was grown to manhood, escape that power? Was there anything about Him in this respect that differed from others of the human family? There was not. He was tempted, He was tried, and the enemy labored for His destruction through His whole life. His mission was a short one. It was only three and a half years from the time he entered into the Priesthood until He was crucified, and that, too, by this power. And the sorrow that has come upon the Jewish nation in consequence of this act of theirs, and the bill that they have had to pay, has been indeed great, and all that the prophets said concerning that has come to pass to the very letter. Nearly nineteen hundred years have rolled around since the death of Christ, and that yoke has been upon the neck of the Jews from that day until this. They have been trampled under the foot of the Gentiles, in fulfilment of the words of the prophets of God, and because they shed the blood of the Savior, their Shiloh. And it has not yet come to an end with them. John, while upon the Isle of Patmos, clothed with the glory of God and wrapt in the visions of heaven, portrayed, prophesied, and wrote concerning the events that should take place down to the coming of the Son of Man. He told us concerning the restoration of the everlasting Gospel. He says: And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, Saying with a loud voice, Fear God and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come. That has come to pass. The time has come when the Lord has set His hand to fulfil the flood of revelation contained in all the records of divine truth. The Lord raised up a man, ordained and prepared from the foundation of the world, to stand in the last dispensation and fulness of times, to receive the Gospel and the Priesthood, to organize the Church of God, and to prepare the way for the coming of the Son of Man. We know that these two powers were manifested with the Prophet Joseph as they were in the days of the Savior. The very moment that he received these revelations from God and proclaimed them, it seemed as though all earth and hell were let loose for his destruction. It appeared as if the devil was afraid that he would live to carry out these prophecies. You know his history. Some of us have been associated with that Prophet. We have seen this spirit of the evil one manifested. The Prophet Joseph was never let alone by the powers that exist until he, like the Savior and others, sealed his testimony with his blood. But during the short time that he dwelt in the flesh he accomplished all that he was ordained to do. He not only organized the Church, but he brought forth this book of revelations that I hold in my hand--the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, which contains some of the most sublime revelations God ever revealed to man on the earth. The Lord also chose Twelve Apostles, High Priests, Elders, Priests, Teachers, and Deacons, and set in order the whole organization of the Church of God as it exists to-day. And what has been the consequence of this? I desire to bring the minds of the brethren to those days. Just as quick as the Twelve Apostles were appointed and the Church was set in order, the devil labored with all the power that he possessed to turn aside these men and inspire them to leave the Church of God. Because of this it seemed to be very hard work many times for men who had received the Priesthood and even the Apostleship to magnify that Priesthood and to stand in their calling until they could finish their work in the flesh. I have made a remark once or twice in my teachings with regard to the great apostasy in Kirtland. I passed through that scene, as did some others who are now with us, and I wish now to refer to it because it is something we should lay to heart. Even Apostles took occasion to rise up and endeavored to dictate and direct the Prophet of God. Here, brethren and sisters, was a manifestation--and a very strange one, too--of the power that the devil had over the leading men whom God raised up to assist in laying the foundation of this Church and in bringing forth the Book of Mormon. Those who testified to the Book of Mormon were led away through not keeping the commandments of God and thinking that they themselves were great men. Some of them were learned men; some of them considered themselves very smart men, and they were so smart that they wanted to dictate and direct the Prophet of God. The consequence of all this was that they turned aside from the commandments of God. Some of them had been true and faithful in their labors in the ministry. I have heard Oliver Cowdery testify of the Book of Mormon by the power of God, when it seemed as if the very earth trembled under his feet. He was filled with the Holy Ghost and the power of God while he was faithful; and so were many of these men. But Oliver Cowdery yielded to the temptation of the evil one, and we may say he apostatized. So did Martin Harris, and several others connected with them. They left the Church, they turned against Joseph, and they said he was a fallen prophet, and they themselves wanted to direct the Church. I have remarked that there was a time when there were but two of the quorum of the Twelve Apostles then in the town of Kirtland who stood by Joseph Smith and upheld him as a Prophet, Seer, and Revelator. I was not a member of that quorum at that time; I was a Seventy. Several of these men called upon me in the time of this apostasy and asked me to join them against the Prophet; the Prophet was fallen, they said. Now, I had seen enough myself of the Prophet of God, and I had read enough of the revelations of God through him, to know that he was a Prophet of God and not a fallen prophet. I saw that these men were yielding to the devil, and I told them so. Said I: "You will all go to hell unless you repent. Joseph has been raised up by the power of God; he has organized this Church, he has been true and faithful to God and to the Church and kingdom of God here on the earth, and you will fall and go to perdition unless you repent of your sins and turn from the position you are in to-day." A good many of them did fall. I will here name one instance. I saw one of these Apostles in the Kirtland Temple, while the Sacrament was being passed, stand in the aisle and curse the Prophet of God to his face while he was in the stand, and when the bread was passed he reached out his hand for a piece of bread and flung it into his mouth like a mad dog. He turned as black in the face almost as an African with rage and with the power of the devil. What did he do? He ate and drank damnation to himself. He did not go and hang himself; but he did go and drown himself, and the river went over his body while his spirit was cast into the pit, where he ceased to have the power to curse either God or His Prophet in time or in eternity. I may say that David Patten was not in Kirtland at this time; he was in Missouri. He never apostatized, but died a martyr. Brethren and sisters, I have passed through these scenes, and it was a serious time. And I will tell you the devil is not dead to-day, but will war against us and against this Church, as far as he has power, while we dwell in the flesh. I thank the Lord, however, that I know for myself that this Church will stand, and the Lord will bear it off triumphant. We have passed those days of affliction and sorrow; but I want to say to my brethren, one and all, we still have got to watch unto prayer. If there is any place where the devil can lead us astray he will do it. We are not safe until we get through with this probation. I thank God for one thing: I am satisfied for myself that those days are passed and gone. There is no man in heaven or on earth will ever live to see such a day again. We are too near the end; we are too near the coming of the Son of Man. The Lord Almighty has called a class of men upon whose shoulders he has laid the responsibility for this great work. He has chosen the weak things of the world, and we have these responsibilities resting upon us. I am satisfied for myself that the servants of God whom He has chosen will, as a rule, be true and faithful unto death. How dark a man must be in his mind to get into such a condition as these Apostles were. I heard some of them bear testimony before God, angels and men that they had received the ministration of angels, and having that knowledge, what a condition they must have been in when they apostatized! We want to guard ourselves with regard to these matters. We have got to look to the Lord to assist us in the cause in which we are engaged. I hope and pray that I may live to see the perfect union of the Twelve Apostles with the Presidency of this Church and the union of the whole Church. We have this work upon our shoulders and the Lord is watching over us. I will say to all the nations of the earth, you cannot turn aside or overthrow the designs of the Lord; they will come to pass in the earth exactly as they have been promised to the children of men. We are here upon a mission, and it is a great mission. We are blessed in living in this day and generation. We ought to try and make the most of it we can. We ought to try and improve our time, magnify our calling, and do our duty. I will say to the Latter-day Saints, the Lord has called and chosen us to stand as the leaders of the people--the Presidency, the Twelve Apostles and the various quorums and positions which we are in, and we are responsible to God for the course we pursue in these matters. True, we need the faith and fellowship of the Saints; we need their assistance; but inasmuch as we do our duty the blessings of God will be with us. I know for myself that the Lord has set His hand to carry out His great purposes and prepare the way for the coming of the Son of Man. We have passed through a long period of time, as men count time, in our history. I will here refer to one incident: When Christ and Peter, James and John went into the mount, Moses and Elias were manifest to them, and Jesus was transfigured before them. The last time the Apostles ever met with the Prophet Joseph Smith, there were eleven of us present,--nine Apostles, himself and his brother Hyrum. He likewise was transfigured before us, as far as mortal man can be. The room which he was in was filled as with consuming fire by the power of God. His face was clear as amber, he was clothed with the power of God. We did not know he was going to leave us any more than the Apostles knew the Savior was going to leave them in that day. But he told us what our duties were. He laid before us what God required at his hands and the ordinances unto which he had been ordained by the power of God. He said the Lord had sealed upon his head every ordinance, every key and every power belonging to this dispensation of the fulness of times; and, he added, "I have sealed these things upon your heads; now you must go forth and bear off this kingdom or you will be damned." That was a very strong remark to us. I have never forgotten it from that day to this. I realize that God was with him. And He has been with His people. He is with Zion to-day. He will continue to be. Though all the powers of darkness may war against us, the Lord is our Friend and He will sustain us and give us power to build up Zion and to carry out this work until the coming of the Son of Man. Therefore, let your hearts be comforted. These Apostles, I am satisfied, are of one heart and mind. I know they are united with us; I know we are united with them. This is a great joy and consolation to me. We all should be united in the cause in which we are engaged. Inasmuch as we do this we shall come off triumphant. I have no fear about Zion; I never had. It is written, as with a pen upon a rock, and is the voice of God, that Zion shall stand. All the prophecies that the Lord has given as contained in the Bible, the Book of Mormon, and the Doctrine and Covenants will be fulfilled to the very letter. Not one jot or one tittle will fall unfulfilled. Zion will arise and flourish, and the glory of God will rest upon her. When I cast my mind over the signs of the times, when I look at the fulfilment of prophecy and observe what is taking place in the earth I see the hand of God manifest and the fulfilment of prophecy and revelation. These angels of God that have been standing in the temples of heaven holding sharp sickles day after day pleading with God to let them go forth to reap down the earth have been commanded of the Lord to wait until the wheat was gathered into the garner, and then they might go forth and reap down the earth. If the world wants to know what is coming to pass, let them read the Bible, the Book of Mormon, and the Doctrine and Covenants; let them read these revelations of St. John. As God lives they will come to pass. Not one of them will fall unfulfilled. And the hand of God is beginning to be manifest in the earth. Judgment is at the door; calamity awaits the nations of the earth; but we ourselves should be prepared to stand in holy places while the judgments of God are manifest in the earth. Now, brethren and sisters, let us be humble before the Lord; let us remember our prayers; let us try to do our duty; and when we do this the blessings of God will be with us. I felt yesterday that I wished I could see all the young men in Israel before Brother J. E. Talmage while he spoke to us for half an hour (it ought to have been two hours) on the evil of this tobacco business. We should let alone all these evils, and our children should also, that they might be prepared to go forth as holy vessels and servants of God to bear record of this Gospel. We are not yet through preaching the Gospel. We send our sons abroad, and many of them go before they know whether this is the Church of God or not. I need not stand up here and testify before this congregation that this is the Church of God on the earth. Thousands of you know that for yourselves. You have been abroad; I have been abroad; these Apostles have been abroad; and we have administered the ordinances of the Gospel of Christ. We have laid hands upon the sick, and the sick have been healed; devils have been cast out, the lame have leaped, the deaf have heard, the dumb have spoken, in this Church in our day and generation. Can men go through and experience these things and not know for themselves whether the work is of God or not? No. Any man that has gone forth and administered in the ordinance of the house of God knows that these things are true, if he has kept the commandments of God. Before I sit down I want to say a word to the Elders of Israel on another subject. I am called an old man; I guess I am. I was thinking just now, in speaking of the Apostles and Prophets that were with Joseph Smith when he made his last speech, I am the only man living that was with him at that time. The rest are to-day in the spirit world. How much longer I shall talk to this people I do not know; but I want to say this to all Israel: Cease troubling yourselves about who God is; who Adam is, who Christ is, who Jehovah is. For heaven's sake, let these things alone. Why trouble yourselves about these things? God has revealed Himself, and when the 121st section of the Doctrine and Covenants is fulfilled, whether there be one God or many gods they will be revealed to the children of men, as well as all thrones and dominions, principalities, and powers. Then why trouble yourselves about these things? God is God. Christ is Christ. The Holy Ghost is the Holy Ghost. That should be enough for you and me to know. If we want to know any more, wait till we get where God is in person. I say this because we are troubled every little while with inquiries from Elders anxious to know who God is, who Christ is, and who Adam is. I say to the Elders of Israel, stop this. Humble yourselves before the Lord; seek for light, for truth, and for a knowledge of the common things of the kingdom of God. The Lord is the same yesterday, to-day, and forever. He changes not. The Son of God is the same. He is the Savior of the world. He is our advocate with the Father. We have had letter after letter from Elders abroad wanting to know concerning these things. Adam is the first man. He was placed in the Garden of Eden, and is our great progenitor. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost, are the same yesterday, to-day and forever. That should be sufficient for us to know. I pray God to bless these Apostles, and to bless us all, and to give us wisdom and power to magnify our calling and to do our duty before the Lord, that we may be prepared to give an account of our stewardship while dwelling in the flesh. I pray that the Lord will be merciful to us as a people, and give those who bear the Priesthood power to build up Zion and prepare the way for the coming of the Son of Man, which may God grant, for Christ's sake. Amen. The only Apostle fitting President Woodruff's description was Lyman Eugene Johnson, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles from 1835 to 1838, who was disfellowshipped during a conference held in Kirtland, 3 September 1837. After making appropriate confessions, he was restored to his original position a few days later. Johnson was, however, excommunicated at Far West, Mo., on 13 April 1838. He drowned in the Mississippi river at Prairie du Chien, Wis., 20 December 1856. BLESSINGS OF THE RISING GENERATION _______________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the General Annual Conference of the Young Men's Mutual Improvement Association, in the Assembly Hall, Salt Lake City, Sunday, June 9, 1895. Being a member of the Presidency of the Mutual Improvement Associations, as well as one of the First Presidency of the Church, I feel it not only my privilege but my duty to address this assembly as a society of young men and maidens, the rising generation of this community of people known by the world at large as Mormons. The President of the Church has been refered to as the head of this organization. The Lord in almost every age of the world has chosen weak and unlettered men to bear the Priesthood, and He has chosen whomsoever He would in this day and time; and the only marvel I have is that He should have chosen so weak an instrument as I am to be the President of this, His Church. But that is the business of the Lord and not mine. Occupying the position that I do, and having passed my eighty-eighth year in the flesh, and living upon borrowed time, so to speak, I can have no reason to expect that I shall dwell a great while in your midst. Therefore I feel in duty bound to give some counsel to the young men of Israel who are present today. There has never been a generation of the sons of God upon this earth, from Father Adam down to this present hour, upon whose shoulders rested greater responsibility than rests upon the young men and maidens of Israel today; and if they were able to appreciate what their Creator requires at their hands and the responsibility resting upon them, it would not be said in this stand, as it has been said here today, that one-half of the young men of certain wards were not connected with the Mutual Improvement Associations. I feel very much gratified with the results of the labors of those who have worked and do work in the cause of mutual improvement, also those of our sisters who are connected with the Primary Associations. Many of our aged sisters at first took hold of this work, and called the little children together, and taught them things of God, as their minds were able to comprehend them. Among them was Sister Eliza R. Snow, who labored in this cause faithfully during the latter part of her life. The Sunday Schools, too, are a very important institution in our Church. President Young was moved upon in very early days to organize the Sabbath Schools in these valleys. Many have labored faithfully to carry on the work, and others have taken hold of it, until we have today, I understand, almost a hundred thousand children belonging to the Sabbath Schools. They are taught the Gospel of Christ. They are taught the duties of children to parents; the importance of their eschewing evil and ceasing from sin, and praying to God to keep them in the paths of virtue, holiness, righteousness and truth. Then the young men and maidens of Zion have been organized into what has been termed Mutual Improvement Associations. Too much importance cannot be attached to any of these organizations and their interests. We look to the Mutual Improvement Associations for our Elders, for our missionaries. We go to this body of young people, and take from them men to go into the vineyard of the Lord to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Do our young men comprehend this? I fear not, but many of them do, and many of them have entered upon this work. And such are prepared from childhood to pray and obtain the Spirit and power of God, the Holy Ghost, the revelations of heaven, enabling them to go forth, bearing the holy Priesthood to warn the world, convert the honest in heart and gather them to Zion to prepare them for the coming of the Son of Man. Upon your shoulders, young men of Israel, rests this duty today. Your fathers are passing away. Joseph Smith laid the foundation of this Church. He lived but a short time. Like the Savior he died a martyr. He lived but a little longer than the Savior did. Jesus labored only three years and a half after entering upon the active duties of the ministry. Joseph labored in his mission some fourteen years, I believe. He stood at the head of this dispensation. His spirit was kept in the spirit world to tabernacle in the flesh in fulfillment of promises to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph and Ephraim. Through their posterity he came forth and laid the foundation of this Church, and organized it in all its beauty and power and glory and strength and Priesthood, by the authority of God. I do not know how many there are in this house who knew him, but there are some who were acquainted with him for years. Before he was called away he organized the Church of God with prophets, apostles, teachers, gifts, helps and governments, and there were given unto him, and by him sealed upon the heads of the Apostles and Elders of Israel the holy Priesthood, the apostleship, the keys of the kingdom of God; and these Apostles were commanded of God to round up their shoulders and bear off this kingdom or they would be damned. I am now the only man living in the flesh who was present when that communication was given to us. My presence with you must necessarily be limited. I cannot stay a great while longer, and don't expect to; but I know it is my duty to do what I can in laying before the rising generation their duties. I am especially anxious that our young people should sense the great responsibility that must sooner or later rest upon them; and that they should bear in mind the fact that they were kept in the spirit world thousands of years to come through the loins of the ancient patriarchs and prophets in our own age and generation for the very purpose of carrying on this great latter-day work. God called upon us and He will call upon you and our posterity after us, to rise and warn the generations in which they live; to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the nations of the earth that their garments may be free of the blood of all men, when the judgments of God overtake the wicked, as they will, and as they have overtaken the wicked in generations that are past and gone. Who else, I ask, does the God of Israel, do the heavenly hosts, look to to carry on this great and mighty work, but to you who are the sons and daughters of the men to whom He has revealed Himself; you who, too, have entered into sacred covenants with Him; you who are the descendants of the noble men of old to whom God made great and glorious promises? And if you do not do your duty in these things, you will certainly come under condemnation. Let me refer you to the testimony of Enoch as given to us in the Pearl of Great Price. Speaking of the disobedient who rejected the Gospel taught by Noah, Enoch says that the God of heaven looked upon the residue of the people and wept; and Enoch bore record of it saying, How is it that the heavens weep, and shed forth their tears as the rain upon the mountains? * * * * The Lord said unto Enoch, Behold these thy brethren; they are the workmanship of mine own hands, and I gave unto them their knowledge in the day that I created them; and in the Garden of Eden gave I unto man his agency; and unto thy brethren have I said, and also gave commandments that they should love one another and that they should choose me their Father; but behold, they are without affection; and they hate their own blood; and the fire of mine indignation is kindled against them, * * * and among all the workmanship of my hands there has not been so great wickedness as among thy brethren; but behold, their sins shall be upon the heads of their fathers; Satan shall be their father; and misery shall be their doom; and the whole heavens shall weep over them. You are today occupying the same position before heaven and before the earth, before God, angels, and men, you young men of Israel. Now can you afford to turn away from the commandments of God and allow Satan to rule over you and be your father? Can you afford not to qualify yourselves for the great work that lies before you? You cannot. I am sorry to think that any of our young men should be found careless and indifferent to the responsibility imposed upon them by the reason of their lineage and the covenants they are under. I would to God the eyes of our sons were open, all of them, so they could see themselves as God and our worthy progenitors behold us. I would to God you could all realize what is expected of you. I call upon parents throughout Zion to do what you can to induce your sons and daughters to walk in the paths of righteousness and truth and to improve the opportunities before them. Do not let your hearts be altogether upon the vanity and affairs of the world, but learn to appreciate the fact that faithful children are among the choicest and greatest of blessings. I used to meet with, instruct and bless the young Elders that were set apart from time to time to go on missions; I have made that a part of my business. I have now arrived at an age when I am obliged to leave off some duties I formerly performed, and that is one of them. As I cannot now be present with young missionaries when they are set apart to go on missions, I want to say it here, so that when that call is made upon you, you will remember it when I am past and gone. There are two or three things that I want you to remember, you that go upon missions, and all faithful Elders will be called on missions, for the harvest is great and the laborers are few compared with the necessity there is for such work in the four quarters of the earth today, to warn the world and preach the Gospel. One thing is, when you go into a neighborhood to preach the Gospel, never attempt to tear down a man's house, so to speak, before you build him a better one; never, in fact attack any one's religion, wherever you go. Be willing to let every man enjoy his own religion. It is his right to do that. If he does not accept your testimony with regard to the Gospel of Christ, that is his affair, and not yours. Do not spend your time in pulling down other sects and parties. We haven't time to do that. It is never right to do that. When I have been abroad preaching I have found that people who were prepared to receive my testimony believed in me, and in like manner they will receive the testimony you have to give to them, if they can be touched with the Spirit of God. This is exemplified in the preaching of the Savior, which drew forth from Him this remark: "No man can come to me, except the Father, which hath sent me, draw him." Another thing is: Wherever we go, sustain any and every government under heaven that sustains you. Sustain all governments. Never be found antagonizing any government. Government belongs to the people, and if it is not good for them, it is their business to rectify it, not yours. I got into a position once that brought this to my mind very strongly; it occurred in my labors in the south of England. On my first mission to that country I went with Brother Kimball and Brother George A. Smith to London, and helped to build up the first branch of the Church that was organized there. After returning home, I was again sent to England by President Young with Elder John Taylor and other brethren. It was customary for us to hold out-door meetings, as they are called; and while doing so, on one occasion, at London, one of our brethren referred to the English government in terms anything but complimentary to the people to whom it belonged, which, of course, was contrary to the spirit of our calling and mission. It was brought to the attention of one of the chiefs of police, who came to me about it. The same Elder had an appointment for the next Sabbath on the same ground. But before filling it I was careful to see that he was shown the unwisdom of pursuing such a course, also to see that wiser and more conservative men did the preaching on that occasion. Had he been permitted to continue to indulge in such talk we would have brought upon ourselves persecution, but by taking a wise and proper course, we received the protection of the police and government, and at last got permission to preach in churches, and were enabled to baptize thousands of church members; and we had as much freedom as we had in our own country. We learned afterwards that at this second meeting were two or three policemen in disguise who made a most favorable report to the chief of police about us. Wherever we go we must always sustain the government that gives us protection. I wanted to mention and impress upon our young Elders these two things. It might not be out of place for me to say that we baptized the policeman that approached me, and he proved himself to be a true and faithful Latter-day Saint. Now, I want to say to the Elders of Israel, young and old, there is nothing that we ought to labor more to obtain while in the flesh than the Spirit of God, the Holy Ghost, the Comforter, which we are entitled to receive by reason of our having obeyed the requirements of the Gospel. When you get acquainted with the Spirit, follow its dictates, no matter where it may lead you; and when you do that, it will become a principle of revelation in you. I have always found that a true principle in my whole life. If I had not followed that Spirit in my life, I would not be with you today. President Young told me, the first year of the settlement of these valleys, to go to Boston, and gather out all the Saints I could from the Middle Atlantic and New England States and the Canadas, who had been left there, and bring them up to Zion. I carried out his instructions to the best of my ability, and whenever I could get a company of a hundred men I would select some man and put him to preside over them, and send them on. I was the means of thus gathering to Zion hundreds of people. I, myself, took the lead of the last company. When we arrived at Pittsburg, just as we landed I was anxious to take a steamer and go on to St. Louis. I sought an interview with the captain just as he was starting out with some two hundred and twenty passengers on board. He expressed himself willing to take us on board, and I thought I would go; but just then the Spirit of the Lord came upon me, and said, "Don't go on board that steamer." That was enough. I knew the voice of the Spirit. I excused myself to the captain and turned away. He immediately started down the river. It was a dark night. Five miles below Pittsburg the steamer took fire. They had no chains on board, and there was hardly a soul on board that escaped death either from fire or water. There were with me in that company Leonard W. Hardy, Samuel Hardy and the Atwoods, who during their lifetime were widely known. By harkening to the "still small voice" my company was saved, and I am spared to tell you about it today. I know by experience the value of it. You young men should live in such a manner as to be entitled to the operations of the Holy Ghost within you, and, as I have said, it will become a guide as well as a revelator to you, and never leave or fail you. I felt to say these few words to our young men of Israel. Zion is going to be the glory of the whole earth, and all the purposes of God that you read of in the Bible and in the Book of Mormon in regard to the designs of God in the last days are going to be fulfilled to the very letter. And, as I said before, I say again, your future blessings, your future exaltation and glory, worlds without end, will depend upon the course you pursue here. The way is clear before you that leads to life eternal. It was found out by men whose voices are now hushed in death, and we have shown it to you; and it now remains for you to walk therin. Now, I would say to our superintendents here, continue your labor with the youth of Zion. Be not weary in your efforts to save the souls of men, for this is the work of your Heavenly Father. The boys whom you teach are the instruments whom the God of Heaven has called to bear off His Kingdom, and they will do it: yes, I repeat, they will do it; it is the will of God they should, and it is a pleasure for me to bear my testimony of these things to you at the age I have attained to. I want to say a word to our young sisters. When you receive an offer of marriage, find out whether the young man smokes, or drinks, or swears, or whether he goes to the Sabbath School, or Mutual Improvement Association, whether he is virtuous and worthy to bear the Priesthood of the Son of God. A young woman had better be single all her days than to marry a man who dishonors God and his parents, and is unworthy of the blessings which he is entitled to receive through the Gospel of Christ. You boys and girls have a great future before you. There lies within your reach salvation, eternal life and a part in the first resurrection; in fact, all the blessings God has promised to any people that has ever been in the flesh, are held out to you and are within your reach inasmuch as you do your duty in these things. Before taking my seat, I want to ask the young men to study the scriptures; and to learn to understand the signs of the times in which you live. The signs of the second coming of the son of God are everywhere seen, but the world does not comprehend them. The devil is abroad in the earth, and he will destroy every person that he can. Search the scriptures that have come directly to us, as well as those contained in the Bible, and learn to comprehend the mind and will of God, which we can do by reading them when the light of the Holy Spirit is within us, and thus prepare yourselves for that which will come to pass in life. My desire and my prayer for you and the youth of Zion is that you may rise up and magnify your calling and do your duty, and accomplish all that God requires of you; which may God grant for Christ's sake. Amen. DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the Davis Stake Conference, Farmington, Utah, September 7, 1895. How little we knew when we were born; how little we knew when we were boys and girls; and when we arrived to manhood and the Spirit of God led us to have faith in the revelations of God, and not to join the sectarian world, still how little we knew what lay before us and the purposes of God concerning us. I can bear testimony to the truth of the discourse we listened to this forenoon. We live in a very important day and generation. We live in the midst of important works of God, and we little knew in early youth and manhood that we ourselves had been preserved in the spirit world for seven thousand years, to stand in the flesh in the last days, to be called of God to labor in His vineyard and to build up His Church. Nevertheless these are truths. The Lord has never set His hand in any age of the world to perform a work unless He has prepared an element to carry out that work. That is our condition as Latter-day Saints. In my youth I attended Sabbath school under Dr. Porter, a great minister; but the very moment I began to read the Scriptures and learn what was in them, that very moment there was a spirit told me that that Church and Gospel that I read of in the New Testament were not on the earth. I never heard a minister acknowledge the necessity of the works that followed the teachings of the Savior and His Apostles. Nothing would make them angry quicker than to tell them that these were the works of God and would be again established on the earth. The clergy would be immediately stirred up if they heard of any one advocating these things--a thing which I frequently did in my early manhood. I felt that I could not join any church unless I could find one that taught those principles which I read of in the New Testament--a church that enjoyed the same gifts and blessings that the Savior and His Apostles possessed. That was not alone my condition, but it was the condition of many men who lived in those days. As I have said, God had an element prepared, who had been ordained of Him to stand in the flesh in the commencement of His Church on the earth in this dispensation, and this element the Lord has gathered together in order to build up Zion, to warn the world, and to prepare for the coming of the Son of Man. Brother George Q. Cannon spoke this forenoon on the subject of revelation. When the Church was organized nobody professed to have a revelation; it was not believed in. They had the Bible, and they did not want any more revelation. But I will say to ye men of Israel, the Lord never had a church in any age of the world that He did not give revelation to, and never will have. This church could not live twenty-four hours without revelation. It belongs to the Priesthood and to the Gospel of Christ. Brother Cannon spoke about the temptation of the evil one. There never was a people on the earth whom the devil was more anxious to tempt and to destroy than those who bear the Holy Priesthood. If anybody supposes that the First Presidency and the Apostles and leading men of Israel are not tempted, they are mistaken. If Jesus Christ was tempted of the devil for forty days and nights, do you suppose he would pass by these apostles and prophets? We are all of us tempted and tried day by day. There is no people that the arch enemy, Lucifer, is more at war against than these Latter-day Saints dwelling in the valleys of the mountains. We all have to fight against this power, and shall have to until He comes whose right it is to reign, with the keys of death and hell, and binds Satan and sets a seal upon him. In my reflections sometimes I feel that the Latter-day Saints do not comprehend our position, and the danger we are in through being continually tempted and tried; for there is a power constantly laboring with us to draw us away from our duties and from the commandments of the Lord. The God of heaven holds me responsible as the President of this Church, holding the keys of the Gospel of Christ, while I dwell in the flesh. Can I live without revelation? Can my counselors and these Apostles live without revelation? they would not be fit to lead this Church one day without the revelations of God. I am somewhat acquainted with the Lord; I am somewhat acquainted with His ways and with His Spirit; and I know that God Himself, His Son Jesus Christ, and all the powers of the eternal and everlasting Priesthood are exercised over carrying out the great purposes of God upon the earth. These revelations in the Bible, the Book of Mormon, and the Book of Doctrine and Covenants have got to be fulfilled, and without we yield ourselves as Elders of Israel to this work we do not magnify our calling before the Lord. We have revealed to us in the Bible the promises that were made to Joseph, who was separated from his brethren, and to Ephraim and Manasseh. Their blessings were to prevail to the utmost bounds of the everlasting hills. We to-day are in that very country. We have been led here by the power of God, and that, too, by men who were governed and controlled by revelation. Now, if there is anything on earth the devil wants, it is to hedge up the way for the fulfilment of these revelations and prophecies. It is in the hands of this people to carry out these purposes of God as revealed unto us. Will we do it? Yes, we will do it. Why? Because the Lord's word will always be fulfilled. All that has been said with regard to gathering the people to Zion and what was to transpire in Zion has been fulfilled so far, and not one word will fail. I want the Latter-day Saints to understand this. You are here upon a mission. So am I. So was Joseph Smith. Every one that has been born into this Church had the privilege of coming here and receiving the blessings of this Church and of the temples of our God. If we do not receive them, it is our fault, and not the Lord's. I have been strongly exercised in my mind in looking at the signs of the times and what is taking place in the earth. I think of what the Savior said to the Pharisees: "Ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?" So I feel to say to the Latter-day Saints, Can we not discern the signs of the times?" When I look at the wickedness of men and the terrible power the devil has among the children of men I feel as though it should stir us up to righteousness and to the work of the Lord. I have referred to the fact that I was twenty years of age before there was a murder committed in the New England States. A man killed his wife in New Haven, Connecticut, and it shocked all New England. Old men and women and young men and maidens wept over the idea of a murder being committed in the New England States. How is it to-day? It takes columns of every newspaper published to record the murders and suicides that are committed each twenty fours hours. People are killing themselves to pay their debts, or for some other reason. And this is increasing all the time. Now, my brethren and sisters, this terrible rush to death that is in the world means something. What is the meaning of it all? Why, the Lord said to Joseph Smith sixty-three years ago: Behold verily I say unto you, the angels are crying unto the Lord day and night, who are ready and waiting to be sent forth to reap down the fields; But the Lord saith unto them, pluck not up the tares while the blade is yet tender, (for verily your faith is weak,) lest you destroy the wheat also. Therefore let the wheat and tares grow together till the harvest is fully ripe, then ye shall first gather out the wheat from among the tares, and after the gathering of the wheat, behold and lo! the tares are bound in bundles, and the field remaineth to be burned. Do the Latter-day Saints comprehend this? Think of the great changes that are taking place in the world; of this dreadful loss of life, and also of virtue; of the terrible cyclones, laying waste whole cities; fires devastating towns and villages; earthquakes, storms, and judgments of every kind. What is the meaning of all this? Why, these messengers that have been waiting in heaven for a long time, holding in their hands the sharp sickles, have gone forth in the earth and made a beginning, and they never will cease until this scene is wound up. If you want to know what is coming to pass in the earth, read the revelations of St. John as well as those in the Book of Mormon and Book of Doctrine and Covenants. Satan is busy. He knows that his power will be curtailed unless he can stop the progress of the work of God, and he is laboring all the time to try and draw away the sons and daughters of Zion from the path of rectitude and duty. Whenever half a dozen Elders gather together to preach the Gospel, there you will find the enemy working hard against them. Brother Cannon also spoke about the First Presidency of the Church. Now, the world is terribly afraid that the Presidency of this Church shall say something to somebody about politics; and even some of the Elders of Israel appear very much afraid that they will get some counsel on these things. What are they thinking about? Politics should never turn the heart of any man bearing the Holy Priesthood from his brethren or from the cause of God. Let him enjoy his politics, and vote for whom he chooses; but let all men stop throwing this filth and slime and pursuing a course wherein God Himself and the angels are ashamed of them. It makes no difference to me what a mans politics is; he has a right to enjoy his own political ideas; but let this people realize that they are Latter-day saints and are held responsible before God for the course they pursue. We should look at these things as they are. We hold in our hands the keys of the kingdom, and God will hold us responsible for the use we make of this power which He has entrusted to us. If we do our duty, we shall prevail. We have revelation with us. True, the leaders of this Church since the death of the Prophet Joseph Smith have not written many revelations. Joseph Smith brought forth the Book of Doctrines and Covenants, and it is a grand volume of revelation--one of the most glorious records ever given of God to man on the earth. But I want to say that Brother Brigham Young did not live without revelation. He always had revelation with him. He could not labor without it; he could not preach or do the will of God without it. Nor can any man that occupies that position. The Lord would permit no man to stand at the head of this Church unless he was governed and controlled by revelation. We are feeble instruments-weak worms of the dust; but God has chosen the weak things of the earth to confound the wise, and to build up His Zion, and He gives us revelation and makes known unto us His mind and will. We have a great labor upon us at the present time in carrying out the purposes of the Lord with regard to His work among the sons and daughters of Adam. I rejoice that I have lived to see what I have seen. I rejoice that I came to these valleys with President Young. We found a barren desert. What did the Spirit of God say to him? He was urged not to stop here, but go on to California. "No," said Brother Young, "I am going to stay right here. I am going to build a city here; I am going to build a temple here; I am going to build a country here." What did he say that by? By the power of revelation, and he fulfilled it all. He performed a great work. He laid the foundations of this great and glorious temple here, and we have lived to dedicate it unto God. We have power to-day to go into four temples and attend to the ordinances of the house of God for the living and for the dead. Yes, we are opening the prison doors in the spirit world to thousands and thousands of our fathers' households. Thus we are saviors upon Zion, whom the Lord has raised up in these last days to redeem the dead and give them a place and a standing in their fathers' house. Those who were drowned in the days of Noah were shut up in prison for a long time, and Christ, while his body lay in the tomb, went and preached to these spirits in prison, that they might live according to God in the spirit and be judged according to men in the flesh. So Joseph Smith and Hyrum Smith, David Patten, and others, who have laid down their lives for the Gospel's sake, have gone to the spirits in prison and labored there; and you and I are called upon to attend to the duty of the redemption of our dead while we dwell here in the flesh. This is our work. I feel thankful for the blessings we as a people enjoy. It requires that we shall be humble. We want to remember our prayers. There should be a great deal of praying in Israel; not public prayers alone, but every man should go into his closet and there call upon God and ask Him to sustain Zion, sustain the Presidency of the Church, and the Twelve Apostles, with all men who bear the Holy Priesthood in the earth. Upon the shoulders of these men devolves the duty to go forth and warn this generation of the judgments which are to come. Yet our numbers are few, compared with the fourteen hundred millions of people that dwell in the flesh. Therefore, do not be afraid of getting counsel from the presiding authorities in the Church. They will not counsel you wrong. They know better than to do that. They are anxious for this people to be united. We have received the ordinances of the house of God and have entered into covenant to build up Zion, and that is what we should live for. For I tell you, the God of heaven requires this at our hands. The devil has no power to overthrow the purposes of God. The Lord is above him, and he cannot go beyond what the Lord permits. Brethren and sisters, this is the way I feel to-day. Eighteen hundred years have passed away from the time the Apostles of Christ were put to death and the Priesthood was taken home to God, and remained there until He gave it to Joseph Smith, who was raised up to stand at the head of this dispensation. Jesus said to Joseph Smith and those first Elders: For thou art called to prune my vineyard with a mighty pruning, yea, even for the last time. They were commanded to go out and warn the world and to preach the Gospel, so that their garments might be clean of the blood of all men. This is our calling. I wish we were better than we are, and that we had more of a disposition to do what the Lord requires of us. But we are poor, weak men. Yet there are those among us that would go to death rather than break these commandments of God which Brother Cannon referred to. And well they might. It pays no man to sin. There is no salvation or glory in it; but there is sorrow in it. If you occupied the position that I do, you would be where some of the sorrow is manifest. We hear occasionally of men going astray and witness the sorrow that comes upon them when their eyes are opened to understand their condition. They would give everything they possess on earth if it had not happened; but the day is past and they have to suffer for it. I am anxious myself that all the Latter-day Saints will try to keep the faith while they live upon the earth. Our lives are short here, even if we live to be one hundred years old, compared with the great eternity before us. The dead are there whom we have redeemed, and we certainly do not want to pursue a course whereby we will forfeit the honor belonging to us connected with their salvation. It does not pay for any man to lose his faith in God, or to dishonor the Priesthood which he holds; but we should pursue such a course that when we get through we will be satisfied with our lives. We are in the midst of a world of sin and temptation. It is a constant warfare with us. It was with the Savior. He was tempted all through His life, and He is an example for us. Certainly we have never passed through more than the Savior did, nor as much. But He through all His life remained true and faithful to His Father and to His calling as the Savior of the world. He prayed a great deal, and He mourned before the Lord over the sins of the world. To-day He is in our midst. He is our Advocate with the Father. He is watching over us, and He will do all that He can for our salvation. We have everything to encourage us. When you think of eternal life; when you think of the heavenly hosts; when you think of those that have gone before us, awaiting the final resurrection of the dead and the coming of the Son of Man to wind up the scene and enter into His glory, what is there than can tempt any man to depart from the Gospel of Christ? There is nothing worse than for a man to yield to sin after he has embraced the Gospel. We should labor against sin and temptation. I believe this is all I want to say to you. I am glad to meet with you. I do not attend meetings a great deal. But I am at my desk every day in the week about 9 o'clock except Saturday, and when the end of the week comes I am weary in body, and need rest. I always enjoy myself however, among the Latter-day Saints in their conferences when I do attend. I have traveled many years in this Church. Many of our fathers, brothers, and sisters have passed off. We are left; but we shall soon follow them. I pray God that He will give us power as His servants and Saints to magnify our calling and walk uprightly before Him, that we may be saved in the kingdom of God, for Jesus' sake. Amen. BLESSINGS OF GENERAL CONFERENCES _______________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the Commencement of Sixty-sixth Semi-annual General Conference of the Church, convened in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Friday, October 4, 1895. I feel thankful, my brethren and sisters, that I have the privilege this morning of attending this Sixty-sixth Semi-Annual Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, with the Elders of Israel and the Saints of the living God. My first attending any conferences of this Church was in 1834, and from that day till the present, from time to time, as circumstances have permitted, I have enjoyed this blessing. And while the Prophets, and Apostles, and Elders and Saints of God, a great many of them, and a number of them who have assembled in these days, are to-day upon the other side of the vail, still other men as Apostles and Prophets and Elders and members of the Church stand in the flesh, following in their footsteps. I feel thankful to have the privilege of meeting with the Apostles and the various quorums of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to-day. And while we are together during this conference, I hope and trust that we may all of us have our hearts lifted up in prayer and thanksgiving to God and ask His blessing that we may be guided by His Holy Spirit in whatever we are called to teach to the Saints, and the labors we have to perform as the people of God. We have great reason to rejoice, great reason to be thankful to our Creator, to God, our heavenly Father, for His mercies and blessings over us to-day. The hand of the Lord may very clearly be seen, I think, by all men who enjoy the Spirit of God, in the past history of the Latter-day Saints. His hand has been over us since our organization in 1830, until the present time. We have passed, of course, through many trials and tribulations, but the Lord's mercy is over us, and we are placed here in the mountains of Israel, the Zion of God, and placed here with responsibilities resting upon us to be carried out in our day and time. I am pleased to meet with the Apostles, and trust, as far as we have time and opportunity, we shall have the privilege of hearing from them. But I will say that President Snow is expected to be absent from us for a day or so, in attending the funeral of Judge Smith, of Brigham City, and I will call upon him this morning to occupy a little time in talking to us. THE PRINCIPLE OF REVELATION _______________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the General Conference of the Church, held in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday, October 6, 1895. President Woodruff read from Section 68 of the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, as follows: My servant, Orson Hyde, was called by his ordinance to proclaim the everlasting gospel, by the Spirit of the living God, from people to people, and from land to land, in the congregations of the wicked, in their synagogues, reasoning with, and expounding all Scriptures unto them. And, behold, and lo! this is an ensample unto all those who were ordained unto this priesthood, whose mission is appointed unto them to go forth; And this is the ensample unto them, that they shall speak as they are moved upon by the Holy Ghost, And whatsoever they shall speak when moved upon by the Holy Ghost, shall be scripture, shall be the will of the Lord, shall be the mind of the Lord, shall be the word of the Lord, shall be the voice of the Lord, and the power of God unto salvation; Behold this is the promise of the Lord unto you, O ye my servants; Wherefore be of good cheer, and do not fear, for I the Lord am with you, and will stand by you; and ye shall bear record of me, even Jesus Christ, that I am the Son of the living God, that I was, that I am, and that I am to come. I have read these verses this morning before you that you may understand the position that I occupy before god, angels, and men. I have a desire to speak a short time to the Latter-day Saints; but I want you to understand, as I have read here, that I am not capable, nor is any man capable of teaching the children of men and edifying them in the Gospel of Jesus Christ without the Holy Spirit, without revelation, without the inspiration of Almighty God. Therefore, I want the faith of the Latter-day Saints, and also their prayers. I need the Spirit of God to assist me, as does every man who attempts to teach the people the things of the kingdom of heaven. I have been sick for about a week, confined mostly to my bed and room; but I have felt that I did not wish this conference to pass without meeting you. For the last day or two I have had the privilege of mingling with my friends, and I have a desire to express myself upon some things appertaining to our day and generation and to the work of God. The question arises in the minds of the people in our day and generation, Does President Woodruff have revelation? Do his counselors have revelation? Do the Twelve Apostles have revelation? Do this people have revelation? We live in too important a day and generation, and in the midst of too important events, for any man to be qualified to lead the people of God one hour without revelation and inspiration from Almighty God. And at this point I want to say a few words with regard to this principle of revelation. Read the history of the world. Old father Adam, three years and a half previous to his death, called together seven of his sons, all High Priests--Seth, Enos, Jared, Mahalaleel, Canaan, Enoch and Methuselah--with the residue of his posterity, and there he stood on his feet for a long time, clothed with the Holy Ghost and the power of God, and he prophesied unto his sons what should take place concerning them and their posterity to the end of time. Follow this out; take all those early patriarchs and prophets, and later ones, too, and they all have had revelation. They had to have it. Whenever a city became ripened in iniquity, and men blasphemed God and broke His commandments, the Lord Almighty raised up prophets and inspired men to warn that city and the inhabitants thereof of the judgments of God which should come upon them unless they repented. Jeremiah was called to warn Jerusalem and Judea in the reign of King Zedekiah, and in doing so he stirred up the anger of the people against him, and he was cast into a dungeon and abused in almost every way, because he told them what was coming to pass unless they repented. He did not praise them; but he told them that they were committing sin and breaking the laws of God, and if they did not repent, the judgments of God would overtake them. In reading of how they persecuted him and what he passed through, a man would almost expect to read in the book of Jeremiah that he said to them, "You may all go to hell for what I care, I am not going to endure these things." But you cannot read it there; for the Lord in calling him had said unto Jeremiah: Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee, and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations. Jeremiah gave forth the word of the Lord,and not one word fell unfulfilled. And so with every other prophet. Take the whole history of the world down to the present generation, and has there ever been a time when the people of God did not need revelation? I say, nay. Now, I would ask this congregation; I would ask the Jews, the Catholics, the Protestants, I would ask the clergy of all nations: Can this mighty dispensation, of which every prophet has spoken, be fulfilled, and can these great events transpire in the earth without revelation from God? No, most assuredly not. God never gave to a man a greater dispensation than the one in which Joseph Smith was called and ordained of God to organize the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It required revelation. It will require it to the winding-up scene. Zion cannot be built up without it, prophets and apostles cannot do their work without it, nor can the nations of the earth be warned of the great judgments that are at the door without it. Therefore, we say to all men, Joseph Smith was called of God by revelation. And further, we say that no man ever did or ever will have power to warn the world, to preach the Gospel, or administer in one of the ordinances of the house of god without the Holy Priesthood. It is just as necessary in the last days as it was in the days of Christ and His Apostles, or in the days of Isaiah and Jeremiah. You cannot separate these things; they belong to the same God, to the same salvation, and to the same principles of eternal life. I have sat and listened to every Apostle that is before me now bear record during this conference. Did not these Apostles speak by the Holy Ghost and the power of God? They did, and their testimony is recorded in the great library of the celestial kingdom of God. They could not edify us without it. I would to God that the inhabitants of the earth would get rid of the idea that revelation ceased when Christ was put to death. It is a false doctrine. Revelation belongs to the salvation of the children of men. Again, why did the Lord choose such a weak man as Wilford Woodruff to preside over His Church? Why did He choose Joseph Smith--an illiterate boy, as he was called? Why has He chosen that class of men? Because He could handle them. He had chosen men that will acknowledge the hand of god. The question has been asked me many times, Why did not the Lord choose some of the great divines of the day? Because it is not His manner of doing business; it never has been. You may take the apostles and prophets in any age of the world, and they have been very humble men. They are in this day and generation, or the Lord could not handle them. That is the reason the Lord has chosen the weak things of the world to confound the wise, "and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are." Could Joseph Smith rise up and boast before the God of Israel that that was his work? Could Brigham Young? Could John Taylor? Can Wilford Woodruff? Can any of the Apostles? Taken as we have been from the plow, the plane, the hammer, and the various occupations of life, can we boast we have power to do this? We cannot; we are not made of that material. The only marvel I have had all my life has been that the Lord ever chose me for anything especially as an Apostle and as President. But that is His own business; it was not mine. My name has been referred to two or three times by the Apostles with regard to my labors. I want to say something in relation to that. To begin with, I will say that the Lord has never set His hand in any age of the world, especially in ours, to establish a Zion like this, without preparing an element for it. In fact, the Lord never undertook to do anything with regard to this world, appertaining to His kingdom and work, until He had prepared a people for it. Now, the set time had come for the fulfillment of the revelations of St. John, when another angel should fly through the midst of heaven, having the everlasting Gospel to preach to them that dwelt upon the earth, "saying with a loud voice, fear God, and give glory, to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come." The time, I say, had come for the manifestation of the Gospel of Christ to the world. The Apostles of Christ and every man that bore the Priesthood in their day and generation were put to death for the word of God and testimony of Jesus, and the Holy Priesthood was caught up to God,and remained there until the day and generation in which Joseph Smith was raised up. He was ordained to the Aaronic Priesthood by John the Baptist, who held the keys of that Priesthood while dwelling in the flesh. He was ordained to the Apostleship by Peter, James, and John, who held the keys of that Priesthood while dwelling in the flesh. He was ordained to the Apostleship by Peter, James and John, who held the keys of that Priesthood when they were taken from the earth. That was the beginning of this work. The Lord could not undertake a work of this kind without there was a way and a people prepared for it. In the first place, the Lord prepared the minds of men of the generation in which Joseph Smith was born, that they might be ready to receive His work when it was established. There were men that were kept in the spirit world thousands of years to stand in the flesh in this generation to bear this Holy Priesthood and to bear record of that to the inhabitants of the earth. Those men have been born in this day, and they have been moved upon to prepare for this work. Now, I desire to say something about myself. It is generally considered egotism for a man to speak of himself; but I speak of my history and experience because it is applicable to thousands of others. Eighty years ago, when I was about eight years old, I attended Sabbath School under Dr. Porter, a great reverend divine in Farmington, Connecticut. There I read some strange things in the New Testament. What were they? Why, I read of Apostles; I read of men who laid hands on the sick, and they recovered; who cast out devils, raised the dead, caused the dumb to speak, the blind to see, the lame to leap, who held converse with God and with holy angels, and had visions and revelations. Brethren and Sisters, I read of these things when I was eight years of age. They made an impression upon my mind as soon as I read them. "Why is it, Dr. Porter,--why is it, Dr. Haws,--why is it, gentlemen, that you do not advocate in your day and generation that faith once delivered to the Saints? Why don't you receive these things, if they were the servants of God and had the Gospel?" "Oh!" said they, "these things are all done away with. They were given in the dark ages of the world to convince the world that Jesus was the christ. We live in the blaze of the glorious gospel light of Christ; we do not need them to-day." "Then," said I, "give me the dark ages of the world, if they will give a man power to unlock the door of eternity and hold converse with God, and receive these blessings and gifts manifest in that day." From that time my inspiration began. As soon as I grew a little older I began to read the revelations. My soul was drawn out upon these things. In my early manhood I prayed day and night that I might live to see a prophet. I would have gone a thousand miles to have seen a prophet, or a man that could teach me the things that I read of in the Bible. I could not join any church, because I could not find any church at that time that advocated these principles. I spent many a midnight hour, by the river side, in the mountains, and in my mill (being a miller) calling upon God that I might live to see a prophet or some man that would teach me of the things of the kingdom of god as I read them. I remained in that condition until the year 1833. I was living with my brother on the shores of Lake Ontario. A man by the name of Zera Pulsipher, sixty miles from where I lived, was moved upon in the month of December, with the snow three or four feet deep, to arise and go to the north, the Lord had some work for him there. He called upon another man to go with him. They traveled two days on the road to the north,not knowing where they were going. Our house was the first place that they stopped at. I was lumbering at the time on the shore of the lake. Zera Pulsipher told my brother's wife who they were and what they were, and what their principles were. He said the Lord had sent him into the north country to do some work there. My sister-in-law told him that her husband and myself both believed in the principles that he taught. Well, they held a meeting. I went to it, and for the first time in my life I heard a Gospel sermon. I invited the men home. I borrowed a Book of Mormon, and sat up all night and read it, and I had a testimony it was true. In the morning I asked to be baptized. Myself and brother were baptized--the first in that region of country. From that hour till this I never have had one moment's doubt with regard to the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I know the work is true. I have been called into the vineyard and ministry with the rest of my brethren, and I have traveled a great many miles and quite a number of years. I have held the Apostleship fifty-eight years. Brother Joseph only held it some fourteen before he was slain. Brother Brigham held it about forty, and Brother Taylor the same length of time as myself. I have labored all these years and I know it is the work of God. I know the Lord is with this people. I have a desire that we may magnify our callings and fulfil our position upon the earth. God has organized this Church; He has organized it with prophets, apostles, pastors, teacher, helps, etc., in fulfilment of the promises of God in the last days. I traveled with Joseph Smith quite a length of time. I traveled with Brigham Young forty years, at home and abroad. I traveled with him to this country. We came with the pioneers. Brigham Young though he never wrote many revelations, had the revelations of God with him from the day that he embraced this work till the day of his death. I have often thought of the time when he was asked if he would not go on to California instead of stopping in this barren land. What was his answer? I was with him when he gave that answer. He said, "No, I am going to stay right here. I am going to build a temple here; I am going to build a city here; I am going to build a country here." Has it not been so? Yes, it has. Was it not by revelation? Certainly it was. We have all been called from this low position in life to the Priesthood. Thousands of this people have been called to go abroad to preach the Gospel. In speaking of myself and the manner I was led, so we find it everywhere throughout the world. Where did you come from? You came from every state in the Union; from England, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, France, Ireland, and other parts of Europe, as well as from the different nations of the earth and islands of the sea. One of these simple Elders came to you and you heard him preach the Gospel, and he promised you if you would repent of your sins and be baptized for the remission of them you should receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. Did you not receive it? You did, or you would not be here to-day. Nobody could then keep you at home. We have been gathered together by the commandments of God, and so far we are trying to do the will of God. But we have only just begun. I was at the concert here last night, and I could not help but think that if President Young had been there and looked upon that vast assembly of ten thousand people, gathered not only from this territory but from neighboring states and territories, he would have felt satisfied. When he built this Tabernacle we did not have people to fill it; but he told us that in the building up of Zion we would never have a house big enough to accommodate us, however large we might build it; and so it proved last night. I enjoyed the concert. Governor Thomas invited me to address the assembly; but I felt that people had gathered there, not to hear preaching, but music. Let me speak a little further with regard to the Lord's preparing a people for this work. The history of this whole people is in that line. I will refer you to the year 1840. The Lord gave a commandment for the Twelve Apostles to go to England. There had a few gone to England before; Brother Kimball and several others went in 1837 and established the Church there. But in 1840 the Apostles were called as a body to go there; and the devil did not like. He tried to kill us all. There was hardly one of the Twelve Apostles who went that was well. When I left home President Young paddled me across the Mississippi in a canoe, and I was suffering with the chills and fever. I had spent two years in Tennessee and Kentucky, in the midst of sickness; but I never had an attack of chills and fever in my life till I was called to go England. It was so with most all of us. The devil did not like it; but we went. It was the harvest time then in that land. We accomplished a great work. We baptized about seven thousand that year, opened doors throughout England and Scotland, and laid a foundation for the work which has been fulfilled up to the present time. I will refer to one circumstance connected with that mission. I was in the potteries in Staffordshire, having gone there when I got to England. I was doing a good work there, baptizing almost every night. One night I went to Hanley to hold a meeting, and there was a very full house. Before I got up to speak, the Spirit of God came upon me and told me that that was the last meeting I should hold with that people for many days. I had appointments out for two weeks in that region of the country. After I got through preaching that night, I told them it was the last meeting I should hold with them. I went down into the water and baptized quite a number, and in the morning I went before the Lord and asked what He wanted of me. He told me to go to the south. I got into the stage and rode eighty miles south. I went into Herefordshire, and the first man's house I stopped at was John Benbow's. In one hour after I arrived at his house I learned why the Lord had sent me there. I name this because it is in the line of what I was speaking of. Here I found a company of men and women, some six hundred, who had banded together under the name of United Brethren, and were laboring for the ancient order of things. They wanted the Gospel as taught by the prophets and apostles, as I did in my youth. Well, without dwelling upon this, I will say that the first thirty days after I arrived in Herefordshire I baptized forty-five preachers and several hundred members, and I had in my hands all the chapels or houses licensed for worship according to law. We brought in two thousand in about eight months' labor. Many of these people had been looking and praying for this very work, and they were praying for it when I went there. I took no honor to myself with regard to this matter, I never felt that I could. All we have to do is to follow the dictation of the Spirit of the Lord, and give God the honor and the glory of it. We did a good work there and God blessed us. From there we went to London. Brothers Heber C. Kimball and George A. Smith and myself preached and established the first branch of the Church in the city of London. I rejoiced very much in my labors in Herefordshire, Gloucestershire, and Worcestershire, and thousands of those that were baptized then are in Utah. We had quite a number of Bishops in this Territory that I baptized at that time. The youngest I baptized there was Brother Rowberry, who was a Bishop of Tooele. He was only a boy at that time. I want to refer to one circumstance that took place while in that mission and I do it as an example of the Lord's dealings with us in matter pertaining to temporal affairs. John Benbow was a noble man. He was like an English lord; as rich a man, I suppose, as ever came into the Church. He had not been baptized a month, I do not think, when he came into a little sitting room with his wife, and he probably spent three quarters of an hour in telling me that he had been reading in the New Testament how in the days of the Apostles they sold all their possessions and laid them at the Apostles' feet, and he said he felt it was his duty to fulfil that law and he wanted to do it. I listened to him patiently and when he got through it took perhaps half an hour to tell him the difference between our position to-day and the position of the Apostles in that day. I gave him to understand that God had not sent me to England to take care of his gold, his horses, his cows and his property; He had sent me there to preach the Gospel. I told him, however, that the Lord would accept of his sacrifice, and that whenever he could do good, he should do it; he should assist the poor, help publish the Book of Mormon, etc. Now, what would have been the result if I had taken the other course, and said, "Yes give me your property and I will take care of it?" Why, he would probably have apostatized. Not only that, but there would have been one foolish Apostle, who would have been a suitable candidate for apostasy also. But was that any temptation to me? No, it was not. It would not have been to any Elder who had enough of the Spirit of God to know the difference between a hundred thousand pounds of money and a part in the first resurrection, with power to pass by the angels and the gods to exaltation and glory, and stand in the presence of God and the Lamb forever and forever. I name these things to show that there was a people prepared for this work. Go where you would and you would find spirits of this kind. That is why this people have come up here from the various nations of the earth. We have the Gospel of Christ abroad in all nations to-day as far as we have opportunity, and we have got to continue this work. The Lord is going to cut His work short in righteousness; and as I have said before, however insignificant this people may be in the eyes of the world, the God of heaven holds us responsible for preaching this Gospel to every nation under heaven, and we have it to do or we will be damned. We cannot avoid this. Why? Because, as Paul says: "Woe is unto me, if I preach not the Gospel." There is but one Gospel; never has been but one, and never will be; and Paul says: "But though,we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other Gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed." That Gospel, ye Saints of the living God, and the world, is in our hands, sent to us by the ministrations of Angels--the same Gospel that was taught from Adam to Christ, and from Christ down to our day and generation, when God has had a people on the earth. I have a great desire myself for the welfare of the Latter-day Saints. We have a great work to perform. Before I close, I want to say a few words to the Apostles and to the Saints of God. I want to say something about the devil. The devil, in the days of the Savior, got one Apostle to deny his Lord and sell Him for thirty pieces of silver. But when Judas' eyes were opened to see what he had done, he did not prize those thirty pieces of silver, but went out and hung himself. Is that devil dead? Has Lucifer, the son of the morning, gone out of existence? No; he is here to-day. He is in the midst of this people; and if there are any people under heaven that Lucifer with all the fallen angels that dwell on the earth are laboring to destroy, they are these Latter-day Saints. It was so anciently; it will be so until He who holds the keys of death and hell shall bind Satan and shut him up. Until that hour he will labor for our destruction. I want to say to these Apostles that I have seen days of trouble with the quorum of the Twelve, I have referred many times to the days in Kirtland, and my heart has had a great deal of pain over those affairs. There the devil labored with the Apostles and caused a good share of them to apostatize. One half of them apostatized, and some of the others came pretty near it. The signers or witnesses to the Book of Mormon--Oliver Cowdery, David Whitmer, and Martin Harris--all apostatized from the Church of Jesus Christ, though they never denied the Book of Mormon. In the darkest day, neither one of them ever denied that, but always maintained it to the day of his death. But I want to say to my brethren that if the devil could get one of these Apostles--yes, one of them--to believe that the Presidency of this Church were working against him, and that we did not have his welfare at heart, or if he could get a Seventy or any man in this Church to believe it, he would labor to do so. If the devil could have got the savior to have followed him, he would have over-thrown the whole plan of salvation. But he did not do it. Jesus said: "Get thee behind me, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve." So I say to these Apostles before me, if the devil could make one of you believe that we would not give you right counsel, he would do it. But he will not do it. I thank God for that. I feel I can prophesy that before God and angels. The Apostles, as a body, are united, and God has laid His Spirit upon them, and they will be true and faithful to this work until they get through with it. Those are my feelings. I rejoice in this. I trust I shall never pass through any more of those scenes that I witnessed in the days that are past and gone. Brethren and sisters, God bless you. Now, do not be afraid that the Presidency and Apostles of this Church will give you any wrong counsel. We have learned better than to do that. We shall never do that. We shall never do it while we dwell in the flesh. The salvation of the sons of men is of far more worth than all the honor that the human family can give upon our heads. Give me salvation; give me a part in the first resurrection; give me the privilege of standing in the morning of the first resurrection with the resurrected dead--with my father's house and with the prophets and apostles who have lived in my day and generation; give me power to be exalted with them in the eternal worlds in the kingdom of our God. That is all I ask. And it is my privilege and yours. It is the privilege of this people to receive these blessings at the hands of God. I have confidence in my brethren. I rejoice with them in the union that dwells to-day in the house of Israel, and with the Presidency and Twelve Apostles. We love one another. We understand something of the work of God in our day and time. We have labored together. Here are my counselors; they have spent years and years upon the islands of the sea, where they have had to live upon coconuts and poi and food of that character, and they did it to save the souls of men. God has blessed them in all their labors. He will bless them. He will bless this people. I believe this is all I want to say to you this morning. I felt sick when I arose; I feel better, now, and as though I had been refreshed in spirit. I thank God I am able to talk to you, as the saying is, in my old age. The Lord has been very merciful to me. The devil has sought to kill me from the day I was born; but God has had an agent with me to keep me from his power, and so far I have been preserved. I hope the Lord will not let me live an hour longer than I can live in His service. But I am a feeble man--weak like the rest of you. If anybody supposes that the Presidency and Apostles here are never tempted of the devil, they are mistaken. We are tempted all the time, more or less, and we have to war against these things in order to stand and maintain our position. I pray God that His blessings may rest upon us. I rejoice in this conference. It has been a glorious time. There is a good spirit here; and the testimonies that have been given unto us by the power of God have been choice. The angels are watching over us. The eyes of all the heavenly hosts are over us. Those who have lived in other dispensations understand this dispensation far better than we do, and they are watching over the labors of the Elders of Israel. I pray that we may pursue that course wherein we may be justified before God, and have power to conquer and overcome; and when we have finished here, that we can go home to receive our reward. The great library in the celestial kingdom of our God contains the history of the dealings of God with all the world, for it belongs to this world. Your history is there; mine is there; our testimonies are there; and we will have to meet them. I hope and pray that my sins may be blotted out of the book of remembrance and not to be remembered against me. I hope and pray this will be the case with you; for blessed is the man that will meet this blessing when he comes to the end! God bless you. Amen. THE MIND AND WILL OF GOD ________________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the Salt Lake Stake Conference, June 2, 1895. The speaker read from the 8th chapter of Romans, 31st to 39th verses, and then spoke as follows: We listened to two discourses this morning, one from Bishop Preston, the other from Brother John Henry Smith. Bishop Preston in his remarks, expressed a desire that the Presidency of the Church should tell the people at this Conference the mind and will of God concerning ourselves; and he hoped his hearers would give ear to and appreciate the same. In the first place, I will say, it is the mind and will of God that the Latter-day Saints should thoroughly understand for themselves that they stand in the midst of the great and last dispensation of God unto men; and that they should also thoroughly understand the responsibilities devolving upon them as actors therein. And they should never lose sight of the fact that all the powers of darkness combined will never be able to frustrate the purposes of God with regard to the work which He has set His hand to perform, in the day and generation in which we live. The Latter-day Saints should live before the Lord in such a way as to understand the position we occupy, and the duties required at our hands; for the Lord requires certain things of us in our day and generation, as He has required of His people in every age, when He has given unto them the fullness of the everlasting Gospel, and the power and authority of the holy priesthood. It is the mind and will of God that every man and woman who have entered into the marriage covenant, and who have sons and daughters given unto them, as soon as those children are old enough, should teach them to pray. It is the duty of the Latter-day Saints to teach their children to pray while they are young; to teach them to understand the principle and benefits of prayer, so that they can pray for their parents and everything that is necessary. If you begin with children in this way, and you train them up in the fear of the Lord, they will seldom depart therefrom. The head of the family should not do all the praying himself, but should call upon members of his family to pray, and to ask the blessing at table. In our zeal to preach the Gospel to the people of all nations, we should not forget the duties devolving upon us in regard to the proper bringing up of our own children, instilling in them, when young, a love for truth and virtue, and reverence for sacred things, and affording them a knowledge of the principles of the Gospel. And then, we are surrounded at home with many to whom it is our duty to preach, for it is just as necessary to preach at home as abroad. Sixty-five years have passed away since the organization of this Church by the Prophet Joseph Smith, who was raised up by God, the Eternal Father, and ministered to by holy angels in fulfillment of the revelations of St. John. The holy priesthood was given unto him. He was ordained to the Aaronic priesthood under the hands of John the Baptist; and to the Melchizedek priesthood and apostleship under the hands of Peter, James and John, giving him power to lay the foundation of this great and mighty dispensation, to prepare the whole world for the coming of the Son of Man. He lived but a short time, but he accomplished an immense amount of work while he did live. This congregation today are enjoying the fruits and blessings of the principles which God revealed through him. And I will say to the Latter-day Saints, the Lord is not trifling with us. He is not trifling with the nation in which we live, or with the generation in which we live. The events which are transpiring almost daily, dealing out death and destruction to our fellow men, are all foreshadowed in the revelations of God. We live in a day when the Lord is going to cut His work short in righteousness. The blood of righteous men has been shed in our day, as well as in former days; men reject the message of life and salvation today as freely as they ever did, and they must abide the consequences. It is the will of God also that we should pay our tithes and offerings; it is His will that we should obey the Word of Wisdom; it is His will that we should keep the commandments, and teach them to others. We shall be held responsible for all we fail to do which we ought to do, as well as that which we do. We should be of one heart and of one mind, and not permit anything of a temporal or spiritual nature to separate us from the love of God and man. I feel that the Lord has been very merciful to us as a people, notwithstanding the extraordinary experiences which we have passed through during the last sixty odd years of our existence as a Church. We are now permanently located in the midst of these Rocky Mountains, in fulfillment of predictions of ancient prophets. The Elders, though they were from the plow and the workshop, men with little education at first, went forth with the authority of the holy priesthood as messengers of God to man; and they promised you, in the name of Jesus, that you should receive a testimony for yourselves by the gift and power of the Holy Ghost, that you should know for yourselves whether the doctrines they taught were true or not. Now, if I should call upon you all to testify by the uplifted hand who have received this testimony in accordance with the promise made to you, we would see a regular forest of hands in this congregation. You did receive this testimony in your own lands. Had this not been the case, you never would have gathered here to these valleys. I feel anxious myself to do my duty, and I feel anxious about the Latter-day Saints doing their duties. Great events are at the door. The Lord is going to make comparatively short work in the earth in fulfillment of the predictions of His servants and His own revelations, and we, above all other people, should be able to recognize His dealings and acknowledge His hand. And as I said before I say again, we ought to be united and we ought to seek each other's welfare. We ought to teach the principles of the Gospel of Christ to our sons and to our daughters, as well as to the world, and prepare ourselves for the events to come which are spoken of in the revelations which the Lord has given unto us. He has already commenced His work, His marvelous work, and a wonder, among the inhabitants of the earth, referred to by Isaiah. He will never withdraw His hand until His purposes are accomplished. Men want to know what is coming to pass. Read the revelations of St. John. I have often referred to them, because in them, as well as in other revelations given unto us in our day, is foreshadowed what is coming to pass in the last days. Now I want to bear my testimony to the Latter-day Saints. God is with this people. He is shaping our course, and will continue to do so if we will only hearken to His voice, and He will continue to give unto us sufficient grace to withstand the day of trial and trouble. The Lord has been merciful to His people in every age of the world; but as Christ suffered, as the Apostles suffered--some of them even unto death--for the testimony of Jesus, so have the Latter-day Saints suffered, and some of them have also sealed their testimony with their life's blood. They have been called upon to pass through sore afflictions for the Gospel's sake, but we have never been required to endure more than we were able to bear, and never shall so long as we follow the counsels of heaven. We have been led to these valleys of the mountains, and as events shall follow each other in fulfillment of the inspired writings, it will become more and more apparent to all men that Zion is a good place to live in. Do the nations of the earth understand what is taking place in the earth? They do not. It is all the Latter-day Saints themselves can do to understand them. Now, Latter-day Saints, let us try to do right. Let us try to live our religion. Let us try to prepare ourselves for things to come. You are here on a mission, and so am I. The spirits of thousands upon thousands of men have been kept in the spirit world to come forth in the flesh in this generation to take part in the building up of the Kingdom of God on this His earth, and to be messengers of salvation to warn all the world and the islands of the sea of the judgments that are to come, and to offer them the Gospel of Christ. That has been our mission from the beginning; it will be our mission unto the end. And my prayer to God, my brethren and sisters, is that we may be able to see and understand the things transpiring in the earth, and have a conscienceness within us that we are performing acceptably to God and His servants what is required of us as His servants and handmaidens. When I look back and contemplate the character of the men who have spent their lives traveling and preaching abroad and traveling at home to establish this great latter-day work, Apostles and Elders and good men, also women, who have finished their mission and passed to the other side of the veil to continue their labors, and who await the coming forth of their bodies from the grave, I rejoice and thank God for the work they have done. I want to be worthy of their society when I shall finish my labors in the flesh, and worthy to inherit the blessings that God has promised through the Gospel. They labored for eternal life. That is of far more value to us than all the riches of this world put together. They will perish, while the true riches of the Gospel are everlasting. When you go to the other side of the veil, you will naturally want to meet and associate with those people. In order to enjoy their society you must labor to build up Zion and have the love of God and your fellowmen continually burning within you. The only way to do that is to keep the commandments of God. When I reflect upon the power we have had to erect Temples unto the name of the Most High God in these valleys, and the privileges we have of going into those Temples and doing the work necessary for our own salvation and for the redemption of our dead as well, I rejoice greatly, and feel that we have been greatly blessed. I pray that we may be able to magnify our calling and be worthy of the blessings of eternal life, that we may stand justified before the Lord, in the name of Jesus, Amen. CONFERENCE GREETINGS _______________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the Sixty-sixth Annual General Conference of the Church, held in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Saturday, April 4, 1896. Our hearts ought to be filled this morning with gratitude and thanksgiving to God our Heavenly Father, for the blessings that we enjoy at the present time, for the privilege of assembling this glorious morning in this tabernacle, in the Sixty-sixth annual conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. If there is any man on the face of the earth who ought to be thankful, who ought to have gratitude, who ought to be faithful to the God of Heaven and the Church and kingdom of God, it is myself. When we look over the field in the last sixty-six years, and see all that the Lord has done since the organization of this Church, the number who have passed away, and the many changes which have taken place, we ought to be thankful for the blessings of God. Our history has been a very peculiar one, and we have been called to pass through many events. We have arrived where the promises of God in the revelations in the Bible, Book of Mormon, and Doctrine and Covenants, by the voice of the Prophets of God, are being fulfilled before our eyes, before the heavens, and before the earth. We stand here to-day with this great and mighty responsibility resting upon us as the Holy Priesthood and the Saints of the Living God, to labor, and to be true and faithful to God, to our covenants, to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, to those laws and principles which God has revealed concerning the last dispensation and the fulness of times. I feel thankful for these blessings, and hope that during this conference the Apostles and the Elders of Israel and the people may be filled with the inspiration of the Almighty God; that we might comprehend and understand the position we occupy to-day in the sight of heaven and earth; that the Spirit and power of God may be with us, that we may know the mind and will of God and rejoice together and be able to perform the things required at our hands. I ask God to bless the Latter-day Saints who are assembled in this conference, that these blessings may dwell with us during these meetings, from henceforth and forever. Amen. GREAT BLESSINGS ________________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the General Conference of the Church, held in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, April 5, 1896. The highest calling the Lord ever called any human being to, in any age of the world, has been to receive the Holy Priesthood, with its keys and powers, and to be called to go forth to the inhabitants of the earth and teach them the principles of the Gospel of Jesus Christ,and to qualify and prepare them for a part in the first resurrection and to go back into the presence of God, their Creator, to dwell in glory worlds without end. The Lord bestowed that blessing, that Priesthood and that power in the beginning of creation. Father Adam was called of God and ordained to the fullness of the Melchisedek Priesthood--ordained to the highest office and gift of God to man on the earth. Adam bestowed that blessing upon seven of his sons--Seth, Enos, Jared, Canaan, Mahalaleel, Enoch and Methuseleh. They were all ordained High Priests by their father Adam, and possessed the privilege and the right to understand the Gospel of Jesus Christ and to give it to the human family, so that they might qualify and prepare themselves for eternal life. In tracing the history of the dealings of God with men from that day to this, we find the Lord has in various dispensations and times given unto the sons of men that blessing. Israel had it in the beginning, from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob down, and until Moses, who traveled with the children of Israel forty years in the wilderness. They had the gifts and graces of that Priesthood bestowed upon them, and they had the privilege of magnifying their callings and preparing themselves for eternal life. But Israel would not accept the Melchisedek Priesthood, and therefore it was taken from them, and the Lesser Priesthood was conferred upon them while they traveled in the wilderness. It is not necessary for me to spend time in tracing this Priesthood through the six thousand years that have past and gone; but it has been manifest in every age and dispensation when God has had prophets and apostles on the earth. Jesus Christ came into the world in the meridian of time. He was the Great High Priest to Israel. He was the Son of God, the Savior of the world. He chose His Apostles, He organized His Church. He bestowed upon these Apostles all the gifts and graces belonging to the apostleship. In that dispensation it seems that they were called to lay down their lives for the word of God and testimony of Jesus Christ. The Savior himself was put to death. the Apostles were all, with one exception, put to death in their day and time, until finally the Priesthood was taken home to God, and remained there for a length of time. But my views are that whenever the inhabitants of the earth were prepared for the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the power of the Priesthood, it has been bestowed upon them. In the days of the Savior and His Apostles, John the Revelator, while upon the Isle of Patmos, gave an outline of great events which were to transpire in the last dispensation of the fulness of times. Other prophets and apostles, who spoke as they were moved upon by the Holy Ghost, left on the pages of history a record of what the Lord would do in the last dispensation. Among the great events that the Revelator saw was the one described in the 14th chapter of his Revelation, and which is often quoted by our elders, because it is very applicable. 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. If this revelation had not been fulfilled, neither you nor I would be here to-day, this Tabernacle would not be erected, this city would be still part of the Great American Desert, as we found it; but in the fulfillment of the revelations of God, these things have been done and some of us have lived to see them. The angel of God did visit Joseph Smith, the Prophet of God, who was raised up by the power of God as a prophet, seer and revelator, and who organized the Church of Jesus Christ in the earth. From that day until this the work has progressed and the Gospel has been preached. The Holy Ghost has been with the people. The Lord Almighty has set His hand to carry out the great programme--to establish the Zion of God in the earth and to prepare the people for the coming of the Son of Man. These are my views with regard to the calling of men in this dispensation. Gold and silver may pass away; houses and lands may perish; all temporal matters will pass away; but the Priesthood never, salvation never, the kingdom of God never, and prophecy will never fall unfulfilled. We have had Apostles now for upwards of sixty years. Many have died and gone to the other side of the veil; and those upon whom God bestowed the glory and power of the organization of the Church have sealed their testimony with their blood, as the ancient Apostles did. They have gone home to receive their reward; but that organization has remained; the Holy Priesthood has been given to the sons of men and has remained upon their heads, and will remain upon the heads of this people until the coming of the Son of Man. Therefore, I say to the Latter-day Saints, we are in this organization to-day. I do not pretend to say exactly the number that we have in the Priesthood; but we have from fifteen to twenty thousand Elders in this Church; we have many various organizations of the Priesthood, and churches are organized throughout the world as far as we have had an opportunity. I have been called, these Apostles have, many of the Elders have, to go to the nations of the earth and the islands of the sea to preach the Gospel to our fellow-men. What greater calling can any man have on the face of the earth than to hold in his hands power and authority to go forth and administer in the ordinances of salvation? Do we prize these things in their fullness? I do not think we do. Nevertheless, so far we have been enabled to maintain our position, and to go forth and fulfill our missions as far as we have had time and opportunity. Certainly there has been nothing in this work that I have had greater consolation in than in preaching the Gospel to my fellow-men and in administering unto them the ordinances of the house of God, both for the living and the dead. I may say the same with regard to my brethren who are called to perform those ordinances. There was something said yesterday by the brethren with regard to our sons and our missionaries abroad. I will say for myself--and when I say it for myself I think I speak for a great many others--there is no joy that I have ever had that has been greater than that which has come to me in having sons receive the Holy Priesthood and go forth and administer among the nations of the earth the ordinances of life and salvation. It is a glorious gift to the sons of men. It is what men have not enjoyed before us for the last eighteen hundred years almost. Then should we not prize these things? Yes, we should. The Lord, in the dispensation of His providences, has given to us an army of sons and daughters, and our sons are called to go to the nations of the earth. We want to instill into their minds the importance of these blessings to the inhabitants of the earth and the saving of souls from sin. You give unto any soul the principles of life and salvation and administer these ordinances to him, and you become an instrument in the hands of God in the salvation of that soul. There is nothing given to the children of men that is equal to it. This is our position to-day in these mountains. We have been led here by the power of God--led by a prophet, seer and revelator, President Brigham Young, who was full of the Holy Ghost and full of revelation, appointed of the Lord, and who magnified his calling up to the hour of his death. We came here and found a barren desert. From that day till this it has been a continual growth and increase, until we have arrived at a point where we have a tabernacle as a "shadow in the daytime from the heat * * * and for a covert from storm and from rain." These things have all been prophesied of thousands of years ago by the ancient prophets and patriarchs who foresaw the work of God in the last days. I want to say a few words to our young men who are rising up among us. I want them to comprehend and understand the blessings that are within their reach. The Lord has given us a large number of sons and daughters. They have got to take the places of their fathers, the same as the sons of Adam had in his day and generation. A great responsibility rests upon them. The Lord requires at the hands of our sons that they shall bear off this kingdom of our God while they dwell in the flesh, that they may be justified. The Lord told Oliver Cowdery, "And if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father." It requires light, knowledge, and understanding; it requires the spirit and power of God for us to comprehend our position, our blessings, and our gifts that God has placed upon us. I feel to rejoice and thank God myself that I have lived to see what I do in these valleys of the mountains; that I have lived to see these multitudes that fill these tabernacles and temples and labor here in the building up of the kingdom of God. The Lord has been very merciful to me, and my life has been preserved to pass through these things, and I still remain in the midst of this people. I have to acknowledge the hand of God in the whole of it. I suppose you have to do so with regard to your lives. The fact is, there is not a blessing that God has bestowed upon us from the beginning but has been the gift of God. We should understand this. We have preached the Gospel to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people, as far as the Lord has opened doors for us and we have had the privilege of going. Still the world to-day is full of people who have not heard the Gospel of Jesus Christ; and while the Priesthood rests upon our shoulders we are still under obligation and are still held responsible for the salvation of the children of men, as far as we have the privilege of bestowing these gifts upon the sons and daughters of Adam. Only think that by embracing the Gospel of Christ we can become heirs of God and joint heirs with Jesus Christ, that we can have part in the first resurrection, and come forth out of our graves and be clothed with glory, immortality, and eternal lives, and pass into the presence of God and the Lamb and dwell with them eternally in the heavens! Who comprehends this? Do the inhabitants of the earth? They do not. Satan has warred against us from the organization of this Church, to try and destroy this people; but so far we have been preserved. We should be thankful for these blessings. I realize myself that we are dependent upon the Lord in all things. The Lord is our preserver. He is the author of our salvation. Jesus Christ has laid down His life to redeem us by His blood, and through that we have these blessings bestowed upon us. Among other things, we live in a generation in which the Lord has enabled us to rear several temples--some in these mountains and some before we came here; and hundreds and thousands of people go into these temples to redeem their dead. This is a blessing the Latter-day Saints should prize. It is a duty that is required at our hands to do what we can in this direction. It is a blessing that the inhabitants of the earth have not had for centuries until this dispensation. I hope that no man who has got a record of his father's house will go down to his grave without having attended to this work. How would I feel, after living as long as I have, with the privileges I have had of going into these temples, to go into the spirit world without having done this work? I meet my father's house, I meet my mother's house, I meet my progenitors, and they are shut up in prison; I held the keys of their salvation, and yet did nothing for them; what would be my feelings, or what would their feelings toward me? They would not like it. I feel that while the Lord has given us this blessing, every man and woman in this Church that has any faith at all in God and in the Gospel should attend to this duty. Jesus Christ, while His body lay in the tomb, went and preached to the spirits in prison, that were drowned in the days of Noah by the flood, because of their wickedness and abominations. They had been in prison for a long time, and He went and preached to them, "that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit." Joseph Smith, Hyrum Smith, David Patten, and the Apostles and Elders who have been true and faithful unto death have also gone to the spirits in prison in their day and time and preached the Gospel of Christ to their fathers' houses and to those who are shut up in prison, and they are laboring there for the salvation of the children of men. These are glorious principles--principles which the Latter-day Saints should not neglect while they have the privilege and power. As I said in the beginning, there is no calling a man can be called to any greater than to have this right and privilege to go forth and save the souls of men--save them by preaching the Gospel to them, by administering the ordinances of the house of God to them, that they may be prepared themselves to go into the kingdom of heaven and into a celestial glory. There are three glories. Paul in speaking upon that subject said, "There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars: for one star differeth from another star in glory. So also is the resurrection of the dead." These glories over-shadow the whole human family. Now, how much better it is for a man to receive these ordinances, that he may go where God and Christ dwell, which is the highest glory! But Jesus said in His day, "Strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it;" while "Broad is the way that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat." I think many times that we ourselves do not prize the blessings that we enjoy and that are within our reach. Our hearts should be set upon the building up of the kingdom of God, the Zion of God, and the work of God, while we are here and have power to perform these things. It is our duty as the Presidency and as Apostles, not only to labor ourselves, but to send forth the Elders of Israel to the nations of the earth to proclaim the Gospel. Doors are open to-day among many of the nations for the spread of the Gospel of Christ, and to bring the people unto Christ, that they may receive these blessings. Brethren and sisters, this is the way I feel this morning. Of all people under heavens we should be the best, the most righteous, and the most true and faithful to God and to our fellow-men. We should be true and faithful to the Holy Priesthood while we have it resting upon us, and true to our labors. I rejoice at our condition to-day. I rejoice at the peace that has come unto us by the power and blessing of God. I rejoice at the change that is taking place in the world. We are visited now by hundreds of people from the nations of the earth. They are coming to behold the glory of Zion. They come to enquire at our hands concerning various matters, and there is a very different feeling to what there was in former days toward us. Brother John W. Taylor referred to our going to St. Louis and to Chicago. Yes, I recollect very well when we went into Jackson County, Missouri. My labors there have been alluded to. When I went on my first mission in 1834, I had to go through Jackson County on my way to Arkansas. It was just after our brethren had been driven out. I had to go and hide in the cornfields and in the brush during the day, and walk along in the night, till I got through that country, for the lives of myself and companion were in danger there. The last time I went there, the Mayor of Independence came out to meet us with a fine carriage. He had but one arm having lost the other in the army, but he gave us that arm and made us welcome. I could not help but feel the difference between then and when I went through there as a missionary. There is a change taking place. Zion is going to rise and shine, and the glory of God will rest upon her. This people, if they do their duty, will fulfil and carry out these great principles, and the eyes of the world will be turned toward Zion, and men will come to enquire concerning the things of the kingdom of God. We are in a good condition. We are blessed of the Lord. The Latter-day Saints have never been so well off temporally. Go into the houses of the Latter-day Saints, and you will find them in a better position than they have ever been before. These are the blessings of God, and we should prize these things and give God the glory for them, while we try to do our duty and magnify our calling. I want to say that I am in for salvation and for eternal life. I have labored for that since I was a boy. I have desired the gift, and graces, and blessings manifest in the days of Jesus and His Apostles. In my childhood I prayed God that I might live to see a prophet or somebody who could teach me the principles I read in the New Testament. The clergy of the day did not do it. Nobody around there appeared to believe in such things. Well, I have lived to see prophets and apostles; I have lived to travel with them and to unite with them in the kingdom of God. I have been in the apostleship fifty-eight years; I have been in the Church sixty-three years. My whole life almost has been spent in this Church; and from the time I came into the Church I went on missions and have never ceased altogether from that day to this. I have always rejoiced in this, and do to-day. When I die and lay down my body, I do not want anybody to rise up and say that I have neglected my duty in trying to give him salvation as far as I could. I have always rejoiced in preaching the Gospel; I have rejoiced in administering the ordinances of life and salvation at home and abroad, because I have known that this was the work of God, and I know it is to-day. I want to say now to the rising generation, gird up the loins of your minds, prepare yourselves, and realize you have a mission before you. Who are going to bear this kingdom off when we go to the grave? To whom does the God of Israel look to do this? He looks to our sons and daughters that are rising up here. This responsibility rests upon them, and I hope they will fulfill and magnify their calling. There is nothing like it on earth. You may get the riches of the world; they pass away; but eternal life, celestial glory, a place with the righteous after resurrection, with immortal bodies, are worth more than all this world can give. I have confidence to believe that the Latter-day Saints will carry out these principles and magnify their calling before the Lord. I have hopes that our sons and daughters will do the same. Brethren and sisters, I say, God bless you. I am glad to meet with you. I rejoice in the Gospel, in the kingdom of God, and in the Holy Priesthood. I pray God to bless you, to open your eyes to see, and ears to hear, and your hearts to understand. I pray God to open your understanding, that you may comprehend the value and blessing of the Gospel that you have received and of the blessings of these temples and tabernacles in the midst of which you have the privilege of dwelling and receiving the ordinances of God. I pray that we may pursue that course that when we get on the other side of the veil we shall be satisfied with our record. We will find our history and our record there in the great library of the celestial kingdom of our God, and we will know what we have been doing in this life. If we do anything that is wrong we will be sorry for it. We should repent of wrong and try to do better. I pray that the Spirit of God may be with us to guide and direct us in our labors until we get through here, then when we pass away we may be received in the kingdom of God. We shall rejoice if we do right; for our eyes have not seen, our ears have not heard, and it has never entered into the hearts of the children of men the glory that lies before the sons and daughters of Adam. It is hidden from our eyes to-day, and will never be open to us until we enter into the presence of God and the Lamb. Amen. ADMONISHING THE RISING GENERATION _______________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the Salt Lake Stake Conference, held in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday, June 7, 1896. I suppose it is expected that while I live and am able to meet with the Saints I shall do a little talking and take my turn with the rest. I feel disposed to speak a few moments on this occasion, if I can get the spirit of it. listened to two very interesting discourses here this forenoon by two of the Apostles. I was very much edified with both of them, because they were true. When the Lord called Joseph Smith as a prophet, seer and revelator to organize this church, he organized it for all time and for all purposes necessary to prepare the inhabitants of the earth for the coming of the Son of Man. I think sometimes that even the Saints of God almost forget their position, their calling, their responsibility, and what God requires at their hands. Brother Abraham H. Cannon referred this morning to the Mutual Improvement Associations and conveyed the idea that there was but a small percentage of our young men in this Stake of Zion who attended these associations. Now, I want to say a few words upon that subject. I want to have our young men open their ears, their eyes, their hearts, their spirits, and look about themselves and understand where they are and what their position is. The God of heaven has set His hand to build up Zion; has set His hand to purify the earth, and to establish a people on the earth to be prepared for the coming of the Son of Man. The Latter-day Saints who dwell in these mountains have this responsibility resting upon them; and no man who has had the privileges of this Gospel, and who has parents in the Church of God, can throw off this responsibility. It is the desire of the authorities of the Church and of the parents of these young men and maidens who dwell here, that they should rise up and magnify their calling and fulfill their position in the earth. There is no other people under heaven that enjoy the privileges that the Latter-day Saints have, and that our sons and daughters have in our organizations in the midst of Israel. I am anxious that all Latter-day Saints, from the Presidency of the Church down to the last member, should understand clearly in their minds that the God of heaven is not trifling with this people, is not trifling with this generation, nor with the inhabitants of the earth. All that He has said, all that He has inspired His prophets to prophesy, from father Adam down to our day, concerning this generation and the inhabitants of the earth, will have its fulfillment in the earth. No power can stay the hand of God in this thing. Blessed is that man who has got a son that is ready and willing to go forth to the nations of the earth and warn the world, to prepare them for the judgments which await the world, and to save the souls of men. There is nothing more pleasing to me than to see our sons willing to go upon missions, either at home or abroad; to see them laying the foundation in their youth and early manhood to become useful in the kingdom of God and useful in the world at large. Our Heavenly Father requires this mission and this warning at the hands of these Apostles, and the Presidents of the Church, and the Elders of Israel, and the Latter-day Saints. We are all held responsible for the course we pursue in these things. I have a great anxiety myself that none of our sons will forsake the kingdom of God and turn to those things that are not profitable, sacrificing the Gospel and the privileges that lie before us for the sake of the pleasures of this world. Our sons should not do that. Our daughters should encourage their brothers to magnify their calling and to do their duty in their day and time. Our Sabbath schools and our Mutual Improvement associations should be attended by all the young men in Israel. The Sabbath schools have a very good attendance. I think there are nearly one hundred thousand enrolled in the Sabbath schools in these mountains of Israel. I hope that we may pursue that course ourselves wherein we may be justified before the Lord. The hand of God has been manifest in this Church from its organization until today. Sixty-six years have past and gone since the Prophet Joseph organized the Church, and hundreds and thousands have been inspired by the spirit and power of God to embrace the Gospel. This spirit was upon me in my boyhood. The first sermon I heard an Elder in Israel preach I believed, and went forth and was baptized. And from that day to this, I will say before God, angels and men, in all that I have passed through in this Church, there never has been one moment that I have had any doubt in my mind with regard to the work of God. I have been in the midst of leading men, some of whom have apostatized and turned away; but I have never seen anything that ever tempted me to turn to the right or left from obeying the commandments of God or believing in the revelations of God. We as Latter-day Saints believe the Bible; but are we looking for the fulfillment of the Bible? Read the revelations of St. John, and read what is coming to pass in the last days before the coming of the Son of Man. These things are beginning to manifest themselves in the earth, and they will continue until the scene is wound up and prophecy is fulfilled. I will take the liberty of saying today that what you have seen going abroad of late in our own nation and among the inhabitants of the earth, there is a meaning to it. Does anybody understand it? Does anybody comprehend why all of a sudden, so to speak, these judgments are manifest, laying waste our cities and towns? This is only the beginning of these judgments that are going to awake the world; and they will continue until the rivers and the seas turn to blood and to gall, and many of the inhabitants of the earth will die because of these things. They have all been portrayed, and they will be fulfilled. My brethren and sisters, this work is upon us. There is no getting away from it if we expect to gain salvation and exaltation. It was laid upon Joseph Smith and those who have followed him in the Priesthood. We as Elders of Israel have gone abroad to the nations in our day and time, and we know for ourselves, and not for another, that the gifts and graces follow the Elders of Israel in our day as they have in the days of Christ and the Apostles. You all know this. I do not suppose that there is a man among us who is not acquainted with these things. Those gifts and graces have always followed the Priesthood and the administration of the Elders. The sick have been healed, devils have been cast out, the blind have been made to see, the deaf have heard, the Gospel of Christ has been manifest in all its power from the beginning of the Church. If this were not the work of God, these things would not have been manifested as they have been. I am not telling you anything that is new to you. These things belong to the Gospel of Christ. They were with the Apostles of Christ in His day. There is one thing I have sometimes marveled at--that Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God, the Savior of the world, with the great and mighty work which rested upon His shoulders, only dwelt in the flesh three years and a half after he entered into the ministry. Joseph Smith, who was called to lay the foundation of this work, spent fourteen years in the flesh after the Church was organized. John the revelator, when speaking of the events that were to take place in the last days, says: 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. Yes, the hour of God's judgment is come. The Lord raised up Joseph Smith through the loins of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and Joseph and Ephraim, and He gave unto him this work; He put into his hands the Book of Mormon, which was hid up in the Hill Cumorah by ancient Moroni. All the powers of earth and hell apparently sought to destroy him while he held that, so that it should not be translated; but God delivered him, and he lived to translate the work into the English language, and since then it has been translated into a great many languages and published to the world. The Lord also gave unto him this Book of Doctrine and Covenants, containing the grandest revelations that God ever gave to man. He lived to reveal that to the Church of God and to the world as well as to translate the Book of Mormon. He accomplished this great work in a short time, and then laid down his life for the word of God and testimony of Jesus Christ. He has gone home with the rest of the martyrs, awaiting the coming of the Son of Man and beholding the judgments of God laying waste the inhabitants of the earth, in fulfillment of revelation and prophecy. Brethren and sisters, my feelings are that we ought to improve our time, and do what we can, no matter what the world says of us or what is reported about us. We have our duties to perform, and we have got to build up the kingdom of God. This is our duty while we dwell in the flesh, and when we get through we will lie down and sleep in death, and go into the spirit world, and if we are righteous, mingle with those faithful ones who have gone before us and prepare for the coming of the Son of Man. My prayer to God is that we may have power to magnify our calling, as Apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ and Elders of Israel, and to do our duty. We have but one life here. Some of us may live longer than others; but it matters not whether this life be long or short, we will be held responsible for what we do while we dwell in the flesh. I pray God to inspire the hearts of our sons and daughters, that they may comprehend the importance and the worth of the salvation of the souls of men, and of attending these Sabbath schools and these improvement meetings, and that we all may make a right use of these gifts and graces while they are in our hands. I feel to ask God for His blessings to rest upon us as the Presidency of the Church, the Twelve Apostles, and all the quorums of the Priesthood. I feel to ask God to bless our sisters who are laboring in the Primary Associations, the Improvement Associations, and the Relief Societies, and in all the capacities in which they are called to labor, as well as the brethren, in the building up of the kingdom of God. Amen. DISCOURSES Delivered by Presidents Wilford Woodruff and Joseph F. Smith, at the Funeral of Apostle Abraham H. Cannon, held in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday, July 26, 1896. Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labors; and their works do follow them. If there is a spirit on earth who will rest from his labors it is Brother Abraham Hoagland Cannon, whose body lies before us this afternoon; and his works will surely follow him. I have almost felt that his labors were too much. He was overwhelmed with labor and care. He labored for the benefit of Israel, for his brethren, for the work of God; and certainly his departure from us is a heavy blow to us all. It is not confined to his wives and children, his father, his friends and relatives; but it rests upon us all; we all feel the weight and force of it. I want to say a few words to his family and friends in relation to this blow that has fallen upon us as a Church, as a people, as well as upon his family. I will say that his father, President George Q. Cannon, has received this with all that patience and humility that belong to his character. I have hardly ever seen a man called to part with a son as he has exhibit the same composure and reconciliation to the will of God as Brother Cannon has. As to his brothers and sisters, it is a blow to them all. It has come suddenly upon them--unexpected, we may say; and, of course, it is a trial. But there are two sides to this question. With regard to his wives and children, I want to say a few words upon that subject. I do not intend to talk long; but in order to answer my mind with regard to his family I have to pursue a course I have never pursued before this people or before the world appertaining to this subject. I want to refer to the plurality of wives and to the plurality of families that men possess in this Church.1 It is a subject I have left alone as a general thing in all my observations and instructions before the public. I refer to it now because I want to allude to Brother Abraham's character. The course he has pursued has been before the world and the people. It has not been hid behind a bushel. Nor has been the course that the Latter-day Saints have pursued. It has been different in a great measure, from that of the inhabitants of the earth in our day and generation. We have had a plurality of wives and families. The principle was introduced to this people by the revelation of God through the Prophet Joseph Smith. This was carried out and practiced by a small percentage of the Latter-day Saints, until the time came when the law of the land forbade our carrying out that principle, and we submitted to the laws of the land, as a body and as a people, with regard to this principle. But I want to say this--and I want you to hear it; there is not one particle of law on any statute book of the United States, or a ruling of any court, from the district court to the Supreme court of the United States, or by the President of the United States, or his cabinet, or the Congress of the United States, wherein a man who has received wives and children under the law of God is required to cast those wives and children into the street and make vagabonds of them. No such law as this had been given, and if there were such a law it would be a very cruel one. Inasmuch as these women have been taken under the law, and have given themselves to our care, and have done so righteously, in virtue of holiness and uprightness before the Lord, is any man justified in casting these women and children into the streets? No. And any man in this Church who has got a plurality of wives, given to him under the law of the Lord, who will not feed and clothes those wives and children, and educate, and take care of them, he is under condemnation before God. No man is justified in that. If I have any wives given to me of the Lord, it is my duty to take care of them, and to take care of their children, feed and clothe and educate them, and do what I can for their benefit. Why? Because they belong to me. They do not belong to anybody else, but will be mine in time and eternity, if I do my duty and keep the commandments of God. And so it is with you. I hope there is not a man in this Church that will feel to cast off his wives and children because of the laws that have been enacted for our benefit. Brother Cannon has carried this principle out to perfection. He has thoroughly provided for his wives, as far as I know, all alike. He has done all in his power to lay a foundation to make them comfortable after his departure. He has done the same by his children. And he has been blessed in this principle. Therefore, I consider he is justified. He has finished his work here. He has gone into the spirit world. His mother is there, and, I suppose with him now. I have no doubt that they are rejoicing together. But he has left a family. He has done all a mortal man could do to leave them comfortable after his departure. Brother Cannon has been a very peculiar man. He has been a man that never has complained scarcely of anything on earth. He has been willing to take a great load upon him, and to do all that he could for the benefit of the Church and of his brethren wherever he has been. Of course, his labors are cut short, suddenly. But he awaits the morning of the resurrection, the coming forth with his wives and children, his father and mother, family and friends, to be united with them upon that occasion. I want to say to the children of Brother Abraham Cannon: It will be but a little while till your father will be with you, standing in his immortal body and glory, that death cannot destroy nor affect. When I look and reflect upon this Church, upon the blessings and revelations of God, upon the salvation of God, I consider that of all men and women under heaven we have the greatest reason to rejoice before the Lord. We have had a good deal to do in our day and time; but the Lord has assisted us in performing this work. One goes, and another comes. I look around me, and how many there are departed from us! Yes, a large host have left this Church here and gone to the grave with their bodies, while their spirits are in the spirit world preparing to return with the Lord Jesus Christ when He shall come in the clouds of heaven to reward every man according to the deeds done in the body. When I reflect upon this, and realize what a little time will elapse before Abraham Cannon will stand with his family and friends and the Saints of God in glory, in immortal bodies, I think these things should comfort us, and comfort our children and our families. Brethren and sisters, I find myself hoarse, and I do not feel that I can talk much. But I felt I wanted to say so much to my friends and to my brethren and sisters. I say, God bless you. May God bless the father of Brother Abraham, and bless his wives and his children, his brothers and sisters, and all the family. They are a family that have been united in love. They have had a good example set them. The blessings of God have been over them. I hope and trust we may all pursue that course that we may be justified and be prepared to pass to the other side of the veil as he has done. God grant it, for Christ's sake. Amen. COMING JUDGMENTS _______________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the General Conference, in the Tabernacle, Sunday, October 4, 1896. If I ever felt thankful in my life for anything, I do this morning that I am alive, that I stand in the flesh and have again the privilege of assembling in conference. I am thankful that I have the privilege of meeting in this capacity Prophets, Patriarchs, Apostles, Elders and Latter-day Saints. For the sixty-three years of the sixty-six since the organization of the Church I have been blessed to meet, when at home, with the general conferences of the Church. I have listened to the testimony of Prophets and Apostles and Elders of Israel, including that good and great man, the Prophet Joseph Smith, whom God raised up and appointed from before the foundation of the world to stand in the flesh in the latter days and organize the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, to prepare the way for the coming of the Son of Man, to warn the whole world as far as doors should be opened, and to prepare for the great events to transpire in the generation in which we live. The testimony of the Prophet Joseph has been a strong one concerning the great and last dispensation of God to man on the earth. Upwards of eighteen hundred years have rolled away since the death of the Savior of the world and His Apostles, and the God of heaven knows what it cost the Jewish nation to shed the blood of their Savior and their Shiloh, and the blood of the Apostles. The blood of the Lord's anointed which was shed by that nation in that day cost more than the human family can comprehend. Well might the Savior say, while passing through that ignominious death upon the cross, "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do." Truly, they knew not what they did; but the effect of it has been manifest with the house of Israel now for eighteen hundred years, and the end is not yet. So I will say with regard to the Gentiles. The God of heaven knows what it will cost them for shedding the blood of the Prophet of God and his brother, and the Apostles and brethren who laid down their lives for the word of God and testimony of Jesus Christ. It costs something to shed righteous blood. And the Gentiles have not got eighteen hundred years before them in which to pay the debt. The words of the Lord have got to be fulfilled upon them in the day and generation in which these holy men have been slain. I refer to these things because I know not how long I may have the privilege of bearing my testimony of the Gospel of Christ on the earth. The revelations that are in the Bible, the predictions of the Patriarchs and Prophets who saw by vision and revelation the last dispensation and fullness of times, plainly tell us what is to come to pass. The 49th chapter of Isaiah is having its fulfillment, as are the sayings of the Patriarchs and Prophets as laid down in the records of divine truth. And they will be rapid in their fulfillment. I have often said in my teachings, if the world want to know what is coming to pass, let them read the revelations of St. John. Read of the judgments of God that are going to overtake the world in the last dispensation. Read the papers and see what is taking place in our own nation and in the nations of the earth, and what does it all mean? It means the commencement of the fulfillment of what the Prophets of God have predicted. In the Doctrine and Covenants there are many revelations given through the mouth of the Prophet of God; these revelations will all have their fulfillment, as the Lord lives, and no power can hinder it. In one of the revelations the Lord told Joseph Smith: Behold, verily I say unto you, the angels are crying unto the Lord day and night, who are ready and waiting to be sent forth to reap down the fields; But the Lord saith unto them, pluck not up the tares while the blade is yet tender, (for verily your faith is weak,) lest you destroy the wheat also. Therefore let the wheat and the tares grow together until the harvest is fully ripe, then ye shall first gather out the wheat from among the tares, and after the gathering of the wheat, behold and lo! the tares are bound in bundles, and the field remaineth to be burned. I want to bear testimony to this congregation, and to the heavens and the earth, that the day is come when those angels are privileged to go forth and commence their work. They are laboring in the United States of America; they are laboring among the nations of the earth; and they will continue. These things are at our doors, and neither you nor I can hinder them. We need not marvel or wonder at anything that is transpiring in the earth. The world do not comprehend the revelations of God. They did not in the days of the Jews; yet all that the Prophets had spoken concerning them came to pass. So in our day, these things will come to pass. I heard the Prophet Joseph bear his testimony to these events that would transpire in the earth. I have had the privilege during my life to see the beginning of the fulfillment of the words of the Prophet of God unto the inhabitants of the earth. He lived but a short time; but the Savior's life was much shorter after entering the ministry. He was put to death, as were all His Apostles, excepting John; and that blood has been paid for as far as time would admit. We cannot draw a veil over the events that await this generation. No man that is inspired by the Spirit and power of God can close his ears, his eyes or his lips to these things. I do not know that I shall live to see much more; it is not likely that I shall; but I have lived to see the commencement in the earth. I have lived to see the words of the Prophet of God being fulfilled concerning Zion, concerning the mountains of Israel, and the gathering together of the Lord's people to prepare for the coming of the Son of Man. We have been led to these mountains in fulfillment of revelation. We have laid a foundation for the gathering of the House of Israel and the Saints of the living God. I hope that we as a people may comprehend these things. I have listened to the testimony, not only of the Prophet of God, but also of many of the Apostles. I remember very well the last charge that Joseph gave to the Apostles. We had as little idea that he was going from us as the Apostles of the Savior did that He was going to be taken from them. Joseph talked with us as plainly as did the Savior to His Apostles, but we did not understand that he was about to depart from us any more than the Apostles understood the Savior. Now, I have heard of other parties rising up and pretending that the Prophet Joseph Smith gave unto them a charge to lead and direct the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I want to say that it is false; there is not a word of truth in it. When he delivered that charge to the Apostles he was filled with the power of God. His face was clear as amber, and the room was filled with the Spirit of God, like the holy fire. In his address he told us that he had received at the hands of the Almighty God all the keys, and powers, and priesthood, and ordinances and gifts belonging to the dispensation in which we lived. "Now," says he, "I have sealed all these blessings upon your heads, upon you Apostles of the Lamb of God, who have been chosen to bear off this Church and kingdom on the earth;" and after making this solemn proclamation to us, he said, "Now, you have got to round up your shoulders and bear off this kingdom, or you will be damned." I never shall forget that. All of those Apostles today are in the spirit world, excepting myself, and they know that what he said is true; and those of us who have the Spirit of God know that it is true. I feel to thank God for the progress of the work. The Elders of Israel are abroad among the nations carrying the Gospel to the children of men, and the Lord is blessing them and opening the way before them. It is true, our doctrine is not popular. In fact, the Latter-day Saints as a body have been under a ban, in a great measure, from the organization of the Church until of late. The doctrine of Jesus is an unpopular doctrine. But there is only one Gospel; never was but one Gospel ordained of God to man for the salvation of the human family. That Gospel was taught by the Savior and by His Apostles. It was taught Joseph Smith by Moroni, and the Priesthood was given unto him by John the Baptist, and Peter, James and John. The first principle of that Gospel is faith. Well, the people of the world may say, we all believe in Jesus Christ. Yes, but there is something to do besides believing in Christ. We must repent of our sins, be baptized for the remission of them, and receive the Holy Ghost. This is the doctrine taught by Christ and His Apostles. The same Gospel was taught to Adam and by him to his children. These doctrines have been revealed to us by the administration of angels. The gifts, the graces, and powers that belonged to that Gospel are with this people, and have been from the organization of the Church. My brethren and sisters, we must be faithful, because the responsibility is great and mighty that rests upon us as bearers of the Holy Priesthood. You will see many strange things take place in the earth. We are at the end, so to speak, of the six thousand years. We are bordering on the millennium, when the Son of Man shall come in the clouds of heaven. Therefore, we cannot lay down our Priesthood and the work which the God of heaven has put into our hands. The eyes of God and the heavenly host are upon us. The eyes of the Prophet Joseph and all those sanctified spirits who have laid down their lives for the work of God and testimony of Jesus are upon us. Therefore, I feel this morning to bear my testimony to these things. The Lord has blessed me, so far as life is concerned, a long time. I have been connected with this Church while almost two or three quorums of Apostles have passed away. Let us lay these things to heart. Let us look at our position before the Lord. Let us be true and faithful in the work of the ministry and in doing the things God requires at our hands. God has blessed us. He has led us unto these mountains of Israel. The prophet of God was inspired to bring the people to this great American desert. There were no marks of the white man here, no marks of agriculture, and nothing to encourage any man to stop here; but President Brigham Young pitched his tent here, and laid the foundation of this city, with these broad streets and sidewalks, in the midst of sand and sagebrush. The Lord's Spirit was with him, and he saw what was to do here. We are in the midst of the mountains of Israel, prophesied of as the gathering place of the people of God in the last days, where they might stand in holy places while the judgments of God worked in the earth. Let us try to do our duty, and labor for the Holy Spirit. The devil and the fallen spirits have labored from the creation of the world to thwart the purposes of God. He did it in the days of Christ. He tempted even Him forty days and forty nights. His Apostles did not escape, either. We shall not escape any more than they did. The arch-enemy is laboring for the overthrow of this Church and kingdom. He knows something about it. Therefore, you and I ought to pursue a course wherein we can be justified before the Lord. There are many events before us and at our door, and they follow each other in quick succession. No power on earth or under the earth can stay the fulfillment of these things. You can hardly see them with your eyes, hear them with your ears, and feel them in your spirits. And when these strange things take place, no man should marvel and wonder at them, because they are in the great programme. They have been decreed by Almighty God, and these things are only the beginning of sorrows. I want to make a few remarks on another subject. Whenever the Lord has a people on the earth, no matter in what age of the world, they will dove-tail right square into any other dispensation. You may see that throughout the whole history of the world. When Christ was born and entered into the ministry, and when He chose His Apostles they acknowledged every revelation that had ever been given from father Adam down to their day. They had the same Gospel, the same gifts, the same fruits. Now, if these Latter-day Saints are the saints of God, their works will be the same as were Christ's and the Apostles'. I hold in my hand the Doctrine and Covenants, containing revelations given through the Prophet Joseph Smith while he dwelt in the flesh. Read those revelations, and from beginning to end they unite with all dispensations God has had on the earth. And that is not all. When God has a people on the earth the fruits of the Gospel will be manifest. In my boyhood I went to Sabbath school, under old Dr. Porter. I read the New Testament; I read about the gifts and graces that Christ and His Apostles had; and I asked Dr. Porter why it was that they did not contend for this faith, and why they did not have these gifts and graces. "Oh," said he, "those things were given in the dark ages of the world, to convince the world that Jesus was the Christ. We live today in the glorious Gospel light of Christ, and we do not need them." Then, said I, for God's sake give me the dark ages of the world! That has been my spirit from that day to this. Here are thousands of men and women in this house, if they had the opportunity, could rise up and bear testimony that the fruits of the Gospel which the Apostles enjoyed are with these people. These Elders who have traveled thousands of miles can bear testimony that wherever this Gospel has been preached and wherever the Elders of Israel have administered, the gifts and graces have followed them. I bear testimony to this. My brethren can bear testimony to it. The sick have been healed, devils have been cast out, the lame have leaped, the deaf have heard, and all the gifts and graces that ever were manifest have been enjoyed among these Elders of Israel. Several years ago I met a man and woman here in the street. The woman said, "Do you know me?" I said I do not. "Do you know this man that is with me?" "No, I do not." "Why," said she, "you laid hands on this boy in Herefordshire fifty years ago. He was dumbfounded--never spoke a word till you laid hands upon him and blessed him; and he has spoken ever since." We have no business to claim to be Saints of the living God without we have the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, and if we have that these gifts will be with us. You know this as well as I do. Joseph Smith had the whole spirit and power of this resting upon him while he lived. He taught these principles to us, and they have been realized, and will be until this scene is wound up. This work shows for itself. That Gospel was taught Joseph Smith by an angel, as John the Revelator says: 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. Yes, the hour of God's judgment is come, and we should be prepared. Who besides the Latter-day Saints, since the days of Christ and His Apostles, have ever taught the principle of the redemption of the dead? Here we have four temples reared in this State by the Latter-day Saints, and tens of thousands of the dead have been redeemed by the administration of the Gospel of Christ to their posterity or friends. This is one of the evidences of the fulfillment of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The prophet says, "Saviors shall come upon mount Zion * * * and the kingdom shall be the Lord's." If we were not the Saints of God, we could not do this. Whatever other dispensations may have done in this direction, we have no record of it. Jesus Himself preached this doctrine. While His body lay in the tomb He went and preached to those who were in the spirit world, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh. This work is with the Latter-day Saints, and will remain with us. We lost one of our Apostles a short time since. He was about the youngest man in the quorum of the Apostles. He was called suddenly away from us. There is a meaning to this. Many times things take place with us that we do not comprehend, unless it is given to us by revelation. But there is a meaning in the loss of that young Apostle. I had a manifestation of that while in San Francisco recently. One evening, as I fell asleep, I was very much troubled with evil spirits, that tried to afflict me; and while laboring to throw off these spirits and their influence, there was another spirit visited me that seemed to have power over the evil spirits, and they departed from me. Before he left me he told me not to grieve because of the departure of Abraham Hoagland Cannon; for the Lord had called him to fill another important mission in the spirit world, as a pure and holy Apostle from Zion in the Rocky Mountains--a labor which would not only prove a great benefit to his father's household, but to the Church and kingdom of God upon the earth. I feel to name this, because it is true. I have become acquainted with many things in our history that I have marveled at. While in the St. George Temple I had a son, who was in the north country, drowned. He was 21 years of age, and was a faithful young man. He had a warning of this. In a dream he was notified how he would die. We had testimony of that after his death. I asked the Lord why he was taken from me. The answer to me was, "You are doing a great deal for the redemption of your dead; but the law of redemption requires some of your own seed in the spirit world to attend to work connected with this." That was a new principle to me; but it satisfied me why he was taken away. I name this because there are a great many instances like it among the Latter-day Saints. This was the case with Brother Abraham Cannon. He was taken away to fulfill that mission. And where we have anything of this kind, we should leave it in the hands of God to reconcile. Let us try as Latter-day Saints to qualify ourselves to do the will of God and bear off His kingdom, and be true and faithful to the end, which may God grant, for Christ's sake. Amen. MOSES THATCHER _______________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the General Conference of the Church, held in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Monday Afternoon, October 5, 1896. I did not intend to occupy any more time in this conference, but there is a subject or two that I feel in duty bound to talk upon, and I hope the Saints will give me their prayers and faith, that I may be enabled to do my duty. In order to arrive at the principles and subject I wish to speak of, I feel disposed to deviate from my general course of testimony in some respects. There are two powers on the earth and in the midst of the inhabitants of the earth--the power of God and the power of the devil. In our history we have had some very peculiar experiences. When God has had a people on the earth, it matters not in what age, Lucifer, the son of the morning, and the millions of fallen spirits that were cast out of heaven, have warred against God, against Christ, against the work of God, and against the people of God. And they are not backward in doing it in our day and generation. Whenever the Lord set His hand to perform any work, those powers labored to overthrow it. I have a little experience in this direction that I want to refer to. Many of you probably have read the history of the first proclamation of the Gospel in England, under the presidency of Heber C. Kimball, in 1837. Just previous to that I crossed Lake Ontario with a man by the name of Russell, from Canada into the United States. That man walked the steamer almost day and night, moaning and groaning. What was the matter? He had a class of spirits that stayed with him night and day, distressing him. What he had done that they had power over him I do not know. When a man does his duty and keeps the commandments of God, those spirits have no power over him, although he may be distressed in a measure from their operation. This man went to England, and those spirits went with him. He was with the Apostles there, and while they were holding a conference there he was so troubled with those spirits that Brother Heber C. Kimball and Orson Hyde and the brethren who were there laid hands upon him and cast those evil spirits out of him. When they left him they seized upon Brother Hyde, and he fell to the floor as though he had been knocked on the head with a club. Brother Kimball and the brethren immediately laid hands upon him, and the evil spirits left him.1 They then fell upon Brother Kimball and tried to overcome him. But the vision of his mind was open and he saw them in the room. They gnashed their teeth at him; but did they overcome him? Brother Kimball held the Apostleship and he stood at the head of that Mission, and God gave him power over those spirits, and they were rebuked and left him. This was the beginning of their labors there. In 1840, when the Apostles were sent to England, we had a similar experience. The history of my travels in Herefordshire, Gloucestershire and Worcestershire is published and known to the Church. After laboring there some eight months, Brothers Heber C. Kimball and George A. Smith invited me to go to London. You all know what kind of men Brothers Kimball and Smith were. They had power and brought a great many into the Church. We three went into the City of London to undertake to open doors in that great city. The first man who opened his doors to receive us was a man by the name of Morgan. The very day we entered that house it was filled with evil spirits, who sought to destroy us. We felt their power day after day. They did not particularly injure us at that time, but we knew they were with us. The incident that I am going to refer to now occurred after Brother Kimball had returned to Manchester. Brother George A. Smith and myself were left there. We sat up one night till about 11 o'clock, talking about the Gospel of Christ, and then went to bed. The room in which we slept was small; there was about three and a half feet between our cots. Those spirits were gathered together in that room and sought to destroy us. They fell upon us with the determination to take our lives. The distress, the suffering and the horror that rested upon me I never experienced before nor since. While in this condition a spirit said to me, "Pray to the Lord." Well, a man in that kind of warfare, when he is choking almost to death, is in a peculiar position to pray. Nevertheless I went to praying with all the power I had. I knew we would die unless God opened some door for our deliverance, because we were being choked to death, and I prayed the Lord, in the name of Jesus Christ, to preserve our lives. While I was praying, the door opened and three messengers entered, and the room was filled with light equal to the blazing light of the sun at mid-day. Those messengers were all dressed in the robes of immortal beings. Who they were I know not. They laid hands upon me and my companion, and rebuked those evil powers, and we were saved. From that hour to this day, not only our lives were saved, but those powers were rebuked by the angels of God so that no Elder since has been tormented with them in London. I name this because there is a principle in it. From the day that the Prophet Joseph Smith was called upon by the angel of God and the plates of the Book of Mormon given into his hands, these evil spirits labored for his death, and finally his blood was shed by the power of the devil. You know about that. It is before the heavens and the earth, and has got to be settled for. Those spirits are wherever the Saints of God are, and they will follow this up until He who holds the keys of death and hell binds that old serpent, sets a seal upon him, and shuts him up for a thousand years. These evil spirits are all around us. They follow every Elder of Israel at home and abroad. They tempt me; they tempt you, and will as long as we dwell in the flesh and they have their agency and power. Why? Because they know the Priesthood is here; the know the power of God is here; they know the authority is here to seal blessings upon the heads of the children of men, and to preach the Gospel to the nations of the earth, that they may be prepared for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. Knowing this, if they can get any power over you and me they will exercise it. There has been some talk here about myself, and my counselors, and the Twelve Apostles, and the position we hold as leaders of the people. I have been in the Apostleship for fifty-seven years. I have been through all the apostasies in this Church, if I may be allowed to use that expression, from the day of the organization of the Twelve Apostles. On one occasion two Apostles came to me while I was in Kirtland, and told me that Joseph Smith was a fallen prophet, and that they wanted to put another man in his place--Oliver Cowdery. They wanted to know what I would do about it. Said I, "Every man that lifts his hand against the Prophet of God will go to hell, unless he repents of his sins." Well, about half of them did repent; the others did not, and they lost their crown and glory, and other men have taken their places. My brethren and sisters, there is something pressing upon my mind that I want to say. We have arrived at a point here with regard to circumstances that it is my duty to take up as the President of the Church. The First Presidency and the Twelve Apostles were never more united as a body than they are today. Our spirits are united. We believe together, we work together, we pray together; and we believe in each other, because we are all trying to do the will of God. This is the case with all of us, with one exception. That exception is Brother Moses Thatcher. A great many people marvel and wonder why something is not done with him. Some have said we were afraid of Moses Thatcher. I am not afraid of Moses Thatcher, nor of any other man who breathes the breath of life, when it comes to a matter of duty. But I am afraid to disobey God, or to not perform my duty in any position that I am called to in the Church. There has been a great deal said with regard to Brother Moses Thatcher, and many have wondered why something was not done about him. Well, I will say that this is a matter that belongs to the Twelve Apostles. He is a member of that quorum, and of course it is their duty to take hold of that work and attend to it until it is settled. But I have felt, as the President of the Church, it is my duty to not let this conference pass without saying something upon this subject. Brother Moses Thatcher has been a very sick man. Preparations have been made by the Twelve Apostles to settle this difficulty with him in council; but he has been in the condition I speak of. What is the difficulty with Brother Thatcher? The difficulty is, he has not been with his quorum in spirit for years. He has not been united with them hardly, I may say, since the death of President Taylor. It is not his declining to sign this declaration of principle that was brought up at the last conference by the leaders of Israel. This is a matter of comparatively small consequence. I say here--and I say the truth--Brother Thatcher has not been in fellowship with us for a series of years. He has not met with his quorum. He has spent days and days in this city, when he was perfectly able to go about and do business, and has not met with them--neither at their sacrament meetings nor other meetings. Now, this cannot remain in this way. As I have said, these evil spirits affect men. There is a spirit affecting him, and not a good spirit either. With regard to his standing with his quorum, he should have met with them and talked these things over; but he has not done it. He has met with them comparatively few times since President Taylor's death. Brethren and sisters, these are truths. The Apostles know that he has neglected to meet with them at times when he could and should have done so. He has been at difference with them in many things that have transpired. He has been by himself in his labor, and for himself, and not for the Church. Now, I want to say that neither Moses Thatcher nor any other man on the face of the earth can stand in the way of this Church. We have had almost whole quorums of Apostles that have been in the road, and they have had to be moved out of it, because the kingdom of God cannot stop for anybody--for Wilford Woodruff, for Moses Thatcher, or for anybody else. Unless we work with the Saints of God, with the Priesthood of God and with the organization of His Church, we cannot have any power or influence. I make this testimony because it is my duty. I have thought a great deal of Moses Thatcher. I had a good deal to do with his coming into the quorum of the Apostles. I had a great respect for his family. I have for any man that will bear his testimony to the Gospel and kingdom of God. But he has stopped that. He has taken a different course with regard to this, and he occupies that position today. I name this because he is not in a condition to be tried. The Lord's kingdom is going to roll on. If I took a stand against my counselors and against the Twelve Apostles, and we were not united together, I could not go with them. But the Lord is with us, and with His people. Whatever is required at our hands we want to perform it. I hope that the little time we spend here in the flesh, before we go into the valley of the shadow of death, we will pursue a course wherein we will be satisfied when we come to meet the Lord, and Joseph Smith, and the patriarchs and prophets. We will meet these people in the morning of the first resurrection. Many of them have got their resurrected bodies, and those who have not will have their bodies raised from the grave in an immortal condition. Who can sacrifice eternal life, and a part in the first resurrection, to stand with their wives and children in celestial glory, for the honor of this life or to gratify ambition? I cannot afford to do it, neither can you. We will hail Brother Moses Thatcher with ever sentiment of our hearts when he will meet with us, unite with us, repent of his wrongdoings, and help carry on the work of God as he should do. Without this, he cannot go with us. God bless you. I bear testimony to the heavens and the earth that this is the church and kingdom of God. We have got to live our religion and to be united in order to bear off the kingdom and receive those blessings that lie on the other side of the veil for us. I pray that His blessing and spirit may rest, not only on the First Presidency and Apostles and the whole Priesthood and the Saints, but upon Moses Thatcher, that his eyes may be opened to see, his ears to hear, and his heart to comprehend his position and duty before God and man. 1. President Woodruff here confuses the names of Elders Kimball and Hyde. Two weeks later, he corrected this mistake in his discourse of 19 October 1896, found on page 236 of this volume. THE ADMINISTRATION OF ANGELS _______________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at the Weber Stake Conference, Ogden, Monday, October 19, 1896. I am pleased to meet with so many of our friends this morning, and I feel desirous to talk to you upon a principle that I very seldom dwell upon before the congregations of the Saints. I have had my mind somewhat exercised of late on various things, perhaps for purposes known to the Lord better than myself, though they are principles we are all more or less acquainted with. One of the Apostles said to me years ago, "Brother Woodruff, I have prayed for a long time for the Lord to send me the administration of an angel. I have had a great desire for this, but I have never had my prayers answered." I said to him that if he were to pray a thousand years to the God of Israel for that gift, it would not be granted, unless the Lord had a motive in sending an angel to him. I told him that the Lord never did nor never will send an angel to anybody merely to gratify the desire of the individual to see an angel. If the Lord sends an angel to anyone, He sends him to perform a work that cannot be performed only by the administration of an angel. I said to him that those were my views. The Lord had sent angels to men from the creation of the world, at different times, but always with a message or with something to perform that could not be performed without. I rehearsed to him different times when angels appeared to men. Of course, I referred to the angel visiting Joseph Smith. The Revelator John said that in the last days an angel would fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting Gospel to preach to them that dwelt on the earth. The reason it required an angel to do this work was, the Gospel was not on the earth. The Gospel and the Priesthood had been taken from among men. Hence God had to restore it again. Now, I have always said, and I want to say it to you, that the Holy Ghost is what every Saint of God needs. It is far more important that a man should have that gift than he should have the ministration of an angel, unless it is necessary for an angel to teach him something that he has not been taught. I am going to refer to some of my own experiences with regard to the ministration of angels and the operations of the Holy Ghost. I have never prayed for the visitation of an angel, but I have had the ministrations of angels several times in my life. One visitation I received in Kentucky, at the house of A. O. Smoot's mother, while on my first mission. I went through Jackson county into Arkansas Territory, and from Little Rock waded the Mississippi swamp 180 miles to get across into Tennessee. I arrived in Henry county, Tennessee, on the west, at the same time that David Patten and Warren Parrish landed in that region on the north. We met and labored together for awhile and built up some churches there. I then held the office of a Priest. I traveled thousands of miles and preached the Gospel as a Priest, and, as I have said to congregations before, the Lord sustained me and made manifest His power in the defense of my life as much while I held that office as He has done while I have held the office of an Apostle. The Lord sustains any man that holds a portion of the Priesthood, whether he is a Priest, an Elder, a Seventy, or an Apostle, if he magnifies his calling and does his duty. I will give you an instance of the Lord's protecting care over me while I was a Priest. I had this experience while in Arkansas with my companion, who was an Elder. There was a man in that country who with his wife and five sons had been in Jackson county. His wife died there. The old gentleman was in the faith apparently when he left there. He was driven out, the same as the rest of the Saints were, and some of his sons were whipped with hickory gads in the persecution there. I knew he was in this Arkansas country, and I felt anxious to go and see him, as he was the only Latter-day Saint that we knew anything about in that region. The night before I got there I had a peculiar dream. I dreamed that an angel appeared to us and pointed out a certain path that we must follow, and that the blessings of God would attend us in following that path. As we went along this path we came to a log cabin with a wall on each side ten or fifteen feet high. This road led right through that building. When I went to the door and opened it, it was full of large serpents. My companion said he was not going into that room for anybody or anything. "Well," says I, "I am, or I'll die trying. The Lord told us to follow that path, and I am going to walk in it, unless I am stopped by some power that I know not of." I stepped into the door. These serpents all arose up ready to jump on me, and there was a very large one in the middle of the floor that made a pass at me. It appeared to me as though I would be destroyed, but when the serpent reached near to me it dropped dead; in fact, they all dropped dead, and they turned black and burst open, after which they took fire and burned up, and both of us went through safely. The morning after, we arrived at this man's house. His name was Akeman. It was Sunday morning, and we went into the house. Mr. Akeman and his daughter were at breakfast. His sons were settled in cabins around him. We sat down, but there seemed to be a peculiar spirit in the place. I finally stepped up to the mantlepiece, on which I saw a Book of Mormon. I picked it up, and said, "Brother Akeman, you've got a very good book here." He said, "It's a book that came from hell." I then began to understand a little of what lay before us. He had apostatized. He cursed everything and everybody--Joseph Smith, Lyman Wight, the Apostles and a good many others whom he named. He was very angry. I inquired about his sons. He said they were settled around him there. Well, we took up our valises and left. I looked up one of his sons--the youngest, I believe, and the only one that was in the faith, and he was like a drowning man; but by praying with him we got the Spirit of the Lord in him, and we had a pretty good time with him. We told him of our experience at his father's, and I said we were desirous to have some meetings there if we could. He said he did not know; his father had apostatized and was at war against everything that was Mormon. He told us, however, where an old gentleman lived close by to whom he had loaned the Book of Mormon. He was an aged man and his wife was an aged woman. Their name was Hubbard. We went to see them and they were very glad to receive us. In the morning my companion said he was going to leave the place. Of course, he was an Elder, and I was only a Priest, and we generally suppose that the lesser should obey the greater; but I said to him, calling him by name, "You are not going to leave here, nor I either; we shall both of us stay here till I see the fulfillment of my dream. It is here, and I am going to stay and see it, and you will, too." It is not natural for me to take a stand of that kind, but I felt led to do it upon that occasion. We stopped there three weeks, and cleared land for father Hubbard, while he fed and housed us. Three times while we were there I was warned of the Lord to go and warn this Mr. Akeman. The last warning I received from the Lord was on Saturday night of the third week. I went up to his house which was about three quarters of a mile distant, and when I got there his daughter stood in the doorway. I walked in and saluted him. He was walking the room, but did not say anything to me. I told him the Lord had sent me to pay him a visit. Then he made some exclamation that was rather profane. I sat down and commenced warning him. I told him that he had apostatized from the Gospel of Christ; he had had the Priesthood and he was pursuing a course that would send him to destruction, and the judgments of God would overtake him. Well, he raged like a demon. That is about all I said to him. I certainly did not stay long, but I delivered my message. When I left the house he followed me, and when he came to where I was he fell dead at my feet as though he had been struck with a thunderbolt from heaven. He was a very large man and he turned as black as an African, and his skin seemed almost to burst open. The next day I attended his funeral. But he had raised a mob and had sent word for them to come and drive us out of the country or hang us, and they had sent warnings to us to leave. The consequence was, there were some fifteen or twenty deaths during my stay there. Men were taken with what was called pleurisy. Doctors came in and opened a vein, and they died in five minutes. One of these men sent for me, and I went and saw him. Two men were holding him. He said to me, "I wish you would cut open my side; I have a pain here and it is skin deep; you can cut it out and save my life." I looked at him, but did not say anything to him. I said to myself, "If your eyes were open, you would see the angel of death standing by your side." He died while I was there. After this my partner left me, and I went alone to Memphis, Tennessee, and met with Brothers Patten and Parrish. After laboring in that part for a length of time, I received a letter from Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery, in which they requested me to stay in that country and take charge of the churches that we had built up there. The Prophet promised me many things, and said I should lose no blessings by tarrying in that country and doing as he wished me, and letting the other brethren go and get their endowments. I was then at the house of Brother Abraham O. Smoot's mother. I received this about sundown. I went into a little room where there was a sofa, to pray alone. I felt full of joy and rejoicings at the promises God had made to me through the Prophet. While I was upon my knees praying, my room was filled with light. I looked and a messenger stood by my side. I arose, and this personage told me he had come to instruct me. He presented before me a panorama. He told me he wanted me to see with my eyes and understand with my mind what was coming to pass in the earth before the coming of the Son of Man. He commenced with what the revelations say about the sun being turned to darkness, the moon to blood, and the stars falling from heaven. Those things were all presented to me one after another, as they will be, I suppose, when they are manifest before the coming of the Son of Man. Then he showed me the resurrection of the dead--what is termed the first and second resurrection. In the first resurrection I saw no graves nor anyone raised from the grave. I saw legions of celestial beings, men and women who had received the Gospel all clothed in white robes. In the form they were presented to me, they had already been raised from the grave. After this he showed me what is termed the second resurrection. Vast fields of graves were before me, and the Spirit of God rested upon the earth like a shower of gentle rain, and when that fell upon the graves they were opened, and an immense host of human beings came forth. They were just as diversified in their dress as we are here, or as they were laid down. This personage taught me with regard to these things. Among other things he showed me, there were seven lions like burning brass placed in the heavens. I asked the messenger what they were for. He said they were representative of the different dispensations of the Gospel of Christ to men, and they would all be seen in the heavens among the signs that would be shown. After this passed by me, he disappeared. Now, if I had been a painter I could have drawn everything that I saw. It made an impression upon me that has never left me from that day to this. The next day we had a meeting in the academy. Brother Smoot and some others went with me; but I was a lost man. I hardly knew where I was, so enveloped was I in that which I had seen. I refer to this as one of the visitations that was given me in my boyhood, so to speak, in the Gospel. I was a Priest at the time. Of course, there was a motive in this personage visiting me and teaching me these principles. He knew a great deal better than I did what lay before me in life. It was doubtless sent to me for the purpose of strengthening me and giving me encouragement in my labors. The other instance I want to refer to is what I spoke about at the recent General Conference. I need not dwell particularly upon this now; but I had a motive in laying it before the people on that occasion. The history of Brother Kimball's operations with those evil spirits in England is before the Church. And while on this point I want to correct a mistake that I made in referring to this matter at our General Conference.1 I got the names of Brother Kimball and Brother Hyde confused in my mind, and made it appear that Brother Kimball rebuked those evil spirits from Brother Hyde, when in fact it was Brother Kimball who was afflicted with those spirits and Brother Hyde administered to him. As this is a matter of history, I wish to state it correctly, and therefore make this explanation. When Brother Kimball, Brother George A. Smith and myself went to London, we encountered these evil spirits. They sought to destroy us. The very first house that was opened to us was filled with devils. They had gathered there for our destruction, so that we should not plant the Gospel in that great city. Brother Kimball went to Manchester on some business, and left Brother George A. Smith and myself there. One night we sat up till 11 o'clock, talking Mormonism, and then we went to bed. We had only just laid down when these spirits rested upon us, and we were in a very fair way of losing our lives. It was as if a strong man had me by the throat, trying to choke me to death. In the midst of this a spirit told me to pray. I did so, and while praying, the door opened, the room was filled with light, and three messengers came in. Who they were I know not. They came and laid their hands upon us, and rebuked those powers, and thereby saved our lives. Not only so, but by the power they held they rebuked the whole army of devils that were in that great city, and bound them so that they have never troubled any Elder from that day to this. Now, those messengers were sent to us because it was necessary. We would have lost our lives if somebody had not delivered us. We needed help, and we could not get it anywhere else. This is all I want to say with regard to the administration of angels to myself. This Apostle that I refer to told me he had prayed and prayed for the administration of angels. Well, if it had been necessary to save his life, as it was in my case, he would have had the administration of angels. But he had access to the gift of the Holy Ghost, as all of us have. And that, brethren and sisters, is what I want to talk to you about. One morning, while we were at Winter Quarters, Brother Brigham Young said to me and the brethren that he had had a visitation the night previous from Joseph Smith.2 I asked him what he said to him. He replied that Joseph had told him to tell the people to labor to obtain the Spirit of God; that they needed that to sustain them and to give them power to go through their work in the earth. Now I will give you a little of my experience in this line. Joseph Smith visited me a great deal after his death, and taught me many important principles. The last time he visited me was while I was in a storm at sea. I was going on my last mission to preside in England. My companions were Brother Leonard W. Hardy, Brother Milton Holmes, Brother Dan Jones, and another brother, and my wife and two other women. We had been traveling three days and nights in a heavy gale, and were being driven backwards. Finally I asked my companions to come into the cabin with me, and I told them to pray that the Lord would change the wind. I had no fears of being lost; but I did not like the idea of being driven back to New York, as I wanted to go on my journey. We all offered the same prayer, both men and women; and when we got through we stepped on to the deck and in less than a minute it was as though a man had taken a sword and cut that gale through, and you might have thrown a muslin handkerchief out and it would not have moved it. The night following this Joseph and Hyrum visited me, and the Prophet laid before me a great many things. Among other things, he told me to get the Spirit of God; that all of us needed it. He also told me what the Twelve Apostles would be called to go through on the earth before the coming of the Son of Man, and what the reward of their labors would be; but all that was taken from me, for some reason. Nevertheless I know it was most glorious, although much would be required at our hands. Joseph Smith continued visiting myself and others up to a certain time, and then it stopped. The last time I saw him was in heaven. In the night vision I saw him at the door of the temple in heaven. He came and spoke to me. He said he could not stop to talk with me because he was in a hurry. The next man I met was Father Smith; he could not talk with me because he was in a hurry. I met half a dozen brethren who had held high positions on earth, and none of them could stop to talk with me because they were in a hurry. I was much astonished. By and by I saw the Prophet again, and I got the privilege to ask him a question. "Now," said I, "I want to know why you are in a hurry. I have been in a hurry all through my life; but I expected my hurry would be over when I got into the kingdom of heaven, if I ever did." Joseph said: "I will tell you, Brother Woodruff. Every dispensation that has had the Priesthood on the earth and has gone into the celestial kingdom, has had a certain amount of work to do to prepare to go to the earth with the Savior when He goes to reign on the earth. Each dispensation has had ample time to do this work. We have not. We are the last dispensation, and so much work has to be done, and we need to be in a hurry in order to accomplish it." Of course, that was satisfactory to me, but it was new doctrine to me. Brigham Young also visited me after his death. On one occasion he and Brother Heber C. Kimball came in a splendid chariot, with fine white horses, and accompanied me to a conference that I was going to attend. When I got there I asked Brother Brigham if he would take charge of the conference. "No," said he, "I have done my work here. I have come to see what you are doing and what you are teaching the people." And he told me what Joseph Smith had taught him in Winter Quarters, to teach the people to get the Spirit of God. He said, "I want you to teach the people to get the Spirit of God. You cannot build up the Kingdom of God without that." That is what I want to say to the brethren and sisters here today. Every man and woman in this Church should labor to get that Spirit. We are surrounded by these evil spirits that are at war against God and against everything looking to the building up of the kingdom of God; and we need this Holy Spirit to enable us to overcome these influences. I have had the Holy Ghost in my travels. Every man has that has gone out into the vineyard and labored faithfully for the cause of God. I have referred to the administration of angels to myself. What did these angels do? One of them taught me some things relating to the signs that should precede the coming of the Son of Man. Others came and saved my life. What then? They turned and left me. But how is it with the Holy Ghost? The Holy Ghost does not leave me if I do my duty. It does not leave any man who does his duty. We have known this all the way through. Joseph Smith told Brother John Taylor on one occasion to labor to get the Spirit of God, and to follow its dictation, and it would become a principle of revelation within him. God has blessed me with that, and everything I have done since I have been in this Church has been done upon that principle. The Spirit of God has told me what to do, and I have had to follow that. In the time of the apostasy in Kirtland, Joseph Smith hardly knew when he met a man, unless the Spirit of God revealed it to him, whether he was friend or foe. Most of the leading men were fighting him. Right in the midst of that darkness the Spirit of God said to me, "You choose a partner and go straight to Fox Islands." Well, I knew no more what was on Fox Islands than what was on Kolob. But the Lord told me to go, and I went. I chose Jonathan H. Hale, and he went with me. We cast out some devils there, preached the Gospel and performed some miracles. I crossed lake Ontario and went into Connecticut, where my father lived. I had not seen one of my relatives from the time I embraced the Gospel. I preached the Gospel there, and baptized my father, my stepmother, and sister, and uncles and aunts, and organized a branch there. Every member of that branch was a relative of mine, excepting one, and he was a Methodist class leader who boarded at my father's house. This was all promised to me by old father Smith when he blessed me. I got to Fox Islands, and did a good work there. Through the blessings of God I brought nearly a hundred from there up to Zion, at the time the Saints were driven out of Missouri into Illinois. So it has been all through my life. If I have undertaken to do anything, and the Lord has wanted me to do something else, He has had to tell me. When we were sent to England, we were sent by revelation. I went into the Staffordshire potteries with Brother Alfred Cordon. We were doing a splendid work, baptizing almost every night, and I thought it was the finest mission I ever was on. I went into the town of Hanley one night, and attended meeting in a large hall, which was filled to overflowing. The Spirit of the Lord came upon me and said that that was the last meeting I should hold with that people for many days. I told the people that that was the last meeting I should be with them. After the meeting, they asked me where I was going. I told them I did not know. In the morning I asked the Lord what He wanted of me. He merely said, "Go to the south." I got into the stage and rode eighty miles. The first man's house I stopped at was John Benbow's in Herefordshire. In half an hour after I entered the house I knew exactly why the Lord had sent me. There was a people there who had been praying for the ancient order of things. They were waiting for the Gospel as it was taught by Christ and His Apostles. The consequence was, the first thirty days after I got there I baptized six hundred of those people. In eight month's labor in that country I brought eighteen hundred into the Church. Why? Because there was a people prepared for the Gospel, and the Lord sent me there to do that work. I have always had to give God the glory for everything good that has happened to me; for I have realized by what power it came. When I got back to Winter Quarters from the pioneer journey, President Young said to me, "Brother Woodruff, I want you to take your wife and children and go to Boston, and stay there until you can gather every Saint of God in New England and Canada and send them up to Zion." I did as he told me. It took me two years to gather up everybody, and I brought up the rear with a company. When I got into Pittsburg with this company it was dusk, and I saw a steamer just preparing to go out. I walked right up to the captain and asked him if he was ready to go out. He said he was. "How many passengers have you?" "Two hundred and fifty." "Can you take another hundred?" "I can." "Then," said I, "I would like to go aboard with you." The words were hardly out of my mouth when the Holy Ghost said to me, "Don't you, nor your company go aboard that steamer." That was enough; I had learned the voice of the Spirit. I turned and told the captain that I had made up my mind not to go at present. That steamer started out. It was a dark night, and before the steamer had gone far she took fire, and all on board was lost. We should probably have shared the same fate, had it not been for that monitor within me. I refer to these things because I want you to get the same Spirit. All the Elders of Israel, whether abroad or at home, need that Spirit. When I was on my way east at one time I drove into a man's yard in Indiana. Brother Orson Hyde had driven in and set his wagon in the dooryard, and I set mine by the side of it. I turned my mules and tied them up to an oak tree. I had my wife and two children with me in my carriage. We went to lie down, and the Holy Spirit told me to get up and move my carriage. I got right up. My wife asked me what I was going to do. I said I was going to move the carriage. She wanted to know what for. I told her I did not know. I moved the carriage about fifteen rods, looked around, and then went to bed again. The Spirit told me to get up again and move my mules. I did so. In twenty minutes there came up a whirlwind that blew that oak tree down and laid it right across where my carriage had been. By listening to that Spirit our lives were saved. Now, it was not an angel that pointed out these things to me; it was the Holy Ghost. This is the Spirit that we must have to carry out the purposes of God on the earth. We need that more than any other gift. I felt impressed yesterday to teach this principle to the Latter-day Saints. We are in the midst of enemies, in the midst of darkness and temptation, and we need to be guided by the Spirit of God. We should pray to the Lord until we get the Comforter. This is what is promised to us when we are baptized. It is the spirit of light, of truth, and of revelation, and can be with all of us at the same time. Brethren and sisters, God bless you. I am glad to meet with you. There are very few of you as old as I am. How long I shall tarry in this country I do not know; but while I do stay I want to do what good I can. These are principles that have rested a great deal upon my mind. If we labor for this Spirit, we will have no quarreling, and no difficulty, so long as that is dwelling within us. God bless you. Amen. 1. See President Woodruff's discourse for 5 October 1896, p. 198 of this volume. 2. In a vision received 17 February 1847, President Brigham Young was told by Joseph Smith to "tell the people to be humble and faithful, and be sure to keep the spirit of the Lord and it will lead them right. Be careful and not turn away the small still voice; it will teach you what to do and where to go; it will yield the fruits of the kingdom. Tell the brethren to keep their hearts open to conviction, so that when the Holy Ghost comes to them, their hearts will be ready to receive it. . . . Tell the people to be sure to keep the Spirit of the Lord and follow it, and it will lead them just right" (Collier, pp. 106-109). THE RISING GENERATION _______________ REMARKS Made by President Wilford Woodruff, at his Ninetieth Birthday Celebration, held in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday, February 28th, 1897. I want to say to my young brethren and sisters and friends in the Sabbath schools established here in the Rocky mountains, God bless you and I feel to bless you, as far as I have the power. I want to say that this is a scene before me today that has overpowered me--it has overpowered my speech. I would rather not say anything, still I feel I want to make a few remarks to my friends. I never in my life have been in a similar position to that of today. The scene before me has been a fulfillment to all my prayers from my boyhood up to early manhood. Eighty years ago I was a little boy ten years of age attending school the same as you are here in the mountains of Israel. I read the New Testament. I read of Jacob, I read of the Apostles and the Prophets. I could not find a man on the face of the earth who taught these principles or believed in them. I prayed to the God of heaven that I might live to see a Prophet; that I might live to see an Apostle who would say something that would satisfy me like unto the principles I read of in the New Testament. Today I stand in the midst of ten thousand young men and women of Israel--sons and daughters of prophets, patriarchs and men of Israel. Men who hold the Holy Priesthood appointed by God of Israel; appointed in the last days to set up and carry these laws and principles of God into effect. It is these principles that we were to look at in the last days. Now I want to say to you as the rising generation, I never expected to see a day of this kind in my life, in my early days. I did expect as it was promised to me to see a prophet. I have lived to see him. I have traveled with prophets and patriarchs and sons of God, I have lived to see this body of intelligence of the sons of the living God, who come here to the meetings of Israel. I rejoice in this for I see before me the nature of the Latter-day Saints. We cannot say the Bible is a novel--the Bible that contains revelation. I have passed through the periods of boyhood, early manhood and old age. I cannot expect to tarry a great while longer with you but I want to give to you a few words of counsel. You occupy a position in the Church and Kingdom of God and have received the power of the Holy Priesthood. The God of Heaven has appointed you and called you forth in this day and generation. I want you to look at this. Young men listen to the counsel of your elder brethren. Live near to God; pray while young; learn to pray; learn to cultivate the Holy Spirit of God; link it to you and it will become a spirit of revelation unto you, inasmuch as you nourish it. I feel thankful myself that I have lived to see this day. I declare unto you that there are many in the flesh who will remain so until the coming of the Son of Man. This is about all I wish to say. I feel thankful to my heavenly Father that I see this scene before us this afternoon; that I see the Gospel manifestations on the earth. There has been, as it was stated by our brother, two powers, one to destroy me and the other to save me. And God in heaven has willed to spare me to see this day. He has given me power to reject every testimony and reject every example that leads to evil. I say to you children, do not use tobacco, liquor or any of these things that destroy the body and mind, but honor Him and you will have a mission upon your heads that the world know not of. May God bless you. Amen. EXERCISING POLITICAL INFLUENCE _______________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at his Ninetieth Birthday Celebration, held in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Monday, March 1st, 1897. I feel highly honored this morning in meeting with so many of my friends upon this important occasion. Yesterday those who were present might have observed my condition. I was perfectly overwhelmed in consequence of the scene before me. It was not what was said particularly, but it brought to my mind in overwhelming power my boyhood and early manhood and my desires that I might live upon the earth to find a people who would receive the Gospel of Jesus Christ as taught by Christ and the Apostles. In meeting with thousands of the children of the Latter-day Saints, it brought to my mind those scenes and the fulfillment of my prayers and desires before the Lord. I hope this morning I may be able to make a few remarks. I will say this, it has been a desire of my life, from my boyhood up, never to address any assembly of people whom I could not make hear what I had to say. I feel the same this morning; I do not know whether I can make this assembly hear me or not; but I will do the best I can. As I can hardly expect to ever have the opportunity of addressing the people of this State and my friends in days to come, I have a few reflections upon my mind that I wish to lay before you. And I will say they are different from any of my public speeches that I have been in the habit of presenting to the people. I have consulted no man with regard to the course I should pursue in my remarks here this morning, and I do not know that I shall satisfy my friends in the remarks that I may make. First, I want to say a few words upon politics. I hope that will not astonish you. I have not been in the habit of this heretofore. But I feel desirous to say a few things that are upon my mind. In the first place, there is not one item, not one sentence in the Constitution of the United States, nor in the laws of the United States, or of the State of Utah, that deprives any citizen, of any name, nature, religion or politics in the land, from joining any political party he wishes or voting for whomsoever he wishes. This is the right of every man without hindrance. We have been accused at times of using Church influence to guide and direct the State. This is occasionally presented to the public as our action. I feel it my right and duty to say here today that I was acquainted with Joseph Smith and associated with him from 1833 until his martyrdom. I have been acquainted with Brigham Young and associated with him for forty years of my life, at home and abroad, under many circumstances. I have also been acquainted with John Taylor and labored with him in every capacity in which he was called to act. I have also been a member of the quorum of the Twelve Apostles for upwards of fifty-six years of my life. And I have been presiding over the Church itself for a few years. I have been associated with my counselors and with the present Twelve Apostles. And I want to say upon this occasion, before God, angels and all men that are before me, that I never in one instance have ever known any leader of this Church ever attempt to dictate and direct the affairs of the State as member of the Church. At the same time, when any man, no matter who he is--Mormon, Jew or Gentile--goes forth and uses money or any means to hire men to vote for him, I think he steps outside of his right, and stands in a measure responsible. I want to say so much to my friends this morning. I have officiated for twenty sessions in the Legislative Council of the Territory of Utah, and one session as a member of the House, and it never cost me one farthing for any office I ever held in the Church or in the State or Territory. And I never asked any mortal man on the face of the earth to cast a vote for me that I have any recollection of. As an ensample, perhaps I may be permitted to say, I am the father of fourteen sons and have a number of sons-in-law, and I believe they are pretty nearly evenly divided on political party lines--Democrats and Republicans. I will give any man five dollars if in conversing with them he can get any one of them to say that his father ever told him who to vote for. Some of you may try to make a little money perhaps at that (laughter). I consider everybody is responsible for himself, and he has a right to vote for whom he pleases. Again, I never asked any office at the hands of any being in heaven or on earth, not even of my heavenly Father, except upon on instance, which I will relate here. In my boyhood, as you have heard me testify, I went to the Sabbath schools. I read the New Testament. I saw the doctrine there portrayed in plainness, as taught by Jesus Christ and His Apostles, and it was a glorious doctrine. I had a great desire to live on the earth until I could see inspired men who could teach me those principles that I read of in the New Testament. I prayed a great deal in my boyhood and my early manhood that I might live on the earth to receive those principles that I there read of in the New Testament. In 1833, for the first time in my life, I saw an Elder in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. That was Zera Pulsipher. He told me that he was inspired of the Lord. He was threshing grain in his barn when the voice of the Lord came to him and told him to arise and go to the north, the Lord had business for him there. He called upon Brother Cheney, his neighbor and a member of the Church. They traveled sixty miles on foot, in February, in deep snow, and the first place they felt impressed to call upon was the house of my brother and myself. They went into the house and talked with my brother's wife, and they told her who they were and what their business was. They told her that they were moved upon to go to the north, and they never felt impressed to stop anywhere until they came to that house. When they told her their principles, she said her husband and her brother-in-law both were men who believed those principles, and they had prayed for them for years. They appointed a meeting in the schoolhouse upon our farm. I came home in the evening, and my sister-in-law told me of this meeting. I had been drawing logs from the shores of Lake Ontario (I was in the lumber business), and I turned out my horses, did not stop to eat anything, and went to the meeting. I found the house and the dooryard filled with people. I listened for the first time in my life to a Gospel sermon as taught by the Elders of this Church. It was what I had sought for from my boyhood up. I invited the men home with me. I borrowed the Book of Mormon, and sat up all that night and read. In the morning I told Brother Pulsipher I wanted to be baptized. I had a testimony for myself that those principles were true. Myself and my brother, as was stated here yesterday, went forth and were baptized--the two first in that county. That was the beginning of my connection with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. At this point I will say, upon the subject of religion, what are the rights of men upon religious subjects? I do not know that I can do better than to quote Brother Joseph Smith's remarks before thousands of people at a conference in Nauvoo, when there were many non-Mormons present. He said, "If I were the emperor of the world and I had power to control the whole human family, I would sustain every man, woman and child in the enjoyment of their religion." Those are my sentiments today. I believe every man--Jew, Catholic, Protestant, or anything--has a right to enjoy his religion unmolested. I believe the Constitution of the United States and the laws of the United States guarantee this blessing and privilege to everybody. In fact, I believe that even Robert Ingersoll and his followers have a right to their opinions and to enjoy the same; they have a right to their views with regard to God, to Christ, to the heavens and earth, to the present and the future. Still I will say, I believe that when Robert Ingersoll goes into the spirit world he will find the Bible is not a novel. He will learn that there if never before. He will learn that the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus Christ and the sacrifice He made is not a burlesque, but that that was done for the salvation of the world. And he will find that there will be a God there, there will be a heaven there, there will be a hell there, there will be everything there of which the Bible has spoken concerning it. In the spring after I was baptized, I went to Kirtland. There I met with the Prophet Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum. I met those men that afterwards formed the quorum of the Twelve Apostles. I traveled with Joseph Smith and with that company of men--205 of them--one thousand miles to the Missouri to assist our brethren in their difficulties. They had been driven from their homes and their lands, from Jackson County into Clay County. We traveled a thousand miles together. There I had my first experience of the dealings of God with the Prophet of God. I understood perfectly well that he was a prophet. I read the vision, I read his revelations, and I knew they could not come from any man on the face of the earth only by the inspiration of Almighty God. From Missouri I commenced my mission under Bishop Partridge. In other words, I will say that while there I had a great desire to preach the Gospel. I had that desire from my boyhood up. I had been a miller, and I had walked my mill hours and hours in the night, with my soul filled with these desires to preach the Gospel to the children of men. At the time I speak of I was a Teacher, and had no power and authority to go forth and preach. I went one Sunday into the forest there in Clay County. I was living with Lyman Wight, with half a dozen of the signers of the Book of Mormon--the Cowderys, the Whitmers, Judge Higbee, etc. I went off by myself and prayed to the Lord that I might have the privilege of preaching the Gospel to my fellowmen. That is all the office that I ever asked of the Lord or anybody else, as far as that is concerned. While praying the Lord gave me His spirit and answered me that my prayers were heard and would be answered upon my head, and that that I had asked for should be given me. I walked two or three hundred yards out of the forest into an open--a broad highway--in the midst of the forest, and there I saw Judge Higbee standing in the middle of the road with his arms folded. I walked up to him, and when I got to him he says, "Wilford, the Lord has revealed to me that it is your duty to be ordained to go and preach the Gospel." I said, "Is that so?" He said, "Yes." "Well," says I, "if the Lord wants me to preach the Gospel I am ready to go and do it to the best of my ability." I did not tell him that I had been praying for it. My mission commenced there and it never has ended to the present hour. I have had a responsibility resting upon me in connection with my brethren. Now, before I close, I will again bear my testimony that this work is of God. This tabernacle that you are in today was seen by the Prophet Isaiah and other prophets, and they spoke of it, as well as the temples that are built in the valleys of the mountains. All have been pointed out by the prophets of God, and the Lord revealed to Isaiah, Jeremiah and many other prophets, our day, our history, our lives, our position in this immense barren desert which has been occupied by the Latter-day Saints, and is as we see it today through the blessings of God. I will bear my testimony to the world, to my friends of the Church and the State, and to all men under heaven, that this is the truth of God. The Lord Almighty has set His hand to accomplish this work. Joseph Smith was raised up by the power of God and the revelations of Jesus Christ to organize this Church and kingdom in the dispensation of the fullness of times. His life was short, as was the Savior's. But it was a great work that he performed in the flesh. The Savior lived about three and a half years after he entered the ministry. Joseph Smith lived some fourteen years from the time he received the plates and translated them into the English language. He laid down his life, as did Christ and His Apostles, for the word of God and testimony of Jesus Christ. He will rise in his glorified celestial body and meet again with his brethren the Apostles and Elders of Israel and this people, and will stand in days to come as the leader among us in celestial glory. I feel to bear my testimony to this. It matters not about the unbelief of men. They cannot turn away the work of Almighty God. The Lord has set His hand to carry out these great principles which He has revealed, the establishing of the Zion of God and the preparation for the coming of the Son of Man. What has been said about the mountains of Israel will have its fulfillment. The judgments of God will follow in the earth in fulfillment of what has been said, and no power on earth can stay them. I am anxious, although my life has been preserved to this great age, I still am anxious that we as a people may do our duty, may live our religion, may keep the faith, may so walk before the Lord that the Holy Ghost may be our constant companion to lead us in the days that lie before us. This is my prayer and my desire, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. MIRACLES _______________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at Salt Lake City, Utah, January 16th, 1898. Before the meeting closes I feel disposed to make a few remarks to my friends. I had a very pleasant interview with Dr. Reiner at our office, and I related to him a certain principle which was presented by Joseph Smith at a conference in Illinois, before some fifteen thousand people. In speaking upon religious liberty, he said: "If I were the emperor of the world, and I had control of all the human family, I would sustain every man, woman and child on the face of the whole earth in the enjoyment of their religion, let that religion be what it may." I have told the doctor that those were my sentiments. They are my sentiments today. I was much pleased with my interview with our friend, and I have been pleased with his address here today. I do not feel to find any fault with it. I will say, for his benefit and any others that may be present, that one reason why we are strenuous in our faith and belief with regard to this being the Church of Christ, is because the Gospel we have received is the Gospel that Paul taught, and he said: "Though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed." Another reason is that the gifts and graces which were in the Church in the days of Christ and the Apostles are with us today and have been with us since the organization of this Church. Now, I have a favor to ask of this congregation. This congregation is composed largely of Elders and members of the Church. There are many Elders here who have traveled abroad in the vineyard. Now, I say that many of the gifts and graces and miracles that were manifest in the days of Christ and the Apostles I have seen manifest in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and so have you. Whoever has traveled as an Elder of Israel throughout the nations, and has been true and faithful unto God in administering in the ordinances of the house of God, has had the power of God upon him sufficient to receive those gifts and graces at the hands of the Lord. They have been with the Latter-day Saints. Now, I want every Elder who has ever preached abroad, and every man and woman who has ever been present when any of these gifts and graces have been manifest--when the sick have been healed, devils cast out, the lame made to leap, the blind to see, the deaf to hear--I want every man and woman who have seen manifested any of these gifts and graces that were in the ancient Church, to raise their right hand. I do not want anybody to bear testimony of this except those who have seen it. [In response to this request, a large majority of the congregation raised their hands.] I have seen the sick healed. I have seen devils cast out. The blind have seen, the deaf have heard; and all the gifts and graces have been with us. While I was in Herefordshire I helped carry a sister into the water who had not walked for twelve or fifteen years, and we baptized her. When we confirmed her she said she believed she had faith sufficient to be healed. President Young and Dr. Richards called upon me and I told them of this case. I wanted them to administer to her with me in confirming her. We laid hands on her, and President Young was mouth. That woman rose to her feet, and next day she walked several miles in the town where she lived. It was a public case, one that was known to the whole town. Some acknowledged it was a miracle, but said it was through the power of the devil. Those principles have been with us from the beginning, and will be with us until the winding up scene, as far as we do our duty. We have this testimony before us, and the same is manifest in any congregation of the Saints anywhere. Some time ago I met a man and a woman against the Valley House here. The woman said to me, "Do you know me?" I said, "No, I don't." "Do you know this man?" "No, I don't." "Well," said she, "he was born dumb, and when he and I were baptized in Herefordshire, you laid hands on him and his speech was given to him, and he has been able to talk from that day to this." I do not speak of these things boastingly. We have no chance for boasting, because any man who has these gifts knows they are of God, and not of man. I never saw a minute in my life when I felt I had occasion to boast of any gift or blessing that God gave to me. Whatever power I have received, whatever I have been able to do, has been by the gift of God. I pray God my Heavenly Father that we may always live in that way and manner that when we arrive on the other side of the veil we shall receive all those gifts and blessings that belong to the Saints of God who have been true and faithful in any age of the world. This people are called to preach the Gospel. We have traveled to almost all nations. Thousands upon thousands have been brought into the Church. Many of them are gathered here in the valleys of the mountains. We trust that the course we are pursuing may be such that we may be justified before the Lord. There is no doubt but there is opportunity to improve in many of these things. With regard to religion, every man has a right to his religion. It is between him and God; and it is between us and God. Inasmuch as we do our duty, when we get through we shall inherit all the blessings that have been promised unto us; and so will any people that keep the commandments of God. PERSECUTION OF THE RIGHTEOUS _______________ DISCOURSE Delivered by President Wilford Woodruff, at Salt Lake City, Utah, February 13, 1898. There is a saying that "whatever leads to good and to do good, is of God; whatever leads to evil and to do evil, is of that wicked one." The first remark I wish to make is in relation to the mystery in my mind concerning events that have transpired since the world was made and God created man. We all belong to Him. We do not belong to the devil. He never made us. He never made the world. He does not own it. But he is here on earth. The mystery to me is why the God of heaven is so much more unpopular than the devil on the face of the earth; why the inhabitants of the earth, who are the children of God, feel so much more prone to do that that is evil than to follow the commandments of God. The Son of God, when He came to the earth in the meridian of time, died to save the world. The devil did not do it. Still Jesus Christ was the most unpopular man that tabernacled in the flesh in His day and generation. He had more enemies than almost any other being that ever lived. The nation in which He dwelt warred against Him, and after a little while they put Him to death. Why do men feel that the devil is of so much more consequence than Christ, and show themselves more ready to do evil than good? There is no being that has power to save the souls of men and give them eternal life, except the Lord Jesus Christ, under the command of His Father. Take the whole history of the world, from Father Adam down to this day, and the commandments of God and those ordinances that will save men have always been very unpopular. How was it in the days of Jesus? Jesus spent about three years and a half after He entered the ministry, and then He was put to death. They warred against Him and His principles; and not only against Him but also against His followers. His Apostles were all put to death, excepting one, and he would have been destroyed if the people could have killed him; but John the Revelator was preserved by the power of God, while the others were slain. Why were they killed? They were unpopular. The world did not receive their doctrines. Read the history of the world in the days of Adam, Seth, Enos, Jared, Mahalaleel, Canaan, Methusaleh, Noah, when men lived almost a thousand years, and you will find that even in those early times the children of men turned against God. They sought that that was evil, and pursued a course wherein the Lord was angry with them, and He swept them off the face of the earth with a flood. Noah and his family were saved, and the only ones that were saved. Do you ever meditate upon this strange presentation to our minds in the history of the dealings of God with men? It does not matter what age of the world you look at, whenever the Lord has raised up Prophets and Apostles, Pastors and Teachers, and commanded them to do a work, they have been unpopular and their work has been unpopular. Take Jeremiah, for instance. When the Lord sent him forth to teach and warn the people he was very unpopular. They put him in the stocks; they cast him into a pit; they persecuted him continually, until it seems to me he must have felt like saying, "You may all go to hell, for aught I care; I am not going to bother my soul about you any longer." But he could not do that. The Lord had said to him in sending him forth: Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a Prophet unto the nations. He commanded Jeremiah to go and do as He commanded. What was the consequence? Jeremiah was persecuted, and when he complained of the condition of things, the Lord told him to go unto Zedekiah, the king of Jerusalem, who had persecuted him, and say unto him that the judgments of God would come upon him, his eyes would be put out, he would be carried captive to Babylon, and he would die in captivity. I need not dwell upon these things; but they are worthy the contemplation of the Latter-day Saints. It has seemed such hard work to do right, and so easy to do evil. Temptation to do evil is on every hand, from the day of our birth until we go to the grave. How is it in our day? These Latter-day Saints know our position. The God of heaven sent an angel to Joseph Smith. That angel taught him many things, and told him what to do. Among other things, he told him there was a record of the ancient inhabitants of this land hid up in the hill Cumorah and commanded him, in due time, to go forth and receive that record and translate it into the English language. We have that record before us, and it is true. It has come forth in fulfillment of revelation. John the Revelator said: 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. That angel appeared to Joseph Smith in his youth. The Lord also gave unto him many revelations. He received the Holy Priesthood from under the hands of heavenly messengers who held the keys of the Priesthood. He received the Aaronic Priesthood and the Melchisedek Priesthood, by the administration of angels from God out of heaven. He organized the Church of Christ. That man lived fourteen years after he entered into the ministry. He brought forth the Book of Mormon and the Doctrine and Covenants; he organized the Church, and then he, like the Apostles of old, was slain for the word of God and testimony of Jesus. What has been the history of the Latter-day Saints, even on this great American continent, and under one of the most liberal governments God ever gave to man? Joseph was tormented and persecuted. His followers were persecuted. They were driven from the lands they occupied, and scarcely had a place to plant their feet. Tribulation followed them, until they were compelled to come to these valleys of the mountains. We have had a hard time to live in a free country like America and under our great and glorious government. Why this persecution, why this oppression and this opposition? Why this warring of the world against the Gospel of Jesus Christ? There is but one Gospel; there never was but one, and never will be but one Gospel. That Gospel God has revealed to us. It is the Gospel of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, repentance of sin, baptism for the remission of sins, the reception of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands, and the gifts and graces following those who embrace those principles. You are my witnesses of the truth of these things. We have found it to be an uphill work to get the rights of American citizens. God has established us here in these valleys of the mountains. We came here as pioneers. We found a barren desert, with no mark of the white man anywhere. You see what there is today. It is in fulfillment of the revelations of God. Why is this spirit in men to persecute one another, to fight against God and His people, as has been the case from the creation of the world down to our day more or less? It is wrong, and every man that takes a course of this kind will have to bear the burden of it. There is but one power in heaven or on earth that can give man a part in the first resurrection, clothed with glory, immortality and eternal life, and that power comes from God, and not from the evil one. We ought to look at these things as they are. I have a few remarks I want to make on a certain subject connected with this. We have, as you all know, lately put forth before the public a document concerning a certain man who has been associated with us--that is, Colonel Isaac Trumbo.1 It has been a marvel to a great many why the Presidency of the Church put that forth and published it to the world. It is because what we wrote there, brethren and sisters, is true. Whether he is unpopular or not, it makes no difference to us. We have had so few men who have not been in this Church that have stepped forth and done what he and some others have done, we have felt it our duty to acknowledge it. I want to say to you, one and all, that I do not want to have Colonel Trumbo go before God, whether before or after the resurrection, or any other time, and say that Wilford Woodruff, the President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, deprived him of the honor that he should have had for trying to assist the people in their calamities and in obtaining a State government for Utah, etc., as we have rehearsed in that paper. I am willing to acknowledge Colonel Trumbo, or any other man, who has gone forth as he has for years and assisted us in the days of our trial. He is responsible for his own acts. We have had some friends in the midst of our difficulties. It has been uphill work with us all the way through in these valleys of the mountains, but we have managed to pull through, by the blessings of God and the labors of a few friends with our own. Colonel Trumbo was one of those friends. He took hold and labored with us, and I feel it is my duty to acknowledge him before my brethren. I do it for that reason. I would do it for any other man that labored with us. We have had a great many that labored against us and for our destruction. We have had to bear these things from the organization of this Church. I was associated with Joseph Smith from 1833 to the time of his death. After his death I was associated with Brigham Young. I brought him into this valley in my carriage. I traveled with him and labored with him up to the day of his death. So with John Taylor, and so with the Apostles and this people. I know, as God lives, that this is the work of God. I know the Gospel has been revealed to us, and we have it. It is our duty to abide by it. Inasmuch as we will do this the blessings of heaven will attend us, and we will have power to build up Zion in fulfillment of the promises of God. I am a firm believer myself in rewards and punishments, and in the gifts and graces of the Gospel. I have from my childhood been a firm believer in the Patriarchs, the Prophets, and the teachings of Jesus Christ. What He and His Apostles taught was true. They were put to death for those truths, and so have our leaders been put to death for those truths. Some of us have been preserved in the earth. The Latter-day Saints are gathering together to fulfill these revelations that have been given to us. Let any man read the revelations in the Bible; read the 49th chapter of Isaiah: Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; and break forth into singing, O mountains; for the Lord has comforted his people, and will have mercy upon his afflicted. But Zion said, The Lord hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me. Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me. Those things that have been predicted from the beginning concerning the winding up scene and the second coming of the Son of Man will come to pass. Therefore, let us prepare for them. I bear my testimony of these things; for I do not know how long I shall have this privilege on the earth. In my boyhood I attended the Sabbath school under old Dr. Porter, one of the pillars of the Presbyterian church in New England. I read the New Testament there; I read of Christ and of the Apostles; I read of the miracles and the gifts. I asked Dr. Porter why they did not have those things in their midst. "Why do you not have that faith once delivered to the Saints? Why do you not have Prophets and Apostles now?" The doctor smiled and said, "My boy, those things are done away." I knew they were done away; but why were they done away? He said, "They were given in the dark ages of the world, to convince the inhabitants of the earth that Jesus was the Christ. We live today in the blaze of the glorious Gospel light of Christ, and do not need these things." Then, said I to him and to others, "Give me the dark ages of the world instead of this glorious Gospel blaze, if in those dark ages there was power to unlock the heavens and give you converse with God and angels, and give you gifts and graces and power." Yes, in my boyhood I would have gone a thousand miles to have seen a Prophet. I had desire to see one. I hoped to live to see one. I have lived to mingle with Prophets and Apostles for a long period. From 1833 to this day I have never seen anything but truth in connection with this work. Let us try to do our duty and magnify our calling before high heaven; for it will pay us. When I die I want the privilege of being raised from the dead, and of mingling with God, with Christ, and with Apostles and Prophets, and the privilege of having my family, my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, with me in the celestial kingdom of God, organized in a family capacity, that we may dwell together there. Salvation is worth something, no matter whether it is popular or unpopular, despised or not despised; and if we ever get it, we will get it by keeping the commandments of God and carrying out these principles that God has revealed to us. I have traveled with the Prophets and Apostles, and seen the persecutions, and been through some of the trials and tribulations. We have been led here, and we will try to build up Zion here. This Tabernacle and these temples the old Prophet Isaiah and other Prophets saw. We are here in fulfillment of prophecy, and we are doing all the good we can. Why should man quarrel with his neighbor about religion? Every man has a right to his religion, whether it will save him or not. I never quarreled with any man about religion; never considered it proper to do so. I never felt like debating with any man upon the subject of religion for the sake of gaining power over him in debate. I do not believe in it. I teach what good I can, and when I get through with this world I hope I will be satisfied with it. We have gathered here from all nations. I baptized many in England that have gathered here, though most of them have passed away, where I shall go myself before long. I pray God to bless you and to guide and direct us all, as Apostles, as Prophets, as Elders, as Saints, as fathers and mothers, and as children. Only reflect a moment on the blessing that God has given you in having the privilege of going into these temples and working for our dead friends. We have four temples, one standing on this block. Brigham Young directed in the building of them, and he has gone home to glory, immortality and eternal life. I pray God that we may have power to do our duty, magnify our calling, walk uprightly before the Lord, and acknowledge the hand of God in all the blessings bestowed upon us. This is my prayer and desire in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.