II
HOLY BOOKS
1.
Holy books of the Mormons, which they call the Standard Works of the Church, are the Bible (insofar as it is correctly translated), The Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants and The Pearl of Great Price, which includes the Articles of Faith.
One of the works of the prodigious prophet Joseph Smith was an inspired re-translation of the Bible. In the early history of the church, when one part of the organization split off and called itself the Reorganized group, the latter unit fell heir to the major portion of this translation work. The main body of the church today uses the King James version of the Bible, but its teachers point out to devout students some of the discrepancies which, the church maintains, the Prophet found.
Mainstay of the faith is the Book of Mormon, which does not supplant the Bible, at all, but supplements it.
The Book of Mormon has been a constant storm center of religious and literary turmoil since its public appearance in 1830. Many learned men have attacked it, and millions of devout men and women have supported it. As we know them today, all religions are based fundamentally upon revelation from God, or some other all-powerful being. Religions seem to differ in this respect only in the manner and the period of time in which their principles were made manifest to man, or perhaps are still being made available to him through his metaphysical contact with the cosmos, infinity, God, etc.
The Mormons state flatly that the Book of Mormon was revealed by the will of God to Joseph Smith, and claim for this American prophet all the power, abilities, divine commission and duty to rebuke, organize and guide the people that also resided in such leaders as Moses, Abraham, Enoch, Isaiah, Elijah and others.
Judging from its effect, in one manner or another, upon all who come into serious contact with it, the book undoubtedly is one of the most powerful documents ever penned. It is the cornerstone of a creed that today claims more than a million members. It was the inspiration that sent forth a gigantic migration of people to trek across a continent and establish a veritable Garden of Eden in a desert wilderness. The Mormons believe that they can produce no greater effect upon a prospective convert than that obtained by reading the Book of Mormon. They have not underestimated its power. No person can read the Book of Mormon even most of the way through and not be profoundly affected by it.
As to the claims of Mormons to the divine origin of The Book of Mormon, it must be said in all fairness that from the standpoint of pure rationalization, it is just as possible that this book is divinely inspired as it is for the Bible, the Koran, the Upanishads, the works of Mary Baker Eddy, the revelations to Buddha, or the foundation work of any other religion or sect. To be effective, religion must always be a matter of personal choice, one of exploration, selection, rejection or synthesis by each human individual.
The test of a pie is the eating of it. The test of a book is the reading of it. The test of a religion is one's personal emotional reaction to the panorama it unfolds. Too many people follow the precepts of their spiritual leaders without ever bothering to read the basic work upon which their faith is supposed to be grounded. It is impossible, in this piece of journalism, or in any other written or oral work, to adequately convey to the reader what the effect of The Book of Mormon will be upon him. There is only one answer: if the reader's interest is great enough, it is recommended that he read The Book of Mormon all the way through and reach his own decision.
It is not a small book. Anyone who knows about the labor necessary to produce a literary work will stand appalled at the prospect of writing a manuscript that, when printed, will run more than five hundred pages in very small type. It is composed of fifteen main parts, or divisions. Each, with the exception of a short connecting passage called the Words of Mormon, is called a book, and compares in size and style to a book in the Bible. Names of these books are: First Nephi, Second Nephi, Jacob, Enos, Jarom, Omni, the Words of Mormon, Mosiah, Alma[,] Helaman, Third Nephi, Book of Mormon, Ether, and Moroni. It is divided into chapters and verses, just as is the Bible.
The Book of Mormon purports to be a history of a people of Jewish background who left Palestine about the year 600 B.C., made their way to the North American continent, established cities and nations there, and later were destroyed by warfare among themselves. This era is supposed to have come to an end in about 421 A.D., when Moroni, last of the historians of the Nephite people who inhabited the North American continent, sealed up the records in a stone crypt in a hillside in what is now New York state. Joseph Smith, as a youth in his early teens, is claimed by the Mormosn to have been guided by heavenly agents to the spot where these records were sealed, and through a series of preparations, was made capable of translating them from the ancient language in which they were written.
The manner in which this series of revelations was made to young Joseph Smith makes as dramatic a story as that which any other religion claims for its origin, such as the visions of Guatama (Buddha) when he was sitting under a tree in the orient, as the appearance of God to Abraham when he was about to sacrifice his son Isaac, as the vision of Saul on the road to Damascus, as the vivid appearances to Mohammed. Since the object of the author is to present facts as a reporter, and neither to condemn nor extoll, perhaps it would be best to present the reason for the existence of The Book of Mormon on earth today in the exact words of the prophet Joseph Smith himself, as set forth in introductory pages of every standard copy of the work.
Joseph Smith affirmed that during the night of September 21, 1823 (he was then 17 years of age) he sought the Lord in fervent prayer, having previously received a divine manifestation of transcendent import. His account of the ensuing action follows:
"While I was thus in the act of calling upon God, I discovered a light appearing in my room, which continued to increase until the room was lighter than at noonday, when immediately a personage appeared at my bedside, standing in the air, for his feet did not touch the floor.
"He had on a loose robe of most exquisite whiteness. It was a whiteness beyond anything earthly I had ever seen; nor do I believe that any earthly thing could be made to appear so exceedingly white and brilliant. His hands were naked, and his arms also, a little above the wrist; so, also, were his feet naked, as were his legs, a little above the ankles. His head and neck were also bare. I could discover that he had no other clothing on but this robe, as it was open, so that I could see into his bosom.
"Not only was his robe exceedingly white, but his whole person was glorious beyond description, and his countenance truly like lightning. The room was exceedingly light, but not so very bright as immediately around his person. When I first looked upon him, I was afraid; but the fear soon left me.
"He called me by name, and said unto me that he was a messenger sent from the presence of God to me, and that his name was Moroni; that God had a work for me to do; and that my name should be had for good and evil among all nations, kindreds, and tongues, or that it should be both good and evil spoken of among all people.
"He said there was a book deposited, written upon gold plates, giving an account of the former inhabitants of this continent, and the source from whence they sprang. He also said that the fulness of the everlasting Gospel was contained in it, as delivered by the Savior to the ancient inhabitants;
"Also, that there were two stones in silver bows - and these stones, fastened to a breastplate, constituted what is called the Urim and Thummim - deposited with the plates; and the possession and use of these stones were what constituted ‘seers’ in ancient or former times; and that God had prepared them for the purpose of translating the book.
"Again, he told me, that when I got those plates of which he had spoken - for the time that they should be obtained was not yet fulfilled - I should not show them to any person; neither the breastplate with the Urim and Thummim; only to those to whom I should be commanded to show them; if I did I should be destroyed. While he was conversing with me about the plates, the vision was opened to my mind that I could see the place where the plates were deposited, and that so clearly and distinctly that I knew the place again when I visited it.
"After this communication, I saw the light in the room begin to gather immediately around the person of him who had been speaking to me, and it continued to do so until the room was again left dark, except just around him; when, instantly I saw, as it were, a conduit open right up into heaven, and he ascended till he entirely disappeared, and the room was left as it had been before this heavenly light had made its appearance.
"I lay musing on the singularity of the scene, and marveling greatly at what had been told to me by this extraordinary messenger; when, in the midst of my meditation, I suddenly discovered that my room was again beginning to get lighted, and in an instant, as it were, the same heavenly messenger was again by my bedside.
"He commenced, and again related the very same things which he had done at his first visit, without the least variation; which having done, he informed me of great judgments which were coming upon the earth, with great desolations by famine, sword, and pestilence; and that these grievous judgments would come on the earth in this generation. Having related these things, he again ascended as he had done before.
"By this time, so deep were the impressions made on my mind, that sleep had fled from my eyes, and I lay overwhelmed in astonishment at what I had both seen and heard. But what was my surprise when again I beheld the same messenger at my bedside, and heard him rehearse or repeat over again to me the same things as before; and added a caution to me, telling me that Satan would try to tempt me (in consequence of the indigent circumstances of my father’s family), to get the plates for the purpose of getting rich. This he forbade me, saying that I must have no other object in view in getting the plates but to glorify God, and must not be influenced by any other motive than that of building his kingdom; otherwise I could not get them.
"After this third visit, he again ascended into heaven as before, and I was again left to ponder on the strangeness of what I had just experienced; when almost immediately after the heavenly messenger had ascended from me for the third time, the cock crowed, and I found that day was approaching, so that our interviews must have occupied the whole of that night.
"I shortly after arose from my bed, and, as usual, went to the necessary labors of the day; but, in attempting to work as at other times, I found my strength so exhausted as to render me entirely unable. My father, who was laboring along with me, discovered something to be wrong with me, and told me to go home. I started with the intention of going to the house; but, in attempting to cross the fence out of the field where we were, my strength entirely failed me, and I fell helpless on the ground, and for a time was quite unconscious of anything.
"The first thing that I can recollect was a voice speaking unto me, calling me by name. I looked up, and beheld the same messenger standing over my head, surrounded by light as before. He then again related unto me all that he had related to me the previous night, and commanded me to go to my father and tell him of the vision and commandments which I had received.
"I obeyed; I returned to my father in the field, and rehearsed the whole matter to him. He replied to me that it was of God, and told me to go and do as commanded by the messenger. I left the field, and went to the place where the messenger had told me the plates were deposited; and owing to the distinctness of the vision which I had had concerning it, I knew the place the instant that I arrived there.
"Convenient to the village of Manchester, Ontario county, New York, stands a hill of considerable size, and the most elevated of any in the neighborhood. On the west side of this hill, not far from the top, under a stone of considerable size, lay the plates, deposited in a stone box. This stone was thick and rounding in the middle on the upper side, and thinner towards the edges, so that the middle part of it was visible above the ground, but the edge all around was covered with earth.
"Having removed the earth, I obtained a lever, which I got fixed under the edge of the stone, and with a little exertion raised it up. I looked in, and there indeed did I behold the plates, the Urim and Thummim, and the breastplate, as stated by the messenger. The box in which they lay was formed by laying stones together in some kind of cement. In the bottom of the box were laid two stones crossways of the box, and on these stones lay the plates and the other things with them.
"I made an attempt to take them out, but was forbidden by the messenger, and was again informed that the time for bringing them forth had not yet arrived, neither would it, until four years from that time; but he told me that I should come to that place precisely in one year from that time, and that he would there meet with me, and that I should continue to do so until the time should come for obtaining the plates.
"Accordingly, as I had been commanded, I went at the end of each year, and at each time I found the same messenger there, and received instruction and intelligence from him at each of our interviews, respecting what the Lord was going to do, and how and in what manner his kingdom was to be conducted in the last days.
"At length the time arrived for obtaining the plates, the Urim and Thummim, and the breastplate. On the twenty-second day of September, one thousand eight hundred and twenty-seven, having gone as usual at the end of another year to the place where they were deposited, the same heavenly messenger delivered them up to me with this charge: that I should be responsible for them; that if I should let them go carelessly, or through any neglect of mine, I should be cut off; but that if I would use all my endeavors to preserve them, until he, the messenger, should call for them, they should be protected.
"I soon found out the reason why I had received such strict charges to keep them safe, and why it was that the messenger had said that when I had done what was required at my hand, he would call for them. For no sooner was it known that I had them, than the most strenuous exertions were used to get them from me. Every stratagem that could be invented was resorted to for that purpose. The persecution became more bitter and severe than before, and multitudes were on the alert continually to get them from me if possible. But by the wisdom of God, they remained safe in my hands, until I had accomplished by them what was required at my hand. When, according to arrangements, the messenger called for them, I delivered them up to him; and he has them in his charge until this day, being the second day of May, one thousand eight hundred and thirty-eight.”
The entire Latter-day Saints religion, based as it is upon the Book of Mormon and other teachings of Joseph Smith, has sprung from the mind of that American youth.
Was his mind inspired? Did he have a divine commission? Was he a prophet? Were his claims that he was voicing the will of God to be taken seriously?
Were Moses and Aaron guided by Jehovah? Was there such a thing as the miracle of the Jews crossing the Red sea dry shod? Is the Pope the Vicar of Christ on Earth? Was Jesus divine? Does God exist?
Mormonism can no more be completely rationalized than Catholicism, or Protestantism, or Mohammedanism, or Judaism. Nor, on the other hand, can it be any less completely rationalized than they, nor than any other revealed religion. A person either believes it, or he doesn't believe it. There can be no middle ground and no quibbling over higher criticisms. It is this very fact of its flat, blunt, bald, deliberate claim to outright revealed origin that is the greatest strength of the Mormon church. When, in order to answer the pedantries of small minded men who have neither the faith to accept a religion nor the courage to reject the idea of religion, Mormons sometimes get into involved arguments over their authority to preach the gospel, they are dissipating the power of one of their strongest weapons.
That, then, is the story of the Book of Mormon. One may believe it or disbelieve it, take it or leave it.
One of the works of the prodigious prophet Joseph Smith was an inspired re-translation of the Bible. In the early history of the church, when one part of the organization split off and called itself the Reorganized group, the latter unit fell heir to the major portion of this translation work. The main body of the church today uses the King James version of the Bible, but its teachers point out to devout students some of the discrepancies which, the church maintains, the Prophet found.
Mainstay of the faith is the Book of Mormon, which does not supplant the Bible, at all, but supplements it.
The Book of Mormon has been a constant storm center of religious and literary turmoil since its public appearance in 1830. Many learned men have attacked it, and millions of devout men and women have supported it. As we know them today, all religions are based fundamentally upon revelation from God, or some other all-powerful being. Religions seem to differ in this respect only in the manner and the period of time in which their principles were made manifest to man, or perhaps are still being made available to him through his metaphysical contact with the cosmos, infinity, God, etc.
The Mormons state flatly that the Book of Mormon was revealed by the will of God to Joseph Smith, and claim for this American prophet all the power, abilities, divine commission and duty to rebuke, organize and guide the people that also resided in such leaders as Moses, Abraham, Enoch, Isaiah, Elijah and others.
Judging from its effect, in one manner or another, upon all who come into serious contact with it, the book undoubtedly is one of the most powerful documents ever penned. It is the cornerstone of a creed that today claims more than a million members. It was the inspiration that sent forth a gigantic migration of people to trek across a continent and establish a veritable Garden of Eden in a desert wilderness. The Mormons believe that they can produce no greater effect upon a prospective convert than that obtained by reading the Book of Mormon. They have not underestimated its power. No person can read the Book of Mormon even most of the way through and not be profoundly affected by it.
As to the claims of Mormons to the divine origin of The Book of Mormon, it must be said in all fairness that from the standpoint of pure rationalization, it is just as possible that this book is divinely inspired as it is for the Bible, the Koran, the Upanishads, the works of Mary Baker Eddy, the revelations to Buddha, or the foundation work of any other religion or sect. To be effective, religion must always be a matter of personal choice, one of exploration, selection, rejection or synthesis by each human individual.
The test of a pie is the eating of it. The test of a book is the reading of it. The test of a religion is one's personal emotional reaction to the panorama it unfolds. Too many people follow the precepts of their spiritual leaders without ever bothering to read the basic work upon which their faith is supposed to be grounded. It is impossible, in this piece of journalism, or in any other written or oral work, to adequately convey to the reader what the effect of The Book of Mormon will be upon him. There is only one answer: if the reader's interest is great enough, it is recommended that he read The Book of Mormon all the way through and reach his own decision.
It is not a small book. Anyone who knows about the labor necessary to produce a literary work will stand appalled at the prospect of writing a manuscript that, when printed, will run more than five hundred pages in very small type. It is composed of fifteen main parts, or divisions. Each, with the exception of a short connecting passage called the Words of Mormon, is called a book, and compares in size and style to a book in the Bible. Names of these books are: First Nephi, Second Nephi, Jacob, Enos, Jarom, Omni, the Words of Mormon, Mosiah, Alma[,] Helaman, Third Nephi, Book of Mormon, Ether, and Moroni. It is divided into chapters and verses, just as is the Bible.
The Book of Mormon purports to be a history of a people of Jewish background who left Palestine about the year 600 B.C., made their way to the North American continent, established cities and nations there, and later were destroyed by warfare among themselves. This era is supposed to have come to an end in about 421 A.D., when Moroni, last of the historians of the Nephite people who inhabited the North American continent, sealed up the records in a stone crypt in a hillside in what is now New York state. Joseph Smith, as a youth in his early teens, is claimed by the Mormosn to have been guided by heavenly agents to the spot where these records were sealed, and through a series of preparations, was made capable of translating them from the ancient language in which they were written.
The manner in which this series of revelations was made to young Joseph Smith makes as dramatic a story as that which any other religion claims for its origin, such as the visions of Guatama (Buddha) when he was sitting under a tree in the orient, as the appearance of God to Abraham when he was about to sacrifice his son Isaac, as the vision of Saul on the road to Damascus, as the vivid appearances to Mohammed. Since the object of the author is to present facts as a reporter, and neither to condemn nor extoll, perhaps it would be best to present the reason for the existence of The Book of Mormon on earth today in the exact words of the prophet Joseph Smith himself, as set forth in introductory pages of every standard copy of the work.
Joseph Smith affirmed that during the night of September 21, 1823 (he was then 17 years of age) he sought the Lord in fervent prayer, having previously received a divine manifestation of transcendent import. His account of the ensuing action follows:
"While I was thus in the act of calling upon God, I discovered a light appearing in my room, which continued to increase until the room was lighter than at noonday, when immediately a personage appeared at my bedside, standing in the air, for his feet did not touch the floor.
"He had on a loose robe of most exquisite whiteness. It was a whiteness beyond anything earthly I had ever seen; nor do I believe that any earthly thing could be made to appear so exceedingly white and brilliant. His hands were naked, and his arms also, a little above the wrist; so, also, were his feet naked, as were his legs, a little above the ankles. His head and neck were also bare. I could discover that he had no other clothing on but this robe, as it was open, so that I could see into his bosom.
"Not only was his robe exceedingly white, but his whole person was glorious beyond description, and his countenance truly like lightning. The room was exceedingly light, but not so very bright as immediately around his person. When I first looked upon him, I was afraid; but the fear soon left me.
"He called me by name, and said unto me that he was a messenger sent from the presence of God to me, and that his name was Moroni; that God had a work for me to do; and that my name should be had for good and evil among all nations, kindreds, and tongues, or that it should be both good and evil spoken of among all people.
"He said there was a book deposited, written upon gold plates, giving an account of the former inhabitants of this continent, and the source from whence they sprang. He also said that the fulness of the everlasting Gospel was contained in it, as delivered by the Savior to the ancient inhabitants;
"Also, that there were two stones in silver bows - and these stones, fastened to a breastplate, constituted what is called the Urim and Thummim - deposited with the plates; and the possession and use of these stones were what constituted ‘seers’ in ancient or former times; and that God had prepared them for the purpose of translating the book.
"Again, he told me, that when I got those plates of which he had spoken - for the time that they should be obtained was not yet fulfilled - I should not show them to any person; neither the breastplate with the Urim and Thummim; only to those to whom I should be commanded to show them; if I did I should be destroyed. While he was conversing with me about the plates, the vision was opened to my mind that I could see the place where the plates were deposited, and that so clearly and distinctly that I knew the place again when I visited it.
"After this communication, I saw the light in the room begin to gather immediately around the person of him who had been speaking to me, and it continued to do so until the room was again left dark, except just around him; when, instantly I saw, as it were, a conduit open right up into heaven, and he ascended till he entirely disappeared, and the room was left as it had been before this heavenly light had made its appearance.
"I lay musing on the singularity of the scene, and marveling greatly at what had been told to me by this extraordinary messenger; when, in the midst of my meditation, I suddenly discovered that my room was again beginning to get lighted, and in an instant, as it were, the same heavenly messenger was again by my bedside.
"He commenced, and again related the very same things which he had done at his first visit, without the least variation; which having done, he informed me of great judgments which were coming upon the earth, with great desolations by famine, sword, and pestilence; and that these grievous judgments would come on the earth in this generation. Having related these things, he again ascended as he had done before.
"By this time, so deep were the impressions made on my mind, that sleep had fled from my eyes, and I lay overwhelmed in astonishment at what I had both seen and heard. But what was my surprise when again I beheld the same messenger at my bedside, and heard him rehearse or repeat over again to me the same things as before; and added a caution to me, telling me that Satan would try to tempt me (in consequence of the indigent circumstances of my father’s family), to get the plates for the purpose of getting rich. This he forbade me, saying that I must have no other object in view in getting the plates but to glorify God, and must not be influenced by any other motive than that of building his kingdom; otherwise I could not get them.
"After this third visit, he again ascended into heaven as before, and I was again left to ponder on the strangeness of what I had just experienced; when almost immediately after the heavenly messenger had ascended from me for the third time, the cock crowed, and I found that day was approaching, so that our interviews must have occupied the whole of that night.
"I shortly after arose from my bed, and, as usual, went to the necessary labors of the day; but, in attempting to work as at other times, I found my strength so exhausted as to render me entirely unable. My father, who was laboring along with me, discovered something to be wrong with me, and told me to go home. I started with the intention of going to the house; but, in attempting to cross the fence out of the field where we were, my strength entirely failed me, and I fell helpless on the ground, and for a time was quite unconscious of anything.
"The first thing that I can recollect was a voice speaking unto me, calling me by name. I looked up, and beheld the same messenger standing over my head, surrounded by light as before. He then again related unto me all that he had related to me the previous night, and commanded me to go to my father and tell him of the vision and commandments which I had received.
"I obeyed; I returned to my father in the field, and rehearsed the whole matter to him. He replied to me that it was of God, and told me to go and do as commanded by the messenger. I left the field, and went to the place where the messenger had told me the plates were deposited; and owing to the distinctness of the vision which I had had concerning it, I knew the place the instant that I arrived there.
"Convenient to the village of Manchester, Ontario county, New York, stands a hill of considerable size, and the most elevated of any in the neighborhood. On the west side of this hill, not far from the top, under a stone of considerable size, lay the plates, deposited in a stone box. This stone was thick and rounding in the middle on the upper side, and thinner towards the edges, so that the middle part of it was visible above the ground, but the edge all around was covered with earth.
"Having removed the earth, I obtained a lever, which I got fixed under the edge of the stone, and with a little exertion raised it up. I looked in, and there indeed did I behold the plates, the Urim and Thummim, and the breastplate, as stated by the messenger. The box in which they lay was formed by laying stones together in some kind of cement. In the bottom of the box were laid two stones crossways of the box, and on these stones lay the plates and the other things with them.
"I made an attempt to take them out, but was forbidden by the messenger, and was again informed that the time for bringing them forth had not yet arrived, neither would it, until four years from that time; but he told me that I should come to that place precisely in one year from that time, and that he would there meet with me, and that I should continue to do so until the time should come for obtaining the plates.
"Accordingly, as I had been commanded, I went at the end of each year, and at each time I found the same messenger there, and received instruction and intelligence from him at each of our interviews, respecting what the Lord was going to do, and how and in what manner his kingdom was to be conducted in the last days.
"At length the time arrived for obtaining the plates, the Urim and Thummim, and the breastplate. On the twenty-second day of September, one thousand eight hundred and twenty-seven, having gone as usual at the end of another year to the place where they were deposited, the same heavenly messenger delivered them up to me with this charge: that I should be responsible for them; that if I should let them go carelessly, or through any neglect of mine, I should be cut off; but that if I would use all my endeavors to preserve them, until he, the messenger, should call for them, they should be protected.
"I soon found out the reason why I had received such strict charges to keep them safe, and why it was that the messenger had said that when I had done what was required at my hand, he would call for them. For no sooner was it known that I had them, than the most strenuous exertions were used to get them from me. Every stratagem that could be invented was resorted to for that purpose. The persecution became more bitter and severe than before, and multitudes were on the alert continually to get them from me if possible. But by the wisdom of God, they remained safe in my hands, until I had accomplished by them what was required at my hand. When, according to arrangements, the messenger called for them, I delivered them up to him; and he has them in his charge until this day, being the second day of May, one thousand eight hundred and thirty-eight.”
The entire Latter-day Saints religion, based as it is upon the Book of Mormon and other teachings of Joseph Smith, has sprung from the mind of that American youth.
Was his mind inspired? Did he have a divine commission? Was he a prophet? Were his claims that he was voicing the will of God to be taken seriously?
Were Moses and Aaron guided by Jehovah? Was there such a thing as the miracle of the Jews crossing the Red sea dry shod? Is the Pope the Vicar of Christ on Earth? Was Jesus divine? Does God exist?
Mormonism can no more be completely rationalized than Catholicism, or Protestantism, or Mohammedanism, or Judaism. Nor, on the other hand, can it be any less completely rationalized than they, nor than any other revealed religion. A person either believes it, or he doesn't believe it. There can be no middle ground and no quibbling over higher criticisms. It is this very fact of its flat, blunt, bald, deliberate claim to outright revealed origin that is the greatest strength of the Mormon church. When, in order to answer the pedantries of small minded men who have neither the faith to accept a religion nor the courage to reject the idea of religion, Mormons sometimes get into involved arguments over their authority to preach the gospel, they are dissipating the power of one of their strongest weapons.
That, then, is the story of the Book of Mormon. One may believe it or disbelieve it, take it or leave it.
2.
To some practical-minded eople, to many who have been taught almost any of the established religions from infancy, as well as to a few others who habitually sneer at religious beliefs of others, the idea of a prophet in these latter days moving around among people dressed not so very differently than we of today and using tools, books, equipment similar to that in most homes and on most farms, is a doubtful thing, a preposterous thing, or a ridiculous thing.
After he had completed his work on the Book of Mormon, when people had begun to flock to him and follow his teachings, Joseph Smith from time to time recorded, or caused to be recorded, a series of instructions to the people which he delivered in a solemn manner as being revelations from God.
These purported revelations later were gathered together into a manuscript, which after many vicissitudes, including the wrecking by an angry mob of the printing press on which it was being produced, finally appeared in book form. By this time, organization of the new church had become rather well effected. The book was accepted in an official assembly of all the units, or quorums, of the church, as being divine revelation, and was adopted as a standard work. At first, the compilation was known as The Book of Commandments, although today its name is the Doctrine and Covenants of the church.
These revelations were delivered by Joseph Smith as specific need for guidance arose in the formation of the rapidly growing young religion. They are invariably worded in Biblical fashion, but are quite down to earth in their application to the problems at hand. The followers and early lieutenants of Joseph Smith have secured a permanent place in ecclesiastical history by their zeal and faith, for the prophet used their names freely in interpreting direct commandments from God.
The organizational structure of the Mormon church, which is a marvel of political science and of theological polity, grew out of a practical application of most of these revelations, so that the Doctrine and Covenants can be taken as the nearest thing the Mormons have to a written constitution.
The Doctrine and Covenants is comprised of 136 formal sections, which are divided into numbered verses for accurate reference, and an official declaration commonly known as the "Manifesto of 1890" that publicly denounced the practice of polygamy, or "plural marriage" that formerly was a feature of the religion.
The division of the various sections into verses is a convenience to many Mormon students who have occasion freuently to refer to the work as a basic document in church policy and government, very much as a constitutional lawyer would refer to specific paragraphs in quoting the Constitution of the United States.
From this serious view of the Doctrine and Covenants, and from the formalism embodied in its name, the reader would be committing a grave error to presume that the book is a dry, stilted collection of facts, or visions, or some such thing. On the contrary, it is one of the most readable books ever written, well capable of becoming a popular best seller if it were plugged as such, and fully worthy, as a literary production, of being selected as a Book of the Month club feature.
Despite its solid-sounding name, the Doctrine and Covenants contains all the elements of a most successful novel, and anyone seeking literary entertainment and desiring to be under no obligation to explore a new religion would find in its pages as absorbing a story as "Gone With the Wind," or "Leave Her to Heaven," or "The Robe," or "King's Row." Perhaps if a popular-style edition of teh book were given some such intriguing name, it could easily become one of the smart novels of the day, not in its own right as a religious effort, but purely as entertaining reading matter.
The book contains a record of the marvels experienced in establishing a wholly new religion, an American-conceived religion. It contains a statement of the beliefs of the Mormons as a body of believers, voted in official church assembly. A strong spirit of prophecy, like an undertone of drama, heightens steadily throughout the book and climaxes with a straightforward account of the death of Joseph Smith the prophet, and his brother Hyrum, patriarch of the church, at the hands of a mob of illiterate frontier ruffians at Cartchage, Ill., on June 27, 1844. All this, of course, is fact, and a part of the interesting religious and political history of the United States that often is lightly treated by non-Mormon and anti-Mormon writers and teachers. Still, all this does not lessen the literary merit of the work.
For the person who might be interested in the very absorbing subject of the practice of polygamy, or plural marriage, in the early history of the Mormon church, the Doctrine and Covenants contains the revelation given by the prophet in announcing the doctrine. This is the famous Section 132. The section was given by way of a solemn revelation and commandment from God. It has, of course, since then been modified to meet demands of the laws of the United States that were passed after the revelation was given.
Like almost any other subject in which the matter of human sex is mentioned, this work will give rise to whatever conclusions in the mind of the reader as might be reflected by the purity, bigness, pettiness, or filthiness of his own mind.
At any rate, Section 132 makes marvelous reading from whatever angle the reader approaches it. The theological visions opened up by this revelation form one of the greatest advances ever made in religious thought concerning life after departure from this world. These thoughts are concerned with the doctrine of eternal marriage, which is discussed in another chapter of this book.
The Doctrine and Covenants is published by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, at Salt Lake City. Inasmuch as it is one of the standard works of such a big church, it naturally has been printed and distributed in large numbers and is kept in constant print. Almost any first class bookseller would obtain it on order, although few stock it regularly. Perhaps the quickest and most convenient way of obtaining a copy would be to have it sent C.O.D. from one of the two secular book stores that handle heavy quantities of Mormon church works. These are Zion's Book Store, 65 East Second South Street, Salt Lake City; and Deseret Book Company, 44 East South Temple, Salt Lake City. Both of these firms do a tremendous mail order business, in additoin to their regular local trade, satisfying demands from all over the world for literature concerning the Mormon church. The Doctrine and Covenants, due to its quantity printings, is priced very low, and even in this day of high-priced books, an excellently bound copy usually can be bought for as little as a dollar and fifty cents. To the serious student, it is a concise explanation of the beginnings of a great church. To the curiosity seeker or habitual reader it offers one of the greatest of all bargains in literature.
The Mormon church doesn't put forth the Doctrine and Covenants with the same amount of zeal as it does the Book of Mormon, leaving its discovery, for the most part, to the student who has become deeply interested enough from having read the Book of Mormon to seek further. However, the Mormons have nothing to lose from anybody's reading the Doctrine and Covenants, no matter what his spirit of approach might be. They cannot be attacked any worse than they already have been at many times in their history. So many new avenues of philosophical exploration are opened by the Doctrine and Covenants that the Mormon church, perhaps, would be contributing greatly to the general body of world knowlege if the work were more widely distributed.
After he had completed his work on the Book of Mormon, when people had begun to flock to him and follow his teachings, Joseph Smith from time to time recorded, or caused to be recorded, a series of instructions to the people which he delivered in a solemn manner as being revelations from God.
These purported revelations later were gathered together into a manuscript, which after many vicissitudes, including the wrecking by an angry mob of the printing press on which it was being produced, finally appeared in book form. By this time, organization of the new church had become rather well effected. The book was accepted in an official assembly of all the units, or quorums, of the church, as being divine revelation, and was adopted as a standard work. At first, the compilation was known as The Book of Commandments, although today its name is the Doctrine and Covenants of the church.
These revelations were delivered by Joseph Smith as specific need for guidance arose in the formation of the rapidly growing young religion. They are invariably worded in Biblical fashion, but are quite down to earth in their application to the problems at hand. The followers and early lieutenants of Joseph Smith have secured a permanent place in ecclesiastical history by their zeal and faith, for the prophet used their names freely in interpreting direct commandments from God.
The organizational structure of the Mormon church, which is a marvel of political science and of theological polity, grew out of a practical application of most of these revelations, so that the Doctrine and Covenants can be taken as the nearest thing the Mormons have to a written constitution.
The Doctrine and Covenants is comprised of 136 formal sections, which are divided into numbered verses for accurate reference, and an official declaration commonly known as the "Manifesto of 1890" that publicly denounced the practice of polygamy, or "plural marriage" that formerly was a feature of the religion.
The division of the various sections into verses is a convenience to many Mormon students who have occasion freuently to refer to the work as a basic document in church policy and government, very much as a constitutional lawyer would refer to specific paragraphs in quoting the Constitution of the United States.
From this serious view of the Doctrine and Covenants, and from the formalism embodied in its name, the reader would be committing a grave error to presume that the book is a dry, stilted collection of facts, or visions, or some such thing. On the contrary, it is one of the most readable books ever written, well capable of becoming a popular best seller if it were plugged as such, and fully worthy, as a literary production, of being selected as a Book of the Month club feature.
Despite its solid-sounding name, the Doctrine and Covenants contains all the elements of a most successful novel, and anyone seeking literary entertainment and desiring to be under no obligation to explore a new religion would find in its pages as absorbing a story as "Gone With the Wind," or "Leave Her to Heaven," or "The Robe," or "King's Row." Perhaps if a popular-style edition of teh book were given some such intriguing name, it could easily become one of the smart novels of the day, not in its own right as a religious effort, but purely as entertaining reading matter.
The book contains a record of the marvels experienced in establishing a wholly new religion, an American-conceived religion. It contains a statement of the beliefs of the Mormons as a body of believers, voted in official church assembly. A strong spirit of prophecy, like an undertone of drama, heightens steadily throughout the book and climaxes with a straightforward account of the death of Joseph Smith the prophet, and his brother Hyrum, patriarch of the church, at the hands of a mob of illiterate frontier ruffians at Cartchage, Ill., on June 27, 1844. All this, of course, is fact, and a part of the interesting religious and political history of the United States that often is lightly treated by non-Mormon and anti-Mormon writers and teachers. Still, all this does not lessen the literary merit of the work.
For the person who might be interested in the very absorbing subject of the practice of polygamy, or plural marriage, in the early history of the Mormon church, the Doctrine and Covenants contains the revelation given by the prophet in announcing the doctrine. This is the famous Section 132. The section was given by way of a solemn revelation and commandment from God. It has, of course, since then been modified to meet demands of the laws of the United States that were passed after the revelation was given.
Like almost any other subject in which the matter of human sex is mentioned, this work will give rise to whatever conclusions in the mind of the reader as might be reflected by the purity, bigness, pettiness, or filthiness of his own mind.
At any rate, Section 132 makes marvelous reading from whatever angle the reader approaches it. The theological visions opened up by this revelation form one of the greatest advances ever made in religious thought concerning life after departure from this world. These thoughts are concerned with the doctrine of eternal marriage, which is discussed in another chapter of this book.
The Doctrine and Covenants is published by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, at Salt Lake City. Inasmuch as it is one of the standard works of such a big church, it naturally has been printed and distributed in large numbers and is kept in constant print. Almost any first class bookseller would obtain it on order, although few stock it regularly. Perhaps the quickest and most convenient way of obtaining a copy would be to have it sent C.O.D. from one of the two secular book stores that handle heavy quantities of Mormon church works. These are Zion's Book Store, 65 East Second South Street, Salt Lake City; and Deseret Book Company, 44 East South Temple, Salt Lake City. Both of these firms do a tremendous mail order business, in additoin to their regular local trade, satisfying demands from all over the world for literature concerning the Mormon church. The Doctrine and Covenants, due to its quantity printings, is priced very low, and even in this day of high-priced books, an excellently bound copy usually can be bought for as little as a dollar and fifty cents. To the serious student, it is a concise explanation of the beginnings of a great church. To the curiosity seeker or habitual reader it offers one of the greatest of all bargains in literature.
The Mormon church doesn't put forth the Doctrine and Covenants with the same amount of zeal as it does the Book of Mormon, leaving its discovery, for the most part, to the student who has become deeply interested enough from having read the Book of Mormon to seek further. However, the Mormons have nothing to lose from anybody's reading the Doctrine and Covenants, no matter what his spirit of approach might be. They cannot be attacked any worse than they already have been at many times in their history. So many new avenues of philosophical exploration are opened by the Doctrine and Covenants that the Mormon church, perhaps, would be contributing greatly to the general body of world knowlege if the work were more widely distributed.
3.
The Pearl of Great Price has a unique position in Christian philosophy. Its books contain revealed answers to many questions that have perplexed scholars who have found many a thread of thought or action running out at a loose end somewhere in Christian scriptures.
It is a short collection of inspired translations and writings of Joseph Smith, only fifty-eight pages in length. The standard edition is sturdily bound in cloth and boards and sells for about a dollar retail. It too, as a holy book, is divided into chapters and verses. This systematization, by the way, was the work of one of the world's greatest scholars, Dr. James E. Talmage, in 1902.
There are three parts to the Pearl of Great Price: the Book of Moses, the Book of Abraham, and the Writings of Joseph Smith.
The Book of Moses fills out a void that always seems to have existed to serious students of the ancient Hebrew religion. It is composed of the visions of Moses and the writings of Moses, and serves as a fundamental background to explain comparatively fully the philosophy of the Israelitish people. It undoubtedly has served as the groundwork for the development of many theological ideas by Mormons that seem to be a great extension of Christianity beyond the thought held on the subject by most Methodists, Baptists, Nazarenes and various Catholic and apostolic churches.
As an example, there is the idea that this world is only one of the many which God has created. This is touched upon in the thirty-third verse of the first chapter of the Book of Moses. In this chapter, God is represented as talking to Moses in a vision. The particular verse quoted reads: "And worlds without number have I created; and I also created them for mine own purpose; and by the Son of God I created them, which is mine Only Begotten."
This interesting book serves, also, as a starting point for many other theological speculations. It contains another account of the creation, and a rather full comparison of the position of this world in relation to infinity. An example, which also has considerable bearing upon the nature of life after death on this earth, is the thirty-seventh verse of the same chapter. It reads: "And the Lord God spake unto Moses, saying: The heavens, they are many, and they cannot be numbered unto man; but they are numbered unto me, for they are mine."
Here, too, are found many other religious ideas not usually associated with Christianity, such as the existence of life for human beings, for all animals, and for all living things, before any of them came to this earth. In fact, in one verse, the ninth, of Chapter Three of the Book of Moses, God speaks directly of having created all living things spiritually, and that these remain in the sphere of God until such time as He causes them to appear upon earth (or, presumably, upon some other earth).
The idea that there is no conflict at all between evolutionary ideas of life and the Biblical story of the creation is contained in the statement that Adam and Eve were directed to Replenish the earth, implying that the earth had previously been PLENISHED.
Knowledge contained in the Book of Moses was revealed to Prophet Smith in June, 1830, and in December, 1830. No other work of such brevity can claim to extend the boundaries of the Christian religion so greatly. The powers of the Holy Ghost, the idea that man, after death, shall see and recognize all his forebears back to Adam, and all his posterity to the final birth upon the earth, are only a few of the startling conceptions set forth.
The Book of Abraham was translated by Joseph Smith from some ancient papyrus records that fell into the hands of the Mormons after having been discovered in the tombs of Egypt. This book claims to be the writings of Abraham, set down by his own hand upon papyrus in cuneiform Egyptian language.
This book expands greatly the idea of a pre-existence for man before this earthly existence, and clearly demonstrates that the power and being of God are an all-inclusive intelligence, in which exist, and from which have sprung, all other intelligence, all knowledge, all creation and all goodness.
Another feature of the Book of Abraham is its explanation of the harshness of the religion of the Egyptians in the day of Abraham. Their religion, it appears, embodied considerable human sacrifice and other abominations. This serves as a vital connecting link between old world religions and that of the races found upon the American continents at the time of the arrival of the Spaniards.
The destiny of the negroid races, touched upon in many other places throughout Mormon theological works, also is rather clearly defined in the Book of Abraham. As Canaanites, and descendants of Ham, members of these races, while being recognized in every respect as being good men, are cursed in respect to the priesthood, which they may not hold, due to the inherited curse of Cain.
A study of the Book of Abraham, teamed with a rereading of the Old Testament, and the reading of a good history on the ancient Egyptians, will serve to give a thoroughly new light upon the religious practices of the Hebrews before the birth of Christ.
The "Writings of Joseph Smith," so labelled, contained in the Pearl of Great Price are composed of a small portion of his inspired translation of the Bible, and an account in the prophet's own words of the circumstances surrounding the establishment of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
The part concerned with the Biblical translation deals with the teachings of Jesus, beginning with the Twenty-fourth Chapter of Matthew. Comparative readings of the work of Smith and the King James version of the same gospel would be highly instructive.
Perhaps nowhere in history is there a more intimate account of the workings of the mind of an inspired religious mystic or prophet than that of Joseph Smith in the Pearl of Great Price. He has gone to great length to explain his visions, motivations, and the reactions that they caused within his family and community.
It is a short collection of inspired translations and writings of Joseph Smith, only fifty-eight pages in length. The standard edition is sturdily bound in cloth and boards and sells for about a dollar retail. It too, as a holy book, is divided into chapters and verses. This systematization, by the way, was the work of one of the world's greatest scholars, Dr. James E. Talmage, in 1902.
There are three parts to the Pearl of Great Price: the Book of Moses, the Book of Abraham, and the Writings of Joseph Smith.
The Book of Moses fills out a void that always seems to have existed to serious students of the ancient Hebrew religion. It is composed of the visions of Moses and the writings of Moses, and serves as a fundamental background to explain comparatively fully the philosophy of the Israelitish people. It undoubtedly has served as the groundwork for the development of many theological ideas by Mormons that seem to be a great extension of Christianity beyond the thought held on the subject by most Methodists, Baptists, Nazarenes and various Catholic and apostolic churches.
As an example, there is the idea that this world is only one of the many which God has created. This is touched upon in the thirty-third verse of the first chapter of the Book of Moses. In this chapter, God is represented as talking to Moses in a vision. The particular verse quoted reads: "And worlds without number have I created; and I also created them for mine own purpose; and by the Son of God I created them, which is mine Only Begotten."
This interesting book serves, also, as a starting point for many other theological speculations. It contains another account of the creation, and a rather full comparison of the position of this world in relation to infinity. An example, which also has considerable bearing upon the nature of life after death on this earth, is the thirty-seventh verse of the same chapter. It reads: "And the Lord God spake unto Moses, saying: The heavens, they are many, and they cannot be numbered unto man; but they are numbered unto me, for they are mine."
Here, too, are found many other religious ideas not usually associated with Christianity, such as the existence of life for human beings, for all animals, and for all living things, before any of them came to this earth. In fact, in one verse, the ninth, of Chapter Three of the Book of Moses, God speaks directly of having created all living things spiritually, and that these remain in the sphere of God until such time as He causes them to appear upon earth (or, presumably, upon some other earth).
The idea that there is no conflict at all between evolutionary ideas of life and the Biblical story of the creation is contained in the statement that Adam and Eve were directed to Replenish the earth, implying that the earth had previously been PLENISHED.
Knowledge contained in the Book of Moses was revealed to Prophet Smith in June, 1830, and in December, 1830. No other work of such brevity can claim to extend the boundaries of the Christian religion so greatly. The powers of the Holy Ghost, the idea that man, after death, shall see and recognize all his forebears back to Adam, and all his posterity to the final birth upon the earth, are only a few of the startling conceptions set forth.
The Book of Abraham was translated by Joseph Smith from some ancient papyrus records that fell into the hands of the Mormons after having been discovered in the tombs of Egypt. This book claims to be the writings of Abraham, set down by his own hand upon papyrus in cuneiform Egyptian language.
This book expands greatly the idea of a pre-existence for man before this earthly existence, and clearly demonstrates that the power and being of God are an all-inclusive intelligence, in which exist, and from which have sprung, all other intelligence, all knowledge, all creation and all goodness.
Another feature of the Book of Abraham is its explanation of the harshness of the religion of the Egyptians in the day of Abraham. Their religion, it appears, embodied considerable human sacrifice and other abominations. This serves as a vital connecting link between old world religions and that of the races found upon the American continents at the time of the arrival of the Spaniards.
The destiny of the negroid races, touched upon in many other places throughout Mormon theological works, also is rather clearly defined in the Book of Abraham. As Canaanites, and descendants of Ham, members of these races, while being recognized in every respect as being good men, are cursed in respect to the priesthood, which they may not hold, due to the inherited curse of Cain.
A study of the Book of Abraham, teamed with a rereading of the Old Testament, and the reading of a good history on the ancient Egyptians, will serve to give a thoroughly new light upon the religious practices of the Hebrews before the birth of Christ.
The "Writings of Joseph Smith," so labelled, contained in the Pearl of Great Price are composed of a small portion of his inspired translation of the Bible, and an account in the prophet's own words of the circumstances surrounding the establishment of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
The part concerned with the Biblical translation deals with the teachings of Jesus, beginning with the Twenty-fourth Chapter of Matthew. Comparative readings of the work of Smith and the King James version of the same gospel would be highly instructive.
Perhaps nowhere in history is there a more intimate account of the workings of the mind of an inspired religious mystic or prophet than that of Joseph Smith in the Pearl of Great Price. He has gone to great length to explain his visions, motivations, and the reactions that they caused within his family and community.
4.
The Articles of Faith are the Mormon equivalent of the Apostles' creed of the Church of England, or similar expressions of basic conceptions of faith used by many other religious bodies. Joseph Smith wrote the articles down after the Latter-day Saints church had been in existence for some time and had begun to prove, as an organization of people working together in an effective manner, that the prophet's plans for the church on earth were very practical.
While the Articles of Faith are to be found in the last part of the book in which the Pearl of Great Price usually is printed, they also appear in many other parts of church literature, including tracts to be read by persons who might be inquiring into the fundamentals of the faith. The articles, numbering thirteen, are listed here.
1. We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost.
2. We believe that men will be punished for their own sins, and not for Adam’s transgression.
3. We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankindmay be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel.
4. We believe that the first principles and ordinances of the Gospel are: first, Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; second, Repentance; third, Baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; fourth, Laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost.
5. We believe that a man must be called of God, by prophecy, and by the laying on of hands by those who are in authority, to preachthe Gospel and administer in the ordinances thereof.
6. We believe in the same organization that existed in the Primitive Church, namely, apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers, evangelists, and so forth.
7. We believe in the gift of tongues, prophecy, revelation, visions, healing, interpretation of tongues, and so forth.
8. We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly; we also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God.
9. We believe all that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal, and we believe that He will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the Kingdom of God.
10. We believe in the literal gathering of Israel and in the restoration of the Ten Tribes; that Zion will be built upon this (the American) continent; that Christ will reign personally upon the earth; and, that the earth will be renewed and receive its paradisiacal glory.
11. We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may.
12. We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates, in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law.
13. We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men; indeed, we may say that we follow the admonition of Paul - We believe all things, we hope all things, we have endured many things, and hope to be able to endure all things. If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things.
- Joseph Smith.
Next: The Capital of Mormondom
While the Articles of Faith are to be found in the last part of the book in which the Pearl of Great Price usually is printed, they also appear in many other parts of church literature, including tracts to be read by persons who might be inquiring into the fundamentals of the faith. The articles, numbering thirteen, are listed here.
1. We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost.
2. We believe that men will be punished for their own sins, and not for Adam’s transgression.
3. We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankindmay be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel.
4. We believe that the first principles and ordinances of the Gospel are: first, Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; second, Repentance; third, Baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; fourth, Laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost.
5. We believe that a man must be called of God, by prophecy, and by the laying on of hands by those who are in authority, to preachthe Gospel and administer in the ordinances thereof.
6. We believe in the same organization that existed in the Primitive Church, namely, apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers, evangelists, and so forth.
7. We believe in the gift of tongues, prophecy, revelation, visions, healing, interpretation of tongues, and so forth.
8. We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly; we also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God.
9. We believe all that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal, and we believe that He will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the Kingdom of God.
10. We believe in the literal gathering of Israel and in the restoration of the Ten Tribes; that Zion will be built upon this (the American) continent; that Christ will reign personally upon the earth; and, that the earth will be renewed and receive its paradisiacal glory.
11. We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may.
12. We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates, in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law.
13. We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men; indeed, we may say that we follow the admonition of Paul - We believe all things, we hope all things, we have endured many things, and hope to be able to endure all things. If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things.
- Joseph Smith.
Next: The Capital of Mormondom