Truth Never Changes Volume 13, No. 2; Plural Marriages After the Manifesto, Part I; Letter, Price Johnson; Vision of SM Farnsworth; Editorial

TRUTH NEVER CHANGES

A PUBLICATION IN THE SPIRIT AND TRADITON OF TRUTH MAGAZINE

Y VOLUME 13    FEBRUARY  2010   NUMBER 02 Y

P  L  U  R  A  L   M  A  R  R  I  A  G  E  S
AFTER THE 1890 MANIFESTO

D. Michael Quinn, 11 August 1991,Bluffdale, Utah
PART I

I'm glad to be with you.  I attended your general meeting about two years ago, and I was very pleased to have that opportunity and pleased for the fellowship here.  Brother _____ told me that you are planning on a two hour meeting, and you've already been in two or three hours of meeting.  I admire your courage and physical endurance.

IN THIS ISSUE: PLURAL MARRIAGES AFTER THE 1890 MANIFESTO, PART I……..31 MISSION STATEMENT………………………………………………………….….45 OPEN LETTER ON PLURAL MARRIAGE, PRICE JOHNSON……….…46 RECOMMENDED SITES…………………………………………………………..60 VISION OF S. M. FARNSWORTH………………………………………..……61 EDITORIAL……………………………………………………………………………..63

                Because of the length of the meetings you've already been through and the one that is now going to start, after about an hour at whatever point I am after about an hour I'll just interrupt myself where it seems to work at a convenient stopping point, and give you an opportunity to stretch and stand up and walk around for a few minutes before we continue for the next hour of the meeting.

                In the relations of the L.D.S. Church and plural marriage from the 1890 Manifesto onward, there were basically two dimensions.  There was what was happening publicly, and then there was what was happening privately.  The private directions of the L.D.S. Church were mixed.  Some of those were consistent with the 1890 Manifesto.  Others were not consistent.  And I will be focusing primarily on what was not consistent among the General Authorities of the L.D.S. Church with the 1890 Manifesto.

                But before that, I'll summarize the public position of the L.D.S. Church from 1890 to 1907.  In September of 1890, the Manifesto of Wilford Woodruff officially ends the practice of plural marriage and unauthorized new plural marriages.  In October, the General Conference sustained that.  In October 1891, the First Presidency testified in court and at stake conferences and in the Deseret News, that the Manifesto prohibited new plural marriages, but it also prohibited cohabitation with plural wives married before the Manifesto, and that this applied anywhere in the world, and that any Church member who violated either one of these prohibitions either marrying new plural wives or sexually cohabiting with wives married before the Manifesto; such Church members were subject to excommunication.  So in October 1891, that becomes the law of the Church.  A person is liable to be excommunicated either for polygamous cohabitation, or for marrying in new plural marriage.

                Then in 1904, the U.S. Senate published testimony by the Church President. and other General Authorities that they admitted violating the 1891 Church law by having cohabited with their wives since 1890, and by fathering children for them during the previous twelve to thirteen years.

                In April 1904, Joseph F. Smith published his statement, the so-called "Second Manifesto," which denied that there were any plural marriages after 1890, but then threatened excommunication for anyone entering into or performing plural marriages after 1904.  ln reality, that was no different than what the First Presidency said in October 1891, at least as a statement in its content.

                In April 1906, the Quorum of Twelve formally and publicly drooped Apostles John W. Taylor and Matthias F. Cowley for "being out of harmony" with the Manifesto.

                In November of 1906, and this is all in the public record, Joseph F. Smith plead guilty to unlawful cohabitation and paid a fine in a court.

                Then in April 1907, Conference adopted the First Presidency declaration that the Church "has been true to its pledge respecting the abandonment of the practice of plural marriage," and that the few violators had been acting on their own responsibility.

                Then in October and November of 1907 occurred the Church's first excommunications and disfellowshipping for violating the 1904 Manifesto.  And these excommunications included a Bishop.

                In July 1909, Joseph F. Smith appointed a committee of the Apostles to investigate and excommunicate persons entering into plural marriage after the 1904 Manifesto.  Excommunications that year included a General Board member.

                From 1909 to 1910, the Salt Lake Tribune printed the names and marriage information of more than 200 men who married plural wives after the Manifesto.

                In October 1910, the Conference adopted a Presidency order for stake president to investigate and excommunicate officiators and husbands of post 1904 plural marriages.  That month, Patriarch Judson Tolman was excommunicated.

                Then in 1911, John W. Taylor was excommunicated, as well as Patriarch John W. Woolley and several stake presidents in 1914.  And the policy continues to the present.

                Up until 1930, known post-1890 polygamists spoke and prayed at General Conferences at the same time that the Church was excommunicating fundamentalists in local wards and stakes and prohibiting them from speaking.

                In 1933, the First Presidency statement denied that there was an 1886 revelation and denied that there had ever been any post-Manifesto plural marriages that occurred with the authorization of the First Presidency.

                In 1935, suspected polygamists were required to sign a statement that they "repudiated any intimation that any one of the Presidency or the Apostles of the Church is living a double life," and refusal to sign this statement meant that the person was automatically going to be excommunicated.

                I'm going to present the details, but there’s a large number of details, and I'm going to be looking at each man who served in the General Authority positions from the Presidency down.  This will be a large number of men with a large amount of detail, so let me give a summary of the secret dimensions of what was happening that was contrary to the public record.

                The 1890 Manifesto, the 1904 Second Manifesto, the release of Apostles Taylor and Cowley as Apostles in 1906, and the Church trials of new polygamists which began in 1907, were all surrounded by ambiguity, and the General Authority involvement in new plural marriages overlap the early stages of what we can call Mormon Fundamentalism and its officiators, which began in 1906.

                All First Presidency members either allowed or authorized new plural marriages from 1890 to 1904, and a few as late as 1906 and 1907.  One Church President married a plural wife, and three Counselors in the First Presidency performed marriages for men who had living wives already.

                A Presidency's secretary proposed polygamous marriage in 1903, and another Presidency's secretary performed a polygamous marriage in 1907.  Of the sixteen men who served only as Apostles in other words, their service did not extend into the First Presidency, but they served only as Apostles from 1890 until April 1904, eight of these sixteen men married post-Manifesto plural wives.  Three of them who did not do so, performed plural marriages.  Two of them who did not do either of the above, arranged for plural marriages.  Only three of the men who served only as Apostles from 1890 to 1904 did not participate at all in encouraging, promoting or entering into new plural marriage.                                                          One of the new Apostles who was appointed after April 1904, the time of the second Manifesto, assured post-1890 polygamists that the second Manifesto was meaningless.  Another of these new Apostles appointed in the years after the second Manifesto, courted polygamously before and after his appointment in 1906.  A third of the Apostles appointed after 1906, had performed 43 plural marriages after the Manifesto himself. And a fourth Apostle appointed after the second Manifesto himself entered into a polygamous marriage in 1925.

                Now, looking at the men individually.  Wilford Woodruff, who was senior Apostle and President from 1887 until his death in 1898. On the day the Manifesto was accepted in October of 1890.  He personally approved 7 new plural marriages, to be performed in Mexico.  He also approved polygamous ceremonies for a couple of Mexican residents as early as 1891. He delegated George Q. Cannon, his first counselor, to give approval for plural marriages from 1892 to 1898. That approval was in the form of written letters. In this way, President Woodruff himself could avoid personal knowledge. He could claim he had no personal knowledge of these authorized plural marriages.

                President Woodruff told a Temple meeting of the First Presidency and the Apostles in 1894 that due to the Manifesto, men "will be justified in concubinage by sacred vows," even without a polygamous ceremony in order to raise a righteous posterity."

                In 1894, President Woodruff gave his approval for Apostle Abraham H. Cannon to marry a new plural wife as a proxy for Apostle Cannon's deceased brother.  And Apostle Cannon actually did this in 1896 while President Woodruff was still alive.

                President Woodruff himself married a new Plural Wife in 1897, Lydia Mountford, who was a Jew, born in Palestine and had lectured widely throughout the United States on Palestine.  He married her in September of 1897 on a steamship on the Pacific Ocean, between San Francisco and Portland; and he arranged for an Apostle to perform plural marriages on steamships a month later, and also four months later.

                Concerning this marriage which occurred outside the Temple and therefore had no record inside the Temple, on November 23, 1920, this ceremony of Madam Mountford and Wilford Woodruff, which occurred in 1897, was repeated by proxy in the Salt Lake Temple. President Woodruff's proxy was his son, and Madam Mountford's proxy was Susan Young Gates, who was a sister of another of President Woodruff's lesser known plural wives.

                President Lorenzo Snow, President of the L.D.S. Church from 1898 to 1901, but also an Apostle from 1890 to his Presidency, was generally opposed both to new plural marriages and to polygamous cohabitation after 1890.  For example, as soon as he became Church President in 1898, President Snow stopped sending authorizations for new plural marriages, to Mexico.  But there were exceptions.  He cohabited with his youngest plural wife who went to Canada briefly, in 1896, to bear his last child.  And in so doing, he violated the testimony that he had given publicly in 1891, that the Manifesto prohibited cohabitation with plural wives.  He was 82 Years old at the birth of his last polygamous child.

                He told Matthias F. Cowley in 1898 that he did not want to know about or interfere with Cowley's commission from George Q. Cannon to perform new plural marriages.  So he essentially was willing to turn a blind eye to the new plural marriages that Apostle Matthias F. Cowley asked if he could continue to perform.  And Lorenzo Snow said, "I won't interfere with President Cannon's work."

                In 1900, Lorenzo Snow told the Presidency secretary that he "admired the grit of a post-Manifesto plural wife who risked excommunication by her local ward Bishop because she refused to identify her plural husband." President Snow instructed the Bishop to accept her confession and to forgive "her transgression without any further requirement."

                In 1901, Lorenzo Snow authorized Heber J. Grant, who was an Apostle, to marry a plural wife.  But then two months later, he changed his mind apparently because he felt there was too much jeopardy for the Church for him to authorize an Apostle to marry so long after the Manifesto.

                Then, Joseph F. Smith: He was a counselor in the First Presidency from the Manifesto until 1901, when he became President and served until his death in 1918.  ln 1896 as a counselor, he performed in the Salt Lake Temple a "proxy plural marriage" for Abraham Cannon, which had been approved earlier by the First Presidency.  This is the only marriage that I know of and have any evidence of that he performed after the Manifesto.

                Because Lorenzo Snow refused to allow Anthony W. Ivins to perform new plural marriages for residents of Mexico, Joseph F. Smith decided privately to actually go against the instructions of the President of the Church.  In 1900, second counselor Joseph F. Smith instructed Seymour B. Young of the First council of seventy, to perform two plural marriages in Mexico.  And later that same year, second counselor Smith authorized Patriarch Alexander F. MacDonald to perform new plural marriages in Mexico for any Mexican residents who requested them.  He gave both authorizations without the knowledge of the Church President and in spite of Lorenzo Snow's specific refusal to allow such marriages.  Because Lorezo Snow did not know that Alexander F. MacDonald was authorized, he threatened to excommunicate MacDonald in 1901 for performing those marriages.

                MacDonald stopped performing those ceremonies for 4 months, and then Apostle Cowley visited Mexico, performed two plural marriages and apparently reassured him that Joseph F. Smith would protect him from Church discipline.  Patriarch MacDonald immediately resumed the priesthood work.

                When he became President, Joseph F. Smith renewed permission for Anthony W. Ivins to perform plural marriages for Mexican residents.  And Ivins did this from 1902 to 1904.  And then he extended that to include permission for Ivins to perform marriages for non-residents.  This was more dangerous, because this required written permission from Salt Lake.  These written letters for Anthony W. Ivins to perform marriages for non-residents of Juarez Stake, occurred from 1903 to 1904.  But President Smith never told Ivins about MacDonald, so President Ivins down in Mexico had no idea that Patriarch MacDonald was performing marriages with authorization.

                On 17 April 1902, I have the only contemporary account of Joseph F. Smith as Church President giving authorization for a man to marry polygamously.  And he did it in this way:  "As President of the Church I cannot authorize you to marry this plural wife.  However, I will not oppose your doing it." And that's the kind of authorization he gave.

                As Church President, Joseph F. Smith did not want to know the specifics of new ceremonies, but he increased financial support for post-Manifesto plural wives and children of Apostles and mission presidents, and he gave advice for the hiding of plural wives so that they would not be subject to arrest.  Joseph F. Smith probably authorized Apostles Clawson and Cowley to marry their plural wives after the second Manifesto of 1904, since he did authorize a close friend to perform one plural marriage as late as 1906, and o.k.'d another one that occurred in 1907.

                When the man President Smith authorized to perform the 1906 plural marriage was investigate; by the Apostles for probable excommunication, this man obtained the Church President's permission to tell the details.  And those details obviously disturbed the Apostles.  Their formal decision after hearing his testimony was that they didn't believe a word of what he had said, that Joseph F. Smith had authorized him.  And they wouldn't offend the Church President by asking for verification of whether in fact he had given that authorization.  And then they exonerated the man from any punishment, even though he admitted all the details of performing a plural marriage in 1906.

                Joseph F. Smith's shield also was obvious when the Apostles tried to excommunicate a mission president who married a plural wife in 1907.  After discussing the matter with Joseph F. Smith for years.  The Quorum of Twelve said they exonerated the mission president because there was no witness to the marriage.  It was performed by a now-deceased secretary to the First Presidency's office.

                There is no evidence that I've seen that Joseph F. Smith commissioned.  Patriarch Judson Tolman to perform plural marriages from 1906 to 1910.  But President Smith did protect a few men who were married by Tolman.  Even though this Patriarch and several of the others he married were excommunicated by the Apostles, the Church  President, Joseph  F. Smith, intervened.   He not only    prevented the excommunication but he even continued in prominent Church offices men who had been married by Judson Tolman as late as 1907 and 1908.  They, in some cases, continued cohabiting with their plural wives.

                These protected men were stake officials with the kind of General Authority family connections that would have most likely made them, or encouraged them, to consult with Joseph F. Smith in advance of Judson Tolman's performing the ceremony.

                Now, Joseph F. Smith's post-Manifesto relationship with John W. Woolley is the most complicated and the most contested, argued against.  They  were friends, that's undeniable.  John W. Woolley was a friend of most of the General Authorities of the Church.  He was one of the pioneer members of the Church who lived as late as he lived into the twentieth century.  And the Church President.  Joseph F. Smith, performed John W. Woolley's civil marriage in the Salt Lake Temple in 1910, indicating again the closeness of their friendship.

                Woolley had been serving as a stake high councilman since 1877, and a Salt Lake Temple worker since 1894.  About the time John W. Woolley began performing plural marriages in 1912, his son wrote the first account of the circumstances for the 1886 revelation to John Taylor at Woolley's home.  John W. Woolley performed plural marriages even before he was ordained a Patriarch in 1913, so patriarchal authority by ordination was not the basis on which he was performing those marriages.  He was tried for those marriages in 1914.  But in a bid to prevent excommunication, John W. Woolley told the Quorum of Twelve the names of those he married.  He violated his promise to those persons he had married.

                Patriarch Woolley claimed that ex-Apostle Cowley was responsible for John Woolley feeling that he could perform new plural marriages.  Cowley denied this vehemently.  And John W. Woolley's explanation to the Apostles may have been protecting somebody else by re-sacrificing the already punished Cowley.  The fundamentalist claim is that John W. Woolley was protecting Joseph F. Smith, who allowed Apostles like Francis H. Lyman to punish new polygamy to protect the Church.             

                I haven't seen any evidence conclusively to support or refute the claim that Joseph F. Smith secretly endorsed plural marriages from 1910 to his death in 1918.  But known evidence does show that his actions certainly were ambiguous regarding new plural marriage after his second Manifesto for 6 years after it.  So it would not be inconsistent for him to have given encouragement to Judson Tolman or John W. Woolley.  But I have no evidence that that was in fact the case.  And historians are always bound by our evidence; we can't go, really, beyond that.

                George Q. Cannon was Presidency counselor and next in line to be Church President from 1899 to 1901.  He personally authorized new plural marriages performed in Mexico, Canada, and the United States, from 1892 until his death in 1901.  This included plural marriages performed for 3 of his sons and 3 of his nephews.

                In a Temple meeting of the First Presidency and the Apostles in 1894 George Q. Cannon said, "I believe in concubinage," by mutual vow as a way for men and women to bypass the Manifesto's prohibition of new plural ceremonies. George Q. Cannon wanted to marry a new plural wife after his wives were no longer able to bear children, and in a Temple meeting of the Apostles and Presidency in August 1900, he openly opposed Lorenzo Snow's ban on new plural marriages. He threatened President Snow directly in front of all the others,  that he, President Cannon, might choose just simply to cohabit with a woman, without a ceremony of marriage if that was necessary to father any more children.  He died a month later, apparently without having entered into such a polygamous relationship by solemn covenant with a woman of child-bearing age.

                But after 1890, George Q. Cannon did make polygamous vows with a woman who was 62 years old when the Manifesto was issued.

                Anthon H. Lund, who was an Apostle from the Manifesto, although he was an Apostle before, but he was an Apostle after the Manifesto until 1901, when he became a counselor in the First Presidency.  He served in that position until his death in 1921.  He performed a civil plural marriage in 1892, in the Manti Temple, for a stake high councilman.  By "civil plural marriage" I mean that he knowingly performed a legal. civil ceremony for a man whose legal wife had died, but who had plural wives also still living; so in the eyes of the law, this was a civil monogamous marriage.  But in terms of the family relationships of the new husband, he was adding a new plural wife to his family. And Anthon H. Lund performed such a Temple ceremony in the Manti Temple in 1892.

                One could say, well those were ambiguous. Well, these were not ambiguous. He performed two plural marriages, Anthon H. Lund, aboard steamships, one in 1887 on the Pacific Ocean and one in 1898 on the Great Lakes.  And while instructing Lund to perform the second of these shipboard marriages, Wilford Woodruff confided to Lund Woodruff's own plural marriage to Lydia Mountford on a steamship a month before.

                Apostle Lund, and now counselor Lund's, sister-in-law married polygamously in Salt Lake City in 1901, and the marriage was performed by Lund's next-door neighbor, Matthias F. Cowley.  Counselor Lund was probably the unidentified member of the First Presidency who Anthony W. Ivins sent letters of authorization to for new plural marriages for non-residents of Mexico from 1903 to 1904.

                Contrary to Apostle-Senator Reed Smoot's wish, Apostles Taylor and Cowley were sustained in the April 1905 Conference.  Counselor Lund's son told Smoot's secretary, "John W. Taylor has done right, whatever he has done, in reference to the subject of polygamy."

                John R. Winder, who was counselor to the Presiding Bishopric and then became Presidency counselor from 1901 to 1910.  Generally he was opposed to new plural marriages, but he was in favor of de facto plural marriages performed civilly for men who were already cohabiting with previous plural wives.  And the most publicized example of this occurred when John R. Winder performed such a de facto plural marriage in 1901 in the Salt Lake Temple for Lorin Farr, former Mayor of Ogden.  Farr virtually threw this in the face of Teddy Roosevelt two years later by introducing the U.S. President to Farr's pre-Manifesto plural wives.

                It's unclear whether John R. Winder as counselor knew that his daughter gave her husband a new plural wife in 1903, which ceremony was performed by Apostle Matthias F. Cowley.

                George F. Gibbs, secretary to the Church President during this whole period.  He was aware of the authorizations given for the post-Manifesto plural marriages, and he intervened with Lorenzo Snow in 1900 to protect the post Manifesto plural wife from being excommunicated by a local Bishop and I referred to her case earlier.

                George F. Gibbs as secretary to the First Presidency also advised Apostle Heber J. Grant in 1903, to marry a plural wife and to take her on Grant's mission to England, where she would not be recognized or known by the English.  During that same period in 1903, the Presidency's secretary proposed plural marriage to a woman, but she declined that offer.

                In 1921, while still secretary to the First Presidency, George F. Gibbs spoke at the funeral of the mother of the young woman who had declined his proposal to enter plural marriage.  And he "commended those who were keeping it alive and were continuing in the faith of their fathers."

                George Reynolds was a secretary in the First Presidency's office, and he was also a member of The Council of Seventy.  As a secretary, he helped draft the final version of the 1890 Manifesto, and he later testified of his role in the Manifesto before the U.S. Senate in 1903.  He also recorded the few 18 post Manifesto plural marriages that were actually entered into in a record at the First Presidency's office as they occurred.  This included the shipboard plural marriage that Anthon H. Lund performed in 1897.  It also included several plural marriage performed by John W. Taylor in Mexico.

                George Reynolds knew and approved of his daughter's plural marriage performed in Mexico during 1900, by the authority of Counselor Joseph F. Smith, despite Reynolds clearly knowing that the Church President opposed this marriage, because in Reynolds' presence Lorenzo Snow told the husband, "There cannot be any new plural marriages performed anywhere in the world."  And then just a few months after that meeting, by permission and authorization of his counselor, that marriage occurred.

                George Reynolds also performed a plural marriage in 1907.  And

another daughter of his became a plural wife in 1908, in Salt Lake City, very likely with his approval.

                Franklin D. Richards was an Apostle and President of the Quorum of Twelve, and next in line to be Church President from 1898 to 1899.  In December of 1890, he unsuccessfully tried to obtain permission from the First Presidency for a man to be married polygamously in Mexico.  That was 4 months after the Manifesto.  He was uninvolved in post-Manifesto plural marriages from 1891 until 1898.  In that year, he performed one plural marriage in the United State.

                Apostle Richards may have known of Abraham Owen Woodruff's recent Patriarchal Blessing that promised the Apostle plural wives.  In any event, shortly after the Apostle received that Patriarchal Blessing, Franklin D. Richards promised him in a Temple meeting of January 1899 that all of God's promises to Abraham O. Woodruff would be fulfilled.

                Brigham Young, Jr., son of the pioneer President of the Church.  He was President of the Quorum of Twelve and next in line to be Church President from 1901 to 1903.  He performed seven plural marriages during visits to Mexico from 1894 to 1895.  He also married a new plural wife in 1901 in Salt Lake City.  That marriage was performed by Apostle Matthias F. Cowley.  In August 1902, just weeks before the surgery and his final illness, Apostle Young counseled a local Church leader to marry a plural wife.

                Moses Thatcher was an Apostle until he was released in 1896 because of a conflict over Church-State politics with the Quorum of Twelve and The First Presidency.  In November 1890, he unsuccessfully tried to obtain the First Presidency's authorization for a man to marry polygamously. In February of 1891, he apparently was the one who verbally transmitted authorization from the First Presidency for a plural marriage in Mexico.  But his views about post-Manifesto plural marriage hardened after Utah's statehood in 1896.  Then he was dropped from the Quorum of Twelve later that year.  He hardened so much that he disinherited his daughter for becoming a plural wife in 1901 without his knowledge and permission.  But by that time he was no longer a member of the Quorum of Twelve.

                Francis M. Lyman was an Apostle until his death in 1916.  He performed a plural marriage a day before the Quorum of Twelve voted to sustain the recently published Manifesto as binding.  In his legalistic mind, this was not a violation of the Manifesto because it had not been ratified by the Quorum of Twelve.  From 1891 onward, he was opposed to new plural marriages.  But he was not entirely consistent.  He favored allowing men with plural wives to marry a new plural wife civilly after the death of the legal wife, even though in actuality this was a new plural marriage.  Lyman performed one such de facto plural marriage in the Salt Lake Temple for a stake president in 1894.           

                He publicly preached as late as that same year, "No man can obtain exaltation without living plural marriage in this life."  And as late as 1909, Apostle Lyman would not allow men to become members of local prayer circles unless they believed in plural marriage.  There is an obvious inconsistency, because at the same time he was hunting down men who were entering into plural marriage after the Manifesto and having to excommunicate them.  I'm not sure how he could reconcile in his own mind, saying no one could be exalted without polygamy, and at the same time he was excommunicating man who were doing the only thing he said was necessary for them to obtain exaltation.  Otherwise, Lyman was adamantly opposed to new plural marriages.

                As early as 1899, he arranged for the excommunication of a post-Manifesto polygamist.  And from 1906 until his death, he did his best to get pre-1904 polygamists released from Church office.  And he did his best to excommunicate every post-1904 polygamists he could locate.

                John Henry Smith was an Apostle and then became Presidency counselor from 1910 to 1911.  He performed no plural marriages after the Manifesto of 1890. But he virtually forced Apostle Heber J. Grant to perform two plural marriages in Mexico in 1897.  Apostle Smith instructed John W. Taylor to performed six more plural marriages in Mexico in 1898.  These were the first post-Manifesto plural marriages which either of these junior Apostles performed, and they did it under the orders of John Henry Smith.

                Apostle Smith was also instrumental in obtaining the First Presidency approval in 1898 for Anthon W. Ivins to perform plural marriages for Mexican residents, without any individual authorizations for Salt Lake City.  And in 1903, John Henry Smith urged a legal wife not to create any difficulty about her husband's marriage to a new wife.  And during that same year, Apostle Smith urged the Apostles who were promoting plural marriage to be cautious.

                George Teasdale was an Apostle until his death in 1907.  He performed at least fifteen plural marriages in Mexico, from 1891 to 1896.  He himself married a plural wife on the Pacific Ocean in 1897, that marriage being performed by his fellow Apostle, Anthon H. Lund.  She died in childbirth in 1898.  Because this post-Manifesto plural marriage was exposed in the newspapers only a year after her death, Apostle Teasdale filed for divorce that year from his remaining wife, who was 57 years old, so that he could marry a 23 year-old bride to care for his orphan children and possibly bear him more children.  However, she never did.

                Apostle Teasdale encouraged men in Utah to marry plural wives until 1904, when the Presidency sent him back to Mexico to avoid a subpoena to testify before the U.S. Senate about post-Manifesto polygamy.  Apostle Teasdale may have been the one to perform some plural marriages in Mexico in the 1905-1906 period.  There were several, and I have no idea at this point who performed those marriages.  I have ideas, but I have not verified this information.

                Heber J. Grant was an Apostle until he became Church President in 1918 and served in that position until his death in 1945.  He is the prime example of how confused a conscientious L.D.S. Church leader was in the contradictory messages about post-Manifesto plural marriage.  After the Presidency publicly stated in 1901 that men should stop cohabiting with their plural wives, Heber J. Grant was the only Apostle who did so.  He resumed polygamous cohabitation after about 4 years, when it gradually dawned on him that Joseph F. Smith and other General Authorities were violating their public pledges regarding cohabitation with plural wives.  So he resumed polygamous cohabitation.

                Apostle Grant was apparently unaware of new polygamous marriages being authorized until 1897, when his superior in the Quorum, John Henry Smith, ordered him to perform two plural marriages in Mexico, which Apostle Grant did under protest and very reluctantly.

                In 1898, his cousin Anthony W. Ivins informed him that new plural marriages were occurring in Mexico.  Ivins indicated he was also willing to marry a plural wife if that was required of him.  And hearing this from his cousin, Heber J. Grant expressed approval and gratitude in fact.  By 1901, Heber J. Grant wanted, to marry a plural wife to give him the sons he knew he would not otherwise have.  His only surviving son had already died, and he wanted sons to carry on his name.

                President Snow agreed to this in 1901, but he then changed his mind two months later.  Grant's shyness had always been a problem for him and had made him very shy in polygamous courtship.  So he left for a mission to Japan in 1901 before he completed the arrangements to marry a new plural wife, but he had been courting one in 1901.  While he was there, he wrote a close friend in Arizona, who had eligible daughters, that Apostle Grant, "wanted to marry a wife or two so that my name will not be wiped off the face of the earth."  President Grant was devastated to learn that while in Japan his intended plural wife of 1901 had become the plural wife of a stake president the following year.

                Grant returned in 1902, therefore, having to start all over in terms of a polygamous courtship.  Between his return from Japan, in 1903 and a mission to England a few months later, Apostle Grant tried to propose to a young woman from Arizona.  But this fell through, because she was already being courted by another member of the Quorum of Twelve.  He went to England still looking for another wife.  While still in England, he learned in January 1906 of the intent of the Quorum and First Presidency to drop Apostles Taylor and Cowley in order to save Reed Smoot.  Grant was outraged and wrote the Church President not to allow this, because he, Grant, felt that he was equally involved in post-Manifesto polygamy.  He said, "If you drop them, you should drop me, because the only thing that has kept me from being in their situation is that the circumstances just did not workout."            Heber J. Grant adopted the official line and he publicly and privately said Apostles Taylor and Cowley should be dropped from office.  There was a kind of-well, George Orwell in a very interesting book called "1984", called it double-think.  That's the ability to hold contradictory ideas that are clashing, in your head and in your belief system at the same time.  That double-think has been a frequent characteristic of L.D.S. Church History.

                John W. Taylor was an Apostle until he was released from the Quorum of Twelve in 1906, after which he continued to be an Apostle outside the Quorum, until his excommunication in 1911.  On 30 September 1890, during the first discussion of the Manifesto by the full Quorum of Twelve and after its publication, he referred and told the Apostles about the 1886 revelation to his father, that plural marriages should never be discontinued.

                The next day, John W. Taylor married a new plural wife. This was the day before the Quorum of Twelve voted to sustain the Manifesto.  He later told the Quorum that this occurred by permission of President Woodruff.

                During a discussion of the Manifesto at a regular meeting of the Quorum of Twelve, in April of 1892, John W. Taylor again referred to the 1886 revelation to his father.  This was about the time that he unsuccessfully proposed marriage to a sister of his most recent wife.  Then in a meeting of the Apostles in 1896, John W. Taylor expressed apparently sincere disbelief of the rumors about Apostle Abraham H. Cannon's plural marriage only a month before.  So even those very closely involved in plural marriage after the Manifesto didn't know what others were doing about plural marriage after the Manifesto.

                ln 1898 in Mexico, John W. Taylor performed the first of post-Manifesto plural marriages he ever officiated in.  He did that under the instructions of Apostle John Henry Smith, as I indicated.  One couple also claimed that John W. Taylor performed their plural marriage in Denver, while he presided over the mission there in 1898.  That couple named their first child after him.  But John W. later claimed to have performed only two other plural marriages since the ones in Mexico.  These were two plural marriages for a resident of Canada.  Now, I don't know whether he was lying to the Quorum of Twelve or whether the couple was lying about John W. Taylor.  However, they did name their child after him, which was perpetuating a lie in a strange way.

                At Farmington, Utah, in 1901, John W. Taylor married two plural wives in a ceremony that was performed by Apostle Matthias F. Cowley.  He claimed that permission was through a cryptic conversation with Joseph F. Smith.  And as I indicated earlier, I don't have a reference, a diary reference, to that conversation with John W. Taylor.  But I do have a similar one where he said, "As President of the Church I can't advise you to do this, but I will not advise you not to do it."  That's undoubtedly that same kind of permission that Joseph F. Smith gave to John W. Taylor and several other Apostles.

                A month later, Apostle Taylor preached in a Salt Lake City ward that women would soon be able to marry polygamously.  So he was saying this publicly. Even though it was within the confines of a ward, it was still very public.  Nonmembers could have been there for all he knew.

                Many in that ward already had married plural wives after the Manifesto, including the stake president and his counselor.  During a public meeting in Mexico in February of 1903, Apostle Taylor pointedly suggested that Anthony W. Ivins marry a plural wife.  This was about the same time that Apostle Taylor unsuccessfully proposed to Ivin's daughter.  Curiously, John W. Taylor, again showing these many different currents after the Manifesto, he didn't know that Joseph F. Smith had authorized patriarch MacDonald to perform plural marriages in Mexico.  So in a public meeting, John W. Taylor condemned patriarch MacDonald in March of 1903, for doing this. That broke MacDonald's heart, and he died two weeks later.

                In September 1903, after consulting with President Joseph F. Smith, John W. Taylor authorized Patriarch John A. Wolfe to perform plural marriages in Canada.  Those plural marriages continued to 1905.  Still, John W. Taylor, despite all I've described, was not anxious to perform new plural marriages and he admitted this to the Apostles as early as 1904, in January.  Immediately after that meeting, Apostle Cowley and two other Apostles met to perform a plural marriage in Salt Lake City, and John W. Taylor warned them about being so active in promoting plural marriages.

                In Mexico in 1904, John W. Taylor, however, still defended the necessity of a second Manifesto, which prohibited plural marriages, and he said. "It should apply even here in Mexico."  So there were many contrary messages publicly and privately.

                From 1904 to 1906, John W. Taylor was absent from General Conferences and from the United States in order to avoid a subpoena to testify before the U.S. Senate.  His absence was advised by President Joseph F. Smith to whom he wrote periodic reports of what he was doing.  Despite his earlier support for the second Manifesto in Mexico, John W. Taylor performed plural marriages in Canada in August of 1904, where it was even more dangerous because in Canada they enforced laws against polygamy.  In Mexico, they did not. And yet, later he lied to the Quorum of Twelve and assured the Apostles that he had not performed any plural marriages since the second Manifesto of 1904.

                Contrary to what he later told them, John W. Taylor apparently also performed two other plural marriages in Canada in September 1904.  In January 1905, Francis M. Lyman went to Canada to persuade John W. Taylor to testify before the U.S. Senate, and Apostle Taylor reluctantly agreed to do that, even though he said, "I will tell the truth.  I warn you, I'm going to tell the truth.  That night, Apostle Lyman had a dream of a disaster that would result from John W. Taylor truthfully testifying in Washington, D.C.  The next morning as John W. Taylor was in route to the railroad, Lyman flipped the horse and buggy quickly through the snow and intercepted him and told him not to go to Washington, and that's why John W. Taylor did not.

                In August 1906, a Canadian friend married a plural wife at the urging of John W. Taylor.

                ln October 1906, after days of secret meetings with the other Apostles, in which he protested that everything he did after the Manifesto had the approval of higher authority, John W. Taylor signed a resignation.  He promised that that resignation would be used only as a last resort to save the Senatorship of Reed Smoot, because that would humiliate the Church and also create possible problems of citizenship, because there were proposals to pass a Constitutional Amendment against plural marriage.

                When the resignation was announced in April 1906 Conference, John W. told one of his wives, "I was sacrificed for Reed Smoot's personal ambition."  As early as 1906, John W. Taylor gave out copies of his father's 1886 revelation against suspending the practice of plural marriage.  In Canada, about 1907, he tried to persuade a returned missionary to marry two wives at once instead of only one.  That returned missionary was Hugh B. Brown, who later became a member of the First Presidency, and who also was the one who wrote the 1935 law which made polygamous cohabitation a felony in Utah.  Even the Federal government hadn't done that.

                About 1908, John W. Taylor gave permission for his daughter to marry polygamously if the man got permission of President Smith.  The marriage didn't occur because the man could never get President Smith's permission.

                In June 1909, John W. Taylor married a plural wife in Salt Lake City.  Apparently that was performed by patriarch Judson Tolman, who had performed a plural marriage earlier that month for Taylor's sister-in-law.  This was the first plural marriage that John W. Taylor did not ask the permission of the Church President to enter into. By October 1910, John W. Taylor was prophesying that the Church would one day be divided into two factions--one monogamous and the other polygamous.  In March 28, 1911, he was excommunicated.  And he certainly was excommunicated.  If you've heard stories that he was not, those stories are false.  He was definitely excommunicated from the Church in 1911.

                According to others, John W. Taylor later referred men to his wife's uncle, John W. Woolley.  I don't know if I mentioned that before, but John W. Woolley was the uncle of John W. Taylor, through his wife.

                In August 1916, John W. Taylor was baptized and reinstated into the L.D.S. Church by two stake presidents.  One was his monogamous brother, and the other was a post-1890 polygamist.  Two months later, he died.  His widow claimed that Joseph F. Smith came to the house at midnight to deliver Temple clothes for John W. Taylor's funeral.  He was buried in a closed casket.

                The First Presidency in 1917 officially stated that the reinstatement that had occurred in 1916 was null and void.  John W. Taylor was not officially reinstated and baptized into the L.D.S. Church until 1965.

                Mariner W. Merrill was an Apostle until his death in 1906.  With a signed recommend by George Q. Cannon, Merrill performed a polygamous marriage in 1904 in the Logan Temple for his daughter.  This was the first post-Manifesto plural marriage performed in the United States after the Manifesto was ratified by the General Conference.

                Then in 1895, he performed one for his son in the Logan Temple.  In April 1899 and August 1897, he told the Apostles in their meetings that polygamy was going to be restored whether they liked it or not.   

                ln July 1899, he told the Apostles that the Manifesto was not a revelation and that there would always be polygamous children born into the Church.  A week later, Apostle Merrill performed a plural marriage for Apostle Matthias F. Cowley in the Logan Temple.  In January 1900, he reminded the Apostles again that plural marriage "had come to stay in one form or another."

                Then in 1901, he demonstrated that personally by marrying a plural wife in Salt Lake City, and that marriage was also performed by Apostle Cowley.  In 1903, he performed a plural marriage for his son in Salt Lake City.  In October 1903, at the end of a Temple meeting, Apostle Merrill openly advised Apostles Woodruff, Rudger Clawson and Hyrum M. Smith to marry new plural wives.  And then he privately advised Heber J. Grant to do so.  He was subpoenaed to testify before the U.S. Senate from 1904 to 1906, but he declined to do so, due to what he called ill health.

                He executed a perjured denial in 1904, which said that he had never married any woman after the Manifesto of 1890.  That was clear perjury.  Despite the second Manifesto, Mariner W. Merrill performed a plural marriage in 1905 in the Logan Temple for one of his sons.

                Abraham H. Cannon was an Apostle and died in 1896.  I'm giving these in order of their seniority within the Quorum of Twelve.  From 1891 to 1894, young women regarded him as eligible for plural marriage and kept proposing to him.  He kept repeatedly declining these proposals.  Then in October 1894, George Q. Cannon, his father and counselor in the Presidency, told-Apostle Cannon that Presidents Woodruff and Smith authorized Abraham to marry a young woman in a proxy ceremony for his brother, who had died on a mission two years earlier.  And during the next year and a half, Abraham courted several women as possible candidates for marriage.

                In June 1896, he married a plural wife through the proxy ceremony which Joseph F. Smith performed in the Salt Lake Temple.  Then he went on a honeymoon to California.  During that honeymoon he became ill and contracted an infection in the ear through surfing (I can relate to that because I had ear trouble surfing in California, too, when I was a teenager.  Unlike me where this only resulted in dozens of ruptured ear drums after every surfing season or during every surfing season,) his resulted in a massive mastoid infection.  And it resulted in his death six weeks after his marriage.  But he had fathered a child during that six weeks of marriage.  His post-Manifesto widow bore his child and named the child Marba, which is "Abram" spelled backwards.  Then in 1901, his widow became a plural wife of his cousin in another Salt Lake City polygamous marriage.  (To Be Continued)

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 “The Kingdom or Nothing!!”

AN OPEN LETTER TO ALL LATTER-DAY SAINTS
 on
PLURAL MARRIAGE
Price Johnson
April 6, 1971

AN OPEN LETTER TO MEMBERS OF THE MORMON CHURCH

               

In the spring of 1923 I attended a quarterly conference at Parowan, Utah.  Joseph Fielding Smith was at this conference, and in his talk made the following statement: "When we are brought before the judgment bar of God, this book (holding up the book containing the Doctrine and Covenants, Book of Mormon and Pearl of Great Price) will be brought forth, and if our lives do not square up with the things written in this book, we will be condemned. It matters not what men may say; it matters not what men may teach in their own wisdom, if it is contrary to the things written in this book, you do not need to accept it. The time will come when we will wonder why we could not see the things that are so plainly written."

                Sometime ago I was talking with a Stake President about some of the things that are written in this book, and he made the following statement: "I am not familiar with that book as I have never read it." (referring to the Doctrine and Covenants) This man also said that we do not need the Doctrine and Covenants now as we have living prophets to lead us. That this is the attitude and teachings of the present-day leaders of the Mormon Church cannot be denied. A short time ago I wrote to a prominent leader in one of the large Seminaries of the Church in which I included some questions as to why the Church had repudiated some of the revelations contained in the Doctrine and Covenants as well as some of the teachings of the early-day leaders of the Church. His answer was as follows "The trouble with you is that you fail to realize that these revelations were given to dead prophets, whereas we now have living prophets to guide us and to whom the word of the Lord is given to us."

                To me, this is strange doctrine, for according to my understanding the Gospel was restored from the heavens for the last time never again to be taken from the earth. Throughout the ages since the days of Father Adam, when the Gospel was revealed from heaven, it has been the same, except when the people were not worthy to receive it in its fulness. If there have been any changes made, it was by the people themselves--to their condemnation--"For God doth not walk in crooked paths, neither doth he turn to the right hand nor to the left, neither doth he vary from that which he hath said, therefore, his paths are straight, and his course is one eternal round." (D. & C. Sec. 3:2)

                The writer of this letter is very much concerned for if "There is a law irrevocably decreed in the heavens before the foundation of this world upon which all blessings are predicated, and when we obtain any blessing from God it is by obedience to the law upon which it is predicated," then how can we justify ourselves in making the least change in the law as God has revealed it?

                My fellow members and my friends of the Mormon Church--there have been many changes made, and there is a difference in the teachings of the early-day leaders and the present-day leaders of the Church. It is my purpose in this letter to bring to your attention some of these differences. There cannot be any middle ground. You must take your choice between them. Many of the teachings of the present-day L.D.S. Church are directly opposed to the revelations of God and the teachings of the early-day leaders, as you will see it you will read this letter to its end. Following are just a few of these changes.

                We are the only church that teaches the eternity of the marriage covenant. Women are sealed to their husbands under the following covenant: (See Millennial Star, Vol. 15.)

     Do you, Brother (calling him by name), take Sister (calling her by name) by the right hand to receive her unto yourself, to be your lawful and wedded wife, for time and for all eternity, with a covenant and promise on your part that you will fulfill all the laws, rites and ordinances pertaining to this holy matrimony in the new and everlasting covenant, doing this in the presence of God, angels and these witnesses, of your own free will and choice? (The bridegroom answers yes.)

     Do you, Sister (calling her by name), take Brother (calling him by name) by the right hand and give yourself to him to be his lawful and wedded wife for time and for all eternity, with a covenant and promise on your part that you will fulfill all the laws, rites and ordinances pertaining to this holy matrimony in the new and everlasting covenant, doing this in the presence of God, angels and these witnesses of your own free will and choice? (The bride answers yes.)

     In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and by authority of the Holy Priesthood, I pronounce you legally and lawfully husband and wife for time and for all eternity; and seal upon you the blessings of the holy resurrection with power to come forth in the morning of the first resurrection clothed with glory, immortality, and eternal lives, and I seal upon you the blessings of thrones and dominions and principalities and powers and exaltations, together with the blessings of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and say unto you, be faithful and multiply and replenish the earth, that you may have joy and rejoicing in your posterity in the day of the Lord Jesus. All these blessings, together with all other blessings pertaining to the new and everlasting covenant, I seal upon your heads through your faithfulness unto the end by authority of the Holy Priesthood, in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost, Amen.

                In this ceremony we have covenanted "before God, angels and witnesses" that we will fulfill all the laws, rites and ordinances pertaining to this holy matrimony in the new and everlasting covenant. All informed Latter-day Saints will agree that unless we fulfill our part of this agreement, the Lord will not fulfill his part, and unless we do fulfill our part, this covenant of marriage which we have made will not be in force at all. Is it possible that this is what Joseph Smith meant when he said, "The disappointment of hopes and expectations at the resurrection will be indescribably dreadful?" These conditions that we have covenanted to obey are plainly written in the revelations that God has given to this people. They were not given by Brigham Young or by Joseph Smith, but by God, and it is up to us to obey or take the consequences. Below I am giving these conditions by which men and women are sealed together for eternity, and the interpretation put upon them by Joseph Smith, Brigham Young; and other early-day leaders of the Church.

I quote from Section 131:

     In the celestial glory there are three heavens or degrees; and in order to obtain the highest, a man must enter into this order of the Priesthood (meaning the new and everlasting covenant of marriage); and if he does not, he cannot obtain it. He may enter into the other, but that is the end of his Kingdom; HE CANNOT HAVE AN INCREASE. (Doc. & Cov. 131:1-4)

                The following from Sec. 132 explains in plain language what is meant by the "New and Everlasting Covenant of Marriage." It is so plainly written that there can be no possibility of a mistake as to its meaning.

     I command and men obey not; I revoke and they receive not the blessing.  (Sec. 58:32)

          Verily, thus saith the Lord unto you my servant Joseph, that inasmuch as you have inquired of my hand to know and understand wherein I, the Lord, justified my servants Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as also Moses, David and Solomon, my servants, as touching the principle and doctrine of their having many wives and concubines--Behold, and lo, I am the Lord thy God, and will answer thee as touching this matter. Therefore, prepare thy heart to receive and obey the instructions which I am about to give unto  you; for all those who have this law revealed unto them must obey the same. For behold, I reveal unto you a new and an everlasting covenant; and if ye abide not that covenant, then are ye damned; for no one can reject this covenant and be permitted to enter into my glory. For all who will have a blessing at my hands shall abide the law which was appointed for that blessing, and the conditions thereof, as were instituted from before the foundation of the world. And as pertaining to the new and everlasting covenant, it was instituted for the fulness of my glory; and he that receiveth a fulness thereof must and shall abide the law, or he shall be damned, saith the Lord God. (Doc. & Cov. 132:1-6)

                And continuing later in Section 132

     I am the Lord thy God, and will give unto thee the law, of my holy Priesthood, as was ordained by me and my Father before the world was.   Abraham received all things, whatsoever he received, by revelation and commandment, by my word, saith the Lord, and hath entered into his exaltation and sitteth upon his throne. Abraham received promises concerning his seed, and of the fruit of his loins--from whose loins ye are, namely, my servant Joseph--which were to continue so long as they were in the world; and as touching Abraham and his seed, out of the world they should continue; both in the world and out of the world should they continue as innumerable as the stars; or, if ye were to count the sand upon the seashore ye could not number them. This promise is yours also, because ye are of Abraham, and the promise was made unto Abraham; and by this law is the continuation of the works of my Father, wherein he glorifieth himself. Go ye, therefore, and do the works of Abraham; enter ye into my law and ye shall be saved. But if ye enter not into my law ye cannot receive the promise of my Father, which he made unto Abraham.   God commanded Abraham, and Sarah gave Hagar to Abraham to wife. And why did she do it?  Because this was the law. (Doc. & Cov. 132:28-34)

                My friends, the above quotations from the revelations of God as contained in the Doctrine and Covenants are the words of the Lord on the subject of plural marriage. They are so plainly written that there cannot be any possibility of doubt as to their meaning. These are the "laws, rites and ordinances" that we have covenanted to obey. Without obedience to these eternal laws, there is and can be no marriage for eternity. To prove the truth of this statement we are giving in this letter, the personal testimonies of some of the early leaders of the Church, as well as the testimonies of some members of the Church which were received after the Manifesto was accepted by the Church.

TESTIMONIES OF EARLY LEADERS

The Prophet Joseph Smith

               

"They accuse me of polygamy, and of being a false prophet, and many other things which I do not now remember; but I am no false prophet; I am no impostor; I have had no dark revelations; I have had no revelations from the devil; I made no revelations; I have got nothing up of myself. The same God that has thus far dictated me and directed and strengthened me in this work, gave me this revelation on celestial and plural marriage, and the same God commanded me to obey it. He said to me that unless I accepted it and introduced it and practiced it, I, together with my people would be damned and cut off from this time henceforth. And they say if I do so, they will kill me and I know they will. But we have got to observe it; it is an eternal principle and was given by way of commandment and not by way of instruction." (Contributor, Vol. 5, page 255)

                "We are only capable of comprehending that certain things exist, which we may acquire by certain fixed principles. If men would acquire salvation, they have got to be subject, before they leave this world, to certain rules and principles, which were fixed by an unalterable decree before the world was.  The disappointment of hopes and expectations at the resurrection would be indescribably dreadful." (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, pp. 324-325)

Brigham Young

               

"Joseph received a revelation on celestial marriage. * * * The people of God have been commanded to take more wives. The women are entitled to salvation if they live according to the word that is given to them, and if their husbands are good men, and they are obedient unto them, they are entitled to certain blessings that they cannot receive unless they are sealed to men who will be exalted. Now, when a man in this Church says, `I don't want but one wife; I will live my religion with one,' he will perhaps be saved in the celestial kingdom, but when he gets there, he will not find himself in possession of any wife at all. He has had a talent that he has hid up. He will come forth and say, `Here is that which thou gavest me; I have not wasted it and here is the one talent,' and he will not enjoy it, but it will be taken from him and given to those who have improved the talent they received, and he will find himself without [9] any wife, and he will remain single forever and ever. But if the woman is determined to not enter into plural marriage, that woman, when she comes forth, will have the privilege of living in single blessedness through all eternity. Now sisters, do not say, `I do not want a husband when I get up in the resurrection.' You do not know what you will want. If, in the resurrection, you really want to be single and alone and live forever and ever and be made servants, while others receive the higher order of intelligence, and are bringing worlds into existence, you can have the privilege. They who will be exalted cannot perform all the labor, they must have servants, and you can be servants to them." (Journal of Discourses, Vol. 22, p. 166)

John Taylor

               

"My son, John, you have asked me concerning the new and everlasting covenant and how far it is binding upon my people. Thus saith the Lord, all commandments that I give must be obeyed by those calling themselves by my name, unless they are revoked by me or by my authority, and how can I revoke an everlasting covenant, for I, the Lord am everlasting, and my everlasting covenants cannot be abrogated nor done away with, but they stand forever. Have I not given my word in great plainness on this subject, yet have not great numbers of my people been negligent in the observance of my laws, and the keeping of my commandments, and yet I have borne with them these many years and this because of their weakness, because of perilous times, and furthermore, it is now pleasing to me that men should use their free agency in regard to these things. Nevertheless, I the Lord do not change, and my covenants and my law do not. And as I have heretofore said by my servant Joseph, All those who would enter into my glory must and shall obey my law, and have I not commanded men that if they were Abraham's seed, and would enter into my glory, they must do the works of Abraham. I have not revoked this law, nor will I, for it is everlasting, and those who enter into my glory must obey the conditions thereof, even so, Amen.   (Revelation of Sept. 26 1886)

                (Note: There are thousands of Latter-day Saints who will not accept this revelation; likewise, there are millions outside the Mormon Church who do not accept Joseph Smith as a prophet of God. But their unbelief does not change an eternal truth. The blessings and glory, the Celestial Kingdom, will never be placed on the bargain counter; they must be paid in full. There is no excuse for the Mormon people who have the law before them in unmistakable language.)

Heber C. Kimball

               

"You might as well deny Mormonism and turn away from it as to oppose plural marriage. Let the Presidency of this Church, and the Twelve Apostles and all the authorities unite and say with one voice that they would oppose that doctrine, and the whole of them would be damned. What are you opposing it for? It is a principle that God has established for the human family? He revealed it to Joseph the Prophet in this our dispensation; and that which He revealed - He designs to be carried out by His people." (Journal of Discourses, Vol. 5, p. 203)

                "Many of this people have broken their covenants by finding fault with the plurality of wives, and trying to sink it out of existence. But you cannot do that, for God will cut you off and raise up another people that will carry out His purposes in righteousness unless you walk up to the line of your duty. On the one hand there is glory and exaltation, and on the other no tongue can express the suffering and affliction this people will pass through if they do not repent." (Journal of Discourses, Vol. 4, p. 108)

Orson Pratt

               

"Why do Latter-day Saints practice polygamy? This is a plain question; I will answer it just as plainly. It is because we believe with all the sincerity of our hearts, as has been stated by former speakers from this stand, that the Lord God who gave revelation to Moses approbating polygamy, has given revelation to Latter-day Saints, not only approbating it, but commanding it as He commanded Israel in ancient times. Now, having said so much in relation to the reasons why we practice polygamy, I want to say a few words in regard to the revelation on polygamy. God has told us Latter-day Saints that we will be condemned if we do not enter into that principle and yet, I have heard now and then a brother or sister say, `I am a Latter-day Saint but I do not believe in polygamy.' Oh, what an expression! What an absurd idea! A person might as well say, I am a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ, but I do not believe in Him.' One is as consistent as the other. Or a person might as well say, `I believe in Mormonism and the revelations given to Joseph Smith, the Prophet, but I am not a polygamist, and I do not believe in polygamy.' What an absurdity! If one portion of the doctrines of the Church is true, the whole of them is true. If the doctrine of polygamy as revealed to the Latter-day Saints is not true, I would not give a fig for all your revelations that came through Joseph Smith the Prophet; I would denounce the whole of them, because it is utterly impossible, according to the revelations contained in these books, to believe a part of them to be divine--from God--and part of them from the devil. That is foolishness in the extreme. It is an absurdity that exists because of the ignorance of some people. I have been astonished at it. I did hope that there was more intelligence among the Latter-day Saints and a greater understanding of the principle than to suppose that anyone could be in good standing and yet reject polygamy. The Lord has said that those who reject this principle, reject their salvation. They shall be damned, saith the Lord. They to whom I reveal this law and they do not receive it shall be damned. Now, I want to prophesy a little. It is not often that I prophesy, though I was commanded to do so when I was a boy. I want to prophesy that all men and women who oppose the revelation which God has given in relation to polygamy will find themselves in darkness. The Spirit of God will withdraw from them the very moment of their withdrawal from that principle until finally they will be damned and go down to hell if they do not repent. Now if you want to get into darkness, brothers and sisters, begin to oppose this revelation. Sisters, you begin to say before your husbands, or husbands begin to say before your wives, `I do not believe in the principle of polygamy and I intend to instruct my children against it,' oppose it in this way and if you do not become as dark as midnight, there is no truth in Mormonism." (Journal of Discourses, Vol. 17, p. 223)

Joseph F. Smith

               

"Some people have supposed that the doctrine of plural marriage was a sort of superfluity or non-essential to the salvation or exaltation of mankind. In other words, some of the Saints have said, and believe, that a man with one wife, sealed to him by authority of the Priesthood for time and eternity, will receive an exaltation as great and glorious, if he is faithful, as he possibly could with more than one. I wish here, to enter my solemn protest against this idea, for I know it to be false. * * * The marriage of one woman to a man for time and eternity by the sealing power, according to the law of God, is a fulfillment of the celestial law of marriage IN PART --and is good so far as it goes--and so far as a man abides these conditions of the law, he will receive his reward therefor, and this reward, or  blessing, he could not obtain on any other grounds or conditions. But this is only the beginning of the law, not the whole of it. Therefore, whoever has imagined that he could obtain a fulness of the blessings pertaining to the celestial law, by complying with only a portion of its conditions, has deceived himself.  He cannot do it. * * * He cannot receive the fulness of the blessings useless he fulfills the law, any more than he can claim the gift of the Holy Ghost after he is baptized without the laying on of hands by proper authority, or the remission of sins without baptism, though he may repent in sackcloth and ashes. * * *

                “I understand the law of celestial marriage to mean that every man in the Church who has the ability to obey and practice it in righteousness and will not, shall be damned. I say I understand it to mean this and nothing less, and I testify, in the name of Jesus that it does mean that." (Journal of Discourses, Vol. 20, pp. 28, 30, 31)

Heber J. Grant

               

"No matter what restrictions we may be placed under by man, our only consistent course is to keep the commandments of God. We should, in this regard, place ourselves in the same position as that of the three Hebrew who were cast into the fiery furnace.  If we are living in the light of the gospel, we have a testimony of the truth, and we have but one choice, that is to abide in the law of God, no matter as to the consequences. It is sometimes held that the Saints are in error because so many are opposed to them. But when people know they are right, it is wrong for them to forego their honest convictions by yielding their judgment to that of a majority, no matter how large. When a man knows that he is honest, he needs care but little as to what the world may think or say concerning him. There will be opposition to the Latter-day Saints until the whole social fabric of the world is revolutionized. In seeing these things, we are only witnessing the fulfillment of that which has been prophesied. We may expect to see men who are corrupt arise and proclaim this people are wicked. The best and most honorable men of the community, as a rule, had entered into plural marriage, and were the objects of the cruel persecutions that are now being enforced." (Deseret News, April 6, 1885)

Charles W. Penrose

               

"He showed that the revelation that had been the subject of attention (Sec. 132) was only one published on celestial marriage, and if the doctrine of plural marriage was repudiated, so must the glorious principle of marriage for eternity, the two being indissolubly interwoven with each other."  (Millennial Star, Vol. 45, p. 454)

TESTIMONIES OF MEMBERS OF THE CHURCH SINCE THE MANIFESTO

My Brother-in-law

               

“In the fall of 1919, I assisted my brother-in-law in taking a herd of sheep from the summer range near Alton, Utah, to the winter range on the Arizona strip south of the Utah border. One of the camping places was at the head of Kanab Canyon. After we were settled for the night and were sitting around the campfire, my brother-in-law said, "Do you see that large spreading cedar over there? An angel appeared to me under that tree." I said, "Tell me about it," and he said he had been advised by some of the leaders of the Church to take another wife, and that he was fasting and praying for a personal testimony from the Lord before taking this important step. He was on his way to a quarterly conference in Kanab, and camped under that tree. Soon after going to bed, an angel appeared to him and said he had been sent to him with a message from the Lord. He said, "I have been instructed to tell you that there are a few men yet, in this Church, who will be allowed to enter into plural marriage, and if you will receive it, you are one of them."

President Byron Sessions (Bighorn Stake)

               

In the early part of this century, the Mormon Church colonized the Bighorn Basin in Northern Wyoming. Byron Sessions was the Stake President and leader of this project under Apostle Owen Woodruff. Soon after my father's death there, President Sessions called my father's family together and gave them valuable advice and instructions. In his talk, he explained the importance and necessity of obedience to the law of plural marriage. Members of the family who were present at this meeting consisted of my father's two wives and about twelve of his twenty children. We were placed under a pledge of secrecy, and the family honored this pledge while President Sessions was still living. As he is now dead and beyond the power of his enemies, I am relating in this letter, a part of this talk.

                He said that he had had a dream in which he and his wife were taken beyond the veil. A messenger, or guide, met them there and gave them a view of the marvelous workings and conditions that prevail in the place of departed and righteous spirits. They finally came to a stairway that led to the upper story of a large building. A guard was standing here, and this is what he said: "This is as far as you can go as man and wife you can go in separately, but your status as man and wife end; at this place."

                Brother Sessions asked why this was the case, as they had been sealed in the temple, and fully expected to remain together through eternity. The guide said, "You have not obeyed all the conditions of the law by which men and women are sealed for eternity. Because of this, your union must cease at death, and you will not be allowed to proceed further as man and wife." He began to weep, and was weeping when he awoke. His wife, who was lying beside him was also crying and he said, "Ida, what is the matter?" She answered, "I have just had a dream and I am glad it was only a dream." Their dreams were identical.

                (Note: Byron Sessions later took another wife; he also was set apart in his stake to keep plural marriage alive.)

* * * * *

                The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints rightfully claims to be the only church on earth whose doctrines, organization and authority were restored and revealed from the heavens. The Church is the custodian (not the author or maker) of the gospel of Christ. Each principle has its place in the great plan of salvation that is destined to bring men back into the Celestial Kingdom where they dwelt in their pre-existent state. Faith, repentance, baptism and the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost are celestial laws. Through obedience to these laws men can enter into celestial glory, but he cannot receive a fulness. The pattern by which he can receive the fulness of celestial glory is given in the revelations of God that have been given to this Church. Many of us are fully expecting to come up in the resurrection with a celestial body to receive the companions that we have thought were sealed to us, and we will be disappointed because we have not obeyed the fulness of the law.

                The fulness of the gospel was explained by Brigham Young at the dedication of the St. George Temple when he said: "Hear it, ye elders of Israel and mark it down in your log books, the fulness of the Gospel is the United Order and the order of plural marriage, and without these two principles this gospel never can be full; and I fear that when I am gone this people will give up these two principles which we prize so highly, and if they do, this Church cannot advance as God wishes for it to advance."

                One of the glorious principles of this plan is the resurrection of the dead. All men must die and through the grace of our Lord and Savior, all will be resurrected. Somewhere I have read that at the resurrection people will rise up as out of a deep sleep. The kind of body that he receives there is determined by the degree of obedience to the Gospel while he lived on the earth in his mortal estate. His body will be either of the celestial, terrestrial, or the telestial order (Section 76). The only one of these that concerns members of the Mormon Church is the celestial order. As quoted above, (Sec. 131) there are three degrees in the Celestial Kingdom. Those who come into the two lower degrees in the Celestial Kingdom will be servants to those who inherit a higher degree of glory. And in order to obtain the highest, "a man must enter into this order, of the Priesthood, meaning the new and everlasting covenant of marriage; and if he does not, he cannot obtain it. He may enter into the other but that is the end of his kingdom; he cannot have an increase."

                The evidence produced in this letter from the revelations of God, and the testimony of early leaders of the Church, prove beyond any shadow of doubt that there is, and can be no marriage for eternity without obedience to the law or plural marriage. Thousands will rise up in the resurrection who think they are sealed to their companions who will not be sealed because they did not obey all the conditions by which women are sealed to men for eternity.

Why did the Church stop the practice of Plural Marriage?

                The last revelation given to the Church was given to President Wilford Woodruff in the month of August 1889, eleven months before the Manifesto was given to, and accepted by, the Church. This revelation, given below, is recorded in the journal of Wilford Woodruff:

                "Thus saith the Lord to my servant Wilford, I, the Lord, have heard thy prayers and thy request, and will answer thee by the voice of my Spirit. Thus saith the Lord unto my servants, the Presidency of my Church, who hold the keys of the Kingdom of God on the earth, I, the Lord, hold the destiny of the courts in your midst and the destiny of this nation and all other nations of the earth in mine own hands, and all that I have revealed and promised and decreed concerning the generation in which you live shall come to pass, and no power shall stay my hand.

                “Let not my servants who have been called to the Presidency of my Church deny my word or my law which concerns the salvation of the children of men. Let them pray for the Holy Spirit which shall be given them to guide them in their acts. Place not yourselves in jeopardy to your enemies by promise. Your enemies seek your destruction and the destruction of my people. If the Saints will harken unto my voice and the counsel of my servants, the wicked shall not prevail.

                “Let my servants who officiate as your counselors before the courts make their pleadings as they are moved by the Holy Spirit, without any further pledges from the Priesthood. I, the Lord, will hold the courts, with the officers of government and the nation responsible for their acts toward the people of Zion--I cannot deny my word, either in blessings or judgments.

“Therefore, let mine annointed gird up their loins, watch and be sober, and keep my commandments."

                This revelation from God which, without any reservations whatever, forbade the authorities of the Church to make any concessions or pledges to the enemy, was, less than a year later, ignored and by vote of the people in conference assembled, the law of Celestial Marriage as explained above in this letter, was rejected, and was no longer a law of the Church. It was a very unusual thing for President Woodruff to disobey a commandment of God, yet he did it, and why did he do it? I believe I have the answer to this question.

                Sometime in the early twenties I was at Huntington, Utah, and was entertained for the night by a distant relative whose name was Johnson. He was a pioneer, who was closely associated with President Woodruff at the time the Manifesto was given to the Church, and he related to me the following:

                "President Woodruff was under tremendous pressure from both within and without the Church to make some concessions to the enemy. The Government had confiscated most of the Church property; several hundred of the membership, and some of the leaders of the Church were behind prison bars. From all human appearances, the Church was about to be destroyed. A few days before the conference of September 1890, the Presidency met to make the final decision.  George Q. Cannon, who was the first counselor in the First Presidency, advised the signing of the Manifesto which had been handed to them to sign, for, said he, "The Saints will reject it and the responsibility will be taken from our shoulders." Joseph F. Smith flatly refused to sign it, and President Woodruff decided to sign it alone in the full belief that the people would vote it down and refuse to accept it.

                The morning after it was placed before the people and accepted by them, Joseph F. Smith went to the home of President Woodruff, and found him in great sorrow and distress of mind. He had walked the floor all night, and when Brother Smith entered, he said: `Brother Smith, what have we done? WHAT HAVE WE DONE?' Brother Smith answered: `We have made a covenant with death and an agreement with hell, that is what we have done.'" (See Isaiah 28:15)

                My friends, members of the Mormon Church--Plural (Celestial) Marriage was taken from the Church in fulfillment of prophecy, and because 97% of the members of the Church rejected it, or failed to accept it. The Lord, in a revelation to Joseph Smith, said: "And when the times of the gentiles shall come in, a light shall break forth among them that sit in darkness, and it shall be the fulness of My Gospel, but they receive it not, for they perceive not the light, and they turn their hearts from Me because of the precepts of men."

                The Prophet Isaiah foresaw this great apostasy on our part and because of it declared that the Lord had placed a curse upon the whole earth. He said, "The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants thereof; because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting covenant." (See Isa. 24:5; see v. 1-6.)

                These are the laws of the Lord that have been transgressed by our people.  We have changed the ordinance and lost the Priesthood, and we have definitely broken the Everlasting Covenant of Marriage and have lost the rights to the eternal and exalting benefits of that covenant, which now can only be for time, but not for eternity.

                Because Satan has triumphed in this matter over this people, and we are now in his power exactly as he warned us, in the temple, we will soon witness the judgments Isaiah speaks of when, "the Lord maketh the earth empty, and maketh it waste, and turneth it upside down, and scattereth abroad the inhabitants thereof."

                Isaiah also declares that at this time "There will be few men left," and that it will be expedient for us to return to this eternal principle for, "ln that day seven women shall take hold of one man, saying, We will eat our own bread and wear our own apparel, only let us be called by thy name to take away our reproach." And he goes on to say that these people shall be called "HOLY" and shall be the ones "that are escaped of Israel." (See. Isa. 4:1-3.) Think of this the next time you wonder if you are spiritually qualified to survive the impending judgments of the Lord during the years of tribulation He has decreed.

                All of this is verified in a special revelation on this subject given to Wilford Woodruff in 1880. Again the Lord decreed a severe judgment upon the LDS people, the State and Nation because of their opposition and oppression in hindering His people "from obeying the Patriarchal Law of Abraham, which leadeth to Celestial Glory, which has been revealed unto my Saints through the mouth of my servant Joseph, for whosoever doeth these things shall be damned, saith the Lord of Hosts, and shall be broken up and wasted away from under heaven by the judgments which I have sent forth, and which shall not return unto me void."

                "And thus, with the sword, and by bloodshed, and with famine and plague, and earthquakes, and the thunder of heaven, and vivid lightnings shall this nation and the nations of the earth, be made to feel the chastening hand of an Almighty God, until they are broken up and destroyed and wasted away from under heaven. And no power can stay my hand, therefore let the wicked tremble; let them that blaspheme my name, hold their lips, for destruction will swiftly overtake them.

                ". . . Judgments will begin upon my house, and thence they will go forth unto the world, and the wicked cannot escape."

                Again, in the 16th chapter of 3rd Nephi, we have a prophecy delivered by the Savior Himself. It was so important that He was commanded of the Father to deliver it to the Nephite people for the information and benefit of their posterity. He said, "And thus commanded the Father that I should say unto you:

At that day when the gentiles shall sin against my Gospel--and shall reject the fulness of my Gospel, behold, saith the Father I will bring the fulness of my Gospel from among them. And then will I remember my covenant which I have made with my people, O house of Israel, and I will bring my Gospel unto them.  But if the gentiles will repent and return unto me, behold, they shall be numbered with my people, O House of Israel." This positively identifies this prophecy with the Mormon Church, for it is speaking of the day in which this book should come forth. Furthermore, how could a people "return unto me" if they had not been there once and departed from Him.

                Members of the Mormon Church--when we are brought before the judgment bar of God, you cannot place the blame for your violation of this irrevocable, eternal law of the Holy Priesthood on the shoulders of Wilford Woodruff, or any others of the leaders of the Church It will rest squarely upon your shoulders. There is, and can be no excuse or alibi. The authorities of the Church have a tremendous responsibility upon their shoulders. Their enemies are watching them and are ready to take advantage of any misplaced word or action. For this reason much valuable advice and counsel is withheld from you, and here is where the Holy Spirit comes into the picture.  As was quoted at the beginning of this letter, "It matters not what men may say, it matters not what men may teach in their own wisdom, if it is contrary to the things written in these books, you do not need to accept it." These books were given by revelation from God. They are a true guide into the highest order of celestial glory. They were given through the medium of the Holy Spirit, and unless we are filled with that same Spirit, it is impossible for us to interpret them correctly, and this is why so many people are led astray.

                May God grant that many of us may see the light, as it is in Him, that on the great day of reckoning that lies somewhere in the future, we may not be disappointed with the record we have made where we were sent to be tested as gold is tested, seven times in the furnace. Our reaction to this test will determine our position, or station in the eternities that lie ahead.

                The writer of this letter belongs to no faction or group. This Open Letter is written entirely on his own responsibility. He has filled two missions for the Church, both to the Eastern States. A few years after he returned from his second mission, he was arrested and sent to the Arizona State Prison for living with his wife who had been sealed to him by authority of the Holy Priesthood. His sentence read, "From eighteen to twenty-four months," but with good behavior and "two for one" time, he was let out in eleven months.

                After about one month in the prison, he was called before the Parole Board and offered a parole. By way of explanation for what follows, I will say, the Chairman of the Parole Board was a Baptist minister named Hoffman; also, at that time there was no law in Arizona against plural marriage.

                There were about 15 men present, consisting of the Parole Board and prison officials. The Chairman said to me, "Mr. Johnson, we have a letter here from your wife applying for a parole. We will be glad to grant this, but in order to prevent your being sent back to this prison, you will be required to sign a statement agreeing to straighten out your family affairs so you will be conforming with the law, and to agree to conform with the law in the future."

                I stood up so I could get a better view of them and this was my answer:  "Mr. Hoffman, I was put in this prison on the charge of open and notorious cohabitation, but this is not the real charge against me. The real charge is having more than one wife. This is an essential part of my religious belief, and I firmly believe that if I keep the covenants I made with these women and with my God, I will have them in the eternal worlds after this life is ended; and before I would break these covenants, I would remain in this prison the remainder of my life; yes, before I would break these covenants, I would go to that gas chamber over there." Then I asked if that was all they wanted of me and he said, "That is all," and I left the room.

                As abundantly proved in this letter, the eternity of the marriage covenant as taught by Joseph Smith and revealed from the heavens to the people of this dispensation, has been rejected by the people of the LDS Church. As foretold by Joseph Fielding Smith "The time will come when we will wonder why could not see the things that are so plainly written but it will be too late.  There is, and can be, no excuse or alibi. If, at the resurrections of our bodies we are disappointed and bowed down with sorrow, it will be our own fault, as the way to exaltation and eternal glory that is connected with the everlasting covenant of marriage is plainly outlined in the sacred books that we have, or should have, in our homes.

                At the age of 85, I leave this testimony with you now and forever. (April 6, 1971)

Respectfully,

Price W. Johnson

P.S. The Words of Christ to Bishop Hunsaker:

               

Abraham Hunsaker, the first Bishop of Honeyville, Utah, did not believe the law of Plural Marriage, so the Savior straightened him out on the matter.

From the LDS Biographical Encyclopedia, page 415, we quote:

                "When the law of celestial marriage was first whispered to him, he opposed it, exclaiming, `It is of the devil!' But God knew his heart and in open day a messenger from heaven, with three women clothed in white raiment, stood before him several feet from the ground, and addressed him thus: `You never can receive a full and complete salvation in My Kingdom unless your garments are pure and white and you have THREE counselors like me.' Thus he was convinced and he subsequently married five wives, and he became the father of 50 children."

 Why Your Temple Marriage is not Eternal:

                (1) The first thing that puts it in doubt is that President Heber J. Grant in 1921, stopped the conferring of Priesthood in all ordinations in all wards, stakes and temples. From that time on, only an office in the Church was given without the Priesthood itself being conferred. Hence, all baptisms, ordinations, marriages, and sealings from that time on are in question because of the obvious lack of Priesthood authority. (See Chapter 9 on Priesthood in Gospel Doctrine by President Joseph F. Smith.)

                (2) The second big reason your temple marriage is not eternal is that few, if any, of the temple marriages have been made binding upon the Lord by the participants fulfilling their vow and covenant, "to fulfill all the laws, rites and ordinances pertaining to this holy matrimony in the new and everlasting covenant." This means obeying the law of Abraham and Sarah as set forth in the D. & C., Sections 131 and 132. (See especially verse 34.) Without compliance to this law upon which eternal marriage is predicated, you will get about as far as Byron Sessions and his wife got in their mutual visions, which account is related in this open letter. The Lord says, "I the Lord am bound when ye do what I say, but when ye do not what I say, ye have no promise." (D. & C. 82:103)

* * * * *

The Word of the Lord to John Taylor, September 1886

               

"...I the Lord do not change my word, and my covenants and my law do not, and as I have heretofore said by my servant Joseph: All those who would enter into my glory must and shall obey my law, ... I HAVE NOT REVOKED THIS LAW, NOR WILL I, for it is everlasting, and those who will enter into my glory MUST obey the conditions thereof. Even so, Amen."

Heber C. Kimball on Plural Marriage

               

"You might as well deny `Mormonism' and turn away from it, as to oppose the plurality of wives. Let the Presidency of this Church, and the Twelve Apostles and all the authorities unite and say with one voice that they will oppose this doctrine, and the whole of them would be damned. (J.D. 5:203)

Recommended Sites 4thefamily.us (Open chat & polygamy, Mormon doctrine discussion) Fullnessradio.acrobat.com/fullness/ (Internet broadcast Wednesdays 8pm MST.  Discussion of deeper mysteries of the Kingdom of God.)

THE VISION OF S. M. FARNSWORTH

Nauvoo--1844

I was engaged in working on the temple (at Nauvoo), and had gone home to dinner, and after dinner I started back to work, it then being about one o'clock. The day was a beautiful, clear and pleasant one, when suddenly  the heavens became overcast and assumed the appearance of a drizzly day, like unto the approach of an equinoctial storm. The Saints looked very much downcast and overcome with sorrow. The Twelve Apostles were counseling the Saints to prepare for a great journey to the west. The people were running to and fro in the streets of Nauvoo, preparing wagons, outfits, etc., for this journey. Many hundreds started, and their wagons extended to the west as far as the eye could reach. This journey appeared to be a great undertaking, but was accomplished much easier than was expected. I saw the Saints after they had arrived at the end of their journey, and they began to prosper and were cheerful again.

Suddenly, a dark cloud appeared in the east and was driven to the west like a great tornado, that seemed as if it would destroy everything before it. It halted when it came to the mountains and one of the brethren remarked, "It is going to break away." And as we looked at it, it broke up and began to scatter and go around the mountains. Then the sky began to grow dark and misty and haze over from the four points of the compass, gathering up like the approach of a big storm, which continued until everything was [86] enveloped in extreme darkness; and it continued to grow blacker and blacker, until it appeared to me that all our enemies were against us; the elements were against us; God and His Prophet had forsaken us, and there was no ray of hope, or light, to give us comfort, but it seemed as though we would all be utterly destroyed.

All at once, President Brigham Young unexpectedly came into the midst of the Saints, and said, "Brethren, stand still, and see the salvation of God", and tried to comfort and cheer the Saints, but his words had no effect on the people. He then turned around in haste, and had the Church in a body encircled by three strong bands, (I saw no women or children in this circle) which he commenced driving with a Masonic mallet, followed by the Twelve Apostles. Each tap of the mallet drew the hoops tighter and tighter. This was the first time that I noticed the absence of Brothers Joseph and Hyrum, and I felt much troubled and weighed down in consequence of their absence. Brother Brigham and the Twelve continued driving the hoops, their countenances being very resolute and determined, showing no signs of mercy.

I thought to myself, the brethren could not stand it, when suddenly, the hoops burst asunder, and about two-thirds of the men scattered and ran away. I looked up and saw an opening in the clouds above, and also the heads of four or five heavenly personages above the clouds, looking down through their aperture upon us.   I cast my eyes around and saw Brother Brigham smiling, and then knew that our troubles were over.

Those heavenly personages came down in the midst of those who remained, and blessed them with all that their hearts could desire and life was a pleasure. When the clouds burst asunder, they turned with a ten-fold vengeance upon the heads of our enemies, and I noticed that those of our brethren that ran away, were of that class that were complaining, rebellious and had not lived up to their privileges. I felt in my heart, that the Lord ought not to put us to such a severe trial, when one of the angels came to me and said that "it was actually necessary to bring the Church through as close a place as that, in order to sift out those that were among you that were unworthy of the blessings you now enjoy."

I also saw that Brother Brigham had a large table spread with all the luxuries of life, and as starvation seemed to stare us in the face, I thought this trial was a good scarecrow, as no person was hurt, being only frightened enough to make them run away. Language cannot describe how happy and contented we all were; being of one heart and one mind, we enjoyed every blessing we desired. Soon Brother Brigham jumped up and clapped his hands and cried out, "Now boys, for Jackson County," and we were all on the move in a short time.

The next scene I remember, I was within a short distance of Jackson County, arm in arm with one of the brethren walking directly south, being on the west side of the street or road. We saw an old mobocrat walking toward us, looking the very picture of despair. When he got opposite us, he raised his head and as our eyes caught his, he screeched aloud, withered and passed away, as a thing of naught. The vision closed, and I found myself standing in the street, where I was when it commenced.

"Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man who sowed good seed in his field; But while he slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way.

But when the blade sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? Whence then hath it tares?  He said unto the, An enemy hath done this.

And the servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest, and in the time of harvest, I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the wheat into my barn; and the tares are bound in bundles to be burned." (Matt. 13:22-29)

E    D    I    T    O    R    I    A    L

Plural Marriage:

The Responsibility of the Priesthood of God

“Hear it, ye elders of Israel, and mark it down in your logbooks: the fullness of the Gospel is the United Order and the Order of Plural Marriage; and without these two principles this gospel never can be full. And I much fear that when I am gone this people will give up these two principles which we prize so highly; and if they do this church cannot advance as God wishes it to advance.” (Brigham Young, St. George Temple Dedication, 1877)

I wanted to open with that memorable statement given by President Brigham Young.  It was recently reported that some brethren made the remark that Plural Marriage is taught too much amongst the Saints.  Like many of us, I was raised within the corporate LDS Church and then excommunicated for believing in principles such as in the above statement.  And, like many of us, through an education in LDS history, I discovered that the Church sadly is not living the fullness of the Gospel.  Many of us were told to let sleeping dogs lie, and leave the past where it belongs, and that these laws were no longer requirements of exaltation, and that we could live these in the Millennium.  Many of us could share similar stories, I’m sure.

However outside the Church we all found ourselves, we also discovered the Priesthood is not owned by the Church, and the authority to perpetuate all the Church wasn’t willing to sustain existed outside the Church.  We had somewhere to gather; somewhere to go.  We had purpose and works to perform, and found people that live these laws today.

I would ask: If the Church quietly hushes those who ask about living the principles described in Sections 72 (United Order) 132 (Plural Marriage) and offers apologies for the early Saints for ever practicing them or gives answers veiled in deceit, whose responsibility is it to teach these principles?

                “And with regard to the conduct of this people--if an angel should come here and speak his feelings as plainly as I do, I think he would say, "0, Latter-day Saints! why don't you see, why don't you open your eyes and behold the great work resting upon you and that you have entered into? You are blind, you are stupid, you are in the dark, in the mist and fog, wandering to and fro like a boat upon the water without sail, rudder or oar; and you know not whither you are going." (Brigham Young, JD 19:93-94; Aug. 19, 1877)

The answer is obvious.  It’s our responsibility to not only teach these doctrines, these mysteries, it’s our duty to live them, to practice them, and to preserve all ordinances the Church does not want to perpetuate.  The Church will one day be redeemed and order will be restored, and it will not be the corporate Church that shows her members how to live these principles.  It’s going to be the responsibility of those living the law.  We will be the teachers.  We, who have been through the fire, will be the “new” pioneers.  We will literally show the corporate Saints how to build the Kingdom.  And all that is provisional that we keep these laws sacred and alive and the ordinances unpolluted.  That is a weighty charge the Lord has given.

               

“I have but one fear concerning the people in the valleys of the mountains. I have but one trembling sensation in the nerves of my spirit, and that is, lest we do not live the religion we profess. If we will only practice what we profess, I will tell you we are at the defiance of all hell. But if we transgress the law God has given us, and trample His blessings, mercies and ordinances under our feet, and treat them with the indifference which I have thought that some do occasionally, not fully realizing the obligations that they are under to their God, l have feared that in consequence they would be overcome, and that the Lord would let them be scattered and smitten.” (Brigham Young, JD 2:186)

So I would ask forgiveness of these brethren if their statement was taken out of context, but the remark still makes me wince.   I strongly believe that it is our duty to maintain and disseminate the TRUTH.  If people are investigating the Fullness of the Gospel, then they will be exposed to the teaching of its doctrines and principles.  If they have no desire to live Plural Marriage, then perhaps their place is elsewhere.  Meanwhile, the continuance of these Principles are critical in this, the Last Dispensation.  Plural Marriage and the United Order aren’t going to be “brought back in the Millennium”, because those laws are still being lived today.  There will not be another Restoration, because all was restored through the Prophet Joseph Smith.  Though the corporate Church has revoked our membership within her ward houses and temples, we know the Lord has not.

“How can Zion be built up, unless the Saints gather and build it up? And how can Babylon fall, so long as the Saints stay and hold it up?” (Millennial Star, Editorial, 32:233)

It seems history repeats itself, and rather than make the same, serious errors, we should review those mistakes and learn from them so we do not commit the same.  Early Church history is replete with teachings of these principles, and it is because of those principles that we are in the outcast position we find ourselves today.

“Young men, prepare yourselves; for a greater responsibility will come upon you than you have ever dreamed of. Millions will seek to you for salvation. Are you prepared for this? No, you are not. There are but very few men, old or young, that are capable of taking proper charge of themselves, to say nothing of a Ward, a community, or a nation.” (Brigham Young, JD 9:143)

May the Lord bless you and strengthen you, and may He continue to sustain us to make our burden light and our yoke easy, I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.  —The Editor—

Holiness

Y
To The  

Lord

TRUTH NEVER CHANGES
Volume 13, Number 02
February 2010