TRUTH NEVER CHANGES
A PUBLICATION IN THE SPIRIT AND TRADITON OF TRUTH MAGAZINE
Y VOLUME 14 SUMMER
2011 NUMBER 03 Y
W H O I S T H E G
O D
O F T H
E O L D T E S T A M E N T ?
Rulon
C. Allred
27 October 1968
27 October 1968
Recently you asked me,
“Who is the God of the Old Testament?”
My answer to you was JEHOVAH, and I agreed to furnish references to
corroborate this truth. In writing to
you upon such a sublime subject, I am most conscious that we both will urgently
need the Spirit of God; for our scope of inquiry is eternal, and any attempt at
understanding by mortals necessarily limited.
Much more could be written, and that without a doubt more ably by
others.
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IN THIS ISSUE:
WHO IS THE GOD OF THE OLD TESTAMENT?......56
THE CHARACTER & BEING OF
GOD………………61
KEYS ON REVELATION……………………………....85
IN MEMORIAM………………………………………....91
COMMENTARY ON…………………………………….92
A HISTORY OF THE FULLNESS IN
MEXICO……...95
MISSION STATEMENT……………………………….100
RECOMMENDED SITES……………………………...102
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Nonetheless, with the
Lord’s help, I hope to explain the rudiments of this sacred matter which has
long caused confusion in the minds of the Saints. Before I do so, however, I want to
acknowledge my grateful dependence upon the teachings of such qualified men as
Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, John Taylor, Lorin C. Woolley and Joseph W.
Musser; for without them and the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, I should be as
ignorant of these things as other men not so assisted.
As Brother Musser has
so admirably elucidated in Michael, Our Father and Our God, we must understand
at the outset of discussion that there is sometimes a significant distinction
between Priesthood office and the person occupying it. So it is with the proposition of “Jehovah” –
it is both an office and Someone appointed to function therein. The same reasoning can be extended to a
Godhead and those Personages constituting it.
A planet is created by
a quorum of three Gods, each representing a particular organizing aspect: again
a created world must be governed by a like quorum, the members of which are not
requisitely identical to those in the earlier body. Indeed, the membership changes as They
progress through the eternities; but the structure and offices of such a
quorum, established for a given purpose, remain unchanged.
Let us begin our
inspection of an otherwise infinite chain of creations, by viewing as a
momentary bound of the governing quorum of the earth from whence our father
Adam came. He was the Savior of that
world (Deseret Weekly News 38: 19-27; Truth 9:88) and thus then stood in the
office of Jehovah, the second member of the Three.
When the earth upon
which you and I are standing was created, the Gods counseled together and
appointed one (Elohim) to preside over the work. He needed two counselors in order to fill the
new quorum, so a Jehovah and Michael were chosen to assist. At that juncture the One who and redeemed his
Father’s house on the above mentioned (former) earth, now just and made
perfect, entered into a new role—He was set apart to be the Witness or Testator
in the organizing quorum of THIS earth.
(Here let us observe that the same man had up to this point occupied two
positions in the Godhead, each at a different “time.”)
As you know, Michael
deliberately “fell” from his station to become Adam—the patriarch of the human
race. During this experience he
epitomizes all mankind, in having the veil drawn and being excluded from the
immediate presence of God. But the
atonement had been prepared from before the foundation of the earth; thus the
Gospel was revealed to him, and he complied with every law and ordinance
thereof to become ultimately reinstated.
While Adam sojourned in
mortality (this time for the sake of his posterity), One like unto the Son of
Man filled the vacated position in Heaven.
But after Adam’s “death,” when spirit supplanted blood in his veins (as
blood had previously displaced spirit when He laid down His life for his friends
here), He actually was promoted to the first place in the governing quorum of
our earth; thus was it possible for Jesus to be born of Him who had been Adam
and was now God, the Eternal Father!
(See Mill. Star 15:801 et seq.; I Corinthians 15:49).
The legitimate God of
this earth, whom we may call Adam for easy identification, has had many names
and has functioned in all three offices of the Quorum. As the three functions are one in purpose and
dominion, so can such a God speak with propriety from any of the bases in the
Godhead without legal contradiction.
To go on, however, the
constituted Authorities selected two outstanding beings to labor and learn in
the government of this earth: viz: Jesus Christ and Joseph Smith, Jr. – our
brethren. Their missions are not yet complete,
as of this date.
Jesus was pre-eminent
among the spirit children of God, and as such was called and chosen as the
indefeasible heir to all the blessings, responsibility and honor obtaining in
the royal order and lineage of Saviors; but he did not create the world upon
which he later took flesh. (It requires
an exalted Man, having flesh and bones with spirit in his veins, to do
that.) He helped to create it, to be
sure, as did we; nevertheless it is correct to say that Jesus was a God in the
preexistence – verily, the Heir Apparent.
All the worlds are
created in the name and by virtue of the excellency of Jesus Christ, for He is
the Son; only through the Son can men come to the Father, this by their
decree. But Jesus of Nazareth, though a
Son, received not of the fullness at first (as the Apostle John declared in
Section 93) only after He completed His mortal work, confirming the heavenly
appointment, did Jesus ascend unto the right hand of God. (Nor has He yet saved all His Father’s
descent who will accept the Gospel.)
Now this explanation is
not intended to detract an iota from the loveliness and accomplishments of our
Lord, heaven forbid such presumption from a sinner like me! Rather, it shows Him to be our Example in
every way – as He was a spirit before mortality, so were we; as He faithfully
lived the commandments and endured to the end, so ought we; as He rose from
death having overcome His enemies, so will we succeed by our integrity and
through the merits of his sacrifice and as He is now a God upon a glorious
throne, so shall the obedient reign forever (although as co-heirs!)
Furthermore, Joseph the
Prophet must still do other things in the Plan of Salvation (see, for
illustration, Autobiography of Parley P. Pratt, pp. 332-333; D&C 85, 101,
103.)
In the summary of the
God of the Old Testament is not always the same speaker, but each acts in the
office of Jehovah or is the Advocate with the Head. Perhaps as many as five individuals acted in
that office:
1. Any
Representative appointed by the Eloheim, or Council of Gods, and sent to serve
therein.
2. The
Father of Adam, even Elohim.
3. The
One who stood in lieu of Michael, while the latter came down to provide
tabernacles for His spirit children.
4. The
Ancient of Days.
5. Jesus,
born of Mary in Bethlehem, while speaking as the heir of the Jehovistic
attribution.
The following references will yield much
enlightenment upon careful study:
Journal
of Discourses 6:3-4
Documentary History of the Church 6:302 et seq.
Michael, Our Father and Our God, in toto
Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 190
Lectures on Faith, Lecture Fifth
Pearl of Great Price, Moses 2 thru 4; ABR 3:24 thru 5:21
John 5:19
The Compendium, pp. 140-162
Contributor XI: “Foundation Stones of the Earth”
Seventy’s Course in Theology
Mormon Doctrine of Deity
Documentary History of the Church 6:302 et seq.
Michael, Our Father and Our God, in toto
Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 190
Lectures on Faith, Lecture Fifth
Pearl of Great Price, Moses 2 thru 4; ABR 3:24 thru 5:21
John 5:19
The Compendium, pp. 140-162
Contributor XI: “Foundation Stones of the Earth”
Seventy’s Course in Theology
Mormon Doctrine of Deity
It is deliberately true
that the Scriptures are not always sufficiently explicit upon this matter,
hence the complementary need for reliable, living oracles; some writers (Dr.
Talmage, for one) have rationalized the clear, private teachings of the early
Mormon leaders, thus perpetuating delusions.
We as a Church in some instances have rejected the greater portion of
the word described in Alma 12, and today finds many members desperately
searching for consistency in the lesser, exoteric portion; these, too, will
verily diminish in light unless they repent (Deseret News 6, Aug. 1852; Mill
Star 16:36). A comparison between the
accommodations/apologies of the primitive church and (some exponents within)
the restored Church will reveal frightening similarity. No people can hope to understand the
mysteries of godliness who persist in compromise with false hood, or who yield
the practice of true principles for fear or favor of a corrupt society.
In closing our
extrapolation for now, remember that worlds without number have been (and will
be) created by the race of the Gods; but no single, embodied God (except He
speaks for the Sum) makes them all. (DHC
6:476; Key to Theology p. 33)
Of course this
treatment has been brief, requiring elaboration. Many details are further available, but I
trust this will suffice today. If you
will adopt the above explanation, it will be easier to reconcile the several
points of view upon this question you have posed.
I am confident that you
will not treat these precious and important truths lightly. Continue in seeking out the truth and
prayerfully as Father in Heaven for testimony that what you have read herein is
true. We have not been left in the
wilderness to die; as He opened the way for Adam to eventually return to the
Garden of Eden, so might the humble, diligent seeker after truth and
righteousness of today live the Gospel in its fullness and thereby obtain
deliverance.
THE CHARACTER AND BEING OF GOD
A
Discourse, by President Joseph Smith,
delivered at the Conference held near the Temple, in Nauvoo,
delivered at the Conference held near the Temple, in Nauvoo,
April
6, 1844.
REPORTED
BY W. RICHARDS, W. WOODRUFF, T. BULLOCK, AND W. CLAYTON
(Journal of Discourses 6:1-10; TPJS, King Follet Discourse, p. 342)
(Journal of Discourses 6:1-10; TPJS, King Follet Discourse, p. 342)
Beloved Saints, I will call
the attention of this congregation while I address you on the subject of the
dead. The decease of our beloved
brother, Elder King Follett, who was crushed in a well by the falling of a tub
of rock, has more immediately led me to that subject. I have been requested to speak by his friends
and relatives; but inasmuch as there are a great many in this congregation who
live in this city, as well as elsewhere, who have lost friends, I feel disposed
to speak on the subject in general, and offer you my ideas so far as I have
ability and so far as I shall be inspired by the Holy Spirit to dwell on this
subject.
I want your prayers and faith that I may have the
instruction of Almighty God and the gift of the Holy Ghost, so that I may set
forth things that are true and which can be easily comprehended by you, and
that the testimony may carry conviction to your hearts and minds of the truth of
what I shall say. Pray that the Lord may
strengthen my lungs, stay the winds, and let the prayers of the Saints to heaven
appear, that they may enter into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth; for the
effectual prayers of the righteous avail much.
There is strength here; and I verily believe that your prayers will be
heard.
Before I enter fully into the investigation of the subject
which is lying before me, I wish to pave the way and bring up the subject from
the beginning, that you may understand it.
I will make a few preliminaries, in order that you may understand the
subject when I come to it. I do not calculate
or intend to please your ears with superfluity of words, or oratory, or with
much learning; but I calculate to edify you with the simple truths from heaven.
In the first place, I wish to go back to the beginning to
the morn of creation. There is the
starting-point for us to look to, in order to understand and be fully
acquainted with the mind, purposes, and decrees of the great Eloheim, who sits
in yonder heavens as he did at the creation of this world. It is necessary for us to have an
understanding of God himself in the beginning.
If we start right, it is easy to go right all the time; but if we start
wrong, we may go wrong, and it will be a hard matter to get right.
There are but a very few beings in the world who
understand rightly the character of God.
The great majority of mankind do not comprehend anything, either that
which is past or that which is to come, as respects their relationship to
God. They do not know, neither do they
understand the nature of that relationship; and, consequently, they know but
little above the brute beast, or more than to eat, drink, and sleep. This is all man knows about God or his
existence, unless it is given by the inspiration of the Almighty.
If a man learns nothing more than to eat, drink, and
sleep, and does not comprehend any of the designs of God, the beast comprehends
the same thing. It eats, drinks, sleeps,
and knows nothing more about God: yet it knows as much as we, unless we are
able to comprehend by the inspiration of Almighty God. If men do not comprehend the character of God
they do not comprehend themselves. I
want to go back to the beginning, and so lift your minds into a more lofty
sphere and a more exalted understanding than what the human mind generally
aspires to.
I want to ask this congregation every man, woman, and
child, to answer the question in their own heart, what kind of a being God
is? Ask yourselves; turn your thoughts
into your hearts, and say if any of you have seen, heard, or communed with
him. This is a question that may occupy
your attention for a long time. I again
repeat the question: What kind of a being is God? Does any man or woman know? Have any of you seen him, heard him, or
communed with him? Here is the question
that will peradventure from this time henceforth occupy your attention. The Scriptures inform us that "This is
life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God and Jesus Christ whom
thou hast sent."
If any man does not know God, and inquires what kind of a
being he is, if he will search diligently his own heart if the declarations of
Jesus and the Apostles be true he will realize that he has not eternal life;
for there can be eternal life on no other principle.
My first object is to find out the character of the only
wise and true God, and what kind of a being he is; and if I am so fortunate as
to be the man to comprehend God, and explain or convey the principles to your hearts,
so that the Spirit seals them upon you, then let every man and woman henceforth
sit in silence, put their hands on their mouths, and never lift their hands or
voices or say anything against the man of God or the servants of God
again. But if I fail to do it, it
becomes my duty to renounce all further pretensions to revelations,
inspirations, or to be a Prophet; and I should be like the rest of the world a
false teacher, be hailed as a friend, and no man would seek my life. But if all religious teachers were honest
enough to renounce their pretensions to godliness, when their ignorance of the
knowledge of God is made manifest, they will all be as badly off as I am, at
any rate; and you might just as well take the lives of other false teachers as
that of mine, if I am false. If any man
is authorized to take away my life because he thinks and says I am a false
teacher, then, upon the same principle, we should be justified in taking away
the life of every false teacher; and where would be the end of blood? and who would not be the sufferer?
But meddle not with any man for his religion; and all
governments ought to permit every man to enjoy his religion unmolested. No man is authorized to take away life in
consequence of difference of religion, which all laws and governments ought to
tolerate and protect, right or wrong.
Every man has a natural and, in our country, a constitutional right to
be a false prophet as well as a true prophet.
If I show, verily, that I have the truth of God, and show that
ninety-nine out of every hundred professing religious ministers are false
teachers, having no authority, while they pretend to hold the keys of God's
kingdom on earth, and was to kill them because they are false teachers, it
would deluge the whole world with blood.
I will prove that the world is wrong, by showing what God
is. I am going to inquire after God; for
I want you all to know him and to be familiar with him; and if I can bring you
to a knowledge of him, all persecutions against me ought to cease. You will then know that I am his servant; for
I speak as one having authority.
I will go back to the beginning, before the world was, to
show what kind of a being God is. What
sort of a being was God in the beginning? Open your ears and hear, all ye ends of the
earth; for I am going to prove it to you by the Bible, and to tell you the
designs of God in relation to the human race, and why he interferes with the
affairs of man.
God himself was once as we are now, and is an exalted
Man, and sits enthroned in yonder heavens.
That is the great secret. If the
vail was rent to-day, and the great God who holds this world in its orbit, and
who upholds all worlds and all things by his power, was to make himself visible,
I say, if you were to see him to-day, you would see him like a man in form like
yourselves, in all the person, image, and very form as a man; for Adam was
created in the very fashion, image, and likeness of God, and received
instruction from, and walked, talked, and conversed with him, as one man talks
and communes with another.
In order to understand the subject of the dead, for the
consolation of those who mourn for the loss of their friends, it is necessary
that we should understand the character and being of God, and how he came to be
so; for I am going to tell you how God came to be God. We have imagined and supposed that God was
God from all eternity, I will refute that idea, and will take away and do away
the vail, so that you may see.
These are incomprehensible ideas to some; but they are
simple. It is the first principle of the
Gospel to know for a certainty the character of God and to know that we may
converse with him as one man converses with another, and that he was once a man
like us; yea, that God himself the Father of us all, dwelt on an earth the same
as Jesus Christ himself did; and I will show it from the Bible. I wish I was in a suitable place to tell it,
and that I had the trump of an archangel, so that I could tell the story in
such a manner that persecution would cease for ever. What did Jesus say? (Mark it, Elder Rigdon.) The Scriptures
inform us that Jesus said, "As the Father hath power in himself, even so
hath the Son power" to do what?
Why, what the Father did. The
answer is obvious in a manner, to lay down his body and take up again. Jesus, what are you going to do? To lay down my life, as my Father did, and
take it up again. Do you believe
it? If you do not believe it, you do not
believe the Bible. The Scriptures say
it, and I defy all the learning and wisdom and all the combined powers of earth
and hell together to refute it.
Here, then, is eternal life to know the only wise and
true God; and you have got to learn how to be Gods yourselves, and to be kings
and priests to God, the same as all Gods have done before you, namely, by going
from one small degree to another, and from a small capacity to a great one,
from grace to grace, from exaltation to exaltation, until you attain to the
resurrection of the dead, and are able to dwell in everlasting burnings and to
sit in glory, as do those who sit enthroned in everlasting power. And I want you to know that God, in the last
days, while certain individuals are proclaiming his name, is not trifling with you
or me.
These are the first principles of consolation. How consoling to the mourners, when they are
called to part with a husband, wife, father, mother, child, or dear relative,
to know that, although the earthly tabernacle is laid down and dissolved, they
shall rise again, to dwell in everlasting burnings in immortal glory, not to
sorrow, suffer, or die any more; but they shall be heirs of God and joint-heirs
with Jesus Christ. What is it? To inherit the same power, the same glory,
and the same exaltation, until you arrive at the station of a God and ascend
the throne of eternal power, the same as those who have gone before. What did Jesus do? Why, I do the things I saw my Father do when
worlds come rolling into existence. My
Father worked out his kingdom with fear and trembling, and I must do the same;
and when I get my kingdom, I shall present it to my Father, so that he may
obtain kingdom upon kingdom, and it will exalt him in glory. He will then take higher exaltation, and I
will take his place, and thereby become exalted myself. So that Jesus treads in the track of his
Father, and inherits what God did before; and God is thus glorified and exalted
in the salvation and exaltation of all his children. It is plain beyond disputation; and you thus
learn some of the first principles of the Gospel, about which so much hath been
said.
When you climb a ladder, you must begin at the bottom,
and ascend step by step until you arrive at the top; and so it is with the
principles of the Gospel: you must begin with the first, and go on until you
learn all the principles of exaltation.
But it will be a great while after you have passed through the vail
before you will have learned them. It is
not all to be comprehended in this world: it will be a great work to learn our salvation
and exaltation even beyond the grave. I
suppose I am not allowed to go into an investigation of anything that is not
contained in the Bible. If I did, I
think there are so many over-wise men here, that they would cry
"treason" and put me to death.
So I will go to the old Bible and turn commentator to-day.
I shall comment on the very first Hebrew word in the
Bible. I will make a comment on the very
first sentence of the history of creation in the Bible Berosheit. I want to analyze the word. Baith in, by, through, and everything
else. Rosh the head. Sheit grammatical termination. When the inspired man wrote it, he did not
put the Baith there. An old Jew, without
any authority, added the word. He
thought it too bad to begin to talk about the head! It read first, "The head one of the Gods
brought forth the Gods." That is the true meaning of the words. Baurau
signifies to bring forth. If you do not
believe it, you do not believe the learned man of God. Learned men can teach you no more than what I
have told you. Thus, the head God
brought forth the Gods in the grand council.
I will transpose and simplify it in the English
language. Oh, ye lawyers, ye doctors,
and ye priests, who have persecuted me, I want to let you know that the Holy
Ghost knows something as well as you do.
The head God called together the Gods and sat in grand council to bring
forth the world. The grand counsellors
sat at the head in yonder heavens, and contemplated the creation of the worlds
which were created at that time. When I
say doctors and lawyers, I mean the doctors and lawyers of the Scriptures. I have done so hitherto without explanation,
to let the lawyers flutter, and everybody laugh at them. Some learned doctor might take a notion to
say the Scriptures say thus and so; and we must believe the Scriptures; they
are not to be altered. But I am going to
show you an error in them.
I have an old edition of the New Testament in the Hebrew,
Latin, German, and Greek languages. I
have been reading the German, and find it to be the most correct translation,
and to correspond nearest to the revelations which God has given to me for the
last fourteen years. It tells about
Jachoboy, the son of Zebedee. It means
Jacob. In the English New Testament it
is translated James. Now, if Jacob had
the keys, you might talk about James through all eternity, and never get the
keys. In the 21st verse of the fourth
chapter of Matthew, my old German edition gives the word Jacob instead of
James.
The doctors (I mean doctors of law, not of physic,) say,
" If you preach anything not according to the Bible, we will cry
treason." How can we escape the damnation of hell, except God be with us
and reveal to us? Men bind us with
chains. The Latin says Jachabod, which
means Jacob; the Hebrew says Jacob, the Greek says Jacob, and the German says
Jacob. Here we have the testimony of
four against one. I thank God I have got
this old book; but I thank him more for the gift of the Holy Ghost. I have got the oldest book in the world; but
I have got the oldest book in my heart, even the gift of the Holy Ghost. I have all the four Testaments. Come here, ye learned men, and read, if you
can. I should not have introduced this
testimony, were it not to back up the word Rosh the head, the father of the
Gods. I should not have brought it up,
only to show that I am right.
In the beginning, the head of the Gods called a council
of the Gods; and they came together and concocted a plan to create the world
and people it. When we begin to learn in
this way, we begin to learn the only true God and what kind of a being we have
got to worship. Having a knowledge of
God, we begin to know how to approach him and how to ask so as to receive an
answer.
When we understand the character of God and know how to
come to him, he begins to unfold the heavens to us and to tell us all about
it. When we are ready to come to him, he
is ready to come to us.
Now, I ask all who hear me, why the learned men who are
preaching salvation say that God created the heavens and the earth out of
nothing? The reason is, that they are
unlearned in the things of God and have not the gift of the Holy Ghost. They account it blasphemy in any one to contradict
their idea. If you tell them that God
made the world out of something, they will call you a fool. But I am learned, and know more than all the
world put together. The Holy Ghost does,
anyhow; and he is within me, and comprehends more than all the world; and I
will associate myself with him. You ask the learned doctors why they say the
world was made out of nothing; and they will answer, "Don't the Bible say
he created the world?" And they infer, from the word create, that it must
have been made out of nothing. Now, the
word create came from the word baurau, which does not mean to create out of
nothing; it means to organize the same as a man would organize materials and
build a ship. Hence we infer that God
had materials to organize the world out of chaos –chaotic matter, which is
element, and in which dwells all the glory.
Element had an existence from the time He had. The pure principles of element are principles
which can never be destroyed: they may be organized and re-organized, but not
destroyed. They had no beginning, and
can have no end.
I have another subject to dwell upon, which is calculated
to exalt man. But it is impossible for
me to say much on this subject. I shall,
therefore, just touch upon it; for time will not permit me to say all. It is associated with the subject of the
resurrection of the dead namely, the soul, the mind of man, the immortal
spirit. Where did it come from? All learned men and doctors of divinity say
that God created it in the beginning.
But it is not so. The very idea
lessens man in my estimation. I do not
believe the doctrine. I know
better. Hear it, all ye ends of the
world; for God has told me so; and if you don't believe me, it will not make
the truth without effect. I will make a man
appear a fool before I get through, if he does not believe it. I am going to tell of things more noble.
We say that God himself is a self-existent being. Who told you so? It is correct enough; but how did it get into
your heads? Who told you that man did
not exist in like manner upon the same principles? Man does exist upon the same principles. God made a tabernacle and put a spirit into
it, and it became a living soul.
(Referred to the old Bible.) How does it read in the Hebrew? It does not say in the Hebrew that God created
the spirit of man. It says, "God
made man out of the earth, and put into him Adam's spirit, and so became a
living body-"
The mind or the intelligence which man possesses is
co-equal with God himself. I know that
my testimony is true; hence, when I talk to these mourners, what have they
lost? Their relatives and friends are
only separated from their bodies for a short season: their spirits which existed
with God have left the tabernacle of clay only for a little moment, as it were;
and they now exist in a place where they converse together the same as we do on
the earth.
I am dwelling on the immortality of the spirit of
man. Is it logical to say that the
intelligence of spirits is immortal, and yet that it had a beginning? The intelligence of spirits had no beginning,
neither will it have an end. That is
good logic. That which has a beginning
may have an end. There never was a time
when there were not spirits; for they are co-equal with our Father in heaven.
I want to reason more on the spirit of man; for I am
dwelling on the body and spirit of man on the subject of the dead. I take my ring from my finger and liken it
unto the mind of man the immortal part, because it has no beginning. Suppose you cut it in two, then it has a
beginning and an end; but join it again, and it continues one eternal
round. So with the spirit of man. As the Lord liveth, if it bad a beginning it
will have an end. All the fools and
learned and wise men from the beginning of creation, who say that the spirit of
man had a beginning, prove that it must have an end; and if that doctrine is
true, then the doctrine of annihilation would be true. But if I am right, I might with boldness proclaim
from the housetops that God never had the power to create the spirit of man at
all. God himself could not create
himself.
Intelligence is eternal and exists upon a self-existent
principle. It is a spirit from age to
age, and there is no creation about it.
All the minds and spirits that God ever sent into the world are
susceptible of enlargement.
The first principles of man are self-existent with
God. God himself, finding he was in the
midst of spirits and glory, because he was more intelligent, saw proper to
institute laws whereby the rest could have a privilege to advance like
himself. The relationship we have with
God places us in a situation to advance in knowledge. He has power to institute laws to instruct
the weaker intelligences, that they may be exalted with himself, so that they
might have one glory upon another, and all that knowledge, power, glory, and
intelligence which is requisite in order to save them in the world of spirits.
This is good doctrine.
It tastes good. I can taste the
principles of eternal life, and so can you.
They are given to me by the revelations of Jesus Christ; and I know that
when I tell you these words of eternal life as they are given to me, you taste
them, and I know you believe them. You
say honey is sweet, and so do I. I can also taste the spirit of eternal
life. I know it is good; and when I tell
you of these things which were given me by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, you
are bound to receive them as sweet, and I rejoice more and more.
I want to talk more of the relation of man to God. I will open your eyes in relation to your
dead. All things whatsoever God of his
infinite wisdom has seen fit and proper to reveal to us, while we are dwelling
in mortality, in regard to our mortal bodies, are revealed to us in the abstract
and independent of affinity of this mortal tabernacle; but are revealed to our
spirits precisely as though we had no bodies at all; and those revelations
which will save our spirits will save our bodies. God reveals them to us in view of no eternal
dissolution of the body, or tabernacle.
Hence the responsibility the awful responsibility that rests upon us in
relation to our dead; for all the spirits who have not obeyed the Gospel in the
flesh must either obey it in the spirit or be damned. Solemn thought! dreadful thought! Is there nothing to be done? No preparation no salvation for our fathers
and friends who have died without having had the opportunity to obey the
decrees of the Son of Man? Would to God
that I had forty days and nights in which to tell you-all! I would let you know that I am not a
"fallen prophet."
What promises are made in relation to the subject of the
salvation of the dead? and what kind of
characters are those who can be saved, although their bodies are mouldering and
decaying in the grave? When his commandments
teach us, it is in view of eternity; for we are looked upon by God as though we
were in eternity. God dwells in
eternity, and does not view things as we do.
The greatest responsibility in this world that God has
laid upon us is to seek after our dead.
The Apostle says, "They without us cannot be made perfect;"
for it is necessary that the sealing power should be in our hands to seal our
children and our dead for the fullness of the dispensation of times a
dispensation to meet the promises made by Jesus Christ before the foundation of
the world for the salvation of man.
Now, I will speak of them. I will meet Paul half-way. I say to you, Paul, you cannot be perfect
without us. It is necessary that those
who are gone before and those who come after us should have salvation in common
with us; and thus hath God made it obligatory upon man. Hence God said, "I will send Elijah the
Prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord; and he
shall turn the hearts of the father to the children and the hearts of the
children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse."
I have a declaration to make as to the provisions which
God hath made to suit the conditions of man, made from before the foundation of
the world. What has Jesus said? All sins, and all blasphemies, and every transgression,
except one, that man can be guilty of, may be forgiven; and there is a
salvation for all men, either in this world or the world to come, who have not
committed the unpardonable sin, there being a provision, either in this world
or the world of spirits. Hence God hath made
a provision that every spirit in the eternal world can be ferreted out and
saved, unless he has committed that unpardonable sin which cannot be remitted
to him either in this world or the world of spirits. God has wrought out a salvation for all men,
unless they have committed a certain sin; and every man who has a friend in the
eternal world can save him, unless he has committed the unpardonable sin. And so you can see how far you can be a
saviour.
A man cannot commit the unpardonable sin after the
dissolution of the body, and there is a way possible for escape. Knowledge saves a man; and in the world of
spirits no man can be exalted but by knowledge.
So long as a man will not give heed to the commandments, he must abide
without salvation. If a man has
knowledge, he can be saved; although, if he has been guilty of great sins, he
will be punished for them. But when he consents
to obey the Gospel, whether here or in the world of spirits, he is saved.
A man is his own tormentor and his own condemner. Hence the saying, They shall go into the lake
that burns with fire and brimstone. The torment
of disappointment in the mind of man is as exquisite as a lake burning with
fire and brimstone. I say, so is the
torment of man.
I know the Scriptures and understand them. I said no man can commit the unpardonable sin
after the dissolution of the body, nor in this life until he receives the Holy
Ghost; but they must do it in this world. Hence the salvation of Jesus Christ was
wrought out for all men in order to triumph over the Devil; for if it did not
catch him in one place, it would in another; for he stood up as a Saviour. All will suffer until they obey Christ himself.
The contention in heaven was Jesus said there would be
certain souls that would not be saved; and the Devil said he could save them
all, and laid his plans before the grand council, who gave their vote in favour
of Jesus Christ. So the Devil rose up in
rebellion against God, and was cast down, with all who put up their heads for
him.
All sins shall be forgiven except the sin against the
Holy Ghost; for Jesus will save all except the sons of perdition. What must a man do to commit the unpardonable
sin? He must receive the Holy Ghost,
have the heavens opened unto him, and know God, and then sin against him. After a man has sinned against the Holy
Ghost, there is no repentance for him.
He has got to say that the sun does not shine while he sees it; he has
got to deny Jesus Christ when the heavens have been opened unto him, and to
deny the plan of salvation with his eyes open to the truth of it; and from that
time he begins to be an enemy. This is
the case with many apostates of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints.
When a man begins to be an enemy to this work, he hunts
me; he seeks to kill me, and never ceases to thirst for my blood. He gets the spirit of the Devil the same
spirit that they had who crucified the Lord of Life, the same spirit that sins
against the Holy Ghost. You cannot save
such persons; you cannot bring them to repentance: they make open war like the
Devil, and awful is the consequence.
I advise all of-you to be careful what you do, or you may
by-and-by find out that you have been deceived.
Stay yourselves; do not give way; don't make any hasty moves: you may be
be saved. If a spirit of bitterness is
in you, don't be in haste. You may say
that man is a sinner. Well, if he
repents, he shall be forgiven. Be cautious:
await! When you find a spirit that wants
bloodshed murder, the same is not of God, but is of the Devil. Out of the abundance of the heart of man the mouth
speaketh.
The best men bring forth the best works. The man who tells you words of life is the
man who can save you. I warn you against
all evil characters who sin against the Holy Ghost; for there is no redemption
for them in this world nor in the world to come.
I could go back and trace every subject of interest
concerning the relationship of man to God, if I had time. I can enter into the mysteries; I can enter
largely into the eternal worlds; for Jesus said, "In my Father's house are
many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you." (John
14th chap., 2nd v.) Paul says, "There is one glory of the sun, and another
glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for one star differeth from
another star in glory. So also is the
resurrection of the dead." (1st Cor.
15th chap., 4lst v.) What have we to console us in relation
to the dead? We have reason to have the
greatest hope and consolations for our dead of any people on the earth; for we
have seen them walk worthily in our midst, and seen them sink asleep in the
arms of Jesus; and those who have died in the faith are now in the celestial
kingdom of God. And hence is the glory
of the sun.
You mourners have occasion to rejoice (speaking of the
death of Elder King Follett); for your husband and father is gone to wait until
the resurrection of the dead until the perfection of the remainder; for at the
resurrection your friend will rise in perfect felicity and go to celestial
glory, while many must wait myriads of years before they can receive the like
blessings; and your expectations and hopes are far above what man can conceive;
for why has God revealed it to us?
I AM AUTHORIZED to say, by the authority of the Holy
Ghost, that you have no occasion to fear; for he is gone to the home of the
just. Don't mourn; don't weep. I know it by the testimony of the Holy Ghost
that is within me; and you may wait for your friends to come forth to meet you
in the morn of the celestial world.
Rejoice, O Israel!
Your friends who have been murdered for the truth's sake in the
persecution shall triumph gloriously in the celestial world, while their
murderers shall welter for ages in torment, even until they shall have paid the
uttermost farthing. I say this for the
benefit of strangers.
I have a father, brothers, children, and friends who have
gone to a world of spirits. They are
only absent for a moment. They are in
the spirit, and we shall soon meet again.
The time will soon arrive when the trumpet shall sound. When we depart, we shall hail our mothers,
fathers, friends, and all whom we love who have fallen asleep in Jesus. There will be no fear of mobs, persecutions,
or malicious law-suits and arrests; but it will be an eternity of felicity.
A question may be asked "Will mothers have their
children in eternity?" Yes!
yes! Mothers, you shall have your
children; for they shall have eternal life; for their debt is paid. There is no damnation awaits them, for they
are in the spirit. But as the child
dies, so shall it rise from the dead, and be for ever living in the learning of
God. It will never grow: it will still
be the child, in the same precise form as it appeared before it died out of its
mother's arms, but possessing all the intelligence of a God. Children dwell in the mansions of glory and exercise
power, but appear in the same form as when on earth. Eternity is full of thrones, upon which dwell
thousands of children reigning on thrones of glory, with not one cubit added to
their stature.
I will leave this subject here, and make a few remarks on
the subject of baptism. The baptism of
water, without the baptism of fire and the Holy Ghost attending it, is of no
use: they are necessary and inseparably connected. An individual must be born of water and the
spirit in order to get into the kingdom of God.
In the German, the text bears me out the same as the revelations which I
have given and taught for the last fourteen years on that subject. I have the testimony to put in their teeth. My testimony has been true all the time. You will find it in the declaration of John
the Baptist. (Reads from the German.)
John says, "I baptise you with water; but when Jesus comes, who has the
power (or keys), he shall administer the baptism of fire and the Holy
Ghost." Great God! where is now all
the sectarian world? And if this
testimony is true, they are all damned as clearly as anathema can do it. I know the text is true. I call upon all you Germans who know that it
is true to say aye. (Loud shouts of
aye.)
Alexander Campbell, how are you going to save people with
water alone? For John said his baptism
was good for nothing without the baptism of Jesus Christ. "Therefore, not leaving the principles
of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection, not laying again the
foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God, of the
doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the
dead, and of eternal judgment. And this
will we do, if God permit." (Heb. 6th
chap., 1st to 3rd v.)
There is one God, one Father, one Jesus, one hope of our
calling, one baptism. All these three
baptisms only make one. Many talk of
baptism not being essential to salvation: but this kind of teaching would lay
the foundation of their damnation. I
have the truth, and am at the defiance of the world to contradict me if they
can.
I have now preached a little Latin, a little Hebrew,
Greek, and German; and I have fulfilled all.
I am not so big a fool as many have taken me to be. The Germans know that I read the German
correctly.
Hear it, all ye ends of the earth all ye priests, all ye
sinners, and all men. Repent! repent!
Obey the Gospel. Turn to God; for
your religion won't save you, and you will be damned. I do not say how long. There have been remarks made concerning all
men being redeemed from hell; but I say that those who sin against the Holy
Ghost cannot be forgiven in this world or in the world to come: they shall die
the second death. Those who commit the
unpardonable sin are doomed to Gnolom, to dwell in hell, worlds without end. As
they concoct scenes of bloodshed in this world, so they shall rise to that
resurrection which is as the lake of fire and brimstone. Some shall rise to the everlasting burning of
God; for God dwells in everlasting burnings; and some shall rise to the damnation
of their own filthiness, which is as exquisite a torment as the lake of fire
and brimstone.
I have intended my remarks for all, both rich and poor,
bond and free, great and small, I have no enmity against any man. I love you all; but I hate some of your
deeds. I am your best friend; and if persons
miss their mark, it is their own fault.
If I reprove a man and he hates me, he is a fool; for I love all men,
especially these my brethren and sisters.
I rejoice in hearing the testimony of my aged
friends. You don't know me: you never
knew my heart. No man knows my
history. I cannot tell it: I shall never
undertake it. I don't blame any one for
not believing my history. If I had not
experienced what I have, I could not have believed it myself. I never did harm any man since I was born
into the world. My voice is always for
peace.
I cannot lie down until all my work is finished. I never think any evil, nor do anything to
the harm of my fellow-man. When I am
called by the trump of the archangel and weighed in the balance, you will all
know me then. I add no more. God bless you all. Amen.
(The Prophet Joseph Smith, martyred, 27 June 1844)
S
e l e c t e d T e a c h I n g s , W r I t I n g s & C
o m p I l a t I o n s
O f E l d e r W I l l I a m N . B a I r d
O f E l d e r W I l l I a m N . B a I r d
Keys
on Revelation
(TRUTH NEVER CHANGES, 4:134-139
(TRUTH NEVER CHANGES, 4:134-139
A perfect measuring stick by which
Truth may always be detected from error is provided in the scriptures. This rule is sure--it is infallible:
“Then said Jesus to those Jews which believe on him, If ye
continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; and ye shall know the
truth and the truth shall set you free.”
God’s word is Truth, whether spoken
by Him direct, or by His Son Jesus Christ or by the Holy Ghost and any word
expressed by others than God which conforms or agrees with His word must
necessarily be Truth. It follows that
any statement not conforming to the word of God cannot be Truth, but is error. Then
to know the Truth, always to be able to detect error, one has only to “continue
my word”--in the word of Jesus Christ.
Truth 1:3-4
“More revelation should not, in
reason, be expected until that which has already been given is accepted and
lived.” Truth 7:66
The Doctrine and Covenants (is) the
law book of God to this people.
…These…are the written commandments
of God…the ecclesiastical laws given for the guidance of the Church of the
Firstborn. Every law contained MUST
be obeyed. There is not one law for
the leaders and another for the “rank and file.” Truth 3:95-96
“We hold that the Gospel of Jesus
Christ embraces all truth and that every truth, as it is revealed by the
Lord, MUST be accepted by those to whom it is revealed; and that
while men have as an inherent right their “free agency,” they must assume full
responsibility for the exercise thereof.”
Truth 2:82
Ye call upon my name for
revelations, and I give them unto you: and inasmuch as ye keep not my sayings,
which I give unto you, ye become transgressors, and
justice and judgment are the penalty, which is affixed unto my law;…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 82:4,10
When the people reject the truth,
they become the plaything of wild delusive spirits, and are
tossed to and fro by them like a bubble on a wave. Orson Hyde (Truth 3:185)
“I allude to (rejecting any
portion) the entire law of God, to all that the Lord our God has revealed,
whether it pertains to the building of tabernacles or to the building of Temples,
or to faith, repentance, baptism, or to the laying on of hands, or to the
matrimonial relations, or to any doctrine or principle which relates to the
salvation and glory of man. Jedediah M.
Grant, Journal of Discourse 3:59
Holding
all the Keys
“How can he
be the President of Priesthood and yet not possess the authority to function
fully in the Priesthood?” Joseph
Musser, Truth 3:212
Can anyone, without living all the
ordinances, hold all the keys?
Can anyone maintain all the keys
here on earth without perpetuating all the ordinance?
If the
answer to that (last) question is, “NO,”
then the Church is wrong when they say they can live plural marriage in the
Millennium. (Some say the leaders are
living it privately. If they are keeping
the birthright from the people by hiding it and keeping it, their
lives should be taken. Joseph
Smith said that self-aggrandizement was a correct principle as long as you
wanted to bring everyone else.) William
N. Baird, Questions 1992
We would ask for what is the
Priesthood given unto men? It is that
they may have a right to administer the laws of God. Have they then a right to make void that law? Verily, No…If a man could have as much
authority as the Almighty, it would not authorize him to do wrong: and the
man that will administer with partiality for the sake of screening iniquity,
will find his stewardship will be taken from him. Millennial Star 4:594, 596
It is the Truth that makes men
free, not falsehood. The man who bears
false witness is not free, though it may appear for the time, he is “putting
one over” on the Lord or his neighbor…the lie, gaining as it goes, finally
falls of its own weight, while Truth goes on forever and conquers all
lies. Truth 1:4-5
I do not want men to come to me or
my brethren for testimony as to the truth of this work; but let them take the
Scriptures of divine truth, and there the path is pointed out to them as
plainly as ever a guideboard indicated the right path to the weary
traveler. There they are directed to go,
not to Brothers Brigham, Heber or Daniel, to any Apostle or Elder in Israel,
but to the Father in the name of Jesus, and ask for the information they
need. Discourse of Brigham Young
p. 658
Fathers
Have Right to Administer Ordinances to Children
Patriarchal Blessings
“Every father, after he has
received his Patriarchal Blessing, is a Patriarch to his own family; and has
the right to confer Patriarchal Blessings upon his family; which
blessings will be just as legal as those conferred by any Patriarch of the
Church: in fact, it is his right; and a Patriarch in blessing his children, can
only bless as his (the father’s) mouthpiece.
“A Patriarch to the Church is
appointed to bless those who are orphans or have no father in the Church to
bless them.” Times & Seasons 6:921;
Truth 5:201
Baptism and Priesthood Conferral
“Having related the following
incident on a few occasions under special circumstances, I am now asked to
publish the information in the TRUTH magazine for the benefit of the Saints
generally, and particularly those whose family situations may be
involved.
(Joseph Musser then relates
instructions given at the close of a prayer circle meeting held in the Salt
Lake Temple in the early part of 1902 by President Anthon H. Lund, a counselor
in the First Presidency, who was president of the (prayer) Circle.)
His (President Lund’s) instructions
came clear and emphatic:
“Brethren, you hold the Priesthood and stand at the head of your families. As your children are born you should give them a father’s blessing and a name. When they reach the proper age for baptism, you should baptize them, confirm them members of the Church and confer the Holy Ghost in the usual manner. Be sure and keep the record, and when the Church will receive it, hand it in.” Joseph Musser, Truth 5:190
“Brethren, you hold the Priesthood and stand at the head of your families. As your children are born you should give them a father’s blessing and a name. When they reach the proper age for baptism, you should baptize them, confirm them members of the Church and confer the Holy Ghost in the usual manner. Be sure and keep the record, and when the Church will receive it, hand it in.” Joseph Musser, Truth 5:190
Must Become Administrators to Your Family
“You must become administrators to
your family. We want to
have an organization to assist so that each family has an heir to decide where,
who, when for those in his family who can receive the ordinances. Each family will be headed by a god
unit--only this unit has the right making decisions for that family. It’s as wrong to interfere in another man’s
family as it is wrong to take over Bro. Owen’s position. We want a Patriarchal Order where each man
will preside over his family and that we can assist so that we might share in
his joy. Those who would be the greatest
of all will be the servants of all.”
William N. Baird, July 12, 1992, House of the Lord, Ozumba, Mexico
Becoming Administrators in the Ordinances
Every person on earth is of God’s
lineage. Not one above another, but
perhaps by the way they live. We are one
people, one family. We must find a way
to put aside our differences and become one people, as our God, His Son Jesus
Christ, and Joseph Smith, representing the Holy Ghost, are one. We can only do this by receiving all the
ordinances and helping our brethren receive them also. Joseph Smith said it is not good for
man to aggrandize himself unless he finds a way to aggrandize his neighbor
also. We must receive power from on
high, be endowed with power from on high.
John Taylor said you must be exalted to the Godhead, then you can come
forth in the morning of the First Resurrection.
This is your birthright…you cannot receive the things of God without
giving them to other people. If
you can qualify, you can save all of your posterity, says Brigham Young. Heber C. Kimball said you must keep your
covenants if it takes ten thousand years.
William N. Baird, July 11, 1992, Priesthood Meeting, Col.
Industrial, Ozumba, Mexico
…You have the Priesthood and you
have the right to go to God and ask what you will. I promise you that all the righteous desires
of your heart will be granted. Keep your
lives sacred and do these things and when you come together in this room, you
will be instructed already and you will be more comfortable.
You can mull these things over in
your minds, and you’ll have questions--that’s good. We’ll answer them then, when we come
again. Wherever the highest authority
is, whether in the home, in a building, in a vineyard or in the world, that is
man you ask permission of. In my home, I
am the highest authority, I am the Patriarch, so I have to give permission to
do this. As long as you have righteous
desires, you will be the head of your house. As long as you treat your wives with love,
they will honor you as head of that house.
As long as the wives honor the man as head of the home, then he can take
the responsibility and make decisions for that family. William N. Baird, July 19, 1992, House
of the Lord, Colonia Industrial, Ozumba, Mexico
The Need toFulfill Covenants
A great many of you have had your
endowments, and you know what a vote with uplifted hands means.
It is a sign, which you make in
token of your covenants with God and with one another, and it is for you to
perform your vows. When you raise your
hands to heaven and let them fall and then pass on with your covenants
unfulfilled, you will be cursed.
I feel sometimes like lecturing men
and women severely who enter into covenants without realizing the nature of the
covenants they make, and who use little or no effort to fulfill them.
Some Elders go to the nations and
preach the Gospel of life and salvation, and return without thoroughly
understanding the nature of the covenant.
It is written in the Bible that every man should perform his own vows,
even if to his own hurt; in this way you will show to all creation and to God
that you are full of integrity. Journal
of Discourses 3:332
IN MEMORIAM
ELDER ROGER HOLFELTZ
ALSO KNOWN ON THE INTERNET AS SIMON TEMPLAR AND STONE IN SEVERAL LDS DISCUSSION GROUPS, PASSED INTO THE NEXT REALM OF EXISTENCE 29 MARCH 2011. OUR DEAR BROTHER, WILL BE MISSED
WE’LL MEET AGAIN MY FRIEND…SOME DAY SOON
—COMMENTARY—
ON
The Holy Order of Nauvoo
The Holy Order of Nauvoo
In Kirtland, Ohio,
March 28, 1835, the Lord gave The Prophet Joseph Smith the revelation we know
today as Section 107, which pertains to guidance and protocols of the offices
of the Melchizedek Priesthood, which he states was called the Holy Priesthood,
after the Order of the Son of God.
(D&C 107:3). Further, the
Lord states that this Priesthood presides over all authorities, appendages and
offices within the Church (verse 5) and in all ages of the world, holds the
right, power and authority to administer in spiritual things.
On April 3, 1836,
the Lord appeared within the Kirtland Temple and accepted the house built in
His name and forgave their sins. Moses then
appeared and bestowed the keys of gathering of Israel from the four parts of
the earth, and the leading of the ten tribes from the land of the north. (D&C 110:11). In verse 12, it states that Elias then
appeared and dispensed the gospel of Abraham, and blessed them and their
seed. In verse 13 through 16, Elijah the
Prophet appeared and bestowed the sealing keys
Also in 1836, the
Prophet Joseph Smith introduced temple ordinances to the Latter-day Saints,
thus beginning a new era in our history, which heralded sealing the hearts of
the children to their fathers and the hearts of the fathers to their
children. These ordinances, which
included the washing of the feet, anointing, blessings and sealings seemed to
pattern ordinances performed by the Savior in the New Testament.
In 1837, the
temple ceremony evolved to include oaths and covenants, sealing families
eternally, establishing patriarchal units within families; the law of adoption
was established, where men were linked in an endless priesthood lineage, and
the second anointing was introduced, which confirmed the contingent blessings
given in the initial ordinances. This
second anointing encompassed all the priesthood authority a man could receive
upon this earth in the flesh, short of the Savior making this calling and
election sure. This is the
Apostleship. A fullness of priesthood
authority. In the initiatory ordinances
a man is promised, through his faithfulness, that he can one day become a king
and priest unto the Most High God, and that is achieved through this second
anointing.
In 1842 at the red
brick store, George Miller records that the Prophet Joseph Smith, “…washed and
anointed us kings and priests to God, and over house of Israel…and conferred on
us the Patriarchal Priesthood.” (Miller
Annual Publications, Vol. 10, pp 120 – 121).
This is a fullness of priesthood keys.
Wilford Woodruff
recorded, “The spirit power and calling of Elijah is that ye have power to hold
the keys of the revelations, ordinances, oracles, powers and endowments of the
fullness of the Melchizedek Priesthood and the Kingdom of God on the Earth and
to receive, obtain and perform all the ordinances belonging to the kingdom of
God even unto the sealing of the hearts of the fathers unto the children and
the hearts of the children unto the fathers, even those who are in
heaven.” (Wilford Woodruff Journal, 10
March 1844)
By 1843, temple
ordinances were in full swing, the Quorum of the Twelve and the First
Presidency presided over all things spiritual, however, the Prophet met with
the many of the same brethren with others, and re-administered the second
anointing, and met bi-weekly with these men, which numbered nearly 70. These brethren were known as The Quorum, The
Grand Quorum, The Holy Order of the Holy Priesthood, and the First Quorum. (See The Holy Order In Nauvoo, Lisle
Brown). This Quorum functioned fully
outside the auspices of the Church, and even though some brethren held
membership in both the Holy Order and the Quorum of the Twelve, there was a
clear distinction between the two quorums—one presided over the Priesthood, and
the other presided over the Church. (See
Mysteries of Godliness, David Buerger).
By 1844, the Holy
Order and the Kingdom of God—also known as the Council of Fifty—were both fully
organized, by March 10, 1844 in Nauvoo, and once again, some of the apostles
had membership within both councils, however, not all members of the Holy Order
were members of the Council of Fifty.
And, also interesting to note, that at the trial of Sidney Rigdon, several
witnesses referred throughout the proceedings to a quorum which clearly was not
the Quorum of the Twelve. Some members of the Quorum of the Twelve were members
of both organizations, but clearly, there were three distinct
organizations. (See JOSEPH SMITH'S
INTRODUCTION OF TEMPLE ORDINANCES AND THE 1844 MORMON SUCCESSION QUESTION,
Ehat).
These three
governing bodies presiding over three organizations—The Holy Order: The
Priesthood; The First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve: The Church; and the
Council of Fifty: The Kingdom of God.
The first presiding over all, the latter two being appendages of the
Priesthood.
“The Priesthood,
as an organization was restored to the earth by John the Baptist and by Peter,
James and John—the latter in June 1829.
Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery were the first to be endowed with the
fullness of the apostolic order, Joseph being the president thereof.
“The Church was
organized by the Priesthood, as before stated, April 6th, 1830, and
its auxiliary organizations were perfected from time to time, under sanction of
the Priesthood.
“The Kingdom
organization sprung out of the Church and was given form during the latter
years of Joseph Smith’s life, culminating shortly before his death in
1844.” (A Priesthood Issue, p. 16).
Many Saints today
erroneously believe the First Presidency of the Church, along with the Quorum
of the Twelve Apostles rule the Priesthood and govern the Kingdom of God. Further personal study of the books that have
referenced in this short commentary will refute this claim and clarify the
distinctions between the three organizations, and history will support the
existence of a quorum of apostles possessing and exercising a fullness of
Priesthood—outside the mantle of the
Church.
E
D I T
O R I
A L
A
history of
The
fullness in mexico
Mexico and Mexican Mormons appear
to be directly impacted by the degree of Gospel obedience by North American
Mormons. Mexican Saints have been strengthened
or weakened by Utah attitudes. Is there
a link between Utah and Mexico? Could
there be a connection between the mythical Aztlan (The legendary homeland of
the Aztecs), which led to the founding of Tenochtitlan (Mexico City) and Utah?
The Aztec Indians called
themselves Tenocha (residents of Tenochtitlan).
The Aztec were thus called by the Spanish, due to their claims of being
descended from the Azteca (residents of Aztlan). Aztlan, according to the legend, was far to
the North and similar to Tenochtitlan, which was built upon Lake Texcoco (a
salt water lake) that was later filled in, for the most part, by the Spanish,
to build up Mexico City. Lake Texcoco
receives water from outlying fresh water lakes that drain into it. The obvious similarities between these lakes
and Utah Lake’s water flows into the Great Salt Lake are stunning.
Similarities also exist in the
legends of the Utah mountain, Timpanogos and the Mexico City Mountains,
Ixtlaxihuatl and Popocateptl. Most
historians down-play the native language (Uto-Aztecan) that suggests a common
heritage. This seems to me to be
significant. Al of which lead one to
conclude that reference to a sunken Nephite city in the Great Salt Lake in
Utah, might be the mystical Aztlan and that the ties between Salt Lake City and
Mexico City could be of a very ancient nature.
My object is more modest than to
attempt to establish Salt Lake City as Aztlan.
There appears to be unfolding, an intertwining fabric—hardly is one able
to perceive the fabric, due to the concentration upon each stitch. The weave has not been partly disclosed and
the story only partly told.
As the dawning sun slowly appears
on the horizon, so also one begins to recognize that the great weaver is none
other than the Lord of Hosts. To Him be
given honor and glory. Humbled, I feel
that my life has brought me in personal contact with some of the diverse weave
of this great fabric design: To be touched by these events in different times
of my life and in different places.
The Church after colonizing Utah,
expanded farther and farther out. It is
common knowledge to the student of Mormon History, that legal battles and
relentless persecution were brought upon Mormon pioneers during the 1870’s and
the 1880’s by the Federal Government.
So intense was the pressure, that
Presidents Young and Taylor looked to Mexico as a possible refuge where the
Patriarchal Order of Marriage might be lived, in some degree of tolerance. I will not attempt in this short narrative to
go into a lot of detail on the cause and effects of the crusades in Utah, nor
the colonization of Mexico by the Mormons.
There are ample documented histories of these events. I don’t feel that it would be disputed that
the main purpose in looking to Mexico, was to find a place where plural
marriages could take place and this law could be lived in safety.
I have satisfied myself that
certain events took place as a direct result of the anti-polygamy
crusades. The government over-powered
the Church, causing the Church to relinquish practices—at least on the
surface. President Taylor, having been
forwarded by the Lord, ordained several men to keep this principle alive. President Snow did the same on a smaller
scale. President George Q. Cannon and
President Joseph F. Smith were the most active in directing the work of plural
marriage continuance. Most of their
contemporary Apostles were involved in continuing this work, also.
To come to this conclusion
requires that one “dig up” information still available in many libraries and
bookstores, etc. It is not easy, but it
is possible, if one can overcome the Church-imposed guilt of stigma of “delving
into the mysteries.” Only those with
moral courage will do so. Amazingly,
only a few of those who claim that they love truth more than anything else,
have that moral courage to confront TRUTH.
The first proselytizing mission
to Mexico was organized by President Brigham Young in 1875. Later in 1879 under Apostle Moses Thatcher, a
group of proselytizing missionaries arrived in Mexico City. Here in the outlying towns, the Church began
to be established. The converts also worked hand-in-hand with the early mission
leaders such as, August Wilcken, Nielson Pratt, Helaman Pratt and others. During Anthony W. Ivins presidency, quite a
number of native Elders were called on proselytizing missions. In truth, Mexico Mormons were on a “Learn as
you go” program that required native Mormons to shoulder much of the
responsibility for the growth of the Church and spreading of the Gospel.
The Church lost interest in
Central Mexico and consequently, withdrew Anglo-American leadership in 1889—the
obvious correlation to the 1890 Manifesto is self-evident. Indeed many Anglo-American colonists in
Northern Mexico were then yearning to return to the United States.
By the time Ammon M. Tenney was
called to be Mission President in mid-1901, more than a decade had passed with
virtual Church abandonment of the Central Mexico Branches. In spite of Church apathy from Salt Lake, the
Mexican Church had held together. It goes
without saying that there were problems to be corrected and those problems were
addressed by President Tenney. It became
characteristic of Brother Tenney’s presidency to seek out worthy men to ordain
the Priesthood, to provide local leadership.
Local sisters were called into the auxiliaries and in general, the
Church was strengthened on a local level.
Such people as Juan Paez, Jose
Gonzales, Angel Rosales, Jacobo Gonzales and Margarito Bautista came to rub
shoulders with those of the Apostolic calling.
Leaders such as Matthias Cowley, Owen Woodruff, John Henry Smith, Moses
Thatcher and others came in direct contact with the local Priesthood
leaders. Most of these General Authorities
were polygamists, a fact that was not concealed from local leadership.
It was in Mexico that Apostle
Owen Woodruff issued his famous prophecy that plural marriage would not
disappear from the earth and there, also, that Seymour Young confirmed the
truth of Elder Woodruff’s prophecy. In
Mexico it was where Sister Woodruff became so ill with small pox and Sister
Juana Paez cared for her until Sister Woodruff passed away; this at great
personal risk to Sister Paez. In short,
the lifestyle of the presiding brethren and the early mission presidents was a
known fact to this generation of early 20th Century Mexican
Latter-day Saints.
When Rey L. Pratt was called to
be Mission President, Mexico received a man who was not Mexican, but Mexico had
been born with him. The compelling
evidences are that this man grasped the Mexican culture as well as the Spanish
language in a depth that few do who are not born into the same. President Pratt’s love and sincerity for the
Mexican people earned him the dep love and respect of the Lamanite people. Many hymns, Scriptures, pamphlets and publications
rolled off of his poetic pen, or were translated by him. Local Priesthood conferral was expanded; a
District Presidency and a District High Council were organized. Chapels were built by local members in
accordance to their scarce, economical means.
The work of the Lord progressed under the leadership of one of the last
Church-recognized polygamist mission presidents.
The Church issued a new Manifesto
in 1904 that was to stop plural marriage in all the world. One can see the effects of the 2nd
Manifesto in “La Revolucion”, and the anti Anglo-American feelings of most
Mexicans. It surely looks like the hand
of the Lord to me: Mexico was colonized by Mormons in order to live the
Principle. The Church rejected the Principle, even in Mexico, therefore, the
Lord allowed Anglo-Mormons to be driven out of Mexico.
The “Revolucion” and the war of
the “Cristeros” obviously imposed a lack of higher leadership for Mexico’s
Mormons, but the death of President Rey Lucero Pratt in 1931 brought an end to
an era of understanding Mexicanism by Anglo-Mormons. The next two mission presidents brought two
completely different styles of leadership—both would have a grave impact upon
local Mexican Mormons.
Antoine R. Ivins, the son of
Anthony W. Ivins became mission president.
The method Brother Ivins used was simple and can be simply stated:
Non-involvement. President Ivins offered
limited direction and limited criticism; leadership responsibilities fell upon
the District Presidency, Isaias Juarez, Abel Paez and Barnabe Parra. Two conventions were held to petition Salt
Lake for a Mexican mission president.
The results was a censure delivered by LDS Apostle Melvin J. Ballard to
the Mexican Mormons.
The next to preside in Mexico was
Harold Pratt, who with his Anglo-Mormon missionaries, saw little value in the
accomplishments of local Mormons. The
lack of records, the tardiness at meetings were over-emphasized, while the
Spiritual leadership, sacrifice to build, and the great faith of the people
were overlooked. So humiliating was this
“child-like” treatment, that another convention was held. District President Juarez did not support the
Third Convention. Complex, indeed, were
the reasons leading up to this break with the Church and this brief explanation
is an over-simplification at best.
Nevertheless, excommunication was the result of this action, from the
Church’s point of view.
Another point of view rarely
spoken of in these times, was that Mexican Mormons shook off the Church-imposed
shackles, prohibiting the living of the Fulness of the Gospel. Margarito Bautista had been in Salt Lake and
was a High Priest and an ordained Temple Worker. Brother Bautista had contact with the
Priesthood brethren who were called to keep plural marriage alive. Brothers Paez, Parra and Bautista were well
aware that just a few decades earlier, it was the LDS Church’s Apostles who
endeavored to promote the continuance of plural marriage. Now it was those of the Priesthood Council
who were the thrust to keep this holy principle alive. Therefore, it should not seem strange that in
this effort to keep Mormonism pure, that these Mexican leaders embraced the
doctrine of Plural Marriage.
Most writers who cover the Third
Convention period, attempt to cover up that plural marriage was lived by
many. I have first-hand knowledge that
it did exist. I know of people who are
children of polygamous marriages of my generation, of whom I have met, and who
are also members of the LDS Church. The
Church chose to “cut deals” and turn a blind eye to many plural families in
their efforts to reunify the people.
Able Paez became the leader of
the Third Convention—himself, a returned missionary—he organized a missionary
effort that met with great success. The
Mexican Mission, Third Convention of the LDS Church (Paez Group) was prospering
and progressing. New chapels were built;
more Scriptures were translated, as were Church histories. A real growth took place, while the Church
seemed to stand still. Modern denials
are that plural marriage never took place in the Paez group. This is simply not true.
A split took place between
Brother Bautista and Brother Paez that I don’t pretend to understand. I have satisfied myself that it wasn’t over
plural marriage. Rather, it appears to
be more over the United Order. The exact
ties to the Utah Fundamentalist movement also appear to be limited at this
time. More that common goals were
shared, rather than organizational ties; Third Conventionist leaders were also
caught up in the Anti-American attitudes prevailing in President Lazaro
Cardenes’ Mexico—Mexico was for the Mexicans.
Tired of foreign exploitation, Mexico threw off the yoke of the American
companies who had sapped off Mexico’s wealth of natural resources. All of Mexico groaned under this yoke, while
new industrial “haciondados” evolved, who kept Mexico’s people in serfdom. My only critique was that Third
Conventionists failed to see the scope and extent of Israel’s blood. Lamanites are not the only Israelites—Ephraim
is also Israel.
The Church in the late 1940’s
made a concerted effort to woo the Third Conventionists back into the
Church. Perhaps the most notable were
the efforts made by Mission President Arwell L. Pierce, who began to attend
Third Convention meetings. David O.
McKay, then a counselor to President George Albert Smith, visited Mexico. This was clearly an effort for reunification,
as was evidenced when President McKay visited the home of Othon Espinoza and
blessed his granddaughter. Othon Esinoza
held positions of responsibility in the Third Convention.
President Pierce recognized that
no reconciliation would take place, unless the Church made concessions. The intercession made by President Pierce
resulted in what I believe, to be unprecedented allowances by the Church. The excommunications were lifted and changed
to disfellowship statuses and this over ten years after the fact.
President George Albert Smith
personally came to the reunification. No
hostilities, only great love, was demonstrated by all concerned. It goes without saying that conformity to
modern Church standards was required.
Fundamental Gospel purity—the Fullness of the Gospel—obviously was to be
sacrificed to the great god, “Twentieth Century.” Deals were made so that families could remain
as long as cohabitation ceased. Choices
were made and the split between Brothers Paez and Bautista were now
permanent.
Abel Paez’ mother was Juana
Bautista, sister to Margarito. Brother
Bautista was later called into the Council by Brother Joseph Musser and some of
the Mexican Saints followed his leadership and too direction from the
Priesthood Council. The majority
followed Brother Paez back into the Church.
Brother Barnabe Parra quietly
built another house in the back of his property and moved his first wife there,
who was now past child-bearing age. His
plural wife because the recognized wife and brought forth a beautiful second
family for Brother Parra.
In Mexico, Benjamin Parra was a
missionary at the same time I was—this polygamous child truly impacted Mexico
and the Mexican Mission. No missionary
equaled his efforts or record.
I see a link between Mexico and Utah. Diverse cultures—yet at once, the same
culture. Diverse ways of looking at the
world, God and the universe, yet at the same time, the same view. Ephraim and Manasseh are brothers! Can those of Aztec blood really feel as a
foreigner in the Wasatch Front? Or can a
Utahn feel out of place, while gazing upon the majestic Popocateptl?
Jackson Ted Jessop
18 February 1942 – 29 June
2002
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Recommended Sites
4thefamily.us
(Open chat &
polygamy & Mormon doctrine discussion)
Supporters/Explorers of Mormon
Fundamentalism
(Open
chat & discussions about the Fullness of the Gospel)
allofthegospel.com
(An in-depth website
offering extensive Fundamentalist Mormon information and works)
ogdenkraut.com
(A website offering
discourses from early Church leaders and books of several Gospel-related
subjects)
H o l i n e s s
Y
T o T h e
T o T h e
L o
r d
TRUTH
NEVER CHANGES
Volume 14, Number 03
SUMMER 2011
Volume 14, Number 03
SUMMER 2011
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