A great and awful crisis is at hand – such a crisis was never known before since the foundation of the world. All nations are looking through the misty future in order to descry, if possible, what is about to happen. Many sermons have been preached, many speeches have been made, and some pamphlets have been published, with the hope of lifting up the veil of the future. Yet none but the servants of God who have the testimony of Jesus, which is the spirit of prophecy, can unfold the mysteries of the future. They can give the trump a certain sound, and their counsel will not be guess work. God will do nothing except He reveal His secrets to His servants and Prophets. God, the Lord God of Israel, will take the control of these great events which are shortly to come to pass. Not a sparrow will fall to the ground without His notice. But His servants will be fully advised to every important event that is to transpire. They will be the heralds of blessings and also of vengeance. For the Lord hath a controversy with all nations, and the hour of recompense is at hand.

But, says the reader, I would like to know of what this crisis is to consist! Who are the contesting parties? Well, reader, if you will be patient and honest-hearted, praying withal, with unceasing diligence and thanksgiving to God, you shall have the keys of such knowledge as all the sectarian priests of Christendom are by no means able to reveal, because they are only revealed to God’s servants, the Prophets.

Perhaps you will be disappointed, if I tell you that the time is coming, and now is, when, not only God, the Highest of all, shall be revealed in spirit and in mighty power, but the Devil or Satan also, will be revealed in signs and wonders and in mighty deeds! This, reader, is the great key to all the marvelous events that are to transpire shortly upon the earth.

Now just stop right here, and pause, and mark emphatically this key. Then you and I will proceed to unlock the mysteries and to prepare ourselves to the battle. For there will be no neutrals in the approaching controversy. I say again, that God the Highest of all will make bare His arm in the eyes of all nations. And the heavens even will be rent, and the lighting down of His power will be felt by all nations. But this is not all. Satan also will be revealed. He has made some manifestations of his power in different periods of the world, but never before has there been such an array of numbers on his side, never before such a consolidation of armies and rulers, never before has there been such an imposing and overwhelming exhibition of miracles as Satan will shortly make manifest. Don’t suppose for a moment, that I am uttering dark sayings or speaking unadvisedly upon speculation or the strength of mere human opinion. Don’t tell me about Popes and Prelates sitting in the Temple of God as God. One far greater than any Pope or Prelate is soon to be revealed, and he will claim to be worshipped as God. Now, remember, that it is no modern wicked man that is going to claim divine honors. No, it is that old Serpent, the Devil. He it is that will head the opposition against God and His Christ. And he, the son of perdition it is, that will be allowed a much longer chain than heretofore. And such will be the greatness of his power, that it will seem to many that he is entirely loose. He will be so far unshackled and unchained that his power will deceive all nations, even the world. And the elect will barely escape the power of his sorceries, enchantments, and miracles! And even God, Himself, the true God, will contribute to put means and instruments in his way and at hand, for his use, so that he can have a full trial of his strength and cunning, with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish.

It is not to be expected that Satan will carry on his great warfare against Christ and his Saints by means of any one religion exclusively. It is not the Papal or Protestant religion alone that you have need to fear. But the great and abominable Church which you should expect to encounter is Anti-Christ. Whatever exalts and opposes itself to God, that is Anti-Christ, whether it is a civil or religious power. But the most formidable power that will be arrayed against Christ and his Saints in the last days, will consist of the revelations of Satan. These revelations of Satan will come through every medium and channel by which the cunning and power of Satan can be brought to bear against the Saints and their Lord. It is a great mistake to suppose that Satan is altogether a religious personage. No, far from this. He is a politician, a philosopher, an erudite scholar, a linguist, a metaphysician, a military commander, a prince, a god, a necromancer, an enchanter, a diviner, a magician, a sorcerer, a prophet, and (if it were not railing) a clergyman and a liar from the beginning. With these universal endowments, he has never hitherto made a full and grand exhibition of himself, as it remains for him to do. But the Lord, who gave him an opportunity to try is battery upon good old Job, is fully designing to give him sufficient apparatus to deceive all the nations that love not the truth, and have pleasure in unrighteousness. His signs and tokens are as ancient as the apostasy of Cain, and as varied as will suit the secret designs of all ages. Through him men learn how to become “observers of time and seasons”, with great skill and astonishing accuracy. He presides over the arts of astrology, clairvoyance, mesmerism, electro-biology, and all auguries and divinations. Being Prince of the power of the air he understands aeronautic and steam navigation, and he can compose and combine the various elements, through the co-operation of them that believe in him, with far more that human skill. Now don’t doubt what I say concerning this matter, but rather read the history of his skillful exploits and his mighty power, as they are recorded in the Old and New Testaments. Take a Bible and Concordance, (if you have any Faith in the Bible left, in an age when the Bible is perverted beyond all other books), and read attentively for yourselves, and you will there learn that I am telling you the truth.

Now there is a greater destruction coming upon the wicked nations of the earth, than was even experienced by Pharaoh at the Red Sea. But before that destruction can be made manifest, men’s hearts will be hardened, and wickedness will rise to a more over-towering height than many bygone generations have been allowed to witness. God, through his Prophet, will roar out of Zion. His voice will be heard in spite of all the confusion and indignant opposition from many nations. After the testimony of His servants has been proclaimed to all nations, as a witness, then shall the scene of the end come. And great shall be that scene. The Devil in the last stage of desperation, will take such a pre-eminent lead in literature, politics, philosophy, and religion; in wars, famines, pestilences, earthquakes, thunderings and lightnings, setting cities in conflagration, etc., that mighty kings and powerful nations will be constrained to fall down and worship him. And they will marvel at his great power, and wonder after him with great astonishment. For his signs and wonders will be among all nations. Men will be raised for the express purpose of furthering the designs and marvelous works of the devil. Every description of curious and mysterious arts that penetrate beyond the common pale of human sagacity and wisdom, will be studied and practiced beyond what has been known by mere mortals. The great capabilities of the elements of fire, air, earth, and water, will be brought into requisition by cunning men under the superior cunning of the prince and the God of this world. And, inflated with the knowledge of these wonderful arts and powers, men will become boasters, heady, high-minded, proud, and despisers of that which is good. But the God who is above all, and over all, and who ruleth in the armies of heaven, and amongst the inhabitants of the earth, will not be a silent observer of such spiritual wickedness in high places, and among the rulers of the darkness of this world. For the master spirits of wickedness of all ages, and of worlds visible and invisible, will be arrayed in the rebellious ranks before the closing scene shall transpire. Now just at this time, God will come out of His hiding place and vex the nations in his hot displeasure. By the mouth of His Prophet He will rebuke strong nations afar off, notwithstanding their strong armies and great miracles, and cunning arts. His servant, the Prophet, in Zion will have a marvelous boldness to rebuke them, and to lay down before them in plainness and inflexible firmness the law of the Lord. As Moses laid down the law to Pharaoh, and then continued to multiply evils and judgments until he made an utter end of Pharaoh and the Egyptians, even so will the living God prescribe the line of conduct to be pursued, and the penalties of violation, to great and mighty nations, until they rally around the ensign established upon the mountains, and go up to the house of the God of Jacob to learn His ways, or are utterly overwhelmed in keen anguish and ruin.

The ways of the God of Jacob are easily recognized in these days of general wickedness. It is true, that they are clearly revealed in the Scriptures of truth, and by a living Priesthood of inspired men, yet they have been so long and so grossly perverted by the precepts and opinions of a hireling ministry, that doubts and contentions have sprung up in every land, and the plainest and simplest truths are denied, abrogated, or accounted obsolete. God is not allowed to speak from the heavens by the mouths of Prophets as in former days. Notwithstanding there is much preaching and praying, still there is a virtual acknowledgement among all nations that God, as He was known unto the Patriarchs and Prophets of old, has forsaken the earth. And men are therefore left to discover the way to heaven by the light of nature, or the misty nebulae of a hireling Priesthood. And it is a fact, undeniable, that infidels in the school of nature have more true piety towards the living God than the hireling ministry of Christendom have. Hence priests are doing so much, often unwittingly, to blind the eyes of the people, so that they shall not see the approaching crisis in its true character until the catastrophe is completed, and Great Babylon and all her lofty cities, great wealth, princely merchants, chief captains, and mighty sovereigns, are laid low in one general ruin. Oh ye great and strong nations! ye philosophers and religionists! ye spiritual mediums and ye revelators, sitting upon thrones over great nations! how can you fulfill the prophecies that are so clearly revealed, concerning the destructions of the last days! Ye perhaps marvel that the great men and governors over one hundred and twenty-seven provinces in ancient Babylon, with a brave monarch at their head, should have been such firm believers in the astrologers, magicians, and interpreters of dreams, in their days! But marvel not, for when the greater power of the like class of persons, under the direction of Satan, shall be brought to bear in your own day, the delusion will be so much stronger that Princes, Presidents, Governors, and chief Captains, will be constrained to bow to it. Their credulity will be taxed beyond the power of resistance. The workers of these mysterious and supernatural arts will bring to their aid both natural and supernatural causes that will challenge and defy disputation. The senses and judgment of men cannot withstand such imperative facts as will arrest their observations. For it cannot be denied that facts and truths will constitute such a measure of the ingredients of these mysterious and wonderful arts as to give them an irresistible strength of conviction to those who are unenlightened by the Spirit of God. And so far as facts and truth are mingled, it must also be acknowledged that God, the true and living Sovereign of Heaven and Earth, will contribute to produce the delusion. He has said that “He will send them strong delusions that they might believe a lie.” He gives his reason and apology for acting after this stranger mannerþbecause, knowing the truth, they do not love it unadulterated. And knowing God, they do not choose to glorify Him as God. Therefore their foolish hearts become darkened, and God suffers Satan to compound and mix up truth and error in such proportions as to be captivating and strongly delusive. As a snare, this composition will be ingeniously mixed and administered to all nations, by skillful and practiced hands.

And who shall be able to withstand? Do you think that your great sagacity and the compass of your profound, philosophical turn of mind will enable you to detect the error and delusion of these arts? Oh, man, this is a vain hope. You will not be competent to detect the delusion. God Himself will allow Satan to ply your scrutinizing eye with powers and sophistications far beyond your capacity to detect. Do you say then, I will stand aloof from investigation, I will shun all acquaintance with these mysterious workings, in order that I may not be carried away with their delusive influence. Vain hope. Oh, man, you cannot be neutral. You must choose your side and put on your armor. Those that come not up to the help of the Lord in the day of battle, will be sorely cursed. The captive Hebrew Daniel stood up boldly against all the governors and whole realm of Babylon with their monarch at their head. Daniel readily acknowledged that it was not from any wisdom in him, above other men, that he could surpass the astrologers and magicians. But holding intercourse with the God of heaven, he became endowed with supernatural comprehension that effectually shielded him against supernatural delusion. Thereby he escaped the snare that entwined around the great statesmen and governors of that immense empire of Babylon. Thereby, those who take refuge in the name of the Lord and in immediate revelation from heaven, will be safe, and no others. He that is not for God and the principle of immediate revelation, will inevitably be ensnared, overcome, and destroyed. Because he that is not for Him must be against Him. No man in any age was ever for God, that did not hold intercourse with Him personally, and receive for himself the revelations of his will. The rock of revelation, by which Peter knew Jesus Christ, is the only basis upon which any man can escape the strong delusion which God will send among the nations through Satan and his mediums and coadjutors. Reader, if you live long, you will be compelled to take a side for God or for Satan. Satan was allowed to try a compulsory process upon as good a man as Job. The whirlwind and tempestuous elements, with disease and death, were put into Satan’s hand that he might compel Job to abandon his integrity. Had not Job possessed the key to revelation from God, he would have been compelled to have made peace with Satan, and forsaken the Lord. His wife urged him to do soþsays she, “Curse God and die”; or in other words, take the side of Satan against God.

Now, reader, if you have ships of precious merchandise, floating at sea, the time is fast coming when Satan will destroy those ships, unless you bow down to his power and become a co-operator with him. And if you do bow down to him, to work wickedness and say, no eye seeth meþthen God will destroy those ships and you too, and peradventure He will destroy your family also, and make a clean end of you, and blot out your name under heaven. Your beautiful mansion and flourishing family still have to be consecrated to God or to Satan, whichever you may choose. The controversy is begun and the war will never end till the victory is complete and universal, and there shall not be found so much as a dog to move his tongue against the Lord, and the immediate revelations of His will. Your being a minister of some Church, will not serve as the last screen for you against the hot indignation of God, unless you have the law and the testimony of the true and living God made known to you personally. For the time has come that God will write His law upon every man’s heart, that will receive it, not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God. And against him that hath this law, the gates of hell never have prevailed and never will prevail. Heaven and earth shall pass away before a jot of this law shall be made to succumb to wicked men or devils. The heavens have been shaken once when angels rebelled, and they are destined to another shaking even with the earth. Do you say you don’t need any more revelation from God. Then the Devil will be allowed to give you some which you don’t need. And by the time that he has revealed himself to you, and buffeted you, and trained you under his rigorous discipline to fight in this awful crisis against the heavens, peradventure you will not then feel so rich and increased in goods, but that you can take a little counsel from the Lord, and feel a little of your extreme poverty and destitution.

You cannot know God without present revelation. Did you ever think of this most solemn and essential truth, before? You may have been accustomed to pray, all your lifetime, and as yet you, even you, do not know God. You may have heard many thousand sermons, with a sincere desire both to remember and practice them, and yet you do not know God. But it has been decided in the court of heaven, that no man can know the Father but the Son, and he to whom the Son REVEALETH him. Now, has Jesus Christ ever revealed God the Father to you, dear reader? Be honest with yourself, and do not err in your answer to this most important question. However much the Son may have revealed the Father to Prophets, Patriarchs, and Apostles of old, the question still remains in full forceþhas he revealed Him to you? A revelation to another man is by no means a revelation to you. For instance, God revealed himself to Samuel, and called him by name to be a Prophet. But the call to Samuel is by no means a call to you to be a Prophet. God called Abraham to kill Isaac, but that is no revelation to you to kill your son. God revealed the baptism of repentance to John the Baptist, before Christ’s death, but that is not a revelation to you. He revealed authority to Paul to preach to the Gentiles, but what was told to Paul is not told to you, nor is it required of you. Again, you need the righteousness of God to go where God is, and be happyþand how will you get it except it is revealed to you personally? You cannot get it any other way. Hence the Lord says, “The righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith.” Don’t say now, as some do, that revelation was anciently given in order to establish the truth, and being once established is it no longer necessary to be revealed to subsequent generations of people. Don’t say this for your life, for revelation is just as necessary to establish truth now as it was then. You need the ministry of angels now, just as much as people did then. They in past ages could not know God, nor say for a certainty, from personal knowledge, that Jesus Christ was the Christ, only by the Holy Ghostþand you are just as weak and dependent as they were. You most assuredly cannot call Jesus, Lord, only by the Holy Ghost. If the Holy Ghost is confirmed upon you, by the imposition of the hands of the true Priesthood, then you can know God for yourself. Why? Because the Holy Ghost teaches all things, even the deep things of God. This generation needs present revelations from heaven, as much as any other generation ever did, because they are quite as wicked as Sodom ever was. They practice as gross sensuality and beastliness, as glaring robbery and murder, as much treachery and lying, and are as ardent for war and blood-guiltiness, as ever the ancient Canaanites were. And among the many religions that have sprung up, calculated to confuse people’s minds, there is, now, as must jargon and schism, contention and strife, and persecuting zeal, as there ever was before. Now, reader, you need present revelation from God to your own dear self, in order to help you out of this nasty, confused labyrinth, and to set your feet firmly upon the solid rock of revelation. Mere flesh and blood cannot help you now. It requires an Almighty arm to effect your deliverance. Therefore, put no more trust in man, for a curse rests upon him that will be guided by the precepts of man. I do not ask you to be guided by what I say to you, unless the Lord from heaven shall reveal to you that I speak the truth, even as it is in Christ. Although I know that I am declaring heaven’s truth to you, in all sobriety, yet, my knowing it, does not suffice for you. You also must know it for yourself, and not for another. This is your right and your privilege. For God has made this promise to you, and not to you, reader, only, but to all others whom He calls to repentance. Now, go and get revelation for yourself. If you are penitently desirous with all your heart to get revelation from God to your own self, go to some one whom God has called and ordained to confer the Gift of Reader, be resolute! This is a critical and trying moment with you. And this is God’s call unto you. Don’t refuse when He calls you! And if you are honestly, without prejudice, meditating upon what you now read, then God’s Spirit is sweetly persuading you to believe what I say. The faint dawn of the Spirit is even now upon your mind. Now, reader, cherish this little dawn of light until the daylight of more truth shines more clearly upon your mind. Pray mightily for the Spirit of Revelation to rest upon you, that you may know the things that are freely given to you of God. And follow the Spirit of revelation, as fast as you receive its whisperings, down into the water where Jesus went, for the remission of your sins, and you will very soon become a witness to the one truth, and put your own seal upon it even as I have done. And you will not barely believe, and hope, and fear, but you will know, from present and personal revelation, that the Lord is a God at hand, revealing Himself as freely as He ever did in Patriarchal days. Will you not, then be a happy man, O reader! and you a happy woman, O reader, to come into possession of the same gift of present revelation from heaven, that holy men and holy women enjoyed in ancient times? Yes, I know you will. You will then feel deep pity and sorrow for any one that says he doesn’t need present revelation! You will then discover the pride of such an one’s heart, and mourn over him as one that is blinded by the God of this world. But your peace will be great and your joy unspeakable. Although you can hardly believe me now, yet through your faithfulness, the Spirit of prophecy will in due time rest even upon you, O man! and also upon you, O woman! The spirit of prophecy has rested upon many sons and daughters in as humble walks of life as you are, and they, according to “promise”, have prophesied and dreamed dreams. Now when this promise is fulfilled in your experience, you will feel very glad and very happy. And you will feel thankful that you ever read this article with a humble, prayerful heart. And when you see the promised signs following your faith, as thousands have done in this day, then you will exclaim, Surely this is not merely the form, but also the power of godlinessþthis kind of gospel is in very deed the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth! And then if you have money, which so many worship, you will not be afraid to give a tenth to rear up a Temple like Solomon’s, in which God will place the ark of His covenant, and reveal His will, through His servants the Prophets, for the benefit of all the ends of the earth. When you yourself have the promised gift of discerning of spirits, then you will not have to ask your neighbor who is an imposter and who is not – you will know from the Fountain Head all about it just as well as the next person. He that is spiritual judgeth all things. Many things are hard to be understood and reconciled, which the unstable and unlearned stumble at, even as formerlyþhe that is spiritual can easily judge all things, but he that is not spiritual can judge nothing correctly, for he is blind, and he cannot see afar off.

And further, when you see also the gross and beastly sexual abominations that are practiced and are increasing among all nations, without shame or fear, you will not marvel that God is determined to raise up a righteous seed and glorious branch, by re-establishing the Patriarchal Order, as in the days of Abraham, Jacob, David, Solomon, and Elkanah. Neither will you marvel, while the Spirit of God is upon you, that man and even women should sneer at the sacred institution of marriage being an institution wholly under the control of God, as it was in the days of Abraham. Why should you not marvel at their sneers? Because, we have been distinctly and emphatically forewarned that in the last days there shall arise scoffers, walking after their own hearts’ lusts, who shall speak evil of dignities and things that they know not, have men’s persons in admiration because of gain. You would have more cause to marvel and disbelieve the scriptures of truth, if sensual men and women did not speak evil of the Patriarchal Order of marriage, and of men that conform to the pure sanction and penal restrictions of that most holy Order.

Now there are several ways in which the pure and obedient get revelations. It will be your privilege in due time to become acquainted with these various ways. One way is, through the inspiration of the Spirit. The Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. All men have such a measure of the Holy Spirit as to enable them to make a profitable use of the light and opportunities that they have and to obey the law under which they are placed. All the different methods of revelation are not probably given to all men now. God dispenseth His gifts severally as He will. The inspiration of the Almighty giveth understanding. Every various method of immediate revelation, however, always accords with the inspiration of the Spirit. If an holy angel talks with a man, what the angel speaks accords with the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. If the Urim and Thummim is consulted, it accords with the teachings of the Holy Spirit. An open vision or dream, each accords with the inspiration of the Holy Ghost. Now one mark of a dream from God is, that it is distinguished for the clearness and simplicity of the impress that it makes upon the mind of him that dreams. A dream from the Lord being always true in all its legitimate bearings, will be so disembarrassed from error and uncertainty to him that has the Spirit of truth in lively exercise, that he will know it perfectly in distinction from all false hallucinations or deceptions of the mind. Reader, take your Bible and read the Bible account of dreams. There you will see that dreams from the Lord, for any important end, are plainly distinguishable from all deceptive influences. When Jacob went toward Haran and lay upon his stone pillow, and dreamed of seeing a ladder reaching up to heaven, etc., after he awoke he knew, beyond a doubt, that the dream was from God. Hence he says, “How terrible is this place,” etc. When Laban wanted to cheat Jacob out of his just wages, the Lord appeared to Jacob in a night dream, and told him how to increase the number of his cattle, so that he could get the advantage of the cheating employer. Jacob understood the dream perfectly, and so managed as to have the best of the increase fall to his share. When Joseph told the simple dream of the sheaves, his brothers all understood it well. And when he told the dream of the sun, moon, and eleven stars bowing down to him, his father Jacob felt the force of the meaning, although he rebuked Joseph. When God gives a dream to a wicked man, He makes him fully to understand it, unless He wishes to hide the meaning from him. Abimelech understood his two dreams from the Lord, concerning Sarah, Abraham’s wife. The Lord gave Solomon wisdom, and riches, and dominion, in a dream, and yet Solomon knew the import of the dream, and that the Lord had appeared to him, in that dream. The Lord does not suffer wicked spirits to foul and blot and mar a dream, when he wants to communicate His mind and will in a dream. Foul spirits are rebuked and commanded to depart when God wants to indict the truth upon any one’s mind. The Angel of God guards the dreamer till a clear and distinct impression is made. And that impression is of an unmistakable character, it cannot be misunderstood, any more than the light of the sun can be mistaken for the darkness of midnight. An open vision is another method of revelation. David saw an Angel of the Lord with a drawn sword, even the pestilence, standing between the heavens and the earth. The Prophet having prayed that the eyes of his servant might be opened, showed him that the armies of heaven were more numerous than the host of his enemies. Another method of revelation is through the ministry of angels. An angel forewarned Lot to leave Sodom. Angels gave the Law to Moses, upon Mount Sinai. An angel opened a great iron gate that liberated the Apostle Peter. Again, God reveals things by Urim and Thummim, and by burnt offerings, and by diverse tongues, etc.

Now, reader, I entreat you to seek the aid of present revelations from God. You need them just as much as any poor creature ever did, that has been born into the world. Without them you never can know God, worlds without end. Don’t flatter yourself that because others know God or have formerly known Him, you are any better off on that account, unless you know Him for yourself.

Are you poor and oppressed? Then you have the greatest need to receive revelations from God. There are very many poor people in these days, and in these lands. Even in England, rich men oppress you, and many cheat you and defraud you, and keep back your merited wagesþand you, who do the greatest part of the work that is done in the land, can hardly get an honest living, while your masters roll in pomp, and fare sumptuously every day. I have seen you and your little sons and tender daughters, hurrying off early in the morning to work for them, and returning late at night, poorly fed and poorly clothed often. And all the time that you are making others rich, they are keeping you in poverty and ignorance. And your daughters are often insulted and sometimes seduced by masters, and you are threatened with workhouse if you don’t grind for the oppressor, and you have but little time to see your own families, and bless them with comforts, and educate and train them up for usefulness and salvation. Now, if you knew how to take counsel from the God of heaven, as Jacob did, you would not have to submit always to such fraud and oppression. But God would help you out of your many difficulties, and your enemies could not help themselves. God has seen your afflictions, and has sent forth his servants to all nations to preach deliverance, for the acceptable year of the Lord has now come.

And ye rich men, the voice is to you. Gather up the poor and bless them, and your riches shall not waste, but increase fourfold and great shall be your reward in heaven. But blessed are the poor who shall obtain the gifts of revelation for themselves, for they shall rejoice greatly in the Holy One of Israel. For not many rich, not many noble, will be humble enough to seek revelations from God. But beware of the counsel of any priests or ministers who are hired and paid for preaching. God never hired any man to preach, nor did He ever authorize any man to hire himself out to preach for wages. Therefore beware of all such lest they deceive you. Go not after them, neither listen to them for a moment, for they are confederate with rich men and oppressors, and they are despisers of present revelation, and consequently they neither know God themselves, nor are they willing that others should know Him. And vengeance will shortly overtake all that know not God, and obey not the Gospel.

Millennial Star, 30 April 1853, Volume 15, Pages 273-276, 289-292.

To embark upon a project of this magnitude is daunting yet exciting as further research uncovers more and more of the potential facts that show a distinct possibility that not only Joseph of Arimathea, but the Virgin Mary and Jesus Christ lived at Glastonbury, Joseph and Mary being buried there.

In the search for the answers to the mysteries that surround Glastonbury the reader will be taken on voyages of historic discovery, not just in Glastonbury and England, but in the Holy Land, Rome and Egypt. I firmly believe that what I have written and what I will write is true and I hope that the reader will also be able to come to that realisation.

THE FAMILY TREE OF JESUS

In order to make a logical start the family tree of Jesus needs to be studied. It is not generally known that in the Herald’s Office at the English College of Arms there is a family tree of Jesus from the time of Adam. Part of this family tree is sufficient for what is needed here.

	ANN  (Mother of the Virgin Mary)

married

JOACHIM       	CLEOPHAS   		SALOME

(1st Husband)	(2nd Husband)		(3rd Husband)

I		I			I

VIRGIN MARY   	MARY ALPHAEUS   	MARY ZEBEDEE

I					I

--------------------------		I

I       I       I        I		I

JESUS   JAMES   SIMON    JUDE  		I

I

-------------------------------------

I			 I	       I

JOHN THE DIVINE   JOSEPH BARSABAST   JAMES

From this document we learn that Ann, mother of the Virgin Mary, was married three times. Her first husband was Joachim by whom she had the Virgin Mary, her second husband was Cleophas and her third was Salome. (In Hachette’s guide “Bleu Bretagne” there is an ancient Breton tradition that Anna, mother of the Virgin Mary, was born in Cornouaille (Cornwall?) of Royal blood. When she was pregnant with the Virgin Mary, her husband (Joachim), ill treated her and she fled from Europe to Jaffa and settled in Nazareth where Mary was born.) Ann or Anna,had a sister called Bianca who was the mother of Joseph, the Virgin Mary’s husband, thus showing that he was also her first cousin.

 			BIANCA

(Aunt of the Virgin Mary)

I

--------------------------------------------------------

I				            		I

JOSEPH    		                        ELIZABETH

(Husband of Mary)			            I

I					            I

JESUS                  		         JOHN THE BAPTIST

In the British Museum there is the Harl Manuscript which confirms the above information. Another manuscript, held at Jesus College, shows the family tree of Joseph of Arimathea and gives confirmation that Penardin, granddaughter of Joseph of Arimathea married King Lear of Britain. Notice that far from being confined to Palestine, the Holy Family seem, through Joseph of Arimathea, to have intermarried into British royalty and to have left Palestine to live in Britain.

ANN		BIANCA		JOSEPH OF ARIMATHEA

I		I		I

VIRGIN MARY	ELIZABETH	ANNA

I		I		I

JESUS		JOHN THE 	PENARDIN

BAPTIST	(Married King Lear)

I

BRAN

(British King)

I

CARACTACUS

(British King)

I

GLADYS

(British Princess)

The preceding genealogies are important because of the totally different perspective of the interrelationship of the nations at the time of Jesus. It is interesting to note that the traditionally “poor” family of Jesus might not have been so “poor” after all. It appears to be difficult for most people to think of Mary and Jesus as real people who lived in a real world. Sadly, this is due to the religious artists through the centuries, as well as the general apostasy of Christianity from the original gospel taught by Jesus and his apostles. Victor Dunstan puts the point across most succinctly in his excellent book, “Did the Virgin Mary Live and Die in England?”

It is almost impossible to see the traditional depictions of the Virgin Mary, the ever placid expression, the ever clean robes, the ever young and virginal face and the ever present halo without losing all realisation that this was a woman who actually lived on this planet. The religious desire to honour the Virgin Mary has resulted in her “public image” being such as does not cause one to believe in the reality of the woman. Superstition and myth are concepts that have been writ large over the story of the mother of Jesus.

Similarly, how can anyone appreciate as a historic flesh-and-blood reality, a man who is ridiculously depicted as always standing at doors knocking, balefully waiting for someone, who never does, to open them? Jesus too, has that ever present halo hovering over his head and the fact that he seems effeminate and always to be in danger of bursting into tears may be one of the reasons why there are fewer men than women in many of our churches.

How can anyone believe, as a reality, in someone who is depicted as being so hygienic that his white robes, even after forty days in the wilderness, did not become dirty and look as though they had just been brought washing powder advert white and stiffly starched from the airing cupboard?

Let us look more closely now at some of the life of Jesus and Joseph of Arimathea.

JESUS – THREAT TO THE JEWS

It would appear that troubling people was to be the pattern for Jesus’ career. We are told that King Herod was troubled at his birth and Jesus went on bothering people, especially those in authority, for the rest of his life. However, it was not just during his life that Jesus annoyed people, but after his death aswell. This worry was not a superficial one, it was a deep fear which bred an almost psychopathic antipathy deep enough for political careers to be put at risk and deep enough to cause the Sanhedrin to break it’s own laws aswell as the laws of Rome.

There is an old saying that “actions speak louder than words” and the actions that were taken against Jesus before, during and after his trial speak volumes about the fear of the Sanhedrin. Many of the Jewish hierarchy saw Jesus and his followers as a threat. Remember, Herod was convinced enough that the “King of Kings” had been born to murder hundreds of innocent children in order to keep his position safe. The hatred of Jesus and his followers was an almost insane hatred that led the Sanhedrin to behave in ways they would never have thought possible.

No religious group is ever proud of any treachery from within its ranks and the Jews are no different, but, to their credit, subterfuge has never played a particularly large part in the history of their nation and yet some of the most influential leaders of the time of Christ behaved in a way akin to the Gestapo in order to send Jesus to his death and erase every trace of him from the pages of history. It would appear that the lengths that the Sanhedrin went to were quite out of proportion to the threat that Jesus would have seemed to have posed. Why?

Jesus did not give politically exciting speeches, nor did he try to engender feelings of hatred towards the Romans, infact his messages were normally to exhort the people to love one another. True, he did become cross at the Temple and whipped and threw out the money changers, but this was not a crucifiable offence. Granted, Jesus likened the Pharisees to a “generation of vipers” but he had a right to say this under the law and could not be legally punished for saying it. I am sure that the Pharisees had been called much worse than that by other people! The people that Jesus healed showed no real gratitude, infact, of the ten lepers that Jesus healed only one came to offer his thanks. It would seem that the genuine followers of Jesus were not very many so the Sanhedrin could not accuse him of setting up bands of people for demonstrations etc. Infact, even the integrity of some of Jesus closest followers has to be called into question. It is interesting to note that even Hitler in his death bunker received more personal loyalty from his friends at the time of his death than did Jesus. Goebells, Goebell’s wife, their children and Eva Braun were all willing to pay the supreme sacrifice for their beloved leader; yet, the disciples slept while Jesus sweated as it were “great drops of blood” in Gethsemene, a foreigner had to help him carry his cross, Peter denied him three times, all the other apostles abandoned him and Judas Iscariot betrayed him for money. There was no demonstration against the crucifixion nor any tribute to Jesus after his death. It could be argued that Jesus’ followers were afraid for their own lives, yet if you look through the history books you will find countless stories of people who were prepared to sacrifice themselves for the people to whom they were devoted. So why then did the Jews fear him so much?

Despite Jesus’ apparent lack of offenses, Caiaphus manipulated the trial proceedings to such an extent that even with a majority vote for the release of Jesus, he took over the proceedings himself allowing no recourse to the defence and went to the extremity of sending Jesus to Pontious Pilate on a charge of treason against Rome. Pilate said “I find no fault in this man” and washed his hands of the whole affair after pronouncing Jesus innocent on four occasions! It is of note that some of the first words Pilate said to Jesus were “What is Truth?” These three words were passwords used by the British Druids at the beginning of their debates. There are authorities who say that Pilate finished his education in a Druid College in England. Could it possibly be that Caiaphus, knowing of Pilate’s education in Britain and knowing that Jesus had spent a considerable amount of his life in Britain, thought that Jesus might instigate a total change of religion to that of Druidism and hence “do away with” Judaism? It is an interesting thought to which there is no concrete answer, but it would explain the fanatascism of the Sanhedrin.

There was a legal requirement at that time that a civilian must identify an arrested person. This then was the sole purpose of the Sanhedrin paying Judas to identify Jesus, after all, Jesus was a well known figure around Jerusalem. After Judas’ kiss of identification the priest’s guard, with authority from the Sanhedrin, arrested Jesus, not the Roman guard as is so often assumed. It was ILLEGAL for the priest’s guard to arrest a citizen, this right lay solely with the Romans by order of the court. This would not have escaped the defenders of Jesus in his trial. Could the answer be that the arrest was legal because Jesus had not lived in Palestine long enough to be classified as a citizen? Remember that John the Baptist, Jesus’ cousin did not recognize him when he baptised him, yet, as devout followers of the Jewish religion they would have met together at least three times a year to celebrate the main festivals of their religion. We can only suppose that Jesus must have been elsewhere. Where?

JOSEPH OF ARIMATHEA – NOBILIS DECURIO

It is not my purpose to delve into all the problems of Jesus’ trial though it does make fascinating reading. I am sure that you are curious as to how Glastonbury fits into all of this. In order to show this we need to look at who Joseph of Arimathea was, as he is the link between Palestine, the Holy Family and Britain. His relationship to Mary is important because the proof of that makes it probable that she and the boy Jesus would have been under his guardianship after the death of Joseph (Mary’s Husband) when Jesus was approximately twelve or thirteen years old. As rules of guardianship were very strictly adhered to it would be a reasonable assumption to say that Mary and Jesus would have travelled with Joseph of Arimathea.

It is interesting to note that Joseph of Arimathea was known as Joseph de Marmore as he lived in Marmorica in Egypt before he moved to Arimathea. This could well explain the ease with which Mary, Joseph and Jesus were able to flee to Egypt during Herod’s “slaughter of the innocents”. Without some sort of contact in Egypt to supply accommodation etc., it would have been a very perilous journey to have undertaken.

Joseph of Arimathea was referred to by the Romans as “Nobilis Decurio” or Minister of Mines to the Roman Government, he was also, as previously mentioned, the sire of a Queen of the ancient British Royal Family. Not only all this, he was also an eminent member of the Sanhedrin and worked for the defence in Jesus’ trial. It is a fact that only relatives of a crucified person could request the removal of the body from the cross, consequently Joseph of Arimathea must have been related to Jesus and was possibly Jesus’ closest living male relative, hence the use of Joseph’s tomb.

As just previously mentioned Joseph of Arimathea was a Minister of Mines for the Romans. It is a well documented fact that Britain led the world at this time with its tin. Herodotus, as far back as 450 BC writes of the British Isles as the “Cassiterides” or “Tin Islands”. In the “History of England” by Sir Edward Creasy we are told that, “The British Mines mainly supplied the glorious adornment of Solomon’s Temple”. There are other references to be found about tin in the British Isles in many early history books. At Ostia, the seaport of Rome, an archaeological dig produced an ancient Roman drain-pipe that had been bonded with tin. A section of this tin was sent to England for analysis by a Professor Forbes who declared it to be metal from the Mendip Hills which are near to Glastonbury. In Cornwall, as late as the middle 1800’s, tin miners sang songs as they worked and the chorus of one such song ran “Joseph was in the tin trade”. It is worthy of mentioning that mention of Joseph Of Arimathea in England is restricted to Cornwall and Somerset these being the only two counties that were involved in the tin trade. There are many traditions, stories etc., abounding in these two counties but nowhere else, not even in Devon which is only “next door”. It would appear that Joseph travelled only where his work took him before finally settling in Glastonbury.

Most people who have read the New Testament will be aware of the acute silence about the life of Jesus from the age of twelve when he was teaching in the temple to when he began his ministry in his 30’s. Cornwall and Somerset are full of traditions that Jesus and Mary went there. Remember, it is suggested that Ann, the Virgin Mary’s mother had lived in Cornwall and as Joseph was her brother chances are he knew people, or even had family there. We know for a fact that Joseph’s granddaughter Penardin married King Lear so she and her family must have been moving in royal circles. What more logical place for Jesus to spend years of study and preparation for his forthcoming ministry in Jerusalem than in a country where a) he had visited before as a young boy, b) where he probably had some relatives and c)where the religion of the time was similar to his own teachings.

THE BRITISH DRUIDS

It is vital to look at the religion of the day in the British Isles at this time in order to further establish reasons why Joseph, Mary and Jesus would have come here. I quote from Victor Dunstan’s “Did the Virgin Mary Live and Die in England?”

Where other than Britain could Jesus have gone? Would it have been edifying for him to dwell in Pagan Rome with it’s obscenities and cruelties? Could he have felt at home in Greece with it’s multiplicity of Gods and perversions?

The whole of Europe, from the Rhine to Spain and from the Euphrates to Calais was tainted with the depraved paganism of Rome. Even the Druidism of Gaul had become bastardised by Roman paganism and had adopted that which was abominated by every Israelite – human sacrifice.

Only in Britain was there a fountain of pure religion flowing, a religion which was uncannily similar in character to the religion of Israel.

R.W. Morgan in his excellent work “St. Paul in Britain” writes of the British Druids:

“Westward of Italy, embracing Hispania, Gallia and the Renish frontiers, portions of Germany and Scandinavia, with it’s HEADQUARTERS and GREAT SEATS OF LEARNING fixed in Britain, extended the Druidic religion. There can be no question that this was the primitive religion of mankind, covering at one period in various forms the whole surface of the ancient world.

The ramifications of Druidism penetrated, indeed, into Italy, Greece, and Asia Minor; nor did Plato hesitate to affirm that all the streams of Greek philosophy were to be traced, not to Egypt, but to the fountains of the West. The pre-historic poets of Greece anterior to the mythological creations of Homer and Hesiod, were, as their names imply, Druids…”

Theologically Jesus would have been stifled in the legalistic attitude adopted in the Temple and Synagogues of his day. When he returned to Palestine and commenced his ministry we see how far he had departed from the traditions of his fathers whilst still adhering to the divine Revelation of the books we now know as the Old Testament.”

There are many books that can be read about Druidism and they will all reveal that Britain was a centre of learning in the world even before the time of Christ. As far as culture and learning went, the British eclipsed both the Greeks and the Romans. Isabel Hill Elder writes:

“Concerning the educationaE4 Editor l facilities available to the so-called barbarous people of these islands, there were at the time of the Roman invasion FORTY DRUIDIC CENTRES OF LEARNING.

…The students of these colleges numbered at times sixty thousand of the youth and young nobility of Britain and Gaul. Caesar comments on the fact that the Gauls sent their youth to Britain to be educated.”

Knowing that Jesus had to grow in knowledge and learn the same ways that an ordinary man did would lead us to presume that he probably attended one of these great seats of learning. The way that Jesus was able to confound the Pharisees and Sadducees, themselves excellent practitioners of the art of debate, indicates that Jesus must have had a considerable education. When a Roman went to arrest Jesus he came back without having arrested him and said “Never man spake like this man”.

We now have three reasons as to why Jesus and Mary would have come to Britain.

1. Convenience. Easy transport was available through Joseph of Arimathea and there were probably relatives to stay with.

2. Education. Britain was the only land with extremely high standards of education.

3. Religion. The Druid religion was so like the religion of the Hebrews.

This third factor would have been the most important of the three as far as Jesus and Mary were concerned. The similarities between the ancient faith of Israel and that of Druidism are quite startling. Yes, there are recorded instances of human sacrifice but this must be taken in context. All religions have their bastard offshoots and Druidism was no exception. Imagine if you will what the world would teach about the religion of Israel if some archaeologists dug up the Golden Calf and nobody had written the Biblical record that we have!

I do not wish to digress into a discussion on Druidism but I feel it is essential to mention just a few points to further show why Jesus would have come to Britain.

1. For hundreds of years the Druids had looked forward to the time when their saviour would come whose name would be Hesus.

2. Druids believed in the immortality of the soul and in the resurrection of the body.

3. Israelites were not allowed to hew stone for their altars as they had been instructed “”And if thou wilt make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stone: for if thou lift up thy tool upon it, thou hast polluted it.” (Exodus 20:25, see also Deuteronomy 27:5) Druids were not allowed to hew stone for their altars either.

4. It was at Bethel that Jacob slept with his head on a stone. The central stone in the Druid circle was called Bethel.

5. Druids believed in a Godhead of three main personages but also believed in a multiplicity of gods.

6. It is believed that Druidism was founded by Gwyddon Ganhebon, supposedly Seth of the Mosaic genealogy, in Asia and was brought to Britain by Hu Gadarn a contemporary of the Patriarch Abraham.

7. Druids believed in the great law of atonement. Caesar wrote of the Druid’s belief, “The Druids teach that by no other way than the ransoming of man’s life by the life of man, is reconciliation with the divine justice of the immortal gods possible”. It can be seen quite easily how this statement could be construed to mean human sacrifice, but if you bear in mind that the Druids were awaiting Hesus who would redeem them through his death, I believe the statement drops into context. It is also a documented fact that there is no evidence of any human sacrifice by Druids having taken place in this country. Even the mysterious “Bog-Man” uncovered in peat a few years ago was proved to have come from Ireland where a separate form of Druidism was practised.

When Jesus arrived in Britain, he was in a land where the people already worshipped somebody called Hesus and which had received it’s faith from Seth and taught many of the doctrines which he would himself be later teaching although in a more correct form.

To fully understand how the Druid religion came to be in Britain after having been established in Asia would mean writing another article many pages long. Suffice it to say that when the tribes of Israel scattered some of the tribe of Ephraim made it to Britain. This is a subject that must, because of it’s enormity, be approached separately. An article about the Tribes of Israel and where they went will be written for “Truth Seeker” and I hope that it will help to tie in why Druidism was being practised in Britain so far from it’s origins.

PART TWO

WHAT HAPPENED TO JESUS?

In the previous article I mentioned briefly about the fact that Jesus did not appear to be known by his family when he began His ministry in and around Jerusalem. I also said that there was a possibility that Jesus’ arrest could have been legal if he had not lived in Palestine long enough to be classified as a citizen. So, if Jesus had not been in Palestine for very long, then where had He been?

There is a biblical period of silence that spans the time from when the Holy Family left Egypt and the time that Jesus was left behind at the Passover when He was twelve years old. This is approximately ten years of Jesus’ life of which there are no Palestinian legends or traditions. There is also another period which spans from the Passover incident at the Temple until the commencement of Jesus’ ministry. After the Holy Family’s flight into Egypt, the Passover incident is the only one recorded about their life until Jesus’ ministry.

The incident at the temple during the Passover is not all that important or profound and does not carry any great gospel message. I feel that it would be safe to assume that this incident was written about because it was the ONLY incident that the author of the account knew about. Both Jesus and Mary must have said some things worthy of note yet they do not appear to be recorded.

From the Bible we learn that many of the disciples of Jesus were either his family or his friends and as such should have been conversant with Mary and Jesus, yet we know that they did not recognise Him when He called them to join His ministry.

Bearing in mind the miraculous circumstances of Jesus’ birth and the ensuing events immediately afterwards, one would assume that the Palestinians would not have forgotten such a thing. Even King Herod recognised that the Messiah must have been born as so many prophecies were fulfilled at the time of Jesus’ birth. So, where are the records, stories or legends that you would expect to find about the family? You would expect Jesus to be the centre of attention and many people coming to Him for healing etc. After all, millions of people have gone to Lourdes to be healed by water which they believe to be divinely blessed by the Virgin Mary, many, many years after the actual vision of St. Bernadette. Human nature being what it is I would have expected queues of people every day lining up to at least “gawk” at the miracle child if not to be healed or blessed by Him.

We are left to assume that the total absence of documentary evidence about Jesus and His family during these periods must be because He was not there. Where was He?

THE FIRST CHRISTIAN CHURCH

There is much documentation and many legends and traditions that exist regarding Jesus and Mary being in Britain. I could fill pages relating old stories and legends about the two of them being in this country, particularly at Glastonbury, but it is not my purpose to spend time writing what has already been written. Anybody interested in reading these traditions may contact me for a book list which I will gladly send.

Knowing the somewhat “high-handed” opinion of itself that the Roman Catholic Church has, and also knowing that they would like to consider themselves the founder of Christianity, it is interesting to note that even today in the grand Church Councils that take place where each country is placed around a table in the order that they received Christianity, first and foremost sits Great Britain. The Catholics have tried in the past to prove this inaccurate but have never been able to prove their case. As long ago as 597 AD when it was not in the best interests of either the Roman Catholic Church or St Augustin to admit that the Roman Church was not the first church in Britain, we find St Augustin writing to Pope Gregory:

“In the Western confines of Britain there is a royal island of large extent, surrounded by water, abounding in all the beauties of nature and necessaries of life. In it the first Neophites of Catholic Law, God hath beforehand acquainted them, found a Church constructed by no human art, BUT BY DIVINE CONSTRUCTION BY THE HANDS OF CHRIST HIMSELF, for the salvation of His people.

One is led to wonder what St Augustin meant when he referred to the “church constructed by no human art, but by the hands of Christ Himself, for the salvation of His people”? Should we take this literally? It certainly seems to make clear that there was a Church already standing when Joseph of Arimathea and his companions arrived at Glastonbury. I would suggest that the word “constructed” shows that it was a material Church and not a spiritual one that had been built. The building had been erected from wattle and was considered so sacred that it is recorded that Paulinus, the companion of St Augustin, covered the old church with a protective covering of boards, with the purpose of its preservation. It is possible that it could also mean that the Glastonbury Christian community was established on a “foundation” laid by Christ Himself.

Remember that St Augustin arrived in 597 AD with the belief that the whole island was pagan. He actually found that it was only the Eastern parts which had been invaded and settled by the Saxons that were pagan, and that in the Western parts where the Britons had been driven there was a very powerful British Church which even had its own Bishops.

The royal island referred to is, without doubt, the Isle of Avalon, that is Glastonbury. I believe the first neophites (ie converts of ministers) were Joseph of Arimathea and his companions. They were granted land under the Royal Patronage of King Arviragus when they first arrived and never had to pay any taxes on the twelve hides of land that they were given.

GLASTONBURY

THE ISLE OF AVALON

Have you walked along the Mendips
Where His weary feet have gone,
When He climbed the Tor and looked out
O’er the Isle of Avalon?

Have you seen the Holy Thorn tree
Standing in the evening sun,

Full of blooms and scented perfume
On the Isle of Avalon?

And the lead mines on the hill-tops
I have often gazed upon,
Where He walked – a lonely figure
On the Isle of Avalon.

Up the Cheddar Gorge to Priddy,
In the rain and snow and sun,
Just to give His simple message
To the Isle of Avalon.

Near the Chalice Well His hut stood;

When the day of work was done
He would watch the golden sunset,
O’er the Isle of Avalon.

You may walk there, in His footsteps,
And your eyes will rest upon
Glastonbury’s sacred mountains,

On the Isle of Avalon.

Kirsten Parsons

In the beautiful countryside of Somerset in the West of England lies the town and Abbey of Glastonbury. All that is left of the Abbey are some magnificent ruins but the signs of all of it’s former glory remain. I have had the privilege of standing in the grounds at Glastonbury and feeling the stillness and the hush that appears to pervade the area. I have been moved to tears as I stand at the site reputed to be where Mary, the mother of Jesus was buried. In this world that we live in where there is so much hatred and crime and filth, it is a relief to know that there are places that you can go to receive a re-vitalisation. To me, the grounds of the Abbey at Glastonbury and the grounds of the Chalice Well are two such places. The many traditions that have grown up in and around Glastonbury are what help to contribute to the feelings of peace and beauty.

VETUSTA ECCLESIA

Probably the most hallowed of the traditions that surround Glastonbury is the story that Mary, the mother of Jesus, was buried there. It is said that she was interred in its sacred ground to become the first of a long line of saints buried at Glastonbury.

After Mary’s death, a wattle construction building was built over her home. It measured sixty feet in length and was twenty-six feet wide/ This building became known as the “Vetusta Ecclesia” or the “Lignea Basilica” and the “Ealdechurche” or “Old Church”.

An assumption has been made by several authors who have written about Glastonbury that Joseph, after the death of Mary, decreed that the place where she was buried should be dedicated as a place of worship of Christ. Not long after Mary’s death Joseph and his disciples lived together as a community around the Vetusta Ecclesia. Perhaps this was so that they could help perpetuate the continuing worship of Jesus Christ at a spot that would have been considered very sacred.

Maelgwyn wrote: “The Isle of Avalon greedy of burials…received thousands of sleepers, among whom Joseph de Marmore from Aramathea by name, entered his perpetual sleep. And he lies in a bifurcated line next the southern angle of the oratory made of circular wattles by 13 inhabitants of the place over the powerful adorable Virgin.” He also wrote concerning the other saints buried at Glastonbury: “who there awaited the day of resurrection under the protection of the Mother of God.” The implications are obvious and help to explain why the Vetusta Ecclesia later became known as “Mary’s Chapel” as well as “St Joseph’s Chapel”.

Glastonbury can boast of having the most superior cemetery in the world. There is a list that is still extant that records the names of those buried at Glastonbury and it is truly illustrious. The old cemetery, along side the Mary’s Chapel, has been called “the most holiest ground in earth;” “the most hallowed spot in Christendom;” “the burial place of the Saints.” William of Malmesbury describes it as “held in great reverence, on account of the number of Saints, Martyrs and Confessors, who had found a resting place, either by ending their days here, or whose bones, owing to its character for superior sanctity, had been translated hither…For it seems to have been the custom at Glastonbury, in early ages, to place the relics of some saint in a magnificent shrine, to attract a multitude of worshippers…It, with the venerated Vetusta Ecclesia, was called the “Tomb of the Saints.” As well as Mary and Joseph of Arimathea, Philip, plus twelve of his disciples, St Patrick of Ireland, St David, King Coel, or Hoel, (the father of Queen Helena and grandfather of Constantine), were laid to rest there. There is also evidence to suggest that the remains of King Arthur and Queen Guinivere were found not far from the cemetery and the body of the great martyr Thomas a Beckett was laid to rest here also. Is it any wonder that one can feel so at peace when standing in close proximity to such a sacred place?

Gradually, over a period of many years there was the inevitable falling away from the original teachings of Jesus Christ and Joseph of Arimathea. As the Catholic Church became more and more involved in religion so many of the earlier teachings became lost and the simplicity of the Gospel was lost in the profound “mysteries” of Catholicism. “Bigger and Better” seemed to be the motto for several centuries after about 900 -1000 AD and the simple wattle church was replaced eventually with an Abbey Church that was, without doubt, one of the finest examples of 12th Century architecture. The Mary’s Chapel was built over, destroyed and then rebuilt in the same style as the Abbey Church. Some of the most learned men in the country came there to study and the vast library of books was unequalled anywhere in the world.

In 1184 AD there was a fire which consumed the greater part of the Glastonbury Abbey including the original Wattle Church. The lead that had encased it melted and destroyed it. No real reason was ever put forward as to why the fire started but it was generally circulated at the time that candles had ignited some curtains during a wind storm.

This fire resulted in the loss of beautiful treasures of gold and silver, silk and ornaments, the value of which could not have been replaced at that time. The greatest loss of all was the famous library, considered the finest collection of books of the period, including records covering a thousand years of Glastonbury Abbey history. To most people the loss of the books that the monks worked on that were illuminated on vellum (parchment) bound in richly tooled leather and mounted with silver and gold was and still is a catastrophe; to me the greatest loss would have been the writings of those people who personally knew Joseph of Arimathea and perhaps even Jesus.

Gradually, over many years, the monks undertook the restoration of their beloved Abbey. After a little over 100 years the work on the great Church had been completed and then in 1275 AD years of work was destroyed by an earthquake that severely damaged much of the stone work. Again, the monks undertook restoration work under the supervision of the various Abbots and the Abbey was again became a building of splendour. Finally, in 1539, the Abbey came into the possession of the King, Henry VIII, and so came about its final dissolution.

E Raymond Capt writes:

“Today, having endured the weather, the storms, and the violence of many generations, Glastonbury Abbey still stands. Pilgrims from all corners of the world have visited and continue to visit this holy shrine. There can be no doubt that the Glastonbury Abbey is the oldest, continuous Christian foundation in the world. Since the time when Joseph built his first church on the Sacred Isle of Avalon, men have worshipped Christ on that site. The buildings may have changed, the ecclesiastical orders may have changed, but worship of the Lamb of God has never ceased at Glastonbury Abbey.”

THE HOLY THORN TREE

THE LITTLE THORN TREE

The little thorn tree cried and cried
When men’s hands stripped it bare,
They made a rough and cruel crown,
To put on Jesus’ hair.

He died upon the rugged cross,

From sin to set us free,
The little Thorn tree cried with shame
That day on Calvary.

Then Joseph laid His body down,
The scripture to obey,
And from the Thorn he chose a branch

To carry far away.

To Glastonbury’s hilly land,
Upon its sacred mound
He took the little Thorn tree twig
And put it in the ground.

It grew into a stately tree,
The pilgrims loved the sight,
To glory our dear Saviour’s name,
It blooms each Christmas night.

Kirsten Parsons

The legend of the Holy Thorn is one that most people are able to accept and believe as there are still several Thorns that do flower at Christmas around Glastonbury. Of course these are trees that have been grown from graftings that were grown from graftings etc., etc., but with a little imagination you can believe the trees to be the ones that grew from the staff that Joseph of Arimathea planted.

When Joseph of Arimathea arrived at Glastonbury it is said that he thrust into the ground the staff that he had carried with him from the Holy Land. Experts have declared that a staff of wood that had relatively recently been cut from a tree could take root in moist ground and begin to grow. It is said that this is what happened and that eventually a cutting was taken from the tree and grown in the grounds near the original Wattle Church.

The Glastonbury Holy Thorn Tree is somewhat unique because it has bo exact parallel among native English trees. It actually blooms twice a year which no other English tree does. The natural blooming period of the Levatine (Palestine) thorn is during the month of December whilst British ones bloom in May. The Glastonbury Thorn, of which there is one in the grounds of the Abbey ruins, one at the Chalice Well and one in the grounds of the Parish Church of St John on the Glastonbury High Street, blooms in May along with all the English trees and then again in December along with all the Palestinian trees. Cuttings from the trees have been sent to a variety of places around the world and the subsequent trees grown from the cuttings have continued to bloom twice a year.

Whether the Thorn truly came from Palestine and was planted by Joseph of Arimathea, perhaps we will never know for sure, I do not really feel that this is of great importance albeit very interesting. I do, however, feel that there is significance in the sacredness of the land around the ruins of the Abbey. I do believe that Mary the mother of Jesus was buried there and also Joseph of Arimathea. I hope that one day some form of indisputably documented proof will come to light so that the world as a whole will be able to believe if they wish to. At the moment we have to rely on documents that evolved after the great fire in the 12th Century and our own personal feelings.

PART THREE

THE CHALICE WELL

At the foot of Chalice Hill in Glastonbury there is a well that actually runs as a spring. For as long as can be remembered this well has been called either the “Chalice Well” or the “Holy Well”. The Well is fed by an underground river that is believed to originate somewhere to the north in the Mendip Hills. It is of interest to note that after excavations near to the Well in 1961 which uncovered the stump of a yew tree nearly twelve feet below the present surface, it is now generally recognised that the Well only became a well after several centuries of rainfall and then earthquakes in the 13th Century. Originally the water would have come out as a surface spring.

It is in the writings of William of Malmesbury that we find the earliest records of the Chalice Well. He said that sometimes the waters were blue and at other times they were red. Due to this statement some people have called the Chalice Well the “Blood Spring”.

The legend of the “Blood Spring” is related to the tradition that when Joseph came to Britain with the Cup of the Last Supper, he brought with him two cruets, one holding the blood and the other holding the sweat of Jesus Christ. The blood and sweat were supposedly washed from his body after the Crucifixion and prior to His entombment. It is recorded that buried with Joseph of Arimathea are the two white and silver cruets filled with the blood and sweat of the Prophet Jesus. Up to this time these cruets have never been found.

Referring back now to the Cup of the Last Supper; according to legend Joseph of Arimathea planted the Cup in the Chalice Well and after doing this the waters streamed forth blood. It is true that the water does leave a crimson deposit on the stones that it flows over and it is also true that at times the water appears very red in colour, however, I believe this to be due (as do scientists and historians) to the large levels of iron in the water. I have actually drunk from the water coming from the Well and to me it tasted like an iron bar!

Anybody who has the opportunity to visit Glastonbury should make an effort to go to the Chalice Well. Thanks to a trust fund that was set up several years ago, the grounds have been turned into beautiful gardens. There are seats scattered about and people can stay for as long as they wish. The water has been channelled from the Well and flows through the gardens forming pools. There is one section where a glass is permanently left by the water so that if you should wish to you may have a drink. The healing power of the waters is a well-documented fact stretching back hundreds of years. There is an aura of peacefulness and tranquillity in these gardens.

JOSEPH’S TOMB

In the year 1345 Edward III, King of England, gave permission to one John Bloom of London, to dig for the body of Joseph of Arimathea. Up to this time the grave had been undisturbed. John Bloom had to obtain permission from the Abbot and monks at Glastonbury Abbey and also from the Glastonbury Community. Permission was granted and apparently the remains of Joseph were found. A monk, R. de Boston, from his Lincolnshire Monastery, recorded the following: “The bodies of Joseph of Arimathea and his companions were found in Glastonbury.”

Joseph’s bones were placed in a silver casket which was then placed into a stone sarcophagus which in turn was placed at the east end of the crypt under St. Mary’s Chapel. From then on the chapel was often referred to as St. Joseph’s Chapel as well. Originally the crypt was reached by a staircase that passed the ancient Norman well of St. Joseph and this is purported to be near where John Bloom actually found the tomb of Joseph. On visiting the Abbey now, you can go into the St. Joseph’s Chapel and actually climb what is left of the original staircase by the well and emerge on the outside of the building. (Not recommended for young children, the stairs are dangerous).

By putting Joseph’s bones into a silver casket they could be easily removed and shown to the many pilgrims who came to the Abbey. It would appear from several historical documents that the stone sarcophagus of Joseph of Arimathea was still in place in the St. Joseph’s Chapel as late as 1661. One John Ray records that on June 22 1661; “we saw Joseph of Arimathea’s tomb and chapel at the end of the Church.” Later, in the same year, the same man returned to Glastonbury and records seeing the sarcophagus of St. Joseph in the ruined Chapel. (Ruined because of the earlier dissolution of the monasteries under Oliver Cromwell in 1539). John Ray was afraid that there might be another wave of Puritanical fanaticism such as had destroyed the original Thorn Tree, and fearing that Joseph’s tomb might be desecrated he removed it secretly and buried it unmarked in the church yard, adjoining the east end of St. Mary’s chapel. (I assume that he had some help in this venture as I should think that the tomb would need at least eight to ten men to lift it!)

It was two hundred and twenty-six years later that the Rev Lionel Smithett Lewis (late Vicar of Glastonbury) accidentally stumbled, quite literally, on a corner of the sarcophagus in the grave yard. The stone sarcophagus now sits under the Arthurian window of St Katherine’s Chapel in the Parish Church of St John the Baptist in the High Street of Glastonbury. The silver casket holding the bones of Joseph of Arimathea was never found.

THE CUP OF THE LAST SUPPER

“The cup, the cup, itself, from which our Lord

Drank at the last sad supper with His own.
This, from the blessed land of Aromat-
After the day of darkness, when the dead
Went wandering o’er Moriah – the good saint,
Arimathean Joseph, journeying brought
To Glastonbury, where the winter thorn
Blossoms at Christmas, mindful of our Lord.
And there awhile it bode; and if a man
Could touch or see it, he was heal’d at once,

By faith, of all his ills. But then the times
Grew to such evil that the holy cup
Was caught away to Heaven, and disappear’d.

Tennyson

For over one thousand years there has been a belief that the original cup of the Last Supper was brought to England by Joseph of Arimathea and that he buried it in the Chalice Hill near to the opening of the Chalice Well. As time ran its course so more and more legends grew up around the Cup of the Last Supper. The most famous of all these legends have to be those surrounding Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table and their inevitable quests for the “Holy Grail”. Even Indiana Jones, along with Hollywood and Sean Connery, has succeeded to further the legend and bring it to our television screens.

Whilst many romantic stories picture the Cup of the Last Supper as being made of gold or silver and encrusted with precious jewels, it is far more likely that the Cup was made of plain wood and was just an ordinary drinking vessel. (Luckily Indiana Jones made the right choice, did you see what happened to the bad guy who chose the fancy cup?!!!)

It is reported that at the time of the destruction of Glastonbury Abbey, Richard Whiting, the last Abbot, entrusted a wooden cup to his monks to carry away to safety. This cup was described as “the most precious treasure of our Abbey”. The monks fled into Wales and took sanctuary in the remote Cistercian Abbey of Strata Florida (now ruined). However, with the continual approach of King Henry’s men they had to flee even further west and they ended up at Nanteus Manor which is in a secluded valley about three miles from Aberystwyth. Over the years the monks remained safely at Nanteus Manor until eventually they began to die of old age. At that time the last surviving monk supposedly gave the Cup to the Lord of the Manor and charged him that the Cup would remain at Nanteos Manor “until the church claims her own”.

Since that time the Cup has built up a reputation of being a Healing Cup and many miraculous cures have been claimed by those afflicted who drank from the Cup. Are the remnants of the Nanteos Cup the remnants of the Cup used for the Sacrament at the Last Supper? Does it really have healing powers? The owner of the Cup now will testify in no uncertain terms of the healing power of the Cup as her daughter lay dying from a broken skull after a ladder fell on her head. The owner of the cup took it from its box and prayed that her child might live. Within minutes the hospital telephoned to say that the bleeding had stopped and her child would live. Not only did Jean (the child) live, but she completely recovered to live a perfectly normal life.

It is a moot point as to whether the cup has extraordinary healing powers or whether it is just a vehicle to motivate people’s faith. There are many who believe that this humble wooden vessel is the Cup of the Last Supper. Until we receive further light and knowledge on a subject that is so surrounded by myth, we shall never know for sure. Until that time comes I have no real reason to disbelieve the stories surrounding the Nanteos Cup.

EPILOGUE

I have tried in all that I have written to give as clear a picture of Glastonbury, Joseph of Arimathea and all the surrounding legends as I can. To some they will always remain just stories and legends, to others they will be actual events. The traditions of Glastonbury cannot be dismissed as mere fables,” for legend is not fiction, nor is truth confined only to that which can be established by documentary evidence”. It is a fact that even the “hardest” sceptics will acknowledge that legends and traditions are rooted in some basis of truth.

To those who have had the privilege to visit Glastonbury I hope that these articles have enhanced what you already knew, to those who have never visited I can only say that irrespective of whether you believe that Jesus Christ and His mother Mary lived there, or Joseph of Arimathea came there after the Crucifixion, or any of the legends and traditions, the place itself is beautiful and instills a hush upon the inner soul that it is difficult to find anywhere else. For that reason alone I would recommend a visit.

From Volume 2, Issue 3 of LDS Truth Seeker magazine.

Men in their ambition have ever sought for power, to rule and to exercise a controlling influence over their fellow men, and generally but little regard has been had to the way and means by which they have come into possession of such power, neither when obtained, has it always been used with an eye single to the salvation or benefit of mankind. The desire, we admit, is a very natural one, from the fact that man is designed by God, and capacitated in his organisation to be a ruler in a greater or less degree in the many grades that exist, from having rule over his own passions, propensities, and person, to that of a family, tribe, community or society, a state or nation an empire or a kingdom; and even his ambition may aspire to rule the world, or like God, peradventure, to sway the sceptre of unnumbered worlds.

All power is not immediately derived from the same source, but all legitimate right of Government is in the Priesthood of God. Tyrants and usurpers, under the titles of Emperors, Kings, and Presidents, have dominion upon the earth, which has been maintained and is maintained, by the sword and by blood, all of which is a usurpation of power, gained by might, and not by right. The very sound of the word Priesthood, to every man who has a correct idea of the government of God, imparts a sensation that either elevates his soul with joy, or if he feels its influence is not within his reach, it abandons him to despair. It implies a divine right to govern and control, exercised by God, and imparted to whom He will; and when held by man under His approbation, is superior to every other power, and therefore cannot virtually be called in question by any other. This right of government is so secured that no man can take the honour or power thereof unto himself, for God calls whom He will, and confers it upon him in His own appointed way; hence no man can obtain it without believing and confessing that there is a medium of immediate communication between him and his God; and all men who are called as was Aaron, by direct revelation, and ordained unto the Holy Priesthood are ordained for men, in things pertaining to God, that reconciliation may be brought to pass.

By this we learn that the Priesthood administers in a perfect organization of government, because it is the government ordained and upheld by a perfect Being; it is a holy and just authority, because it administers in things pertaining to God, and partakes of the value of all His attributes. It is reasonable, then, for us to conclude, that God would require obedience and respect to be paid to His government wherever found, and that those who hold the Priesthood should be recognised as his messengers.

Upon a point so self-evident, we have no need to reason further to authorize us to remark, that in the administration of a perfect law, there must be perfect obedience to that law, on the part of the subjects who are governed by it; otherwise there is a violation of the law, which must be atoned for by the transgressor; if it were not so, the honour of the law would not be maintained; but the law of God being perfect, not only provides for the salvation of all through mercy, but it is also armed with justice that its supremacy may be maintained by meting out a just recompense to the transgressor.

This priesthood is now among men upon the earth, and is in successful operation for their salvation. The King himself, who holds all power in this Priesthood, was upon the earth more than eighteen hundred years ago, and desired to reign by virtue of it, but mankind would not suffer him. He was holy, but men were so wicked they could not appreciate his goodness, nor his power; therefore they destroyed him, and would not suffer him to live upon the earth. And what was the result? That same holy power and influence which he possessed he conferred upon men, who were not so perfect as himself, and ordained them to be the medium of his power, that peradventure their labours and ministrations might be more adapted to the low grovelling and degraded condition of those who were to receive them, and because of it, be better appreciated than His labours and motives were.

The minds of men generally do not have the capacity to receive the ministrations of perfect beings; hence each grade of intelligences is administered unto by the next above in capacity, power, and glory, like unto the way of life to a Saint, which is from grace to grace, and from faith to faith, living by that which is in part until that which is perfect shall come. When the government of God is thoroughly established upon the earth, through the immediate agency of men and angels under God’s own supervision, and as so far gained the supremacy over contending powers, that the King’s person can be safe among men, and be duly honoured by them, then will he again come to reign, and bring in that which is perfect; then shall a universal day of peace and righteousness be enjoyed by those who inherit the earth; for the King has decreed that all who cannot abide and honour the perfect administration of his laws in that day, shall be destroyed from off the earth.

According to examples which are recorded in sacred writ, and which have actually been witnessed by many of the Saints of the present dispensation, men are called to receive the Priesthood, and in virtue of it, perform a certain work for which they seem adapted, and afterwards they are suffered to dishonour that Priesthood by using the influence which they have gained, to lead others astray; and thereby dishonour and reproach have at times been brought upon those who consider it a duty to listen to their counsel. By being enabled thus to accomplish their covetous, lustful, and unlawful ends, they have brought disgrace and suffering upon others, incurred the wrath of God and the disapprobation of His people upon themselves, and the power of the Priesthood has altogether departed from them, for its virtue will not abide with those who violate its laws.

Because of these facts, and the apparent imperfections of men on whom God confers authority the question is sometimes asked, to what extent is obedience to those who hold the Priesthood required? This is a very important question, and one which should be understood by all Saints. In attempting to answer this question we would repeat, in short, what we have already written, that willing obedience to the laws of God, administered by the Priesthood, is indispensable to salvation; but, we would further add, that a proper conservative to this power exists for the benefit of all, and none are required to tamely and blindly submit to a man because he has a portion of the Priesthood. We have heard men who hold the priesthood remark, that they would do anything they were told to do by those who presided over them, (even) even if they knew it was wrong: but such obedience as this is worse than folly to us; it is slavery in the extreme; and the man who would thus willingly degrade himself, should not claim rank among intelligent beings, until he turns from his folly. A man of God, who seeks for the redemption of his fellows, would despise the idea of seeing another become his slave, who had an equal right with himself to the favour of God; he would rather see him stand by his side, a sworn enemy to wrong, so long as there was place found for it among men. Others, in the extreme exercise of their almighty(!) authority, have taught that such obedience was necessary, and that no matter what the Saints were told to do by their Presidents, they should do it without questions.

When the Elders of Israel will so far indulge in these extreme notions of obedience, as to teach them to the people, it is generally because they have it in their hearts to do wrong themselves. and wish to pave the way to accomplish that wrong; or else because they have done wrong, and wish to use the cloak of their authority to cover it with, lest is should be discovered by their superiors, who would require an atonement at their hands.

We would ask, For what is the Priesthood given unto men? It is that they may have a right to administer the law of God. Have they then a right to make void that law? Verily no. When the law of God has gone forth from His own mouth, and been declared by the mouths of His Prophets and Apostles, saying, “Thou shalt not lie”; who can say by virtue of the Priesthood. You may lie and be approved? The Lord and His Prophets have declared it as a law unto His People, “Thou shalt not commit adultery.” Then who can say, Thou mayest commit adultery, and it will be no sin? It is written as a law unto the Saints “Thou shalt not kill.” Then we ask again, Who can kill and be forgiven? And in like manner it might be asked of all the laws of God, who has the right to make them void? None can revoke the decree but Him by whom it was given; neither can the laws of God be trampled upon with impunity or revoked by a lesser power than that by which they are framed. It is written of God that He cannot lie; then none need suppose that He will approve of it through His authority which is on the earth; neither is He the Son of Man that he should repent, therefore He will maintain the law by which His kingdom is governed. Should any think that they can give counsel to gratify their lusts, or answer avaricious ends, and say, “No one seeth us,” while they indulge therein, and indulge in sin as a sweet morsel, they will learn with sorrow, that an eye which never sleeps has been upon their path, and He that seeth in secret shall make manifest, and reward openly every man according to his deeds, whether good or evil.

If a man could have as much authority as the Almighty, it would not authorise him to do wrong, nor counsel another 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.

In administering the government of God, there are three parties concerned, viz., the subject who is governed, the person who governs, and the person by whose permission or under whose approbation, he governs. Should a person be required to violate a known law by his President, or if he is not satisfied with the counsel which he gives, he should not openly rebel against that President, but if they cannot see eye to eye, he should appeal privately to the next higher power or President, and where there three are thus brought together who have a spirit to do right, right will prevail, and harmony be maintained. While such is the character of God’s government that its genius and policy is to the end that iniquity may be swept from off the earth, persons need not think to excuse themselves for performing a known unlawful act simply because they were told to do it by another; if such an excuse as this would justify, none would ever need to come under condemnation; for men would be sure to find someone on whom to lay the burden of their sins. The day has come when every one may expect to answer for their own sins, without attempting to cloak them with another’s Priesthood.

Great is the responsibility of that man who is called to give counsel which involves the salvation of another; and when such counsel is given, it should be of that pure character, that the powers above him upon the earth, with angels and God, can approve. He will then have no occasion to destroy his own influence and power by telling others that it will be no sin for them to commit adultery, to lie or steal etc., if they are told to do it by the Priesthood, and thereby pervert the right ways of the Lord, and bring reproach upon the honour of His cause. The Lord asks for no such confidence in His Priesthood as this, neither do good men who are under its influence. The Priesthood never demands a wrong at the hands of another, though men who hold the Priesthood may make such a demand, as has sometimes been the case, and for which they have had to suffer.

Where the authority of God is, there should the confidence of all men be reposed, sufficiently to obey its laws, but not to violate them; for we have not yet learned that it has power enough to save the transgressor in his sins. Some men have been so wise as to think the little authority they had was enough for them to set aside law and revelation, and mete out justice and judgement upon their own responsibility. But in the end they have found that responsibility to be greater than they could bear.

These sentiments are not advanced with the idea of defining the limits of Divine authority, nor that any one can find language to portray the extent of the rights and powers of the Priesthood: for to fully comprehend it, would be to comprehend God. But they are offered with the consideration that Saints may be led to see the skill and manifested in its organisation; how safely it is guarded from the impositions of men, and the impossibility of sin prevailing where it is duly and wisely administered, and that none need be imposed upon if they understood the rights and privileges which it guarantees to them: then, if they do not avail themselves of this rights, they are left without excuse. Extreme exercise of power, in cases of such importance, and upon matters of such infinite moment, should be studiously avoided, when we consider that every one must render a faithful account of his stewardship.

Some have supposed that the more authority men have in the kingdom of God, the greater is their liberty to disregard His laws, and that their greatness consists in their almost unlimited privileges, which leave them without restrictions; but this is a mistaken idea. Those who are the greatest in authority are under the greatest restrictions; the law of their sphere is greater than that of those who are in less power, and the restrictions and penalty of that law are proportionately great; therefore they are under the greater obligation to maintain the virtue of the law and the institutions of God, otherwise confidence could not be reposed in them, but distrust and evil surmisings would be the result: disaffection would be found lurking in every in every avenue of society and by thus severing the cords of union, it would prove the destruction of any people.

A voice from the heavens has again been heard breaking the silences of ages, with a purpose and determination to establish the kingdom of God, and introduce a celestial government upon the earth; and if mankind will respect and obey those laws when revealed to them, they shall be saved and inherit a celestial glory. Therefore, had we the voice like the sound of a trump of the Archangel, that could be heard by all living, or had we the power of a God to penetrate and make every heart to feel and realize the truth, we would proclaim it abroad in the ears of all living – Repent ye, repent ye for the hour of God’s judgement has come, and the transgressor shall perish from off the earth, while the meek shall be redeemed to inherit it forever.

(Millennial Star, 14:594 Nov 13 1852)

“Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.

I will therefore put you in remembrance, though ye once knew this, how that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them that believed not.” (Jude 1:3-5)

Jude gives a chilling warning to the Saints of his day and it is wise to remember it and to ponder whether it might apply to the Saints of these latter-days. In connection with this, personally speaking, I have been saddened by an attitude amongst some of the Saints that seems to denigrate the role of the Prophet Joseph Smith and regard him as one of the prophets of this dispensation, rather than being the leader and head of this the final dispensation before the millennium. It has even been suggested by one local Church leader, that if Joseph Smith were alive today and did not follow the teachings of President Benson, (whether or not the teachings were wrong) then he should be excommunicated!! The quotations that follow, illustrate the thinking of the Church in the earlier part of this dispensation, and my desire is that we should all “earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints” (Jude 3) and an understanding that the role of Joseph Smith is an essential part of that faith in these the latter days.

The whole of Section 27 of the Doctrine and Covenants should be read to gain a feel of the Lord’s regard for Joseph, verse 13 is especially instructive:

13 “Unto whom I have committed the keys of my kingdom, and a dispensation of the gospel for the last times; and for the fulness of times, in the which I will gather together in one all things, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth;” (D&C: Section 27:13)

How did Brigham Young regard himself with regards to Joseph Smith? An article in the Spring 1979 “BYU Studies” p.396-398 by Ronald K. Esplin, a Church research historian gives some ideas:

“Brigham Young was first a great disciple and student of Joseph Smith and only secondly a great leader in his own right. He saw himself as the master – builder – not the architect – of the Kingdom and of Zion. And while he taught the necessity of revelation to carry out the program, and claimed revelation himself, he felt it was Joseph Smith’s special calling to have given the patterns and to have taught all the necessary principles of Priesthood and government. The responsibility of Brigham Young and the Twelve, then, was to erect, on the foundation of Joseph, the building Joseph had envisioned. This was stressed time and time again by President Young and his associates. For example, in 1866, he explained that, “on the things of God, on the building up of His Kingdom, or the doctrines Joseph taught, or anything that pertains to the Priesthood,” the memory of what he had learned at Joseph’s feet was of primary importance. “An angel never watched him closer than I did, and that is what has given me the knowledge I have today. I treasure it up, and ask the Father, in the name of Jesus, to help my memory when information is wanted and I have never been at a loss to know what to do concerning the Kingdom of God.” (Discourses of Brigham Young, 8th Oct. 1866, CHO) Again in 1868: “No matter how great my poverty – if I had to borrow meal to feed my wife and children, I never let any opportunity pass of hearing what the Prophet had to impart. This is the secret of the success of your humble servant.” (J.D. 12:270)

In a postscript to President Young’s 1866 address above, Church Historian, George A. Smith added his “testimony that the work that has been carried out by President Young and his brethren has been in accord with the plans and designs, and Spirit, and instructions of Joseph Smith, as the Lord lives.” (G.A.Smith. Minutes of meeting. 12th Feb.1848 CHO)

Brigham Young spoke very directly about the importance of Joseph on many occasions. In 1862 he said:

“I have taught for thirty years, and still teach, that he that believeth in his heart and confesseth with his mouth that Jesus is the Christ and that Joseph Smith is his Prophet to this generation, is of God; and he that confesseth not that Jesus has come in the flesh and sent Joseph Smith with the fulness of the Gospel to this generation, is not of God, but is antichrist. All who confess that Joseph Smith is sent of God in the latter days, to lay the foundation of his everlasting kingdom no more to be thrown down, and will continue to keep his commandments, are born of God.” (J.D. 9:312)

In the October General Conference of 1859 Brother Brigham spelt out the eternal significance of Joseph Smith:

“Joseph Smith holds the keys of this last dispensation, and is now engaged behind the vail in the great work of the last days. I can tell our beloved brother Christians who have slain the Prophets and butchered and otherwise caused the death of thousands of Latter-day Saints, the priests who have thanked God in their prayers and thanksgiving from the pulpit that we have been plundered, driven, and slain, and the deacons under the pulpit, and their brethren and sisters in their closets, who have thanked God, thinking that the Latter-day Saints were wasted away, something that no doubt will mortify them – something that, to say the least, is a matter of deep regret to them – namely, that no man or woman in this dispensation will ever enter into the celestial kingdom of God without the consent of Joseph Smith. From the day that the Priesthood was taken from the earth to the winding-up scene of all things, every man and woman must have the certificate of Joseph Smith, junior, as a passport to their entrance into the mansion where God and Christ are – I with you and you with me. I cannot go there without his consent. He holds the keys of that kingdom for the last dispensation – the keys to rule in the spirit-world; and he rules there triumphantly, for he gained full power and a glorious victory over the power of Satan while he was yet in the flesh, and was a martyr to his religion and to the name of Christ, which gives him a most perfect victory in the spirit-world. He reigns there as supreme a being in his sphere, capacity, and calling, as God does in heaven. Many will exclaim – “Oh, that is very disagreeable! It is preposterous! We cannot bear the thought!” But it is true.

I will now tell you something that ought to comfort every man and woman on the face of the earth. Joseph Smith, junior, will again be on this earth dictating plans and calling forth his brethren to be baptized for the very characters who wish this was not so, in order to bring them into a kingdom to enjoy, perhaps, the presence of angels or the spirits of good men, if they cannot endure the presence of the Father and the Son; and he will never cease his operations, under the directions of the Son of God, until the last ones of the children of men are saved that can be, from Adam till now.

Should not this thought comfort all people? They will, by-and-by, be a thousand times more thankful for such a man as Joseph Smith, junior, than it is possible for them to be for any earthly good whatever. It is his mission to see that all the children of men in this last dispensation are saved, that can be, through the redemption. You will be thankful, every one of you, that Joseph Smith, junior, was ordained to this great calling before the worlds were. I told you that the doctrine of election and reprobation is a true doctrine. It was decreed in the counsels of eternity, long before the foundations of the earth were laid, that he should be the man, in the last dispensation of this world, to bring forth the word of God to the people, and receive the fulness of the keys and power of the Priesthood of the Son of God. The Lord had his eye upon him, and upon his father and upon his father’s father, and upon their progenitors clear back to Abraham, and from Abraham to the flood, from the flood to Enoch, and from Enoch to Adam. He has watched that family and that blood as it has circulated from its fountain to the birth of that man. He was foreordained in eternity to preside over this last dispensation, as much so as Pharaoh was fore-ordained to be a wicked man, or as was Jesus to be the Saviour of the world because he was the oldest son in the family.” (J.D. 7:289-290)

President George Q Cannon, in 1882, covered many of the points that need to be considered in relation to the leadership of this dispensation. For example, there are those who feel that the living prophet takes precedence over the dead prophets – but can truth contradict truth? Surely, the error is when we try to make eternal principles merely passing fancies or conveniently re-categorise them as policies, subject to updating. Also, in the eyes of God, is anyone dead?

I witness that Brother Joseph and Brother Brigham are alive today.

The following very lengthy excerpt from President Cannon is included because of its great relevance to the issues before us, and refutes most of the negative assertions of today, such as the lie that Joseph relinquished his keys by passing them on.

“God revealed to the Prophet Joseph Smith the necessity of the Priesthood, and until the Priesthood was bestowed, though he had the gifts which constitute a Prophet, Revelator and Seer prior to receiving it, having had the gift of prophecy, and revelations from God, and having exercised the Seer’s gift by looking through the Urim and Thummim – he never attempted to act in any capacity beyond that in which God authorized him to act. Although he possessed the gifts that I have referred to, he never attempted to act in any ordinance of the house of God, or that belongs to the Church of God, until he received authority to do so. And that authority was not conferred upon him when he first saw angels and had some of the gifts of which I have spoken. It required the laying on of the hands of some personage or personages who had the authority of the holy Priesthood. No, Joseph never ran until he was sent. He exhibited in this the qualities of a man that he was; because there are few men, as we well know, who, if they had obtained the gifts that he possessed, would not have overstepped the limit of their calling and authority, and done something beyond their province. But Joseph did not err in this way; he had been too well taught of the Lord, and therefore he waited. He never attempted to preach the Gospel, or to baptize for the remission of sins. But when he found that it was necessary for him to receive the Priesthood, he called upon the Lord, and the Lord heard his prayer, and in answer to his call and that of Oliver Cowdery, sent to them John the Baptist, a literal descendant of Aaron who, by virtue of his descent, held the keys of the Aaronic Priesthood, be being the last man upon the earth that held these keys. John had been ordained by the angel of the Lord at the time he was eight days old unto this power, and to overthrow the kingdom of the Jews, and to prepare the way of the Lord. Having been thus ordained by the angel of the Lord, and having been baptized while he was yet in his childhood, and holding the authority and the keys of the Aaronic Priesthood, he was a fit personage to come and bestow the keys upon Joseph, who had been chosen to stand at the head of this dispensation. He came, and he laid his hands upon Joseph, and upon Oliver, and conferred upon them the Aaronic Priesthood, which authorized them to administer the ordinance of baptism for the remission of sins. When Joseph received that authority he administered the ordinance of baptism unto Oliver, and then Oliver unto him.

They afterwards received the authority of the Melchizedek Priesthood, under the hands of those who last held the key of the Priesthood upon the earth. When Jesus, you will remember, took His three disciples into the mount, He was transfigured before them, and Moses and Elias administered unto them; and at that time Peter was ordained to hold the keys of that dispensation. He held the keys in conjunction with his brethren, James and John. They came and unitedly laid their hands upon the heads of Joseph and Oliver, and ordained them to the authority that they themselves held, namely, that of the Apostleship. In this way they received the authority of the Melchizedek Priesthood, and could administer in the ordinances that belong to that Priesthood; one of which is the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost. Until that time they had not received that ordinance. Some might think it strange that a man like Joseph, so gifted of the Lord, should deem it necessary to be administered to by a man or men holding the holy Priesthood, in order to receive the Holy Ghost. But it is upon the same principle that the Son of God had to be baptized in order to fulfil all righteousness; and yet He was a pure and holy being. And when John said to him, “I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me?” Jesus said to him, “Suffer it to be so now; for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness:” and John then administered the ordinance of baptism to the son of God, pure and holy as He was. Our Saviour could not, and did not, refuse to comply with any of the ordinances which are placed in the Church for the salvation of God’s children; on the contrary, He set the example by going down into the water and being baptized by John, even as the most humble of his followers did. In like manner it was as necessary that Joseph should be baptized, and have hands laid upon him for the reception of the Holy Ghost – for there is no doubt in my mind that Joseph Smith was called just as the Son of God, our Lord and Redeemer was called, before the foundation of the earth, as Jeremiah in his record says he was – and was ordained to be a Prophet, Seer and Revelator, and to stand at the head of this last dispensation. Although this was the case, it was still necessary that he should be baptized and have hands laid upon him for the reception of the Holy Ghost, and also be ordained to the Priesthood of Aaron and Melchizedek. You remember reading in the Book of Mormon that the Twelve on this continent, whom the Saviour chose after His resurrection, are to be judged by the Twelve Apostles that were at Jerusalem. It was with Peter, who was the senior Apostle there, that the keys rested. He was at the head of that dispensation; therefore, those that received the Apostleship on this land were to be judged by the Twelve at Jerusalem. There the keys were; and it was right and proper that Peter, with James and John, should come and bestow them upon him who was to be the head of this dispensation, namely, Joseph Smith.

In addition to this the Prophet Joseph informs us in his letter, addressed to the Saints when he fled away from Nauvoo to escape the hands of his enemies, that “It is necessary in the ushering in of the dispensation of the fullness of times, which dispensation is now beginning to usher in, that a whole and complete and perfect union, and welding together of dispensations, and keys, and powers, and glories should take place, and be revealed from the days of Adam even to the present time.” He, therefore, received the ministration of divers angels – heads of dispensations – from Michael or Adam down to the present time; every man in his time and season coming to him, and all declaring their dispensation, their rights, their keys, their honors, their majesty and glory, and the power of their Priesthood. So that Joseph, the head of this dispensation, Prophet, Seer and Revelator, whom God raised up, received from all these different sources, according to the mind and will of God, and according to the design of God concerning him; he received from all these different sources all the power and all the authority and all keys that were necessary for the building up of the work of God in the last days, and for the accomplishment of His purposes connected with this dispensation. He stands at the head. He is a unique character, differing from every other man in this respect, and excelling every other man. Because he was the head God chose him, and while he was faithful no man could take his place and position. He was faithful, and died faithful. He stands therefore at the head of this dispensation, and will throughout all eternity, and no man can take that power away from him. If any man holds these keys, he holds them subordinate to him. You never heard President Young teach any other doctrine; he always said that Joseph stood at the head of this dispensation; that Joseph holds the keys; that although Joseph had gone behind the veil he stood at the head of this dispensation, and that he himself held the keys subordinate to him. President Taylor teaches the same doctrine, and you will never hear any other doctrine from any of the faithful Apostles or servants of God, who understand the order of the Holy Priesthood. If we get our salvation we shall have to pass by him; if we enter into our glory it will be through the authority that he has received. We cannot get around him; we cannot get around President Young; we cannot get around President Taylor; we cannot get around the Twelve Apostles. If we ever attain to that eternal glory that God has promised tot the faithful we shall have to pass by them. If we enter into our exaltation, it will be because they, as the servants of God, permit us to pass by, just as the revelation says, “pass by the angels and the Gods, which are set there,” to our exaltation.

You know that Jesus said to His Apostles in ancient days, that they should “sit upon twelve thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.” And Paul says, “The Saints shall judge the world.” This is true. Joseph, then, stands at the head; and then every man in his place after him until you come down to the Elder, the most humble Elder of the Church who has proclaimed the Gospel of the Son of God to the inhabitants of the earth. He will sit as a judge to judge those who have received or those who have rejected his testimony. He will stand as a swift witness before the judgment seat of God against this generation. He will lift up his voice testifying as to that which he has done, and men will be condemned, and men will be justified and women will be justified according to the testimony of the faithful servants of God, each one in his place and station; but Joseph, holding the keys, and presiding over all, subordinate, however, to him from whom he received the keys, as he (Peter) will be subordinate to the Son of God who placed them upon him; each one in his dispensation; each one in his place; each exercising the authority of his Priesthood; each man honouring God according to his faithfulness and diligence in magnifying that Priesthood and calling that God has placed upon him; and each woman in her place receiving her share of glory and honor according to her faithfulness in keeping the commandments of God, and honouring the Priesthood.

I present this matter before you that you may see that when Joseph died he had embodied in him all the keys and all the authority, all the powers and all the qualifications necessary for the head of a dispensation, to stand at the head of this great last dispensation. They had been bestowed upon him through the providences of God, and through the command of God to his faithful servants who lived in ancient days. There was no end scarcely, in many respects, to the knowledge that he received. He was visited constantly by angels; and the Son of God Himself condescended to come and minister unto him, the Father having also shown Himself unto him; and these various angels, the heads of dispensations, having also ministered unto him. Moroni, in the beginning, as you know, to prepare him for his mission, came and ministered and talked to him from time to time, and he had vision after vision in order that his mind might be fully saturated with a knowledge of the things of God, and that he might comprehend the great and holy calling that God has bestowed upon him. In this respect he stands unique. There is no man in this dispensation can occupy the station that he, Joseph did, God having reserved him and ordained him for that position, and bestowed upon him the necessary power. Think of what he passed through! Think of his afflictions, and think of his dauntless character! Did any one ever see him falter? Did any one ever see him flinch? Did any one ever see any lack in him of the power necessary to enable him to stand with dignity in the midst of his enemies, or lacking in dignity in the performance of his duties as a servant of the living God? God gave him peculiar power in this respect. He was filled with integrity to God; with such integrity as was not known among men. He was like an angel of God among them. Notwithstanding all that he had to endure, and the peculiar circumstances in which he was so often placed, and the great responsibility that weighed constantly upon him, he never faltered; the feeling of fear or trembling never crossed him – at least he never exhibited it in his feelings or actions. God sustained him to the very last, and was with him, and bore him off triumphant even in his death.

While he was in possession of all his faculties, and likely to live for many years to lead the Church – in fact the people believed that he would live to redeem Zion – when he was thus situated, impressed by the Spirit and power of God, he called together our leading men, and he bestowed upon the Twelve Apostles all the keys and authority and power that he himself possessed and that he had received from the Lord. He gave unto them every endowment, every washing, every anointing, and administered unto them the sealing ordinances and taught them the character of those ordinances, and revealed unto them the doctrine of celestial marriage, and impressed upon them the importance of their obedience to the same, and made it obligatory upon them that they should obey it and carry it out in their lives, and teach it to others. He taught these brethren that unless they did this the kingdom would stop, it could not make further progress. And filled with the power of God, he blessed them and placed those keys and this authority upon them, and told them that he had thus ordained them to bear off the kingdom. That there was no key that he held, there was no authority that he exercised that he did not bestow upon the Twelve Apostles at that time. Of course, in doing this he did not divest himself of the keys; but he bestowed upon them these keys and this authority and power, so that they held them in their fullness as he did, differing only in this respect, that they exercised them subordinate to him as the head of the dispensation. He ordained them to all this authority, without withholding a single power or key or ordinance that he himself had received.” (J.D. 23:359-363)

A strong and beautiful confirmation that Joseph Smith still holds the keys to this dispensation.

Why is it so important to understand the issue of Presidency of this dispensation? Simply because we must always be very careful to look to the Lord in all things. He has given categorical witness of Brother Joseph, He has used him to open this dispensation and will yet use him to close it.

The Fulness of the Priesthood was given to Joseph and, through him, to others. If we are to look for the fulness, we need to search for those who hold the keys and who live the fulness, head of which in our dispensation is Joseph Smith. Where any conflict or dispute may arise it is to the scriptures and the teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith that we must look, for, as Brother Brigham said, it is Joseph whom we must pass by to reach our Saviour and God. Do not be misled.

Parley P. Pratt was trudging back to Nauvoo with a heavy heart, and an air of despair, after learning that Joseph had been killed, when he found out, as we can all find out, through the promptings of the Spirit of God:

“As I walked over the plains of Illinois (toward Nauvoo) …The Spirit said unto me: “Lift up your head and rejoice; for behold! It is well with my servants Joseph and Hyrum. My servant Joseph still holds the keys of my Kingdom in this dispensation, and he shall stand in due time upon the earth, in the flesh, and fulfil that to which he is appointed.” (Autobiography of Parley P. Pratt. p.333)

The choice is yours: Joseph Smith, A Prophet of this dispensation, or THE Prophet of this dispensation. We would be wise to follow the counsel given to Thomas B. Marsh by the Lord in 1837, as we await the Second coming of our Saviour.

15 Exalt not yourselves; rebel not against my servant Joseph; for verily I say unto you, I am with him, and my hand shall be over him; and the keys which I have given unto him, and also to youward, shall not be taken from him till I come. (D&C: Section 112:15)

 From Volume 1, Issue 2 of LDS Truth Seeker magazine.

How much responsibility do we have to follow our leaders?

Should this extend to the degree that we should obey those who preside over us even when we know that what they are telling us is wrong?

There is a great difference of opinion within the Church today on this very subject, to the extent that recently a large Sunday School class that the author attended, was literally split down the middle, with one side claiming that: “We should follow our leaders, no matter what they ask us to do, even if we know that what they are asking us to do is wrong,” the other side stressing the point that: “We should only follow our leaders in righteousness, as they follow the Lord.”

This article will look into the principle of individual accountability, and will see that it is not something that has been brought about solely in this last dispensation, but has been a principle of the Gospel from before the foundation of the world, inextricably linked with one of the most important doctrines of all – FREE AGENCY.

In the Book of Moses, there is reference to the pre-existence, and to a discussion that went on there. This event that occurred had everlasting consequences, and gives us an insight into the plan that Satan felt would be a “sure-fire” way of achieving exaltation for all of the spirit children of our Heavenly Parents:

<blockquote>1 And I, the Lord God, spake unto Moses, saying: That Satan, whom thou hast commanded in the name of mine Only Begotten, is the same which was from the beginning, and he came before me, saying–Behold, here am I, send me, I will be thy son, and I will redeem all mankind, that one soul shall not be lost, and surely I will do it; wherefore give me thine honor. 2 But, behold, my Beloved Son, which was my Beloved and Chosen from the beginning, said unto me–Father, thy will be done, and the glory be thine forever. 3 Wherefore, because that Satan rebelled against me, and sought to destroy the agency of man, which I, the Lord God, had given him, and also, that I should give unto him mine own power; by the power of mine Only Begotten, I caused that he should be cast down; 4 And he became Satan, yea, even the devil, the father of all lies, to deceive and to blind men, and to lead them captive at his will, even as many as would not hearken unto my voice. (PoGP:Moses 4:1-4)
</blockquote>

The high-lighted pieces in the scripture above gives us valuable insight into part of Satan’s plan. i.e. SATAN FELT THAT BY STOPPING MEN’S FREE AGENCY, HE COULD REDEEM ALL MANKIND.

Heavenly Father’s plan meant that we are all individually accountable for our own actions. We are the ones who must be blessed or punished for our own actions, nobody else has the God given right to claim that they have the authority to give us the permission to sin. Remember the Article of Faith:

<blockquote>We believe that men will be punished for their own sins and not for Adam’s transgression. (Articles of Faith 2.)</blockquote>

If we do wrong, and do not repent of that wrong-doing, justice will take its course, no matter who tells us otherwise. Brigham Young, Prophet of God, confirmed this:

<blockquote>”If a bishop or any other officer in this Church shall counsel the people to violate any of the laws of God, and to sustain and build up the kingdoms of this world, I will justify them, and the Lord will justify them in refusing to obey that counsel.” (B.Young. J.D.12:164)</blockquote>

It is imperative that we remember that no man can be saved in his sins (Alma 11:37), and also that no unclean thing can enter into the kingdom of God.

But, what is real sin? Can a person sin unknowingly and be punished for that lack of understanding?

The Book of Mormon states that:

<blockquote>”He that knoweth not good from evil is blameless.” (Alma 29:5)</blockquote>

But when we combine this scripture with D/C 131:6 we realise that we cannot use this scripture as an excuse at the judgement bar:

<blockquote>”It is impossible for a man to be saved in ignorance.” (D/C 131:6)</blockquote>

We have to find out what is right and what is wrong, and live our lives in accordance with that knowledge.

<blockquote>”A man sins when he violates his conscience, going contrary to light and knowledge – not the light and knowledge that has come to his neighbour, but that which has come to himself. He sins when he does the opposite of what he knows to be right.” (Orson F. Whitney. Saturday Night Thoughts, p. 329)</blockquote>

Remember that which will save us:

<blockquote>Men will be saved in the last days as in former days, according to their faith and willingness to receive the word of God, and walk in it. (F. D. Richards. J.D. 1:321)</blockquote>

But, surely we can rely on the Prophet of the Church, or the Apostles, or our Bishops to teach us correctly those things that we need to do?

We have often heard that there is safety in following the brethren. Surely as the Lord’s representatives upon the face of the earth they will tell us what the Lord wants us to hear… won’t they?

We have often heard that we will be blessed for following the prophet, or any of the brethren, even if what they tell us is wrong, isn’t that so?

These sort of questions are often asked of those who “dare” to question that which the Prophet has spoken. This belief in following the brethren without question, has even permeated down to local levels, where some Bishops, Stake Presidents and even some Priesthood holders without any callings, expect and even require others to follow them, sometimes using their “Priesthood” to coerce, control or sometimes even force weak minded brothers and sisters into agreeing to do things that they might know are wrong.

The Lord recognized that this situation might occur, and through the Prophet Joseph Smith spoke these words:-

<blockquote>34 Behold, there are many called, but few are chosen. And why are they not chosen? 35 Because their hearts are set so much upon the things of this world, and aspire to the honors of men, that they do not learn this one lesson– 36 That the rights of the priesthood are inseparably connected with the powers of heaven, and that the powers of heaven cannot be controlled nor handled only upon the principles of righteousness. 37 That they may be conferred upon us, it is true; but when we undertake to cover our sins, or to gratify our pride, our vain ambition, or to exercise control or dominion or compulsion upon the souls of the children of men, in any degree of unrighteousness, behold, the heavens withdraw themselves; the Spirit of the Lord is grieved; and when it is withdrawn, Amen to the priesthood or the authority of that man. 38 Behold, ere he is aware, he is left unto himself, to kick against the pricks, to persecute the saints, and to fight against God. 39 We have learned by sad experience that it is the nature and disposition of almost all men, as soon as they get a little authority, as they suppose, they will immediately begin to exercise unrighteous dominion. 40 Hence many are called, but few are chosen. 41 No power or influence can or ought to be maintained by virtue of the priesthood, only by persuasion, by long-suffering, by gentleness and meekness, and by love unfeigned; 42 By kindness, and pure knowledge, which shall greatly enlarge the soul without hypocrisy, and without guile– 43 Reproving betimes with sharpness, when moved upon by the Holy Ghost; and then showing forth afterwards an increase of love toward him whom thou hast reproved, lest he esteem thee to be his enemy; 44 That he may know that thy faithfulness is stronger than the cords of death. (D&C: Section 121:34-44)</blockquote>

We recognise then, that if anybody tries to exercise control, dominion or compulsion by virtue of the Priesthood, then that person will forfeit that very same Priesthood.

Asking or telling somebody to do something that is wrong by virtue of the Priesthood, is exercising that Priesthood in a large degree of unrighteousness. Remember that the Lord said that any degree of unrighteous is enough to lose the Priesthood. (see verse 37)

But, I hear you say, surely a Priesthood holder might not realise that what they are telling somebody to do is wrong.

Maybe verse 42 in the above quotation explains this. That PURE KNOWLEDGE should be used in conjunction with the Priesthood.

Pure knowledge comes from God by His Holy Spirit (D/C 121:26), and it is as important that the recipient of the message should know that it comes from our Heavenly Father, as the person through which the communication originally came. Brigham Young, amongst others stressed this point many times very effectively:-

<blockquote>We must have that living witness within us. We need the light of the Holy Spirit continually, day by day, as you have been told hundreds of times. How easy it would be for your leaders to lead you to destruction, unless you actually know the mind and will of the Spirit yourselves. That is your privilege. (B.Young. J.D.4:368)</blockquote>

again:-

<blockquote>What a pity it would be if we were led by one man to utter destruction! Are you afraid of this? I am more afraid that this people have so much confidence in their leaders that they will not inquire for themselves of God whether they are led by Him. I am fearful they settle down in a state of blind self-security, trusting their eternal destiny in the hands of their leaders with a reckless confidence that in itself would thwart the purposes of God in their salvation, and weaken that influence they could give to their leaders, did they know for themselves, by the revelations of Jesus, that they are led in the right way. Let every man and woman know, by the whispering of the Spirit of God to themselves, whether their leaders are walking in the path the Lord dictates, or not. This has been my exhortation continually. (B.Young. J.D.9:150)</blockquote>

again:-

<blockquote>I cannot be satisfied with myself, neither can I be satisfied with this people, unless they live in the enjoyment of the Spirit of the Lord Jesus Christ, having the testimony of Jesus within them. When they live in that manner, they are prepared to judge of all matters that come before them; they are then capable of discerning between truth and error, light and darkness. They can then readily discover the things that are not of God, and distinguish them from those that are. This is the only way for you to know that your leaders are leading you in the path that leads to heaven. Without taking this course, a people or nation is liable to be led astray by their leaders, and thereby be prepared to be destroyed; but when the people understand for themselves – when they know and understand the things of God by the Spirit of revelation, they are not only satisfied but safe. (B.Young. J.D.5:2)</blockquote>

and again:-

<blockquote>I wish to impress upon the minds of the Saints the importance of so living that they will always know the voice of the Good Shepherd. When they hear the voice of the Spirit of inspiration – the power of God, through any person, let the feelings and sensibilities of every one who professes to know anything of the things of God, be in a state to know and discern between that which is of God and that which is not. I have exhorted the brethren, all the day long, in this way. My whole study is employed and my whole soul is drawn out to induce this people to live their religion. How often has it been taught that if you depend entirely upon the voice, judgment, and sagacity of those appointed to lead you, and neglect to enjoy the Spirit for yourselves, how easily you may be led into error, and finally be cast off to the left hand? (B.Young. J.D.8:59)</blockquote>

once more:-

<blockquote>I have often said to the Latter-day Saints – “Live so that you will know whether I teach you truth or not.” Suppose you are careless and unconcerned, and give way to the spirit of the world, and I am led, likewise, to preach the things of this world and to accept things that are not of God, how easy it would be for me to lead you astray! But I say to you, live so that you will know for yourselves whether I tell the truth or not. That is the way we want all Saints to live. Will you do it? Yes, I hope you will, every one of you. (B.Young. J.D.18:248)

</blockquote>

But shouldn’t we have confidence in the brethren who lead the Church? Shouldn’t we be satisfied with that which they say and do? Isn’t questioning a lack of faith?

The same Prophet of God who made the remarks above, said this:-

Some may say, “Brethren, you who lead the Church, we have all confidence in you, we are not in the least afraid but what everything will go right under your superintendence; all the business matters will be transacted right; and if brother Brigham is satisfied with it, I am.” I do not wish any Latter-day Saint in this world, nor in heaven, to be satisfied with anything I do, unless the Spirit of the Lord Jesus Christ, the spirit of revelation, makes them satisfied. I wish them to know for themselves and understand for themselves, for this would strengthen the faith that is within them. Suppose that the people were heedless, that they manifested no concern with regard to the things of the kingdom of God, but threw the whole burden upon the leaders of the people, saying, “If the brethren who take charge of matters are satisfied, we are,” this is not pleasing in the sight of the Lord. Every man and woman in this kingdom ought to be satisfied with what we do, but they never should be satisfied without asking the Father, in the name of Jesus Christ, whether what we do is right. When you are inspired by the Holy Ghost you can understandingly say, that you are satisfied; and that is the only power that should cause you to exclaim that you are satisfied, for without that you do not know whether you should be satisfied or not. You may say that you are satisfied and believe that all is right, and your confidence may be almost unbounded in the authorities of the Church of Jesus Christ, but if you asked God, in the name of Jesus, and received knowledge for yourself, through the Holy Spirit, would it not strengthen your faith? It would. (B.Young. J.D.3:45)

But if we cannot place our trust implicitly in our leaders, then who can we trust?

Let’s turn to the scriptures for a while and see what they say:-

34 O Lord, I have trusted in thee, and I will trust in thee forever. I will not put my trust in the arm of flesh; for I know that cursed is he that putteth his trust in the arm of flesh. Yea, cursed is he that putteth his trust in man or maketh flesh his arm. (BofM:2 Nephi 4:34)

5 Thus saith the LORD; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the LORD. 6 For he shall be like the heath in the desert, and shall not see when good cometh; but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land and not inhabited. 7 Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is. 8 For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit. (OldT:Jeremiah 17:5-8)

Isn’t it plainly obvious, that we should trust in the Lord, as He is the source of truth and light, and we will never be deceived if we know Him and His will concerning us.

But, I hear you say, surely the leaders of the Church are more worthy to be able to know God than we are? Joseph Smith answered this very question:-

“Search the scriptures – search the revelations which we publish, and ask your Heavenly Father, in the name of His Son Jesus Christ, to manifest the truth unto you, and if you do it with an eye single to His glory nothing doubting, He will answer you by the power of His Holy Spirit. You will then know for yourselves and not for another. You will not then be dependant on man for the knowledge of God; nor will there be any room for speculation. No; for when men receive their instruction from Him that made them, they know how He will save them.” (T.P.J.S. p.11-12)

In fact if we depend or rely on our leaders we will never become Gods in the Celestial Kingdom!

If you are cheated out of your crown at last, who has cheated you? These questions may apply in different ways. They may apply to the business operations of the world, as well as to the grace of God in the heart, and the salvation of the soul. It is to the latter I wish them more particularly to apply. Who has influence over any one of you, to cause you to miss salvation in the celestial kingdom of God? I will answer these questions for myself. If brother Brigham and I shall take a wrong track, and be shut out of the kingdom of heaven, no person will be to blame but brother Brigham and I. I am the only being in heaven, earth, or hell, that can be blamed.

This will equally apply to every Latter-day Saint. Salvation is an individual operation. I am the only person that can possibly save myself. When salvation is sent to me, I can reject or receive it. In receiving it, I yield implicit obedience and submission to its great Author throughout my life, and to those whom He shall appoint to instruct me; in rejecting it, I follow the dictates of my own will in preference to the will of my Creator. There are those among this people who are influenced, controlled, and biased in their thoughts, actions, and feelings by some other individual or family, on whom they place their dependence for spiritual and temporal instruction, and for salvation in the end. These persons do not depend upon themselves for salvation, but upon another of their poor, weak, fellow mortals. “I do not depend upon any inherent goodness of my own,” say they, “to introduce me into the kingdom of glory, but I depend upon you, brother Joseph, upon you, brother Brigham, upon you, brother Heber, or upon you, brother James; I believe your judgment is superior to mine, and consequently I let you judge for me; your spirit is better than mine, therefore you can do good for me; I will submit myself wholly to you, and place in you all my confidence for life and salvation; where you go I will go, and where you tarry there I will stay; expecting that you will introduce me through the gates into the heavenly Jerusalem.”

I wish to notice this. We read in the Bible, that there is one glory of the sun, another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars. In the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, these glories are called telestial, terrestrial, and celestial, which is the highest. These are worlds, different departments, or mansions, in our Father’s house. Now those men, or those women, who know no more about the power of God, and the influences of the Holy Spirit, than to be led entirely by another person, suspending their own understanding, and pinning their faith upon another’s sleeve, will never be capable of entering into the celestial glory, to be crowned as they anticipate; they will never be capable of becoming Gods. They cannot rule themselves, to say nothing of ruling others, but they must be dictated to in every trifle, like a child. They cannot control themselves in the least, but James, Peter, or somebody else must control them, They never can become Gods, nor be crowned as rulers with glory, immortality, and eternal lives. They never can hold sceptres of glory, majesty, and power in the celestial kingdom. Who will? Those who are valiant and inspired with the true independence of heaven, who will go forth boldly in the service of their God, leaving others to do as they please, determined to do right, though all mankind besides should take the opposite course. Will this apply to any of you? Your own hearts can answer. (B.Young. J.D.1:312-313)

This is probably one of the most unequivocal statements on this very important principle and is well worth reading over again and again to understand it in it’s entirety. The scriptures totally back up its sentiments. There is no scripture that recommends that we follow our leaders in unrighteousness. If that were so, Joseph never would have bothered to pray about which Church to join, he would have been able to have been saved by following his unrighteous leaders!

To contemplate the logic behind the statement that we will be blessed for following a leader if he tells us to do something wrong, is ludicrous in the extreme.

As Joseph was translating the Bible under the inspiration of the Lord, one scripture that emphasises this principle came to light, spoken by the Lord Jesus Christ himself:-

40 Therefore, if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: or if thy brother offend thee and confess not and forsake not, he shall be cut off. It is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands, to go into hell. 41 For it is better for thee to enter into life without thy brother, than for thee and thy brother to be cast into hell; into the fire that never shall be quenched, where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. 42 And again, if thy foot offend thee, cut it off; for he that is thy standard, by whom thou walkest, if he become a transgressor, he shall be cut off. 43 It is better for thee, to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched: 44 Therefore, let every man stand or fall, by himself, and not for another; or not trusting another. 45 Seek unto my Father, and it shall be done in that very moment what ye shall ask, if ye ask in faith, believing that ye shall receive. 46 And if thine eye which seeth for thee, him that is appointed to watch over thee to show thee light, become a transgressor and offend thee, pluck it out. 47 It is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God, with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire. (NewT:I.V.Mark 9:43-47)

I think that the above quotation is self explanatory, and confirms that we should stand up for truth and righteousness whatever the consequences, even if those who lead us tell us to do wrong, or else hell fire is the outcome!

It isn’t always popular following the truth, but we should be willing to do it at all costs, even if there is no-one else around us who is willing to stand up with us and be counted. Joseph Smith felt this way, and said:

“It mattereth not whether the principle is popular or unpopular, I will always maintain a true principle, even if I stand alone in it.” (T.P.J.S. p.332)

In the Doctrine and Covenants, one of the most glorious visions in this dispensation confirms that if we are deceived by men, and follow not God, we shall inherit the Terrestrial Kingdom, and not the Celestial:-

61 Wherefore, let no man glory in man, but rather let him glory in God, who shall subdue all enemies under his feet. 62 These shall dwell in the presence of God and his Christ forever and ever. (D&C: Section 76:61-62) 75 These are they who are honourable men of the earth, who were blinded by the craftiness of men. 76 These are they who receive of his glory, but not of his fulness. 77 These are they who receive of the presence of the Son, but not of the fulness of the Father. 78 Wherefore, they are bodies terrestrial, and not bodies celestial, and differ in glory as the moon differs from the sun. (D&C: Section 76:75-78)

The only quotation that is given that opposes all the statements that have been made is one by Heber J. Grant:-

“My boy, you always keep your eye on the President of the Church, and if he ever tells you to do anything and it is wrong, and you do it, the Lord will bless you for it. But you don’t need to worry, the Lord will never let his mouthpiece lead the people astray.” (Marion G. Romney. Oct 1960 Gen. Conference)

What a strange quotation! If the second part of the statement is true, then the first part of the statement should never have been made. All that the first part of the quotation has done has been to confuse people, and to give them a statement that is entirely opposed to that which has been revealed by all the prophets that have ever lived and is totally contrary to scripture.

The second part of the statement, that: “the Lord will never let his mouthpiece lead the people astray,” is again opposed to scriptures. (The Lord even said to the Prophet Joseph Smith to watch himself unless he falls. (see D/C 3:9-11))

The declaration seems to be based on a statement that was made by Wilford Woodruff reported in the Deseret Evening News 13th October 1890, which states: “The Lord will never permit me or any other man who stands as President of the Church to lead you astray.” This statement, on its own, seems confusing, and again, is opposed to all that which has been said before. But if we look to a previously made, similar statement by the Prophet Wilford Woodruff, we see what he was meaning, and obviously what he should have said.

“God will not permit me, or any other President who holds the keys, to intentionally lead you astray.” (W. Woodruff. Deseret Evening News 13th April 1889)

As has been mentioned, again and again, this is the whole reason why our Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, Joseph Smith, Brigham Young and others have continually proclaimed the importance of finding out what is true for ourselves. Prophets are men, human beings, capable of making mistakes, we shouldn’t follow those mistakes, but we should follow the truth, which has been confirmed to us by the Spirit of God.

Isn’t it amazing, how one statement, possibly mistakenly made, has caused so much confusion amongst members of the Church, even to the extent that certain people are being excommunicated for reserving the right to question, and not to follow blindly.

Samuel Richards, in the Millennial Star in 1852, said the following:-

“We have heard men who hold the Priesthood remark, that they would do anything they were told to do by those who presided over them, even if they knew it was wrong; but such obedience as this is worse than folly to us; it is slavery in the extreme; and the man who would thus willingly degrade himself, should not claim a rank among intelligent beings, until he turns from his folly… Others, in the extreme exercise of their almighty (!) authority, have taught that such obedience was necessary, and that no matter what the Saints were told to do by their Presidents, they should do it without asking any questions.

When the Elders of Israel will so far indulge in these extreme notions of obedience, as to teach them to the people, it is generally because they have it in their hearts to do wrong themselves, and wish to pave the way to accomplish that wrong, and wish to use the cloak of their authority to cover it with, lest it should be discovered by their superiors, who would require an atonement at their hands.” (S. Richards. Millennial Star 14:594)

I think an appropriate way to end this article is with a quotation by President George Q. Cannon, and may his blessing rest upon us all.

“Brethren and sisters, live so that each of you can go to the Father and ask and receive from him the blessing that you need. He has said, “Cursed is he that putteth his trust in man, or maketh flesh his arm. “Do not build upon man. Do not lean upon him, but lean upon our Father in heaven. Seek unto him; implore his blessing; ask for light and strength from him; humble yourselves before him, and confess your sins; be of a broken heart and contrite spirit, and he will visit you with his Spirit, and bestow upon you gifts such as you have never yet received.

That you may do this, and that we all may do it, that we may be eventually saved and exalted in the kingdom of our Father, is my prayer, in the name of Jesus. Amen. (G.Q.Cannon. J.D.19:111)

From Volume 1, Issue 2 of LDS Truth Seeker magazine. 

Firstly, it must be pointed out that the subject under discussion is sermons; given at sacrament meetings, conferences and the like. There has always been room for the reading of prepared papers in seminars and similar meetings, and quite often youth have been encouraged to prepare short addresses on specific topics, like ’scripture gems’ for those who remember them. Likewise, those teaching classes such as Sunday School will often have prepared a short talk, possibly to set the scene for discussion. Also, there may occasionally be letters or notices to be read to the congregation, and probably other exceptions that I have overlooked. However, with these situations excepted, it can be clearly shown that the early practice of the church was extemporaneous sermons, with an abhorrence for written talks. …

“With the Latter-day Saints, the idea of writing sermons or preparing addresses beforehand is entirely discarded; it never was practised amongst them.” (George A. Smith JD 13:292)

And to show that this was not just a local phenomenon, but instead, a church-wide practice:

“Hence the folly of sermons written beforehand; and unless the written beforehand sermons are by revelation, or prophecy, all men the world over, may know when they hear a sermon read from the pulpit, that God has no hand in that matter; and the preacher is not sent of God; and is not God’s servant.” (Editorial, Deseret News, 4th September 1852)

Were not the earlier Saints told:

“… take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak. For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you.” (Matthew 10:19-20)

As Moroni pointed out:

“…their meetings were …after …the workings of the Spirit, and by the power of the Holy Ghost; for as the power of the Holy Ghost led them whether to preach, or to exhort, or to pray, or to supplicate, or to sing, even so it was done.” (Moroni 6:9)

And closer to our times:

“…it always has been given …and ever shall be, to conduct all meetings as they are directed and guided by the Holy Spirit.” (D&C 46:2)

This is not to be compared with a system where Saints earnestly pray for the Spirit to direct, and then structure meetings to largely prevent Heavenly direction, most often arranging speakers, topics, even hymns and prayers, in advance of the meeting.

To listen to a Saint who does not prepare a talk is to listen to an honest expression of his or her beliefs and understanding and experiences, not another’s words or learning prepared at another time. It provides much greater room for inspiration and the influence of the Spirit; not just in how the subject is addressed, but the very choice of subject and the whole direction the sermon takes. Certainly, an individual will benefit from preparing a talk, for they are studying the Gospel and will receive the blessings of doing that; they go astray when they use that talk in a meeting, for there is ‘a more excellent way.’ Thus, as they do not know who will be called upon to speak, Saints arrive at a meeting to truly take part, not just to passively listen. They are there as potential participants, not casual observers. No-one prepares a talk once a year and then settles back to inactivity for 51 weeks. Rather, they are encouraged to live the Gospel, so that at any moment they are ready to expound upon it. As Wilford Woodruff commented:

“It is well known to the Latter-day Saints – though perhaps not to strangers – that no Elder or member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who enters into this tabernacle knows who is going to be called upon to speak to the people. Hence no man spends a week, a day, an hour, or a moment to prepare a discourse to deliver unto the people.” (JD 24:236)

Hence the Saints are prepared to discuss the Gospel with others, rather than read talks to each other. Their worship is personal, they speak with the Saints and with God, rather than read a talk to them.

As one who has been privileged to conduct, observe and participate in meetings and conferences under the current Church system, over a period of years, and then contrasting this with the experience of conducting, observing and participating in meetings which are organised as led by the Spirit, where no-one knows if they are to be called upon, where no-one even knows how many speakers there will be, or for how long they will each speak, I can testify that the Spirit can be poured out upon the Saints in great measure only as we conduct our meetings in the way God has set forth clearly in His scriptures. It is a more excellent way.

From Volume 2, Issue 1 of Truth Seeker magazine. 

Although it is apparent that hatred and persecution are not solely the prerogative of the true followers of Christ; nevertheless, it would seem sensible to believe that true followers of God in this dispensation would not merit any more popularity with the world than true Saints of any other period.

From the very beginning of time it is noteworthy that Abel in his desires to do what was acceptable before God incurred the wrath of his less-than-righteous brother, Cain. In similitude of the coming of Christ and the atonement, it was necessary to institute a plan by which people could show faith in God and prepare for the coming Saviour. As noted in “Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith”:

“By faith in this atonement or plan of redemption, Abel offered to God a sacrifice that was accepted, which was the firstlings of the flock. Cain offered of the fruit of the ground, and was not accepted, because he could not do it in faith, he could have no faith, or could not exercise faith contrary to the plan of heaven.” p.58

In Moses, Chapter 5, we get a much clearer picture of the situation than that which remains in the Bible. Heavenly Father, having already revealed to Adam and Eve the law of sacrifice, Adam happily, unquestioning, offered up the firstlings of his flock. Many days after, an angel appeared to Adam and asked him why he was offering sacrifices to God; when Adam admitted that he did not know why, the angel went on to explain that it was an allegory to the sacrifice of Christ. Afterwards, Adam and Eve rejoiced and “made all things known unto their sons and daughters” – then, Satan appeared on the scene and told them not to believe, many made the choice to follow him: “and men began from that time forth to be carnal, sensual, and devilish.” (Moses 5:13) In verse 18 we see that Cain, at Satans’ command, proffered the unacceptable fruit, rather than the firstlings of his flocks as he had been instructed to do. When Heavenly Father refused to accept this, Cain was angry. Heavenly Father was quite direct and gave instruction:

“If thou doest well, thou shalt be accepted. And if thou doest not well, sin lieth at thy door, and Satan desireth to have thee, and except thou shalt hearken unto my commandments, I will deliver thee up and it shall be unto thee according to his desire. And thou shalt rule over him”. Moses 5:23

After these strong words, Heavenly Father went on to explain that should this be his choice, then he would be accursed, but still offered him the opportunity to repent. At this point, Cain refused to listen to God, or to his brother Abel, who walked uprightly before Him, and Satan proceeded to manipulate him and encourage him to kill Abel. As stated by Nephi “Because he had fallen from heaven, and had become miserable for ever, he sought also the misery of all mankind.” (2 Nephi 2:18) Satan was aware that Cain would suffer the consequences of misdoing and would have been delighted to have such a good collaborator.

Cain was called Master Mahan and “gloried in his wickedness”, after he committed the foul deed he revelled in the fact believing himself to be free, even anticipating being willed his brothers flocks. He obviously had no faith in Heavenly Father, and believed that he could do whatsoever he wished, without reprisal. As He had indicated, Heavenly Father was then compelled to curse Cain and to make him pay for the effects of his sin. As a direct result of his loyalty and obedience to the laws of God, Abel became the first person to suffer the outcome of hatred and rebellion, it could be said that he was in fact the first Christian martyr.

In the meridian of time, Jesus Christ himself often referred to the persecution of those who adhere to true principles, warning that many will even be killed in the name of truth. In Luke 21:16-17 he informs his disciples thus:

“And ye shall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and kinsfolk, and friends, and some of you shall they cause to be put to death. And ye shall be hated of men for my name’s sake,”

Also, in Luke 6:22-23 He explains:

“Blessed are ye when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate you from their company, and shall reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of man’s sake. Rejoice ye in that day , and leap for joy; for, behold your joy is great in heaven for in the like manner did their fathers unto the prophets.”

This is expanded upon in John 15:18-24 where sound counsel is given to Saints of all dispensations:

If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you.
If ye were of the world, the world would love his own, but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.
Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.
But all these things will they do unto you for my names sake, because they know not him that sent me.

If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin; but now they have no cloak for their sin.
He that hateth me hateth my Father also.
If I had not done among them the works which none other man did, they had not had sin: but now have they both seen and hated both me and my Father.

As Parley P. Pratt so aptly described it in verse:

The hirelings priests against the truth engage,
While hell beneath stands trembling, filled with rage;
False are their hopes, and all their struggles vain;
Their craft must fall, and with it all their gain;

The deaf must hear, the meek their joy increase;
The poor be glad and their oppression cease.

And so we move on to this the last dispensation – The Dispensation of the Fulness of Times … From the onset, from the critical interval when Joseph knelt in the grove of trees to entreat Heavenly Father to give him answers concerning which church to join, the power of Satan was made manifest to him:

“After I had retired to the place where I had previously designed to go, having looked around me, and finding myself alone, I kneeled down and began to offer up the desires of my heart to God. I had scarcely done so, when immediately I was seized upon by some power which entirely overcame me, and had such an astonishing influence over me as to bind my tongue so that I could not speak.”

Can we just take a moment to imagine what Joseph, a young man of merely fourteen, may have felt at this point. Terror? Horror? Petrification? He carries on:

“Thick darkness gathered around me, and it seemed to me for a time as if I were doomed to sudden destruction.”

We tremble with him, engrossed in this fearful vista. At this hopeless period he drew upon his innermost strength, crying for support from God:

“But exerting all my powers to deliver me out of the power of this enemy which had seized upon me, and at the very moment when I was ready to sink into despair and abandon myself to destruction, not to an imaginary ruin, but to the power of some actual being from the unseen world, who had such marvellous power as I had never before felt in any being….”

The powers of evil were formidable and were loosened to test the boy to the n’th degree: he would not give in to them, but used this as a platform to draw upon his innermost strength and faith to communicate with Heavenly Father. God did not forsake him, but came at this pivotal climax, in person with Christ, to instruct and direct the future prophet. What WONDER, what relief, must have flowed through the lads’ being at such an extraordinary development! That such a fundamental and simple question should bring about such a revelation. Also, little did he know the persecution that would eventually be heaped upon him. Yet another example of the persecution of the faithful.

Thus it should be clear that persecution will always follow those who follow the Lord; it may vary in intensity and may take many forms, yet it will always be present, for Satan will always attempt to stop Saints partaking of the waters of truth and eternal life.

The acceptance of any religious institution with the world is a sure sign that it has left the true principles that it was founded upon. The world is bound to hate the Gospel, for it is in opposition to it. Saints living the fulness would be socially, politically and economically independent of Babylon, which would hardly be attractive to it. Hence, as Brigham Young stated:

When we see the time that we can willingly strike hands and have full fellowship with those who despise the Kingdom of God, know ye then that the Priesthood of the Son of God is out of your possession. JD 10:273

Another interesting aspect to consider is whether people who are secure in their faith have any need to persecute others who differ in their opinions. Surely it is one of the fruits of the Gospel to be tolerant of others. George Q. Cannon expressed the same view:

You will never find a people of God who have the truth persecuting another people. If they were to do so they would cease to be the people of God. It is the characteristic of the Church of God always that it never condescends to persecution. It does not fear the announcement of any doctrine, or any principle, or any form of belief, or any so called revelation. Strong in the knowledge that they have the truth and that God is with them, such a people can afford to let false doctrine when it manifests itself have the freedom of action, the right of agency which God has given unto every human being and which every human being has a right to exercise undisturbed by his fellow man so long as he does not interfere with the happiness and lives and the liberties of his fellow men.

Deseret Evening News article of July 11th 1885

The final word will be left to Brigham Young, who discoursed at some length on persecution in 1853:

But how do the people feel? Perhaps you will refer the answer of this question to myself. Were I to answer it, I should say, they feel every way. Permit me to refer particularly to the brethren and sisters who have lately come to this place they have all the variety of feelings that is common to the human heart. They know how they feel; they are my witnesses. The most frivolous and trifling circumstance that can transpire, will produce in them the most keen and cutting trial. What can we say about it? For one I will say, let them come, the small trials and the large ones; let them be many or few, it is the same; let them come as the Lord pleases. Brother Heber C. Kimball was speaking this morning about this people being driven from pillar to post, and he told the cause of their many trials. I will ask a question concerning this matter. If you had not been driven from York State, the persecution become so hot as to send you up to Kirtland, Ohio, would you have known as much as you now know? Persecution did not commence in Kirtland, nor in Jackson County, but it commenced at the time Joseph the Prophet sought the plates in the hill Cumorah. It did not commence after I came into the Church, but I found it at work when I entered the Church.

Suppose Joseph had not been obliged to flee from Pennsylvania back to York State, would he have known as much as he afterwards knew? Suppose he could have stayed in old Ontario County in peace, without being persecuted, could he have learned as much as he did by being persecuted? He fled from there to Kirtland, accompanied by many others, to save their lives. There are men now in this Church, whom I see before me, and in full fellowship, who haunted my house for days, weeks, and months to kill me, and I knew it all the time; and Joseph had to flee to Missouri.

Would he have known as much if this persecution had not come upon him, as he afterwards did by its coming upon him? When the people left Kirtland they went to Jackson County, Missouri, and Joseph commenced to lay out a city to be called Zion; and not now, but after a time, when the Lord has accomplished His preparatory work, it will be built, even the New Jerusalem. The brethren were persecuted also in Jackson County, and driven out; they had trial upon trial, persecution on the right hand and on the left. Suppose, when they went to Jackson County, all the people of Missouri had hailed them as brethren, fellow citizens, and as neighbors, and had treated them accordingly, and they had been protected in their religious liberty, would the people that were driven from Jackson County have known as much as they now know? Could they have gained the knowledge and wisdom they have obtained by means of their persecutions? You can answer these questions to suit your own minds. When they had to flee from Ohio to Missouri, it certainly gave the people an experience they could not have obtained in any other way. When they were driven from Jackson County, and went to Clay, Ray, Caldwell, and Davies counties, persecution still followed them, and every man and woman who acknowledged Joseph Smith to be a Prophet, had to leave the State forthwith.

I feel inclined now to give some of you a gentle touch on the left side. Brethren, how glad I am to see you; how pleased I am to see you; where have you been these few years back? Where have you been living? Where did you go after you left Missouri? “Why I stayed there.” I say, there was not a man who would say that Joseph Smith was a Prophet, could stay there; they had all to leave the State; and you will now show yourselves at this late day, and try to have us believe you are first-rate Latter-day Saints. My thoughts are, “YOU POOR DEVILS!”

I hope I do not hurt any of your feelings. If you will do right from this time henceforth, and help with your mights to build up the Kingdom of God, I will hold you in fellowship after you have thus proved yourselves. But you may regard it as an established fact, that I have no fellowship for you yet; and I have as much as the Lord has. Still, if I have anything to fear, it is that I fellowship people too much, when they are not worthy; that is, I reflect “Can I be more merciful than the Lord?” But I have not got light enough nor wisdom enough to fellowship men who lived in peace with those who sought to kill us.

Ask yourselves whether you think this people would have received as much as they have received, if they never had been persecuted. Could they have advanced in the school of intelligence as far without being persecuted, as they have by being persecuted? Look for instance at Adam. Listen, ye Latter-day Saints! Supposing that Adam was formed actually out of clay, out of the same kind of material from which bricks are formed; that with this matter God made the pattern of a man, and breathed into it the breath of life, and left it there, in that state of supposed perfection, he would have been an adobie to this day. He would not have known anything.

Some of you may doubt the truth of what I now say, and argue that the Lord could teach him. This is a mistake. The Lord could not have taught him in any other way than in the way in which He did teach him. You believe Adam was made of the dust of this earth. This I do not believe, though it is supposed that it is so written in the Bible; but it is not, to my understanding. You can write that information to the States, if you please ÄÄ that I have publicly declared that I do not believe that portion of the Bible as the Christian world do. I never did, and I never want to. What is the reason I do not? Because I have come to understanding, and banished from my mind all the baby stories my mother taught me when I was a child.

But suppose Adam was made and fashioned the same as we make adobies; if he had never drunk of the bitter cup; the Lord might have talked to him to this day, and he would have continued as he was to all eternity, never advancing one particle in the school of intelligence. This idea opens up a field of light to the intelligent mind. How can you know truth but by its opposite, or light but by its opposite? The absence of light is darkness. How can sweetness be known but by its opposite, bitter? It is by this means that we obtain all intelligence. This is,”Mormonism,” and it is founded upon all truth, upon every principle of true philosophy; in fact the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the only true philosophy in existence. There is not one particle of it that is not strictly philosophical, though you and I may not understand all the fulness of it, but we will if we continue faithful.

Let the brethren who have been persecuted and driven from city to city, inquire of themselves if they like it. Some of you may give a negative to this inquiry. You recollect brother Taylor telling about a woman in Far West who had her house burnt down some four or five times; she finally said, “she would be damned if she would stand it any longer.” If her eyes had been opened to see, she would have thanked the Lord for that, more than for anything else; that persecution was more precious to her than riches, because it was designed to teach her to understand the knowledge of God. Do I acknowledge the hand of the Lord in persecution? Yes, I do. It is one of the greatest blessings that could be conferred upon the people of God. I acknowledge the hand of the Lord in levelling His people to the dust of the earth, and reducing them to a state of abject poverty.

Time and time again have I left handsome property to be inherited by our enemies.

Suppose we were called to leave what we have now, should we call it a sacrifice? Shame on the man who would so call it; for it is the very means of adding to him knowledge, understanding, power, and glory, and prepares him to receive crowns, kingdoms, thrones, and principalities, and to be crowned in glory with the Gods of eternity. Short of this, we can never receive that which we are looking for.

For example, I will refer to your crossing the plains. How could you in any other way have known the hardships incident to such a journey? And do you not feel ashamed for getting angry at your cattle, or for letting passion arise in your bosoms? Suppose you were rolling in wealth, and perfectly at your ease, with an abundance around you; you might have remained in that condition until Doomsday, and never could have advanced in the school of intelligence any more than Adam could have known about the works of God, in the great design of the creation, without first being made acquainted with the opposite? “Is there evil in the city and I have not done it, saith the Lord.” There is no evil that is not known to the Lord. He has been perfectly acquainted with all the persecutions the Saints have passed through. His hand was there, as much so as it is in building up and tearing down kingdoms and thrones on earth; and even the moth we trample upon is not overlooked by Him. Everything is under His watchful eye; he understands all the works of His hands, and knows how to use them to His own glory. He has given the children of men the privilege of becoming equal with His Son Jesus Christ, and has placed all things that pertain to this world in their hands, to see what use they will make of them.

Joseph could not have been perfected, though he had lived a thousand years, if he had received no persecution. If he had lived a thousand years, and led this people, and preached the Gospel without persecution, he would not have been perfected as well as he was at the age of thirty-nine years. You may calculate when this people are called to go through scenes of affliction and suffering, are driven from their homes and cast down, and scattered, and smitten and peeled, the Almighty is rolling on His work with greater rapidity. But let you and me live and die in peace, and in our lives we send the Gospel to the nations, from kingdom to kingdom, and from people to people, will it advance with the same speed if it receive no persecution? If we had received no persecution in Nauvoo, would the Gospel have spread as it now has? Would the Elders have been scattered so widely as they now are, preaching the Gospel? No, they would have been wedded to their farms, and the precious seed of the word would have been choked. “Brother Joseph, or brother Brigham, do not call upon me to go on a mission, for I have so much to do I cannot go,” would have been the general cry. “I want to build a row of stores across this or that block, and place myself in a situation to make $100,000 a year, and then I can devote so much for the building up of the kingdom of God.” The Elders would have been so devoted to riches, they would not have gone to preach when the Lord wanted them. But when they have not a frock to put upon the backs of their children, or a shoe for their feet, then they can go out and preach the Gospel to the world.

Well, do you think that persecution has done us good? Yes. I sit and laugh, and rejoice exceedingly when I see persecution. I care no more about it than I do about the whistling of the north wind, the croaking of the crane that flies over my head, or the crackling of the thorns under the pot. The Lord has all things in His hand; therefore let it come, for it will give me experience. Do you suppose I should have known what I now know, had I not been persecuted? I can now see the hearts of the children of men with the same clearness as I can your persons in the light of day. I know we have been sunk in the depths of poverty and wretchedness, by the hands of our enemies, but in this we have seen the works of the Lord, and the works of darkness intermingled; this has taught us to discriminate between the two, that we may learn to choose the good, and refuse the evil; or in other words, to separate the chaff from the wheat. Journal of Discourses 2:5-8

Joachim was a mere 17 years old. He lived in Jerusalem. His father, Jarusha, was a strict Pharisee, and sat on the local Yad Yeshem of the local synagogue, a leader of the local congregation of Jews. Jarusha was particularly schooled in the Testament, and had studied a particular subject which had drawn him all of his life – the Messiah. Joachim was an excellent student of the Testament, too, having studied under Gamaliel, the famed teacher of the Scriptures, which put him in good stead to succeed his father, one day, as a particularly gifted student and teacher of the Torah.

The Family of Jarusha, were very strict in keeping the dietary laws of Israel, in that they would not eat pork, nor of any of the forbidden animals as outlined in the Testament. The Sabbath Day was observed with great strictness, as were all the Ten Commandments. Even the rules and regulations that the High Priest of Israel, Caiphas had handed down, were observed with strictness, exactness, and honour. The High Holy Days, were observed with the required piety. In every way, that Jarusha understood, he kept the duties and laws of being a Son of the Covenant with exactness and honour. Each year, he and his family who were of age, would make the annual pilgrimage to the Temple in Jerusalem, which wasn’t that far away.

One day, two men of rather rough appearance, appeared at the door of Jarusha’s home. “We bring glad tidings of great joy”, was their first Message. “For the Messiah has come among us, has carried out His Mission, and has returned to live with Father in Heaven.” Jarusha, of course, was not home, but off to a local city on business, with his merchant business, of providing fine furniture to the upper classes of the area, catering specifically to wealthy Romans. However, Joachim was home and being a tad more “open-minded”, invited these two men into the home, fascinated to hear their Message, knowing how much he and his father had discussed the matter of the coming Messiah.

These two “rough” men, began opening up the story of Yeshua IsNazaret, a humble Carpenter, who had been born in Bethlehem and who had lived in Nazareth most of His life, and who was the Messiah. They spoke of the Atonement and of His Death and Resurrection… and at each juncture, they showed Joachim right out of the scriptures, how Yeshua had fulfilled each part of the Prophecy of the Messiah in the Testament. With each “proof” from the Scriptures, Joachim could clearly see how Yeshua had, in fact, fulfilled the Prophecy. He was becoming increasingly convinced of the Message of these two men.

With the completion of the “story”, the two men told Joachim, he would have to ask God, if the things they were teaching were true. God would tell him. And then, just like that, they left–they left Joachim to sit and ponder their Wonderful Message. He did just that, and as he pondered, he heard himself say: “Oh, Adonai, Giver of All Truth, tell me truly if this Yeshua, the Carpenter of Nazareth, is the Messiah.” No answer was forthcoming, but that night, as Joachim slept, an angel came to him in a dream and standing at the opening of a tomb he had never seen, invited Joachim to enter the tomb, and showing him the empty place, with the used burial clothing, exclaimed in a sweet, musical voice, in pure Hebrew: “Come and see the Place where your Messiah was laid. For He is not here. He has risen, as was prophesied in the Testament.”

Joachim awoke, crying, his heart full of Joy, his whole body on fire, as if he were to be lifted right off of his bed. He knew! He absolutely knew for a fact that this Yeshua Is Nazaret, this Yeshua ben Adam, was the Promised Messiah. He could hardly wait for dawn, to seek out these two men and find out more of what they knew, and to know what more he must do to follow this Messiah, that he had just discovered.

And then the thought occurred to him – How would he tell his father? Oh, his father would be overjoyed, to learn that the Messiah had come and had already carried out His mission. Leaving his bed chamber, Joachim entered the kitchen, to see his mother and two sisters, preparing the morning meal, as was their custom. His father was in his office, dressed in his usual Pharisaical garb, complete with skull cap and a very serious demeanour. For Jarusha, life was a very serious matter, and there was no room for fun or games.

“Good morning, father,” Joachim said almost cheerfully.

“Good morning, son, ” mumbled the senior Pharisee.

“Father, I have some good news.” Jarusha looked up, with a scowl. “I have found the Messiah. Two men came by here while you were gone and shared with me the story of a man who fits the Prophecies in every way, and who has already come among us and carried out the mission of Messiah.”

Jarusha even scowled more, his face starting to turn red. “If it is that Yeshua Is Nazaret, you can forget him. He is no Messiah. I suspect the deceivers have come among my own household to lead them astray, with their species of false doctrines and heresies.”

“But father, I had this dream of an angel coming to me and the most wonderful feelings of Joy that engulfed my heart, as I contemplated their Message yesterday. I just know He is our promised Messiah.”

“Son, do you see Israel established in her glory as God’s Kingdom? No, you do not. We are still in bondage to the Roman tyrants. Do you see the Armies of Israel organized as they once were, when our Glorious King David ruled as God directed him to rule? No, you do not. But most importantly, the distinguished Sandhedrin, the Council of Learned and God-fearing men who rule our people, Israel, as well as the great High Priest, himself, Caiphas, have correctly adjudged this man as a traitor to Israel, as a blasphemer against our most Sacred Laws, and as a person guilty of Treason against Caesar. He was properly adjudged and crucified for his sins. Later, as sworn testimony will show you, dear son, his body was stolen by a few of his disciples, who now claim he was ‘resurrected’. We have the affidavits, sworn testimony of the Roman guards who were eye-witnesses to the theft of the dead body of this malefactor. Now, his followers go about the country attempting to subvert our people by leading them astray with these ridiculous and unfounded and false stories regarding the supposed Messiah-ship of this Carpenter’s son. Further research, has shown that he was actually the illegitimate son of a Jewish handmaiden and a Roman guard. But to cover up the misdeed, the story went about that he was somehow miraculously conceived, the son of God and this wretched woman. So son, put away your foolish notions and rest assure that you have been carried away in the deceptions of Satan in believing this man as our Messiah. He just doesn’t fit the Prophecies.”

Joachim sat and mused for a minute. He had never ever won an argument with his father. And he knew the Commandment to honour his father and his mother, as one of the Ten Commandments. To disagree with his Father, was tantamount to dishonouring him. And if this “testimony” he had received were to go any farther, it would eventually mean his banishment, not only from his Community of Israel, but from his dear family. He knew for a fact his family would disown him.

And as Joachim thought more on the subject, he reasoned in his mind: “Some of the most knowledgeable and best men in Israel, men of renown, men of great understanding of the Testament, men of experience, have ALL disavowed and rejected this Carpenter’s Son as our Messiah. How can two such rough and uneducated men be so stupid as to ignore all of that evidence? Fifteen men sit on the Sandhedrin. Fifteen men listened to the Testimony of those involved with this Yeshua ben Yusuf (if he truly is the son of Yusuf) and all came to the same conclusion–he was a malcontent, a blasphemer, and a man guilty of treason, unto crucifixion. And then, there is our Great High Priest – Caiphas – who challenged him to declare that he was the Messiah–and then, this Carpenter’s son blasphemed and said he was – at least Caiphas said he blasphemed. And in our law, blasphemy is punishable by death. And he broke the Roman Law, too, and was properly adjudged and crucified as a treasonous man.”

Joachim was reeling. So much evidence against this Yeshua. So many men of great renown all saying the same thing – “He’s no Messiah.” Then, like a brick, it hit Joachim, as if he realised something for the first time. “Oh, my goodness, if Yeshua is the Messiah, as these men claim He is, then the leaders of my People are guilty of murder. They killed the Messiah. He is not guilty of blaspheme. He is not treasonous. He was set up and rail-roaded to the cross.”

That was too much for Joachim. For he knew many of these men. He even met Caiphas once and was overwhelmed with his goodness and his strictness in keeping God’s law. The men on the Sandhedrin had done a wonderful job of leading and guiding the People of Israel through all the years of captivity, causing them to be able to live the Laws of Moses without interference, and protecting them from the Zealots who would bring the wrath of the Romans down on them in the form of new civil laws designed to oppress them. He had heard men on the Sanhedrin give talks in the Temple and in the synagogue and they were such excellent talks, explaining many parts of the Law that had added greatly to his understanding of God’s Will for His People. No, these men were not murderers. No, these men had not sent an innocent man to the cross. No, Israel was not under condemnation for murdering their Messiah. God would never abandon His People, Israel. God made Eternal Promises to the descendants of Abraham, and when God makes Eternal Promises, He never reneges or goes back on those promises. And his family and those who lived God’s Religion, the Law of Moses, were the descendants of Abraham, heir to the Promises of God. God had not cursed them, but blessed them, and it was obvious to anyone who wanted to open his eyes, how Israel had been blessed with the blessings of God.

“Rest assured, Israel is on track”, Joachim thought to himself, “And one day, the Messiah will come as promised and free our nation from the shackles which now bind her. And then, she will take her rightful place at the head of the Nations, with God, the Messiah at Israel’s head.”

And with the talk of his father so fresh in his thoughts and his own reasonings and logic, Joachim breathed a sigh of relief, grateful he had been saved all of the heartache and suffering that comes with deception and apostasy. How close he had come to being deceived, but thankfully he had heeded the advice of his legally constituted religious leaders–his father, his Rabbi, his Cohen, and most of all, the Sanhedrin and the High Priest, Caiphas, in finally coming to a resolution on this “Yeshua issue.”

Paul, in his address to King Agrippa, preached Christ and taught the Gospel. In response Agrippa replied coldly, “Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian.” Agrippa was convinced, but he was not converted. Why? Because of the hardness of his heart. He would not allow his spirit to respond to Paul’s message. …

Joseph Smith also had a message. He revealed to the world the fullness of the everlasting Gospel, never to be taken away, or changed. Yet we find within the Lord’s church those who would appear as Agrippa. If asked to respond to the original writings of the Prophet they too would have to reply, “Almost thou persuadest me to be converted.” It is not enough to be convinced of his divine mission; to know intellectually will not bring about the response of the spirit necessary to receive further light and knowledge. Someone once said that, “Knowledge without use is like a glass eye; all for show.” Knowledge once implemented becomes power. However, the motive of the man must be right, if the man is to exalted. Hell, as they say, ‘is paved with good intentions’. Might we say this also, ‘Hell is filled with inmates who have become sheer intellects. Inmates who know the truth but do not use it?”

Brigham Young commented:

I have always realized that a half-hearted “Mormon” is one of the meanest of human beings, for such are always ready to say, “How do you do, brother Devil?” and “How do you do, brother Jesus?” or, “Brother Jesus, I want to make you acquainted with brother Devil.” It is no trouble for them to turn unto Baal or unto Jesus; yet, at the same time, the Lord has a use for them. I have often heard men say they were convinced that “Mormonism” was true, and that they would cleave to it; but as for their hearts being converted, it is altogether another thing. (Journal of Discourses 6:321)

When man was given his free agency, he was given at the same time power to be master of his mind. He can, however, choose to be servant to it; the choice is his. The mind, though, is a poor master, a lowly creature with carnal desires, very open to persuasion and corruption. Led by his mind the man would be confused, tossed in the wind like a weather vane. To illustrate: There was a cholera epidemic; a scientist found the drinking water to be contaminated and warned the people to boil the water; however, he forgot, drank the water, fell victim and suffered the consequences. It would appear that our leaders have fallen victim also,, depriving many Saints of the choicest blessings of the Lord.

Lucifer for certain is a fallen intellectual, whereas the Saviour is a Glorified, Exalted Intelligence. Both knew the truth, but only one applied it. In doing so the Saviour won a Fullness of Truth, which is available to all men, should they desire it with all of their heart. As Moroni 10:5 informs us:

And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.

Conviction is mental assent, would not the reader agree? If so, then it would lack the power to impel; the man by his conviction would become a mental giant only. To have a firm foundation would it not take conversion also? This would make a man well balanced; therefore he would be safe, not likely to be swayed from that which he is both convinced of and converted to. If a man knows but does not do, then he is essentially intellectual and cannot be united with himself, yet alone with his God. Man, in his search for knowledge, can cultivate an ungovernable lust for knowledge, yet in the end he must admit that it was not enough. To receive the full understanding and meaning of the Lord’s designs and purposes concerning his children it is imperative that man be obedient to all that the Prophet Joseph Smith revealed. Well, if it agrees with his reasoning, he might! When a man learns to love truth it will lead on to greater truths. These can only be heard with spiritual ears and seen with spiritual eyes. As James 4:10 instructs:

Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.

Man alone cannot yield to truth, it takes divine intervention; it takes the giving of the fruit of life, after the search for it. Why does man try to, ‘go it alone,’ when he cannot succeed? John 15:7 counsels:

If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.

Man, without God, cannot be converted. God without man is handicapped. As a team, man can overcome the doubts and fears that flood his mind. Once converted he reaches upwards and is in a position to receive. He is able to grasp new values. He is born again, and again, and again. As Mosiah Chapter 27 informs us:

26 And thus they become new creatures; and unless they do this, they can in nowise inherit the kingdom of God. 27 I say unto you, unless this be the case, they must be cast off; and this I know, because I was like to be cast off. 28 Nevertheless, after wading through much tribulations, repenting nigh unto death, the Lord in mercy hath seen fit to snatch me out of an everlasting burning, and I am born of God.

Can we say that a man who is converted will be in a position to comprehend truth without fear or compulsion? He will indeed be ‘free to choose’. Conversion being physical, it will enable him to ‘feel.’ Being mental, it will have him ‘know.’ Being moral, he will walk ’straight.’ Being spiritual, it will have man ‘aspire;’ to reach upward and outward. Man will in turn learn to love his God, he will desire to ‘worship,’ he will become ‘religious.’ It will bring him to a fulness of truth.

What then of the fruits of conversion? The convert will know truth from error, he will have the gift of discernment. He will have assurance. The convert is destined to do great works, as John 14:12 informs us:

Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.

Also, John 15:8:

Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.

He will be called to teach, God being his teacher. He will become sanctified; the choicest fruit of all.

Conversion usually takes a life time of hard labour. Seldom does it come as it did with Nathanael or Alma; but come it must, to every soul that desires the richest blessings. May we strive to understand the mission of the Prophet Joseph Smith, and by doing so begin to know by the Holy Ghost who this man truly was.

It will be in obedience to truth that man will find the God-given power to aspire, and to receive the ‘mysteries of Godliness.’ The Lord is ever mindful of His children, and desires to bless them. He knows that man is weak, unyielding and blind. Yet he reaches out to them with ever extended arms. In this final dispensation He asked that His words be received for the last time, yet man has changed them. It is only by becoming converted to the fullness of the Gospel as revealed to the Prophet Joseph Smith, on top of being convinced that ‘Mormonism’ is true, that we will be able to truly become Saints of these latter days.

“The Journal of Discourses deservedly ranks as one of the standard works of the Church, and every rightminded Saint will certainly welcome with joy every Number as it comes forth from the press as an additional reflector of “the light that shines from Zion’s hill.” (Journal of Discourses Preface. Vol.8)

.

This statement by George Q. Cannon, Apostle of God, sets the scene for what has become regarded by true Gospel scholars as one of the most important sources of doctrinal teaching in this the dispensation of the fullness of times.

President Joseph F. Smith, counsellor to Brigham Young and later Prophet of God, made this statement with reference to the Journal of Discourses:-

“We feel confident that the important instructions on principle and doctrine therein contained, relative to the building of Temples, the salvation of the dead, the introduction of the Order of Enoch, and the general progress and development of the great Latter-day Work, will prove as interesting, gratifying and beneficial to the Saints and to posterity, as those that have been previously published through this medium.

We regret that the circulation of the JOURNAL OF DISCOURSES is so limited. Its importance would warrant a thousand-fold greater extension of this work. We anticipate a time, not distant in the future, when a copy of the present volume will be more precious than gold. It is even now almost impossible to obtain a complete series. Copies should therefore be carefully preserved by all subscribers. (Journal of Discourses Preface. Vol.18)

What are these Volumes that have been so highly recommended? Who compiled them? If they are so important why are they not well known and used regularly by the general membership of the Church today? Are copies available? If so, where and how can they be obtained?

Hopefully this article will answer these and many other important questions with regards to possibly the greatest, but probably the least read, series of books in Latter-day Saint history!

The Journal of Discourses are a set of 26 volumes, adding up to nearly 10,000 pages of talks that were extemporaneously given. The early Saints felt that it was important that speakers should follow closely the admonition in the scriptures;

“Neither take ye thought beforehand what ye shall say; but treasure up in your minds continually the words of life, and it shall be given you in the very hour that portion that shall be meted unto every man.” (D&C 84:85)

This was confirmed by Apostle and future member of the First Presidency, John Henry Smith, when he, acting as editor in charge of the Journal of Discourses, wrote the preface to the 24th volume:

“This, the Twenty-fourth Volume of the JOURNAL OF DISCOURSES, like its predecessors, consists of sermons of Latter-day Saints, extemporaneously delivered and phonographically reported. That those who are privileged with its perusal may profit not only by the letter, but by the spirit also of the utterances herein recorded, is the earnest desire of the publisher.” (Journal of Discourses Preface. Vol.24)

In fact, in the preface to the index, produced and compiled at Brigham Young University in 1959, the statement was made:

“…In most cases it appears that the speakers depended almost entirely upon inspiration from the Holy Ghost, and the subjects discussed were intended for the greatest benefit of the Saints.” (Paragraph 2, Preface. Journal of Discourses Index.)

Surely this is an example to us all. I, for one, have never come across anyone that has failed to be impressed by the Spiritual feast that is to be found within these Journals, as they carefully peruse its pages.

The talks contained in the Journal of Discourses were given by over 100 different authorities in the Church, the majority, by Apostles and Prophets of God. The discourses, in the main were given between the years of 1854 and 1886, but some talks that had been given previous to these years were also included, as well as some that were given by the Prophet Joseph Smith.

Some people have stated, without any foundation whatsoever, that the talks reported in the “Journals” were inaccurately recorded and reported. But all the evidence that is available goes to show that those chosen to make a record of the talks, did so in an extremely accurate manner, and had the complete confidence of the leaders of the Church in giving a faithful and reliable record of that which was said. In fact, Brigham Young once stated:

“I know just as well what to teach this people and just what to say to them and what to do in order to bring them into the celestial kingdom, as I know the road to my office. It is just as plain and easy. The Lord is in our midst. He teaches the people continually. I have never yet preached a sermon and sent it out to the children of men, that they may not call Scripture. Let me have the privilege of correcting a sermon, and it is as good Scripture as they deserve.” (J.D. 13:95)

he also said this:

“I say now, when they are copied and approved by me they are as good scripture as is couched in this Bible, and if you want to read revelation read the sayings of him who knows the mind of God,…”

Obviously, Brigham Young approved and supported the Journal of Discourses and anybody who reads them with the Spirit of God as their guide “will know for themselves, and not for another,” that the talks contained therein are truly the word of God to all who have “ears to hear.”

“Each successive Volume of these Discourses is a rich mine of wealth, containing gems of great value, and the diligent seeker will find ample reward for his labor. After the fathers and mothers of this generation have made them the study of their lives their children’s children will find that they are still unexhausted, and rejoice that this Record has been handed down from their fathers to also aid them in following the way of life.

No one can remain a Saint long, unless he progresses by seeking after the higher knowledge, spirit, and power of those who are set to lead him. A little observation and experience will also satisfy him that he can never fully understand their sayings until he has advanced as far as they have, and sees and comprehends as they do, hence he will ever find their instructions the great fountain from which he must draw the elements of his own progress.” (Orson Pratt. Journal of Discourses Preface. Volume 3.)

Orson Pratt, truly described the “Journals” as a “rich mine of wealth,” and encouraged people to read it’s pages. Why then are there so few people which do this? It has been estimated that there are only a dozen or so copies in the whole of the British Isles; if they are so important, why is this?

Possibly one of the answers that is given, is the cost element. With 26 Volumes, normally in hardback, the cost for a complete set is normally well over œ100.00, and individual copies are few and far between.

But surely, I hear you say, if they are so important, the Church could produce them in large quantities, and have the cost drastically reduced. Well, I’m sure they could, if they had a mind to, but for some reason, the Church leadership have major qualms over the benefit of the “Journals” to the Saints of today, and many leaders of the Church recently, have even expressed that they would not even have a set in their own home, and would be concerned if they knew of members that did! Mark E. Peterson, stated himself that:

“I personally never use them…”

and

“It seems to me that we have so many good books in the Church that are accepted that we could do very well to obtain what we need from the Journal of Discourses from the books that the Church itself has published, such for instance as the Discourses of Brigham Young, prepared by Dr. Widtsoe.” (Letter from Mark E. Peterson to Ernest Cook. 30th November 1976, copy in authors possession.)

From what Elder Peterson states, he seems to imply that the “Journal of Discourses” are not accepted by the Church, and that they were not published by the Church at all!! A fact that all informed people know to be false. As a point of interest, the book recommended by Elder Peterson, “The Discourses of Brigham Young” by John A. Widstoe, has much selective editing involved, as well as some of the most vital tenets of the early Church being omitted. There has even been some falsification in the transferring in some of President Young’s talks, totally changing the context of what he said!

I think though, that I would agree with Elder Peterson on his first point, that the Church does not, today at least, accept the “Journal of Discourses” as an official organ of Church doctrine, which in some ways is strange, because doctrines or principles cannot change, they are eternal, and those principles and doctrines which leaders of the Church taught 150 or so years ago, should still be true today.

We all understand that the Journals contain items of instruction that were specifically given to benefit the Saints of that day, but there is also much contained therein that should be as beneficial and applicable to the Saints today, as it was back then. Surely that is what Orson Pratt and Joseph F. Smith were saying in the quotations cited above!!

One benefit or blessing of living in this day and age, is the computer, and now, the Journal of Discourses in its entirety is available on computer disc, and enables the user to easily search through all the volumes in a matter of seconds for any reference that they so wish. These discs are cheaper than the books themselves, and are much more easily available. The “Truth Seeker” offices can be contacted with more information as to where these may be obtained. The following quotation shows how the Saints, as well as non-members would have appreciated the facility that we have today.

“We now present the Eighteenth Volume of the JOURNAL OF DISCOURSES to the Saints, and to all lovers of the Truth.

It is impossible to give monetary value to the past volumes of this publication, and the best evidence that they are appreciated, is to be found in the fact that they are sought alike by non-members as well as by members of the Church, and in contrast with many works of greater pretentions, book-stalls are searched in vain for even solitary copies.

Those who read the utterances of the servants of God, contained in this book, under the same influence by which the speakers were inspired, cannot fail to receive profit from the perusal. Therefore, “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.”" (Joseph F. Smith. Journal of Discourses Preface. Vol.18)

I think also the advice given in the final paragraph of the above statement by Joseph F. Smith is very applicable to all who have an opportunity of reading the “Journals,” and should be heeded. Surely then, the promise made by Apostle Albert Carrington will help us in achieving the ultimate goal of exaltation.

“We take great pleasure in presenting to the Saints and the world the Fifteenth Volume of the JOURNAL OF DISCOURSES, which they will find contains rich treasures of information concerning the glorious principles of Eternal Life, as revealed through God’s anointed servants in these last days.

All who read the discourses contained in this Volume are earnestly recommended to adapt them to their lives by practice, and we can confidently assure them that, in doing so, they are laying up a store of knowledge that will save and exalt them in the Celestial kingdom.” (Journal of Discourses. Preface Vol 15)

In conclusion, let me encourage all to feast upon the spiritual food contained within these books. Do not let anyone put you off reading the wonderful talks contained therein.

Remember:

“All men can be profited by perusing its pages and pondering over the words of truth and salvation as they flow in beautiful simplicity and power from the mouths of the Living Oracles.” (George Q. Cannon. Journal of Discourses. Preface Vol. 9)

The “Journal of Discourses:”

“…ought to prove a valuable acquisition to all those who love the truth, and long for redemption of scattered Israel.The “Journal of Discourses” is a vehicle of doctrine, counsel, and instruction to all people, but especially to the Saints.” (Daniel H. Wells. Journal of Discourses. Preface. Vol. 10)

“It is replete with good teachings and wise counsels, and it may be read with profit by all lovers of truth.” (Albert Carrington. Journal of Discourses. Preface Vol. 17)

From Volume 1, Issue 3 of Truth Seeker magazine.